Phoenix

Chapter 18

Sparks

Phoenix's POV
Feeling the cool afternoon breeze stroke my face as I jogged felt refreshing. The soft sun cast speckles of golden rays which perforated past the whispering leaves and onto the foliar mantled ground. All the rest was haunted with shadows, yielded by the luxuriant rows of trees. If you were to listen closely, you could hear the trees whisper secrets to the ground in hushed tones. The rustling of the leaves creating the perfect berceuse to lull the world to sleep.
I had finally escaped my room after two days of preparing for the exam I had taken today, and so I spent the whole afternoon jogging in the forest encasing the academy. By now, the crisp zephyr and the long hours of jogging made my lungs burn with a fresh tingle.

As soon as I entered through the front gates of the academy and onto it's campus, a sudden force made me stumble to the front, almost making me land face first into the grass. Someone had jumped onto my back and wrapped their legs around my torso. As soon as the sweet scent of daisies and honey bewitches my senses, I haul her up higher onto my back, so she could now secure her petite figure on mine by enclosing her hands around my neck.

_ "Hey Nix!" Exclaims Essence as she ruffled my hair.

_ "Ciao piccolo zaffiro." I chuckle at her adorable behavior. As I gave her a piggyback ride across campus to the dorms, I look down to her legs which were crossed across my trunk. She wore the pair of old worn out converse on her feet, which her and I had doodled on a few nights ago.

_ "How did your exam go?" She asks, peeking at me from over my shoulder.

_ "Good. It went well." Thinking back to all the hours I spent studying made me nauseous.

_ "It better have, I haven't seen you for two days because of it." She whines and I once again chuckle. "Movie night?" Her mellifluous voice queried as she places her head on my shoulder.

Essence's POV
Just as Phoenix was going to give me his response, a handsome blond boy walks out of the girls' dormitories, head down. I observe him questioningly as he raises his head and stares at me with big blue eyes, recognition twinkling in his cerulean orbs.

_ "heyy... Essence right?" He runs his fingers through his hair, a tinge of nervousness tainting his voice.

_ "That's me." I nod, still confused on who this boy was and how he knew me. "And you are?" I ask. He blinks at me a few times before muttering.

_ "Right... uhm, Myles... I'm Myles Armstrong." He replied, looking almost disappointed, as if he expected me to know who he was. Myles looks at Phoenix, then back at me, with a confused expression. It is then that I realize I was still on Nix's back. I pat him twice on the shoulder, and he carefully puts me down on my feet.

_ "You're Raven's friend right?" Myles continues. I nod at him vigorously. "Do you, by any chance, know where she is? I've been looking for her all day, and she's not answering my texts. I just wanted to make sure she was okay." He cheekily explains. My facial expression morphs into one of surprise, before
turning into one of excitement and finally being replaced with a guileful smirk on my lips. I glance at Phoenix, who seemed equally as puzzled as I.

_ "She's..." I quickly think of a lie as to not tell him that she's on a mission. After all, we were not allowed to let anyone but our family know about the missions. "She's on a road trip the professor of science of poisons set up. They will be camping in some woods for a week or so, learning how to make poisons out of natural resources." I expertly pretence, knowing for a fact Myles didn't take this class. "They must not have service there, so maybe that's why she isn't answering your texts." I proceed, Phoenix nodding next to me for support. Myles exhales, looking relieved. I smile at the thought of having a boy care about my best friend. Especially someone like Myles, who looked too snobby to care, but was actually a softy.
"Would you like me to pass on some message incase I get ahold of her?" I grin slyly at him.

_ "No it's fine. Thanks Essence. See you around." He nods at us before walking away.

_ "Is this Raven's new boyfriend?" Chortles Nix.

_ "Seems so." I smile stupidly.

Phoenix left for his room, saying he needed to shower and change before our movie night, since he had been jogging all afternoon. I decided to do that same, and after finishing with my bath, I threw on a pair of biker shorts and a black thrasher hoodie I had managed to steal from Phoenix. Seeing as he was 1.86 m and I was 1.76 m, his hoodie fit me like a dress. As soon as I had it on, I was engulfed in his scent of a musk and oud mixture. I immediately felt my stomach flip. Snap out of it Essence! You two are just friends, he doesn't like you that way.

As I make my way out of the bathroom and into my room, rustling was heard from outside my window. Then the glass flew open, and a man burst through the linen curtains.
I almost yelped at the stumbling figure, concealed behind the hood of the hoodie he wore. But after seeing the all too familiar marmalade hair peek from under the cowl, my heartbeat slowed down and the surprise was replaced with frustration.

_ "Phoenix goddamnit!" I hiss. "Could you not have come in through the door like a normal person would? Hall monitoring hours have ended, why did y-"  my mouth flies shut as soon as my eyes meet Phoenix's face. His amber orbs scanned every inch of my body, as a smug smirk tugged at the corner of his perfect lips. I felt myself stiffen under his gaze, the hairs on my back standing as an electric wave shot up my spine.

_ "Are you teasing me little zaffiro?" His voice was low and husky.

_ "I- what? No!" I'm a thousand percent sure a blush had found it's way onto my cheeks. "Don't flatter yourself, it's just comfy and warm." I squeak, tugging at the sleeves. Something sparkled in his eyes at this gesture, and the caramel color darkened a shade.

What the hell is happening?

Phoenix briskly shakes his head, his hood falling off showcasing the beguile golden locks which bounced at his movements.

_ "So what are we watching?" He asks, as if nothing had happened.

_ "Public enemies." I chirp. It was one of my favorite movies, starring one of my favorite actors: Johnny Depp.

_ "Sounds good. What snacks have you got?" He asks, throwing himself onto my bed.

_ "What do you mean what snacks have I got? Did you not get snacks with you!?" I look at him bewildered and he returns the same expression.

_ "I thought we established I was going to go take a shower!" He vociferates.

_ "Oh no! This is not good! What's a movie night with no snacks!" I cry out. Phoenix zones out for a second, before his eyes land on mine, flickering with mischief.

_ "You ready for a late night adventure?" He poses, roguery evident on his features. I couldn't hold back the smile that was forcing itself on my face. Tonight was gonna be fun.

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Hey guys! Quick author note:
Some of you may have noticed some words in italic in my last 2 chapters. Those are in Italian, as Phoenix is half italian. Just wanted to clarify that.

Hope you are enjoying the story!
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Much love <3