Chapter 116 | A Second Chance and a Loaded Threat

I picked up my phone while Belle watched me with those calculating eyes.

morning sleepyhead

Aurora. Right. The orange-haired menace who’d somehow gotten herself classified as an ally after approximately forty minutes of conversation on a cliff. I stared at the message for a moment, then typed back.

good morning. how’d your squad do?

like us upperclassmen have to do those petty cute little tests lol

The dots appeared. Disappeared. Appeared again. My phone buzzed with new messages.

we cleared ours in 25 min. 31 cores. S-rank

but it’s alright

S-rank. On an E-rank gate. Jesus Christ. That was probably the fastest clear time in the entire batch of assessments. My fingers tightened around the phone. Aurora wasn’t just ranked twenty-three. She was actually that good. The evidence was right there in black and white.

i have a meeting with some guilds on monday

Of course she did. Silver-rank second years with perfect clear times got recruited early. Probably had multiple offers already. Good contracts with signing bonuses. The kind of opportunity lottery kids like me dreamed about.

really?

i mean yeah your girl’s a badass

i’m not ranked that high individually for no reason

I could hear her voice through the text. That raspy confident tone she used when stating facts about herself. Not bragging. Just existing in her competence. Like gravity or oxygen – just another force of nature.

anyways got anything planned for our date?

Wait.

you did get a pass to go to the mainland right?

What.

a what?

its saturday

The dots disappeared completely. Stayed gone for fifteen seconds. My stomach clenched. When they came back her message was short.

you forgot

Fuck.

no I didn’t forget I just

The lie died in my fingers before I could send it. I absolutely forgot. Between the gate assessment and Blair’s Summit House ambush and Belle showing up at midnight and Naomi’s hurt feelings this morning, Saturday had completely fallen off my mental calendar. I stared at the screen, frozen, as Aurora typed again.

you forgot

I’m gonna choose to find that charming instead of insulting

mainland passes require 48hr advance request

which you clearly didn’t submit

so we’re not going anywhere

Naomi leaned over my shoulder. Read the messages with zero shame or apology. Her breath was warm against my ear, carrying the scent of mint toothpaste.

"You have a date with the ranked Silver?"

"Had. Past tense. I fucked it up."

"By forgetting?"

"By being an idiot."

Belle materialized on my other side. She’d apparently finished eating and decided my phone conversation constituted public entertainment. Her body pressed against mine as she craned her neck to see the screen.

"Who’s this?"

"Aurora Fitzgerald. Second year. Ranked twenty-three."

Belle’s eyes went wide. Properly wide. Like I’d just told her I had a date with the president or announced I was secretly heir to a Fortune 500 company.

"Aurora Fitzgerald asked you out?"

"Yeah."

"Aurora Fitzgerald with the orange hair and the curves and the sensory hijack ability that makes people question reality?"

"That’s the one."

"And you forgot?"

"I had a complicated week."

Belle looked at Naomi. Naomi looked at Belle. Some silent conversation happened between them that I wasn’t privy to. Girl code probably. Or they were planning my funeral. Could be both. I was about to interrupt when my phone buzzed again.

so here’s what’s gonna happen

you’re gonna take me on a date on campus instead

tonight. 7pm. east field

bring food. something better than cafeteria garbage

and don’t be late

I’m giving you one chance to not be a complete disaster

I stared at my phone, processing the fact that Aurora hadn’t just told me to fuck off after I’d forgotten our actual plans. She was giving me a second chance. Why? What did she see in me that was worth that kind of patience?

deal

I’ll make it good I promise

you better

cause if you disappoint me twice I’m telling everyone about your milk thing

My stomach dropped to somewhere around my ankles, possibly lower. The ground beneath my feet suddenly felt unstable.

you wouldn’t

try me sleepyhead

She sent a fox emoji. Then went offline. The screen went dark, but the message remained burned into my retinas.

Belle was reading over my shoulder now. Had been for the past three messages apparently. Her blonde hair tickled my cheek as she leaned in closer.

"Milk thing?"

"Nothing."

"She’s blackmailing you about a milk thing."

"It’s not what you think."

"I literally have no idea what to think. Why would Aurora know about. Oh... you told her."

"She figured it out on her own mostly. I just confirmed."

"And she’s still. Interested? In going on a date with you?"

"Apparently."

Naomi stood up slowly. Picked up her tray with both hands. Her knuckles were white where she gripped the edges, contrasting against her dark skin. A muscle twitched in her jaw.

"I need to. Go think. For a minute."

"Naomi—"

"It’s fine. I’m fine. I just need to. Process."

She walked toward the tray return without looking back. Her pink and black hair swayed with each step, catching the light in hypnotic patterns. I watched her dump her half-eaten breakfast and disappear through the dining hall exit, her shoulders tight with tension.

Belle sat down in Naomi’s vacant seat. Reached over and stole the rest of my bacon right off my plate with practiced fingers.

"You’re an idiot."

"Aware."

"A genuinely impressive idiot."

"Thanks."

"That wasn’t a compliment."

Jordan lifted his head from the table. His face had a red mark where his forehead had been pressed against the hard surface. His eyes were barely open, hair sticking up at odd angles.

"What’d I miss."

"Jace has a date with Aurora Fitzgerald."

"No he doesn’t. Aurora doesn’t date lottery kids."

"Apparently she makes exceptions for lottery kids with stolen abilities."

Jordan processed this. His brain was clearly running on like three percent capacity but he tried. He blinked several times, looking from Belle to me.

"I’m too tired to understand what you just said."

"Good."