18. Loveleena
LOVELEENA
The sun was still rising when Loveleena entered the mess hall for breakfast the following morning. By the time she made it through the crowd at last night’s Gala, Ren had disappeared.
She couldn’t find him, so instead she caught Ahmina as she was walking back to the dorms and asked if she could borrow some toiletries.
Ahmina just seemed like one of those people who would have packed extras of things, and when she handed over an entire, fully stocked toiletries kit including a toothbrush, toothpaste, a brush, soap, lip tint, and hair ties, Loveleena almost hugged her.
But Ahmina looked so fidgety she decided against the embrace.
Instead, she promised herself that if Ahmina ever needed anything, she would help her in return.
With her newfound toiletries in hand, she swung by uniform storage and grabbed a few extra-large shirts to sleep in.
She only had one pair of underwear and socks, which she planned to wash each night with soap until she could get more.
Unfortunately, her plan didn’t go as well as she hoped, and she walked into breakfast with slightly damp socks and underwear.
The mess hall was packed with bleary-eyed students running on only a few hours of sleep. Like walking corpses, they lined up to get fresh bread and morning stew from the cooks. Despite looking haggard, they all buzzed with excitement.
Zeroing in on the cook at the front of the food line, Loveleena marched straight for the plump, soft woman, cutting off several students in the process. “Good morning!” she said brightly. “Could I place a special order?”
The woman scowled. “Special order for what?”
“Well, I’ve heard the stew is terrible.” She bit her lip, realizing she was speaking to one of the cooks who made it. “I’d love a baguette with fresh cheese and tera.”
The woman cackled—actually cackled—in her face. “This isn’t a noble feast, girl. Get in line.”
Begrudgingly, Loveleena lined up with the other students, and when the cook finally plopped a giant spoonful of stew into her bowl, she laughed again, as if remembering an old joke.
Scanning the room, Loveleena looked for a group who might welcome her as a friend, and spotted Serena, her Trivium graduate lead, sitting with three others. She slid in beside them, her bowl hitting the table with a thud.
“Hey, Serena, right?”
Serena nodded. “Hi, have we met?”
“Oh, no, not exactly. I’m in Professor Barrow’s Trivium.”
“Ohhh.” Realization spread on Serena’s face. “Right, yes.”
The girl next to Serena interrupted with a wave to their left. “First years are over there.” Her bowl was empty, and she pressed a mug of freshly brewed coffee to her lips.
“You guys actually eat this stuff?” Loveleena picked up a spoon full and smelled it, her nose scrunching at the awful stench.
“First years over there,” the woman repeated, annoyed.
Loveleena didn’t care if she annoyed the woman.
She wasn’t about to be bullied into submission.
You had to have a strong back bone. Her father taught her that.
Nobles didn’t earn respect by being a pushover.
“You must all be graduate leads,” she reasoned since they were all in the mess hall.
Graduate Defenders didn’t typically eat there unless they were involved in student training in some way.
“It’s a lot to take on, guiding first-years in addition to your regular Defender duties, I’m sure.
What made you all want to become Defenders in the first place?
” She had always been a yapper, so when the four Defenders stared at her deadpan, she kept talking.
Despite her many years of etiquette training, she had a tendency to over share.
“Personally”—she shoved a spoonful of stew into her mouth, almost choking on the taste as she did—“My best friend Park inspired me. Not that he was a Defender, or anything,” Loveleena clarified, her mouth full.
The man across from Serena frowned. “Wasn’t he that first-year who—”
“Shut up, Declan,” Serena ordered, clearing her throat. “Sorry, but we need to head out for field work.” Her friends took her cue and they all stood up to leave. “Have a safe first day.”
“Wait!” Loveleena called, but it was too late; the four of them were already disappearing out the entrance. It took her a moment to process what had just happened, but when she finally put the pieces together, hope bloomed in her chest. Serena and her friends knew Park. He had been here.
He had disappeared… to attend the Academy?
But if that was true, where was he now?
Loveleena left the mess hall without finishing her disgusting breakfast and went straight to Trivium. Her stomach ached from hunger, but she didn’t care. These people knew something about Park, and she was going to find out what it was.