Star Crossed Liars ✔

Chapter Eight

I had not slept at all.

I had my first test today, and I had been up revising all night. I felt sick to my stomach, my eyes droopy and desperate for sleep.

I had brought my study books down to breakfast, my textbooks sitting at my feet while I frantically wrote notes down in my book while a slice of toast hung out of my mouth.

"Allie, I think you should stop studying," Ivy suggested nervously, "You need to give your brain a chance to rest, otherwise, all the study you've already done will be useless,"

I shook my head, my pen not leaving the paper, "I can't. I'm not failing this exam and dropping a class."

"What do you mean, dropping a class?" Gabe asked, leaning forward, his eyebrows raised inquisitively.

I finished swallowing my toast, "I fail an exam, and there is a possibility that I get moved to a lower class. Visa Versa, if I do well, I could get moved to a higher class. If I fail an exam while I'm in the lowest class, then I become an undecided, automatically. The problem is we never get our results back, only at the end of the tournament. But they don't tell you which class you're in, I could already be in the lower class, I don't know. Either way, I can't risk anything,"

"So it's pretty high stakes, huh?" Orion muttered, his eyes on my workbook.

Julian scoffed, "I'm not sure revising will do you much good, can you even read your own handwriting?"

I glared at him, "Of course not, I decided to write illegibly on purpose."

He raised his hands in mock surrender, "I'm just saying, I can not read a single thing on that piece of paper. Your words look like little lines."

I went red, "No, they don't."

Gabe peered over at my book, "Yeah, they do."

I looked over at the girls sitting next to me, "Ivy, Valeria, Magnolia, does my handwriting look like 'little lines'?"

Valeria had a sharp intake of breath, "Yeah, I'm not going to answer that question,"

"Yeah me neither," Magnolia replied, while Ivy just gave a slight, embarrassed nod.

Colton's mouth was too full of bacon to even attempt a reply.

Orion looked at me, "I don't think they look like little lines, if that counts for anything"

I let out a sigh, "Thanks I guess," 

I picked up my coffee and poured the last of the liquid down my throat. "I'm going to go and head into the classroom, have a look around the room to see if I've forgotten to write down a note,"

"I might come with you," Orion announced, standing up, "I've got a private lesson with Alpha Graves, it starts the same time as your first lesson, and I think I'm just in the room next door."

I hesitated, but I didn't want to say no, not in front of the others. I also didn't want to say yes, not wanting to risk being in the sight of Alpha Graves.

"Sure," I ended up saying, shoving my notebook into my bag, "No problem,"

I walked around and started walking, Orion quickly catching up to me.

I left the eating hall and started travelling towards the main building, my book bag slowly weighing down on my shoulder. 

"So, just a question, if you end up in undecided, will you come into intended?" Orion asked.

My mouth dropped, the nerve! "No, I'll be staying there. I have back up goals Orion, chances are I'll be pursuing them,"

That wasn't a lie. My backup plan was just to go and be a chef like my parents. An eternity of misery, but at least I know I can do it.