No Time For Distractions
Country: Aurivelle
City: Auremont
Alvara
I woke up before my alarm.
For a moment I just lay there, staring at the ceiling, trying to understand why my body felt like it had been thrown down a flight of stairs.
Then I tried to stretch my legs.
Pain shot through my thighs.
“Oh my God,” I groaned softly, burying my face into the pillow.
“I’m dying.”
Yesterday’s exercise.
A knock sounded on the door.
“Alvara?” Isabella’s voice came through.
“Are you alive?”
“Barely.”
I opened the door and Isabella peeked in, already dressed in leggings and a loose hoodie, her hair tied up high.
She looked far too energetic for someone who had also done the same workout yesterday.
“You’re still in bed?” she said with a grin.
“My legs don’t belong to me anymore.”
Isabella laughed and leaned against the door frame.
“You were the one who said if we skip exercise with the kind of food they serve here, our families won’t recognize us when we go home.”
I groaned again.
“Remind me why I say smart things like that.”
“Because you’re dramatic.”
“Rude.”
But I dragged myself out of bed anyway.
Ten minutes later we were walking out together, the cool morning air brushing gently against our skin.
The exercise area was already alive.
Students stretched across the wide courtyard paths, some jogging lightly, others doing warm-ups.
The sun was still soft in the sky, painting everything gold.
I rolled my shoulders slowly.
“Okay,” I said quietly. “My body is threatening revenge.”
Isabella laughed.
“You’ll survive.”
A voice cut in nearby.
“Well, some people will.”
I turned.
A tall girl stood a few steps away, adjusting the sleeves of her perfectly fitted workout jacket.
Leonora Veyra.
Leo.
Even in something as simple as exercise clothes she somehow looked polished, like she had stepped out of a fashion campaign.
She glanced at us briefly, her sharp eyes assessing.
“Yesterday’s session was basic,” she said casually. “If your muscles are already giving up, this place might be… difficult.”
Her tone wasn’t loud.
But it carried.
I raised an eyebrow.
“Good morning to you too.”
Leo smirked slightly, clearly amused.
Across the courtyard, another girl leaned against a low stone railing, holding her phone up at just the right angle.
Ally.
Alessandra DeLuca.
She snapped a picture, glanced at the screen, then snapped another.
“Morning light is perfect,” she murmured, mostly to herself.
A few girls nearby watched her with thin smiles.
I exchanged a glance with Isabella.
“Is she… taking photos?” Isabella whispered.
“Looks like it.”
“Hey!”
A voice called from behind us.
We slowed slightly.
Mila jogged up beside us, brushing loose hair from her face.
“I thought that was you two,” she said, smiling.
I recognized her instantly.
Mila.
We had seen her the previous evening in the personal studio area, quietly working on sketches.
“Morning,” Isabella said.
“Are you guys ready for today?” Mila asked.
I shrugged.
“Ask me after coffee.”
We ran together for a while, the three of us settling into a comfortable pace.
Ahead of us Leonora had already sped up, clearly determined to stay at the front.
Meanwhile Ally had abandoned jogging halfway through a lap and was now slowly walking while checking her phone.
“Influencer energy,” Isabella muttered.
I snorted softly.
By the time the exercise session ended, the sun had climbed higher into the sky.
Students stretched across the courtyard, some collapsing dramatically onto the grass.
I placed my hands on my knees, breathing hard.
“Okay,” I said.
“Now I’m officially dead.”
Mila laughed.
“You did great.”
“Lies,” I said.
We headed toward the refectory with the rest of the students.
And suddenly, despite the aching muscles and the long day ahead…
I felt something close to excitement.
The refectory was already buzzing by the time we walked in.
“Please tell me they will serve food in large portions,” I murmured.
Isabella laughed beside me.
“With the amount of calories we just burned? They had better ”
Kitchen staff moved between students,placing plates down with quiet efficiency.
No buffet.
Everything was served.
Very civilized.
We found an empty table near the middle of the hall and sat down.
I leaned back slightly in my chair, stretching my legs under the table.
“Okay,” I sighed. “Now my muscles are sending complaints to my brain.”
“Your brain ignores most complaints anyway,” Isabella said.
“True.”
A moment later one of the kitchen staff approached our table carrying a tray.
Within seconds our breakfast was placed neatly in front of us.
Brioche French toast with caramelized bananas
Chia pudding with passionfruit
Cappuccino and green tea.
For a second none of us spoke.
“Wow,” Isabella said quietly.
I nodded slowly.
“This place is dangerous.”
Just as I picked up my fork, Mila appeared beside the table with her tray.
“Mind if I join you?”
“Of course,” Isabella said immediately.
Mila slid into the seat across from us, looking relieved.
“I was starting to think everyone here already had their own groups.”
I pointed my fork toward the food.
“At least the food likes us.”
Mila laughed softly.
“If this is breakfast, I’m scared of lunch.”
I took my first bite and nearly sighed.
Maybe waking up early wasn’t the worst thing in the world.
Inside the classroom hall, rows of individual workstations stretched across the room. Mannequins stood beside some of them, silent and waiting.
It felt less like a classroom…
and more like a battlefield for creativity.
The instructors entered a moment later …ten of them.
Every single one looked like someone whose opinion could destroy or build a career.
One woman, not the one from yesterday.
She was elegant, sharp-eyed, and carried herself with the kind of authority that made the room quiet almost instantly.
“Good morning, designers.”
No one spoke.
Then she gestured toward the mannequins placed near the workstations.
“Today we begin with advanced pattern drafting.”
I glanced at the table in front of me.
Paper.
Measuring tools.
Fabric.
My fingers itched slightly.
Beside me, Isabella whispered under her breath.
“Okay… now I’m nervous.”
I smiled faintly.
“Good.”
Because honestly?
So was I.
But somewhere beneath the nerves…
There was excitement.
And I had a feeling this place was about to test every single one of us.
Dinner that evening felt quieter than breakfast.
Not because the hall was empty.
If anything, the refectory was just as full, voices overlapping across the room, chairs sliding, cutlery clinking softly against plates.
But the day had clearly drained everyone.
Hours of technical work had a way of doing that.
My shoulders still felt tight from leaning over the workstation for most of the afternoon.
Isabella dropped to the chair beside me.
“I think my fingers forgot how to relax.”
“You say that now,” I said, stretching my wrists, “but tomorrow you’ll be sewing again like nothing happened.”
“Don’t remind me.”
Across from us, Mila rested her chin in her palm.
Before we could say more, the kitchen staff arrived at our table, placing our plates neatly in front of us.
Around us, the hall buzzed with tired conversations.
Some students talked excitedly about their designs.
Others looked like they were still mentally replaying every mistake they had made that day.
For a while, we just ate quietly.
Then I noticed something .
The noise in the room had shifted.
Not stopped.
Just… shifted.
Like a ripple moving across the hall.
I glanced up.
Two guys had just walked into the refectory.
And judging by the way, several girls suddenly straightened in their seats…
They were popular.
The first one was tall, broad-shouldered, with dark hair that looked like it refused to stay completely neat.
The second stood slightly behind him, equally confident but quieter, his gaze moving calmly across the room.
Kieran and Ethan.
I didn’t know their names yet.
But I could feel the attention following them.
Isabella leaned closer to me.
“Why does it feel like half the room is holding their breath?”
Mila whispered from across the table.
“I think those are the guys everyone was talking about earlier.”
“Which guys?” I asked.
“The ones a lot of girls like.”
I raised an eyebrow.
“Already?”
“It’s been two days,”
“That’s enough time for chaos.” Mila said.
I almost laughed.
The two guys kept walking.
Straight toward us.
I frowned slightly.
“Wait,” Isabella murmured.
They stopped beside our table.
Up close, I could see they were both older than most of us … maybe by a year or two.
Poised
But not arrogant.
The first one…Kieran, though I didn’t know his name yet … rested one hand lightly on the back of an empty chair.
“Mind if we interrupt for a second?”
His voice was calm.
Easy.
Not pushy.
Isabella blinked.
“Uh… sure”
“We won’t steal too much of your time,” he said.
Kieran looked between Isabella and me.
“You two came in on the bus the first day, right?”
I exchanged a quick glance with Isabella.
“Yes,” she said slowly.
He smiled a little.
“Thought so.”
For a moment, he seemed to be choosing his words carefully.
Which already made the whole situation feel less ridiculous than I expected.
“We noticed you both that day.”
Ethan nodded slightly.
“First days can be overwhelming.”
There was something surprisingly normal about the way they said it.
Not dramatic.
Not flirtatious.
Just honest.
Kieran leaned back a little.
“But now that everyone seems to be settling in… we figured we should introduce ourselves.”
He gestured lightly.
“I’m Kieran.”
Ethan lifted his hand slightly.
“And I’m Ethan.”
Isabella smiled politely.
“I’m Isabella.”
Then she nudged my arm under the table.
“And this is Alvara.”
Kieran looked at me briefly.
Not intensely.
Just curious.
“Well,” he said, “nice to finally meet you properly.”
“So how are you finding the institute so far?”
Isabella answered first.
“It’s intense.”
Ethan laughed softly.
“That’s a good word for it.”
For a moment the conversation stayed light.
Easy.
But then he tilted his head slightly, looking at me.
“So… would it be completely terrible if we asked to sit with you guys sometime?”
There it was.
Not dramatic.
Just straightforward.
I felt something tighten slightly in my chest.
Not because of him.
Because of the question itself.
Because of what it represented.
I set my fork down slowly.
“Kieran,” I said.
My voice came out calmer than I expected.
“I didn’t come here for that.”
The table went quiet.
He blinked slightly.
“For what?”
“For distractions,” I said.
I pushed my chair back.
“I came here to learn.”
Isabella looked at me quickly.
“Alvara…”
But I was already standing.
“I’m sorry,” I said, though my tone was still firm. “I’m not interested.”
I turned and walked out of the refectory.
I didn’t stop walking.
Footsteps hurried behind me.
“Alvara!”
Isabella caught up a moment later.
She grabbed my arm lightly.
“What was that?”
I frowned.
“What?”
“You didn’t have to talk to him like that.”
I crossed my arms.
“He asked a question. I answered.”
“Yes,” she said, “but you could have answered calmly.”
“I was calm.”
“You were harsh.”
I didn’t reply.
She studied my face carefully.
Then her voice softened.
“Alvara… what is it with you and men?”
I looked away.
“I just don’t like distractions.”
“That’s not what I mean,” she said gently.
“I’ve noticed it. The way you react whenever a guy gets too close.”
She hesitated.
“Did something happen?”
The question hung in the air between us.
For a moment…
I almost told her.
The memory rose up in my mind before I could stop it.
Sharp.
But I swallowed it down.
“I’m just tired,” I said quietly.
Isabella didn’t look convinced.
But she didn’t push.
We walked back toward our rooms in silence.