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Chapter 5

AVALINE

“Really? You can make a poem?” I challenged.

“You think I can’t?” he said.

“Go on, then!”

His lips curved into a twisted smile. “Like I said, I do not like wasting my time on things that would not benefit me.”

I scoffed. “Excuses.”

“Well, did your expertise in poems make you powerful? Get on top of the La Archante organization? Give you wealth and command over the people around you?”

I was taken aback.

“The only thing it did was make you a romantic. It did not give you what matters,” he added another blade to his first stab.

“Not that I can’t; they just wouldn’t let me,” I retorted.

“Because you’re incapable.”

“Because of our world’s notion that women can’t,” I emphasized.

“We don’t think that women can’t. La Archante has soldiers and security who are women. Even Pascal Monteval has soldiers who are women. I despise the man but I will let his name slip from my lips to prove a point,” he said. “You just can’t prove yourself enough to your father to make him let you in.”

How did we go from poems to this?

“You really can’t live without insulting me, can you? As long as you can’t stand on your own!” my breaths were heavy with anger. In my rage, all I could see was that. I wasn’t even aware of where we were, who was watching, or who was listening.

“You do not know what I can do, Czar. It’s been a long time since we last met. You don’t know me well. Neither do you nor my dad.”

If only I could boast about my skills with computers, I would have done it already. But it would look like I wanted his validation if I did that.

I turned my back on him, the desire to enter the mall and go to the bookstore no longer on my mind.

“Touchy,” he laughed. “Early in the morning and I already had my dose of winning. Don’t use your attitude on me, poet. I always win.”

I raised my middle finger in the air, knowing that he hadn’t left his spot yet. It made him laugh even harder. I would have turned around to see his laughing face because it rarely happens, but I’m pissed!

“No guards, poet?” he called out.

I kept walking. I wanted to go back to being a kid and slap him once. I can’t believe I let myself be under him. I let him order me around. I believed in the good. I believed that despite his arrogance, he was a good person.

“You escaped,” he said. Then I heard him approaching. “You’re feeling guilty too fast; are you going home already? Why not wait until your father sends his search and rescue team?”

I stopped walking and calmed myself. I should be smart. We may not be at war with La Archante, but that doesn’t mean Czar wouldn’t hesitate to hurt me. I'm not protected by his organization, so he has no reason to think twice.

“Have mercy on him, Avaline. He was born with a small brain, that’s why he’s like that.”

“I bested you in every subject. If I recall correctly, you only did my English homework back then. All other subjects were just my own work. So I don’t know why you’re saying my brain is smaller.”

Is he really a criminal? Yes, he scares others. But why do I feel nothing but annoyance towards him? It would be better if he just scared me instead.

“Go home, Czar. The way you’re acting is so childish. Isn’t it ruining your bad boy reputation?”

“I’m more than just a bad boy, poet. Much worse,” he replied in a lower voice, like a threat.

“Fine. You’re the master evil of all the living and the dead,” I conceded. He won’t back down easily.

“Master evil,” he laughed. “Want me to take you home?”

“Stop acting concerned, Czar. You just want to annoy Dad. You know he’ll go mad if he sees you were able to get close to me.”

“How’d you know?”

“Back off, Czar!”

It seems I raised my voice too much. A random foreigner immediately approached me.

“Babe, were you waiting?” I would have found it creepy if I didn’t see the concern in his eyes—if I was okay.

“Poet, be wise. My hands are itching,” Czar warned me, and I knew it would get bloody.

“N-no… I’m fine. I know him; we’re just having some…” My head swirled to meet Czar’s eyes. “Misunderstanding.”

“Are you sure?” He looked like he didn’t want to leave me because of how dangerous Czar looked.

“Yes. Thank you so much for your concern, sir. Welcome to Yekaterinburg,” I smiled warmly.

When he left, I faced Czar fully.

“Whatever your business is, just continue with it. I'm going this way,” I pointed towards the road home and then across the street. “You go that way. I have commitments to attend to.”

“Wife duties?” he taunted.

All his insults had gotten under my skin but I had no intention of letting him think I'm weak.

I smirked. “A marriage I consented to, Mr. Levesque. I'm no doormat. This marriage is happening because I said yes. If I had refused, it wouldn’t happen at all. Do you know what that means? My words have power over Dad.”

His face was stone cold—just like before but with a hint of teasing before; now it was pure ruthlessness.

“Then you should start looking over your shoulders for the rest of your life, poet. Whoever is important to Monteval is my target.”

I shivered.

“Is there no drunkard here?” a woman next to her in the cafeteria asked. I’ve been observing and listening for several days. Papa threw me into a lion’s den. I don’t understand anything they’re saying!

“You're cool!” said a guy to the girl with him. They were just heading to the long line.

“What’s your name?” the girl replied snappily. She pouted and glared at the guy next to her.

The boy scratched his head.

“No,” replied the girl. “I’m outta here. I’m going to study.”

It’s not good to listen in on other people’s fights. But I think I’ll do anything just to teach myself their dialect. My tutor didn’t teach me this dialect. I only know English, Russian, and Petersburgisms. I didn’t have any problems at my old school. My grades were good, and I wasn’t a troublemaker either. But for some reason, Papa decided to make me study somewhere far away.

“E-excuse me.” I really have to make friends. Fast. I don’t want to seem unapproachable. I just need to understand them, then we’ll all be good. This school year will be great. Miscommunication will be the root of all differences and disasters in this school if I don’t learn.

A girl lifted her gaze from her cellphone. I think I saw her in our classroom earlier, so we’re classmates.

“Yes?” she beamed with friendly warmth.

“Do you speak Russian?” I asked. Since she responded to me in English, I thought that would be our common ground for understanding each other.

Her brow furrowed. Her friendly smile turned into a confused yet entertained expression.

“Of course! Duh! We’re in Russia, girl! Are we foreigners?” she laughed lightly as if she couldn’t believe I asked that.

My cheeks warmed, but at the same time, the tightness in my chest from earlier due to anxiousness loosened up. I didn’t really need to be fluent.

“A-ah, I thought Russian wasn’t spoken here. I’m new here in Saint Petersburg,” I replied.

She nodded. “Oh! You’re the new student from earlier.”

Maybe she’s a socialite. Just after seeing me earlier, she forgot about me and wouldn’t remember unless I introduced myself. With so many acquaintances, maybe we mixed up in her mind. But why would she remember me if we weren’t friends?

“Uh… yes,” I awkwardly answered.

And it seemed she was pleased with my respect towards her, just like my schoolmates before. I felt proud of myself. She likes me.

“We do speak Russian here, but maybe you’re referring to Sarah and Ludwig? They also know how to speak Russian. They really only use Petersburgisms when they fight…” She leaned a little closer and whispered in a low voice, “And they fight too much for my taste.”

She giggled after what she said. I just smiled back.

“Maybe they always have hot tempers with each other since their first names start with the same letter,” she said.

What’s the connection between the letters of their names and fighting? I wanted to ask but we weren’t close enough for that question not to leave a bad impression on her.

“Oh no, it was so rude of me,” she said, placing her hand on her forehead. “I didn’t even tell you my name,” she said as she extended her hand. “Mavis.”

My heart leapt. Not bad for my first day! I won’t be alone at this school. I'm feeling more optimistic now that everything will go smoothly for me. If I managed a conversation with her, it won’t be hard with others either. There will definitely be more people for me to talk to next time.

I quickly took her hand out of joy. “Avaline Kaena. But just Ava for short.” I grimaced at myself; I almost pulled her closer out of excitement over what was happening.

Then one reminder made me bolt up from the bed. I grabbed the cellphone that Lian left on my side table. When I opened it, there was only one contact saved here.

Freya.

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