Amber Eyes

FORTY THREE

a/n: I give up on the banners they make me lazy af bro

Chapter Forty Three

The common room is cold when I enter it.

The windows are wide open, making the curtains flutter as the wind gushes inside the room. There's no one but one guy here other than me, his feet propped up on the table as he leans back on his chair, reading a book. Usually, I would expect more people to be here at this hour but since it's a school night, most of the students are either asleep or hunched up doing their homeworks in their rooms.

"Hey," he says to me without looking up at first. Then, he keeps the book down, giving me his full attention. "Where were you?"

"Out."

He nods, knowing that I wouldn't elaborate. Without giving it much thought, I walk towards the table and reach for one of the water bottles, pouring some in a glass and gulping it down. I won't say that I'm not tired but I'm not sleepy either. I'm up to date with all my assignments as well. I keep the glass on the table and pull out the chair, taking a seat in front of him.

I eye the cover of his book. The Wuthering Heights, it says. So he likes classics. I expected this.

"So," he says, dragging the word on. He props up on his elbows, eyes on me as if he's trying to read me but he can't. "Did you hear about it?"

"Hear what?" I ask him because I genuinely have no idea what he is referring to. This guy really needs to learn how to be on point instead of trying to be mysterious because he's really shit at that.

"Right. Yes. You don't exactly keep track of the stuff on the school forum. I forgot." He takes out his phone and opens the forum, keeping it in front of me. His eyes are on me as I read the news.

Last year batch - top of the houses arriving tomorrow for
Redville Fest Discussion
Melpomene: Diego Matias
Clio: Clara Elvar
Callope: Isaac Harrison
Euterpe: Gabriel Liamme

"Gabriel Liamme," I say out loud. "Is he related to Arlo Liamme, by any chance?"

He laughs at that, taking his phone back from me and leaning back. "Yeah. Nephew."

"Why are you showing me this?"

"Because it means trouble for you. It's obvious," he tells me, running a hand through his hair with a sigh. "You do know what happens at the Summer Fest, right? It's a big thing around here."

"Yeah, I know what it's about. The graduates of the previous year return for some performance as a form of an extended farewell or something. Right?"

I've read about this in my sister's diary. She performed in it once during her first year and then never, ever did it again. She wasn't able to even though she wanted to do it. I could literally hear her words and feel the hype as she wrote the words. Sometimes when I read her diary as a source of comfort, I wonder whether she ever considered becoming a writer. She would have done a great job at it, honestly.

Elliot nods. "Yeah. That's what it is. And it's the first major event open to the public during the year. And that's why your performance there adds to your grade."

I almost cough. My eyes go wide and I try to suppress a scoff but fail. "You mean that a fucking farewell party where people who are not even a part of this academy anymore will perform with us is going to contribute in our fucking ranks?"