Crystalline Cavern: The Brigaders

Chapter 11

Kai

      I can't believe I forgot about the test! I usually write it down somewhere or something but I guess I haven't been all that focused. I texted Eliza asking her if I could study with her for the test. It didn't take long for her to reply and she said I could come over. Something compelled me to run there so I did.

      I kept running towards the female dorm building and rushed upstairs towards her room. Every time I come on here, I think about the conversation we had and about what we talked about afterward during lunch the next day. It wasn't anything dramatic to mention it to Andy or Tyler. It was just something that was best kept to ourselves. She explained to me the times she avoided me to try and hide her emotions and about how she had to talk to her brother Anthony about me and asked for advice. It was a long and interesting conversation but in the end, I think we just became that much closer. It's like I told her, I may or may not be slowly falling for her, and every day she seems more beautiful. Is that weird? Probably.

      I knocked on her door with a bit of hesitation but still managed for a thorough knock. She opened the door and looked at me. I could tell she was a bit nervous. It seemed like she was saving her energy today seeing as how her hair was white and her eyes were a deep violet. Once again, beautiful. "Hey Kai, come on in." She blushed slightly. "So, I brought my books and vocabulary sheet, but then again, what was the point in bringing it if you have the exact same sheet due to the fact that we're in the same class." I let out a laugh and that seemed to calm her down a bit. "Yeah, but that's ok I guess. At least you came prepared right?"

      "Yeah, so we gonna study or what?"

      "Right! Sit over here so we can work on my desk." I went over and set my stuff down next to the desk. Our legs were barely touching. I felt her tense up a bit. "So, where do you wanna start?"

      "The beginning I guess?" I gave her a shy smile and she laughed a bit. "Right, well let's start with the first page of the review and we'll work from there."

      "Sure, you're the boss." We sat down and started reviewing the first page of the practice sheet. After about half an hour, Eliza said she was going to quiz me on everything we just learned. To be honest I mostly stared at her the entire time we were studying. "How about we start with the word coincide. Spell it and then give me the meaning of the word." I thought about it and then spoke. "C-O-I-N-S-I-D-E. It means having two sides of something?" She giggles and looked at me. I wasn't that far off, was I? "It's actually spelled C-O-I-N-C-I-D-E and it means for something to happen at the same time. You were close though." Man, this whole vocabulary shit is so stupid. "Whatever, what's the next word?" She sighed and laughed. "You know, if you don't get a good grade on this, your grade will go down and you won't be able to participate in TNT this year, right? That and you'll know nothing for your future Cirisse Exams."

      "Then I'll ask for extra credit!" She rolled her eyes. "Then what's the point of asking me for help if you plan on failing, and then getting extra credit afterward?" She made a good point, but to be honest, I think that in the end, I just wanted to be with her. I don't think that I'll ever admit it to her though. After a couple of more words, I managed to nail a few of them. Glad I'm smart enough to do so.

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      It's been about two hours and we've managed to make it to the second page already. Half the time we were joking around a bit but we still did some studying along the way. I realized how comfortable we both ended up in the end. She even put her legs up on my lap like nothing. Like any best friend would do. I would never achieve this level of comfort with Alina. I can trust Eliza with anything and there's no one else that I'd rather have by my side. "So do you want to move on to the next page?" I could only stare at the paper and process my thoughts. "Kai?"

      Even hearing her say my name puts me on edge. The girl I've known for years. The girl that I became friends with. The girl who'd argue with me about a training session. The girl that never let me down. The girl that would speak her mind about anything. The girl that trusts me with her secrets. The girl that I- "Kai? Do you wanna take a break or something?" I looked at her directly in the eyes this time. "Hey, are you ok?" I know that this is what I want, regardless of our Aura Núte. "Hello? Crystalline to Kai." I like her a lot. I want to be something more than just friends. It only took me five years to realize it. "Eliza?" I looked at her directly in the eyes this time. "Yeah?" I'm done being a coward. "I like you." I saw her body freeze up a bit. "Oh uh, I like you too Kai." I don't think she fully understood me. "No, I like you a lot. As in more than a friend." Her cheeks looked a bit flushed and there were tints of pink on them. I have a feeling that she might be a bit too shocked to speak. I gave her a moment so she could choose her next words. "But I thought-"

      "Yeah, I know. I just wanted to make sure that what I was feeling wasn't something that I could just put aside like it was nothing. We already talked about what would happen later on but we never talked about how we would deal with it." She looked at me with complete understanding but I wanted her to be aware of where I was going with this. "If we're going to do something about us, we need to agree on something."

      "What is it?"

      "Let's make a deal."