The morning was awful. To start off with, I couldn't find my schedule. Then, I got stuck in a traffic jam of people while I tried finding out which room I was to go to my first hour. Along the way, I was also subject to catcalls, pickup lines and one case of my butt and boobs being groped. Let's just say that guy would have bruises in the morning where the sun doesn't shine.

I groaned, thinking I'd never find my way to class. The hallways were full of gross and scary people, and the halls themselves were confusing. There goes my perfect attendance record. I was about to give up all hope entirely, until I saw a familiar face among the crowds. What was his name...Adrian! Adrian Skalanias from dinner. I walked over to him and tapped his shoulder.

"Hey..."

He looked around towards me. "Scarlett Kaida, daughter of Ignacius and Prince of Sciana."

I laughed nervously. "Please drop the formalities, I'm not here to kill you or anything. I'm sorry to be a bother, but could you tell me where room 2140 C is? I'm supposed to go there to take my AME."

Adrian nodded. "My first class is just across from it."

"So is it okay if I just creepily follow you, then?" I joked.

"Sure, but trust me, you're far from creepy compared to some of the things I've seen." Adrian assured me.

I looked down at the ground and brushed a lock of hair away from my face. "Well, according to a lot of people, that's not true."

"Yeah." Adrian cast his eyes to the ground as well. "People are kind of stupid like that."

"The real trick is just ignoring them." I said. "People are always going to be cold-hearted little butt wipes, so the best thing you can do is not care—or pretend you don't care-" I added under my breath. "Just do what they say: be your own person. Don't get caught up in what other people think you should be. Do what you like to do and take pride in that. For example, I love music. It's what keeps me sane in this mental asylum of a world.

Adrian laughed and scratched his head anxiously. "I guess. I mean, I'd like doing that, but there's not necessarily a lot of time for my kind of hobby, though."

I looked up at him. "Well, what is it?"

He looked away and let his midnight black bangs fall over his purple eyes. "It's...um...well, don't laugh. I mean...It's really dorky and, um, heh heh, I...uhh..."

I silently wondered if I was talking to the same person I had met last night. He had put on such a show and seemed so charismatic, which conflicted with the obviously insecure boy that now stood before me. I saw some part of me reflected in him. I couldn't quite put my finger on it, though. Maybe he just needed someone to show him a bit of kindness. God, that sounded like something straight out of the mouth of a Disney princess.

I flashed him a friendly smile. "Don't worry. I won't judge. If it makes you feel any better, I know more genres of music than anyone would care to hear about."

Adrian took a deep breath and tightened his grip on the messenger bag he was carrying. He smoothed off his purple jacket and finally said, "Medieval live action roleplay."

I nodded. "Nice, that sounds cool, I haven't been exposed to much of that sort of thing. How does one exactly get involved in that, if you don't mind my asking?"

Adrian smiled, his eyes sparkling with excitement. "Well, when I first came here to Eternal, I was having some...issues, getting along with people. Talia decided that I needed to get out more, so one day she took me out to the city and told me I could do anything I wanted to do, outside of the judgemental school environment. To be honest, the city was so big and intimidating, I had no idea where to start. If anything, the city was stressing me out more than school.

"Then, I saw this hotel, and outside there were a bunch of guys dressed up in suits of armor and carrying cool weapons. They were talking in Shakespearean English and really getting into the parts of their characters. Two guys were even having sword fights. I decided to go into the hotel, and I swear stepping through that door was like I had walked through a time machine. There were all these people dressed in attire from five hundred years ago, going about completely happy being somebody else.

"I wanted to be like them. I got myself a suit of armor, a sword and a shield. I was no longer weak, hated, and mostly ignored Adrian Skalanias. I was now Sir Aaron, guardian of the ancient fjords. As Aaron, I could just forget the struggles I'd been through, let loose and have fun. It didn't matter about my past. All that mattered was rescuing fair damsels from wicked sorcerers and going on noble quests. Ever since then, Talia's tried to take me to a convention each month. It's great and I really appreciate it, but it's not like I can always go whenever I'm feeling..." Adrian's eyes cast down to the floor. "Like...less than perfect."

I felt a twinge of empathy. It was obvious Adrian really wanted to get along with people, but just didn't quite know how. I gave him an encouraging smile and pat his shoulder. "That sounds like a lot of fun."

He gave a weak smile and met my gaze. "Thanks for not laughing, or calling it dumb or anything like that."

I nodded. "No problem. It obviously means a lot to you, right? You shouldn't make fun of something that somebody's passionate about."

Adrian gave a weak laugh. "You're...really nice. Nobody's ever been this nice to me, not even Talia."

I tried to stop myself from grimacing. If Talia of all people was his definition of 'nice', this guy needed a serious reality check. I took a deep breath and pointed at myself. "Well, then I'm nobody. I believe that people shouldn't be judged by what's said about them, or how they look, but by the way they act. Everyone deserves a chance, and you're certainly no exception, Mr. Skalanias." I told him as I punched his shoulder lightly.

Adrian seemed a little surprised. He seemed to blush a little bit as he scratched his cheek nervously. "Um...I don't mean to sound like a lonely little Kindergartener or anything, but, um...do you think maybe...maybe we could be friends?"

I was taken aback, so much that I stopped walking for a bit. "F-friends?"

Adrian's face grew five shades of red darker. "I-I mean, I know I wouldn't certainly be my first choice for a friend, either, but-"

"No, it's not that." I said quickly. "It's just...um...when you say friends, do you mean the kind that isn't nice only to your face, but will not hesitate to insult you to every one of her friends behind your back? That kind of friend?"

"W-well, that was my plan." Adrian said as he chuckled anxiously. "Why do you-"

"No reason." I absentmindedly drummed my fingers along my side. "It's just...yeah. I could use a real friend for once in my life. I'd like that a lot."

"Cool."

"Cool." I returned.

We continued walking in silence for a bit, neither of us quite knowing what to do from this point. Adrian finally turned to me, taking a deep breath.

"Would you...like my phone number or something?"

"Sure." I pulled out my phone and let him add his number into my contacts. He stopped walking about halfway through the hallway and handed my phone back to me once he was done.

"2140 C is right over there." Adrian said, pointing to the room across the hallway. He looked at me, held out his hand stiffly and smiled shyly. "Um...g-good luck on your exam, Scarlett."

I shook his hand. "Thanks."

He held on for a few moments longer than would've been socially acceptable, but I gave him a hint by clearing my throat. He quickly let go and covered his face with his arms. I giggled and removed them, revealing a blush so deep, It nearly rivaled Talia's.

"Take care!" I said, as I began to walk off.

"Um, you too, friend."

"Of course, friend." I replied, walking into the exam room, unsure of what exactly lie ahead of me.

Take this chapter however you want, because I know how this book will go. Also! This book is up to *ahem* 75 votes and nearly 500 reads! I am so blessed to have readers like you! I'm gonna cry this is fantastic ;-; All of the students at Eternal Academy thank you as well.

Signing off, Kiera Savage