"Are you okay?" Luci asked, nudging Endora's arm when she noticed her distant expression. Endora just nodded, stabbing her fork into her food with more force than necessary.
Trying to distract herself, Endora turned to Rox. "So who's the senior prefect here? And what's this university really like?"
Rox smirked. "Well, that would be Zayden."
Endora's fork clattered against her plate. "Zayden? You're joking."
"Wish I was," Rox shrugged. "He's...complicated. The kind of guy you shouldn't mess with, but he's also weirdly cool when he wants to be."
Endora muttered under her breath, "Too late for that," before shoving a bite of food in her mouth.
Rox leaned in, lowering his voice like he was sharing a secret. "Now, about the students, we've got four types here." He counted on his fingers:
"First, the Untouchables: hotheaded, rich, and always getting away with everything. Total bullies. Think Elion and his crew." He jerked his chin toward a table where a group of polished students lounged like royalty.
"Then there's the Touchables: the ones the Untouchables pick on. Like Melia over there." He pointed to a mousy girl hunched alone in the corner, pushing food around her plate.
Endora's grip tightened on her fork.
"Third type? The Invisibles: ghosts who slip through four years without anyone noticing them."
Luci snorted. "Sounds peaceful."
"And finally," Rox said, grinning at Endora, "the Lightning Rods: people who become the center of drama the first day they step on campus. That'd be you, New Girl."
Endora rolled her eyes. "You just made that last one up."
Rox winked. "Maybe. But am I wrong?"
Endora swallowed the last bite of her food. "Yes, you're completely wrong," she said, wiping her mouth.
Rox smirked and took a sip of his drink. "You really don't get what's happening here, but I'll let you figure it out on your own."
"What do you mean?" Endora asked, frowning.
"You'll find out soon enough," Rox replied, glancing at Jamian, Fifi, and Luci. Endora only grew more confused.
"So what group do we belong to, then? Let me guess, the Invisibles?" Endora said, trying to ignore the uneasy feeling in her stomach.
Rox's expression shifted. "Well, not anymore..." He looked past her. "Elion's coming this way."
Everyone turned to look. Sure enough, Elion was striding toward them. Eyes widened, and the group quickly looked away.
"Oops, Endora. Looks like you've got a visitor," Luci muttered.
Fifi clutched her tray. "I can't believe this! I've been here two years and never even breathed the same air as Elion!"
Jamian sighed. "Not helping, Fifi."
A loud thud made everyone jump, Elion had slammed his fist on their table. He pulled out the chair beside Endora and sat down.
"Who knew sitting with losers could be this interesting," he said, his gaze locked on Endora. The table fell silent.
"Too scared to talk? Relax, I'm not here to fight. I just came to invite Endora," he said her name like it was a joke "to sit with the popular crowd."
Endora clenched her jaw. "I decline. Leave us alone."
Elion slow-clapped. "Oh, the new girl finally speaks! How brave." He turned to the others. "You didn't tell her who she's talking to."
Endora stood abruptly, her chair scraping back. "Leave my friends out of this. I didn't do anything wrong, you were about to break my arm yesterday! What was I supposed to do, just let you? Some people have enough to deal with without you throwing your nonsense at them. Who do you even think you are? You know what? I'm done."
She turned to leave, but Elion grabbed her wrist. "Not so fast, girly. You don't talk to me like that and walk away."
"Let me go, you jerk!" Endora yanked her arm, but his grip was tight. Everyone at the table watched, frozen, as did nearby students.
Across the cafeteria, Zayden's fists tightened. He was about to stand when Endora snatched a cup from a passing student and dumped its contents over Elion's head. The room gasped.
Elion released her, stunned. Endora didn't wait, she stormed out, ignoring his furious shout of her name.
Zayden smirked. As much as he admired her courage, he knew she was diving into deeper trouble than she realized. With that, one by one the students left the cafateria and it became empty.
Later, after dinner, Zayden sat under a tree in the cold backyard, reading Endora's letter again. It began: "Hi, I'm Endora Windsor."
He paused. Windsor - like Elion? Probably coincidence, he decided.
The letter continued: "You didn't tell me your name. How did you hear me sing? If I'm your 'Disney princess' with a 'lovely voice,' I'd like to know you too. I can't share everything yet - you're a stranger, but maybe someday. Are you a student? What's your name? Why do you have a message bird? How did you hear me? Will I meet you? Sorry for all the questions. Just curious. Write back."
Zayden folded the letter thoughtfully. As an Arkein, he could naturally hear other Arkeins' thoughts from far away - it was how they communicated. But hearing a human's thoughts was rare. Endora must have an unusually pure heart for her voice to reach him so clearly.
He wrote a reply and gave it to his bird Zizi to deliver. Then he thought about Endora's situation. Most Arkeins at the school had noticed her now, and that was dangerous. Some Arkeins were cruel - they enjoyed controlling human minds and hurting them. That's why the school made human students wear the bracelet - to protect them from Arkein mind control.
Zayden stood up. The cold night air felt good - Arkeins were stronger in cold places. Heat weakened their powers, which was why the school was built where it was always chilly. He walked deeper into the darkness, thinking about how to protect Endora from what was coming.
That same night, Endora stood by her open window, letting the cold night air wrap around her. She hadn't opened the new letter yet; the one that had been waiting for her when she woke from her long nap. After the cafeteria incident, she'd come straight to her room and slept until evening, too drained to think.
Now in her nightclothes, she stared at the folded paper in her hands. "Why can't my life just be normal?" she whispered to the dark sky. "What did I do to deserve all this? Please, just let me survive this place." Her second day had already exhausted her.
With a deep breath, she opened the letter:
"Hi. First, you missed breakfast and lunch. I didn't see you at the cafateria, why? Second, you're brave and you deserve love."
That was all. Endora sat at her desk, rereading the words. With what he wrote, she knew he was a student in the school and actually knew her. He'd noticed she wasn't at the cafateria? No one ever paid that much attention to her before. And he thought she was brave? Deserved love? A small smile broke through as she imagined finally having someone who understood her.
She grabbed her pen:
"Hi. You're really kind. Thank you for saying I'm brave and deserve love. About meals; I'm used to only eating dinner. It's just how my life is. These two days have been awful. I got mixed up with Elion (not my fault) and keep running into Zeyden; the two people I was told to avoid. I just want peace but keep finding trouble. I really want to know who you are, so please tell me your name. Thanks for caring."
She folded the note, called for Zizi at the window, and sent it off with the bird.
As she closed the window, her phone buzzed. Her heart leapt seeing her father's name, then shattered reading his message:
"Don't call me again."