Black Academy

Chapter 10 - Part 2

But which of his two faces would she go for? No, better to keep pretending that everything was fine. Elsa wasn't about to have a row with him in front of everybody. He'd caused her enough embarrassment already. "Sorry. Not funny. Come and be my muse, then, lovely Elsa?" Elsa concentrated hard on sorting the half-squashed tubes in her paintbox. "Tyler, if it's OK with you, I'd like to . . . um . . . be on my own?" Taking a deep breath, she managed to glance up and force a smile. "I've never been here before. It's pretty amazing. I need to think about it. If you don't mind." "Oh. Of course not."

His puzzled disappointment sounded genuine. But, then again, so had all his compliments, and Elsa knew now how much they were worth. For a few seconds Tyler hovered, as if expecting her to change her mind, then he wandered away. She breathed out a relieved sigh, and turned. Damn. She hadn't thought Jack would still be there.He glanced over in her direction, and their eyes met for a split second, before the unsmiling American turned away. Crossly, Elsa got to her feet and walked swiftly in the opposite direction. There were two hours to kill: surely she cold find something paintable, since Ariel obviously expected good work from her again. 

The gardens were not vast, but she had to avoid Jack. And Tyler. And Flynn, who was in a surly mod. And preferably Elena too . . . Lordy, her room for manoeuvre was limited. When she was certain that she was far enough away from everybody else, Elsa sat down on a low wall and began to draw desultory figures in her sketchbook. It was  more fun and a lot more involving than she'd expected, but just as her fascination with the tourists was wearing thin, and the crowds were dwindling, she spotted a little girl in a pink raincoat holding a bright-yellow balloon. That was better.

The child noticed the attention, made a face. Elsa made one back. A small tongue came out, and so did Elsa's. Hurriedly sketching the balloon clutched in one fist, Elsa found herself in a face-pulling contest. They were both giggling by the time a parent seized the child's hand and swept her off towards the gallery. Drat. She hadn't got the collar right: it looked like an Elizabethan ruff. Frustrated, she stared at the gap where the girl had been, and let her eyes wander for the first time in over an hour. They ached from concentrating, so she rubbed them.

As her vision cleared, she made out two familiar figures, barely twenty feet away. Jack and Flynn. Jack had been sitting on a bench, but he had half-risen to confront Flynn, who was standing over him. Flynn's posture was aggressive, his expression was twisted with rage, and he was giving Jack an earful. Jack seemed stunned, as if he'd been caught off guard, and as Flynn raised his voice, so did he. "Flynn, would you listen to me, for God's sake -" Elsa stood up, took a few steps towards them. Both of their heads snapped round simultaneously. Without a word, Flynn turned and stormed off, his feet crunching on the gravel path. Jack sat down heavily. 

Elsa hesitated, but something in Jack's expression was so miserable she couldn't help herself. She sauntered up to him, trying to look casual. "What was that all about? Artistic differences?" With a low groan, he put his face in his hands. Elsa waited, happy to study him. His sleeves were rolled up, revealing pale arms. His hands were beautiful too, and strong, but right now they were white-knuckled and tense. "Don't want to talk about it, eh?" "That's right." He took his hands away from his face and stared after Flynn. "Just like you, Elizabeth."

She shrugged, allowing herself a smile, since he wouldn't see it. His sketchbook was half-open beside him, so she took another sly peek at his face. He still wasn't looking. Leaning down, she flipped the cover back. If she hadn't gasped, she might have had longer to examine the picture. As it was, he whipped round as fast as a cobra and snatched it away, his pale cheekbones flushed. "It isn't finished." She chewed the corner of her mouth, not quite able to look at him. "Can I see it when it is?" "If I ever finish it," he said curtly as he got to his feet. "We'd better get back."

He didn't say another word to her, even though she walked at his side all the way to the Orangerie. They were the last to arrive and Elsa felt several pairs of eyes on them as they arrived. Elena's glare was ferocious: no doubt it wouldn't belong before Caroline heard how Elsa and Jack had emerged from the shrubbery together. Tyler's smile was a little less assured than usual; Flynn didn't look at anyone or anything. At least Signorita Ariel was delighted to see them. She clapped her skinny hands. "Wonderful. Now we must return to school, but Elsa, Jack! I am looking forward to seeing your finished work." I hope Jack does finish his, Elsa thought wistfully.

And she really hoped he'd let her see it. He'd drawn two simple figures who were watching one another with open delight and amusement: a small girl in a pink raincoat holding a balloon, and a laughing teenager cross-legged on a low wall, sketching her. The older girl looked so carefree, it would have been easy not to recognize herself. She did, though.

*

"Ooh, pretty woman," sang an American voice. Elsa snapped her head up, expecting to see Flynn's familiar features. But is was Tyler. He dumped his books on Flynn's desk, pulled out his chair and slumped down, linking his hands behind his head in a fair imitation of the American's cocky attitude. Elsa scrutinized him. "You're good at that." "What?" "Mimicking. You sounded just like him." "Why, thank you." He batted his long lashes at her. "Pretty good actor all round, really." "Hm?" His body tensed, very slightly. It put her in mind of a snake, somehow. Like the way a snake's whole length tightened like a spring, just before it struck out. Be careful, Flynn had said in the restaurant. Falling out with Tyler could be really, really stupid, for more than one reason.

Not that she was taking Flynn's advice. But she wouldn't find out the Academy's secrets by having a strop with anyone who hacked her off. So don't get mad, she told herself: get even. Besides, Tyler wasn't the only decent actor around here. Elsa gave him a grin that put the big, easy smile back on his face. "Where's Flynn?" "He's not coming to classes today." Tyler's shoulders lifted slightly. "He isn't too well, I heard. Suffers from insomnia, you know. Perhaps he a particularly bad night." "Shame," said Elsa lightly. "So. You been avoiding me or something?" "Darling!" He sat a little straighter. "I thought you'd been avoiding me!"

"Course not. I've been busy, that's all." "And a bit sleepless yourself. I nearly fell off my chair when I saw in the common room door the other night." He was all concern, leaning forward. "Listen, if you want to see the place that much, I can try and arrange something." She gave him a sheepish grin. "Actually, I'd really like that. I got a bit lost, that's all. I like walking round at night when I can't sleep. I always did. Better than just laying there, staring at the ceiling."