Superior

CHAPTER NINE: Aisa

Dragging myself out of bed the next morning was almost an impossible task. Somehow I had mustered up enough willpower to actually start my day, but I sadly didn't have the power to completely erase last night from my mind. My fitful sleep definitely showed on my face thanks to the dark circles under my eyes. Since I couldn't even remember the name of the make up product used to cover those sort of things, I figured it was hopeless. What did it matter, anyway? It's not like I had any friends but Zander who'd actually care. But the small part of me that actually still had some sense was telling me No. You have to look presentable. You're in the Eligera Superiot, after all. And you can't let Raiker Denlow get to you. Maybe he's no better than his father. The thought sent a ripple of comfort through me; in the end, he was my father's enemy. What would he want to do with the daughter of his father's enemy?

Thankfully, I ended up listening to the voice and fixed myself up as best as I could. I picked up the... what was it- Concealer?- and got to work. It wasn't the best, but it was a good thing I did it though. For someone I had not expected showed up in my intelligence class first thing in the morning.

I was sitting down at my desk, head down and solving quiz questions when a beautiful storm of copper skin and black hair walked into the classroom, back straight in her perfect posture, handbag swaying as her glittering black eyes surveyed the room for empty seat. Every head in the room turned her way, some regarding her with annoyance and some staring at her in wonder. Hope swelled up in me; maybe I would finally find a friend?

Professor Antonelle looked up from his papers, peering at the girl over the frames of his glasses. "And you must be miss Fatima Ahmed," he said, almost with a sigh.

"Quite right, thank you Professor. May I please choose a seat?" She chirped, her sing songy voice echoing throughout the room. She spoke politely, but it was clear from the slight raise of her eyebrows that she was expecting a yes.

"Of course. Your classmates are working on a quiz activity right now. Please go ahead and join any group you wish. Or, if you would like to, you may work alone."

"That won't be necessary. I've already chosen my partner," she proclaimed. I could practically feel the waves of superiority radiating off of her. Her eyes travelled to the corner of the room. I suppressed a sigh as I glanced over at the small group of three stunning girls sitting elegantly there who were whispering amongst themselves, cupping their hands around their mouth as they stole glances at Fatima between their conversation. Of course she would pick them. Turning my eyes back down to my paper, I shut out the rest of the noises and got back to work. Intelligence was my favorite subject of the day, after all. Might as well make it count. It wasn't until I felt a tap on my shoulder that I looked up again. Biting back my annoyance, I glanced up at the person who had tapped me on the shoulder ready to passive-aggressively ask them to mind their own business. But the words died on my lips as soon as I saw who the person was.

Fatima stood over me, staring down at me with her dark eyes. "Is this seat taken?" She asked, pointing a perfectly manicured finger towards the chair right next to mine, cocking her head.

"Oh, no, it's not," I stuttered, taken by surprise. Out of all of the girls in this room, she chose me? That was unexpected. Very, very unexpected.

"Great," she said, plopping her handbag onto the table and settling herself into the chair. She produced a pink pencil from her bag, briefly skimming the questions on the paper, tapping her chin thoughtfully. I turned back to my work. She could surely handle herself from here on. But before I could even read the next question, I heard her hiss, "Aisa. Do you know the answer to this question?" She tapped her nail on the first question. "I seem to have forgotten the answer."