Given a Second Chance (Hiatus)

Bluebell Tournament Pt. 4

A/N: Hey guys, so bad news. Updates might be scarce as AP exams are coming up. If you're a junior like me, you'll know why I'm stressing. Anyways, I'll try to update whenever I can, but don't be too concerned when I don't. 

After winning my first battle, I returned to my seat, feeling both giddy and exhausted. A part of me was still in disbelief. I wasn't going to lie to myself, that guy was pretty strong. Nowhere near Alex's strength, but a few weeks ago, there was no way I could have gone against him without using my magic. 

As I approached my seat, Alice and Alex were standing up, smiling. Their eyes resembled those of proud parents seeing their child win a trophy. I rolled my eyes at the thought. When I was within hugging distance with Alice, she immediately embraced me and gave a light squeal. 

"That was great, Camille! Way to show off! Congratulations on winning your first battle," she smiled warmly at me. I returned the sentiment, hugging her tightly. My happiness seemed to overflow when there are people to support me. I hear a light cough to the side of Alice. Rolling my eyes, I released Alice to look at Alex. He was smiling, but didn't say anything. I tilted my head to say 'well?' 

He shrugged. "You did well," he began to compliment. "But I could've done way better". I groaned at that while Alice giggled. Man does he have high expectations. 

Looking at Alice, I suddenly remembered something. "Oh yeah, congratulations on your first win as well!" I exclaimed, causing her to blush. 

She shook her head, "It was nothing. I just got lucky, that's all." Still, she was smiling. Although extremely rare, light magic wasn't very powerful or effective. Alice managed to use it to her advantage though, blinding her opponent and then proceeding to use physical attacks. 

"Nevertheless, it was impressive," I refuted. Then, turning to Alex, I gave him a playful glare. "And you! Couldn't you have spared the poor guy? The battle barely lasted 10 seconds!" And it was true. Immediately after the bell rang, Alex ran up to his opponent faster than the speed of light and gave him a light kick, though this 'light' kick managed to push to guy 10 feet back, leading to his defeat. The poor kid didn't even have a chance to scream. 

Alex just gave his normal bright smile, though it was traced with sadism. Feeling cold sweat on my back, I decided to drop the subject. 

"So, anything else that I missed?" We all took our places in the uncomfortable seats of the arena and continued to watch battle after battle, each waiting for our own turn. 

XXXXX

Surprisingly, the battles that followed my first round went relatively smoothly. There was a girl who liked knives and was quick as a ninja but her attacks were too obvious. Then there was a guy who only knew how to use his strength and not his head. Before I knew it, I had won 5 battles in a row. I could feel the students' shocked eyes every time I returned to my seat in the stadium. My parents eventually came to watch my battles as well, their proud gazes following my back throughout. I was a little embarrassed but happy.

Unfortunately, Alice wasn't so lucky. Her strategy failed on her third battle- defeated by a wind user. She lost, but not without a fight. When I saw her, she was a little disappointed but seemed to have resigned herself to her loss. 

"To be honest, I did better than I thought I would," she smiled sadly. I just patted her back and gave her a comforting hug. Alex and Michael, on the other hand, did a little bit too well. All of their battles seemed to end in one hit K.Os, I could only gape at their success, but knowing that there was a good chance these two would be facing off with each other, I got excited as well. 

My excitement, however, completely subsided once I saw who my next opponent would be. It was Alice's turn to comfort me. 

"Don't worry. I'm sure Alex won't go too hard on you." Hey, Alice, your smile is a bit strained, don't you think? And what do you mean 'too hard'? There might a chance for- oh forget it. I'm gonna lose aren't I?