Present Time, Nolen School C
Even after thinking about the matter over the weekend, Misae still felt rather complicated. Her heart was torn in between two decisions, and she couldnât make up her mind at all.
In one side, she wanted to stay with Mike as he made her felt comfort. The time she spent with him all these times made her extremely happy. He was very kind and made her laughed a lot.
On the other side, knowing Mikeâs other identity made her troubled. The fear she had to the clans made her recalled her past, the experience that she had long buried in the depths of her heart. The thought of Mike got involved in those matters made her felt afraid.
She couldnât make the decision for herself.
"Misae, itâs morning. Will you go to school?" Claraâs voice reached Misaeâs room.
The girl was still lying on her bed, looking at the white ceiling above her. Her hands were holding a small doll tightly, seemingly unwilling to part with it.
âTime passes so swiftly,â Misae thought to herself.
"Misae?"
"Iâm coming, Mom."
Slowly, Misae moved her feet to the edge of the bed. She was still feeling conflicted with herself and confining herself for the past two days didnât work. All she got was her feeling turned to the worst and extremely conflicted.
Looking at her distressed daughter, Clara sighed to herself. She couldnât bear to see Misae like this, but she was not in the place to comfort the girl too. Moving to the girl in an unhurried pace, she pulled the girl to her embrace.
"Donât be afraid. Youâre going to be fine."
"Mom," Misae murmured.
Clara caressed the girlâs hair slowly, making sure that Misae felt comfortable. "Donât force yourself if youâre not ready, Misae. Mom will not force you too."
"I know, Mom."
His parents have always stayed by her side and protected her. She didnât want to make them worry much more than what they already had.
"Iâll be fine, Mom."
"If anything happens, just call me," Clara reminded Misae. "I donât want you to stay silent and endure everything by yourself."
"Okay, Mom," Misae smiled.
She finished her meal and quickly headed to school. However, her mind was still filled with the thoughts of what had happened not long ago. In the end, she couldnât focus on the lesson at all.
"Misae, what is wrong with you? You look like a zombie," Alice waved her hand in front of Misaeâs face in worry. What happened to her friend today? It was unlike Misae to zone out in class. She hoped that it was nothing bad.
"Iâm fine," Misae forced a smile out.
"The exams are over. You donât have to force yourself to study so much," Kanae remarked as she peered towards her friend with worry.
"Youâre one to talk with your work," Alice grunted.
Kanae laughed. "I donât work that much anymore. Besides, itâs the weekend."
Hearing the two of them bantered as usual, Misaeâs mood lightened. It seemed she enjoyed staying with her friends more than what she thought before. Having them stayed near her made her felt comfort.
"Do you want to ask Tommy to fulfill his promise now? Iâm sure I can make him become your trainer today," Alice offered. Maybe a bit of practice would make Misae cheered up.
"No, thank you."
"Youâre really going to practice running?" Laura was surprised. She thought that it was only a joke.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
Alice shrugged. "Why not? Itâs pretty fun."
Lauraâs face scrunched badly. She didnât like sport, not at all. Even though it was a promise they made with Tommy, she didnât want to stand under the glaring sun just to run.
"You donât have to force yourself," Kanae patted her sisterâs head.
"I know."
Alice giggled. She turned her head to Misae. "Hey, youâre spacing out again, Misae."
"Ah, sorry," Misae snapped back to reality again. Her mind was filled with the thought of the clan again, making her unable to focus on anything that happened around her.
"Itâs fine, try to pay more attention."
"Okay..."
"Thereâll be a meeting for the Student Council later. Can you attend, Misae?" Laura recalled their schedule for that day.
"I think so."
DING DONG!
The bell rang.
"Letâs get out of the class."
"Iâm already hungry."
"Sis, youâre always hungry," Laura shook her head.
The four of them were walking on the corridor when they saw Kevin and the others standing not far from them. They were looking towards the board, and the others immediately greeted each other happily.
"Good morning!" Kanae waved her hand to the three of them.
"You seem to be very happy today, Kanae. Is there any special occasion?" Neo remarked when he saw Kanae seemed rather energetic.
Kanae laughed. "Not really."
She has just finished the preparation for the mission today, so she tried to liven up her own mood as best as she could. The mission would be rather dangerous based on what she heard from Jason, so she didnât want to be too nervous and failed.
Mikeâs eyes landed on Misae. The two of them stared at each other without any intention to greet each other. From the fear that he detected in her eyes, he knew that she still couldnât get over the fact that he came from the clan.
Forcing a smile out, he made it appeared as naturally as possible. "Boss, itâs nearing the time for our class."
Seeing the unnatural state of Mike, Kevin felt rather displeased, yet his cold face showed nothing. He simply nodded his head as he could guess what Mike experienced right now. He was feeling troubled to stay near Misae because the girl couldnât accept Mike belonged to a clan.
Each of their relationships started to fall apart like broken down glass.
Seeing their weird atmosphere, Laura knew that something must be wrong. She noticed that Misae was shaking. Her eyes grew larger. Why should she feel afraid of her own boyfriend?
"Misae, are you alright?" Laura asked hurriedly.
Kanae noticed Misaeâs expression and understood things immediately. The only thing that could possibly frighten Misae was the people from the clan. As Misae became afraid of Mike, there was only one possibility: she found out that he came from the clan.
As she thought about this, her heart sank. It has been over three years since the incident happened, yet this girl still hadnât recovered? How long did she need to fully recover herself?
But she couldnât really say that to Misae. Her involvement in that matter was kept as a secret from Misae because Clara didnât want to let her daughter knew.