Four
Alexei Boyarov
My day started with a few hours of combat training with other senior novices under the surveillance of Guardian Rodriguez, a tall Dhampir guardian from Argentina. She was tanned and fit, with dark brown eyes seeing everything that happened in the room.
The guy whose nose I cracked was back, although his nose was still patched together, swollen and flecked with small bruises in different colours. He had seemed to be avoiding me at all cost; something I could not blame him for.
But to our luck, we were paired to each other at the end of the class.
"Hit my nose again and I will break your jaw", he grinned. His tone was light, but I sensed seriousness in his words. I hadn't thought that I would be regarded with friendliness after breaking his nose.
"I will try not to, I am very fond of my jaw", I replied.
I managed to avoid his nose, although I gave him a couple of uncomfortable hits in his stomach and on his ribs. After every blow, he looked more and more pissed.
Attempting an uppercut in his stomach, he jumped aside, grabbing a hold of my wrist. He quickly twisted it to the side, turning my arm and elbow in an uncomfortable position. Something gleamed in his eyes, his lips pressed together and he let his closed fist fall against my wrist.
The force of the blow and the bent angle on my wrist was not a good combination and, with a loud crack, I heard my wrist snap. I groaned and bit my lip as the pain spread out to my fingertips and up to my shoulder. I glanced up at my opponent; he did not look the least remorseful.
Within a couple of seconds, Guardian Rodriguez was by us. "What happened here?"
My opponent shrugged his shoulders and I clutched my wrist. "I injured my wrist."
"Can you continue?"
I tried moving my wrist, but it only sent another wave of liquid pain up my arm. I shook my head. "No."
"Go to the doctor, let her take care of that", Guardian Rodriguez said and sent my opponent away to fight another student. I noticed his content smile as he looked at me over his shoulder.
"Cyka..." (Bitch/Whore) I mumbled quietly to my previous opponent and stepped off the training area. I grabbed my water bottle and headed towards the infirmary with my arm pressed against my torso. The pain was nothing more than a throbbing by now - as long as I kept it still.
Doctor Olendzki, a woman in her late 40s or early 50s, made a quick examination and told me that it was, fortunately, not broken, but quite seriously sprained. To keep it in place to heal properly, she tightly fastened a wrist-supporter around it. The fastening was worse that than actual spraining, I had to bite my lip from not letting a stream of ugly words exit my mouth.
Afterwards, I went in the direction to the dorm. Tonight was going to be an uneventful night. I usually exercised in the evenings, but push-ups and hitting was out of the question for a couple of weeks.
I was thinking about whether I should break my record in sit-ups or running when I spotted Mirabel outside the cafeteria. She had her face down her cell phone, probably writing a text, but looked up before I passed.
She gave me a wide smile. "Hi, Alexei!"
Her enthusiastic greeting made smile as well. "Hello, Mirabel."
Her eyes fell down to the wrist-securer I wore around my wrist. "What happened?"
"Someone tried to break it", I replied bitterly.
"I hope that you broke something of his in return", the corners of Mirabel's lips twisted into a smile. Even though I was mad for almost having my wrist broken, her smile made me relax.
"I did", I smiled. "Although it was a couple of days ago."
"Way to go", she said and tossed her phone into her bag. "Would you mind following me down to the feeders? I'd appreciate the company."
I was a little taken-aback by her request. Not that I would mind following her down, I just wasn't prepared for the question. "No, I would not mind."
Her smile widened and she flung her bag over her shoulder. "Thanks!"
Our way towards the feeder's room was silent, all that we could hear was the sound of our shoes against the stone floor. We only met two other people, both Moroi, that seemed to be heading back from the feeders.
"May I ask you a question?" I asked carefully. I wasn't usually shy to ask people questions, I didn't think that wanting to know things was embarrassing. However, wanting to know personal questions was always embarrassing.
"Of course", Mirabel nodded.
"It is a stupid question."
She chuckled. "I don't mind."
"Do you have a blood-type preference?" I asked.
She looked at me for a few silent seconds before bursting out in a laugh. To my surprise, I found myself rather compelled by her laugh. It was clear and light, sounded as if she did it completely without effort. I felt a desire to make her laugh again, just to hear that sound again.
"Wow, I have never gotten that question before!" She laughed, though her laugh seemed to be sincere and not ironical, and took a few seconds to consider her answer. "Now when I think about it, people with the blood type A-positive is a little sweeter than the rest. Why are you asking?"
She turned to me, smiling wide, and looked up at me below her eyelashes. Meeting her gaze, I noticed that she had an eye colour that resembled melted caramel. It knocked me off the topic for a moment, wondering how genetics could create such a rich and soft colour, but I recovered quickly.
"I have been curious if there is a difference", I admitted. "And I have never gotten the right opportunity to ask someone about it."
"You might as well have asked what kind of pizza I like the best", she chuckled.
I felt my cheeks heat up. I had asked a stupid question.
"Oh I'm sorry, I didn't mean to embarrass you!" she apologized and casually let her hand stoke my upper arm for a brief second. "Asking questions is how you get answers."
"Even when it is stupid questions like food preferences?"
She put her hand on the handle to the feeder's room, but stopped and looked at me for a second. Her face softened into another smile. "Even stupid questions like food preferences."
She opened the door to the feeder's room and headed straight for the reception where she registered her visit. I took a seat in one of the sofas in the waiting room and carefully placed my sprained hand on my stomach.
As Mirabel vanished behind a screen, I picked out a worn pocket-book from the outside pocket of my training bag. The cover had faded a little and I had accidentally spilled coffee on it a few months ago. The almost every other page had marks of earlier folded corners and there was even some lose pages in the back of the book.
I believed that I read that book over and over again of sentimental reasons. The Green Mile by Stephen King, had been my mother's favourite book. When I inherited it, the book was already worn and read several times.
And after I read it for the first time, I really understood why she loved it.
Mirabel returned fifteen minutes later, discreetly wiping some blood from the corner of her lips with a white napkin.
"Did you enjoy your meal?" I asked, grinning lightly.
She grinned back. "Afraid not, she had blood-type O which I found far too bland for my taste."
"Is the difference that big?"
She shook her head. "No, they taste almost the same", she smiled. "However, I stand my ground. A-positive is a little sweeter than the rest."
"Aren't you going to tell me your favourite pizza-topping as well?" I asked, remembering how she commented on that I might as well have asked for her favourite pizza when asking for her blood preferences.
She rolled her eyes at me. "Pineapple."
We exited the feeding cafeteria and walked towards the dorms, or at least so far we could walk until we needed to part ways. We walked in silence this time as well, for she didn't say anything and I couldn't figure out a clever and casual thing to ask.
What did I want to know about her?
Everything.
But I couldn't ask her to tell me everything about her life, I had to start somewhere.
"Ehm…" I began, far too soon since I hadn't yet figured out a decent question. "Where did you grow up?"
"About half an hour away from Court", Mirabel answered. "With a car, that is."
"And you grew up with your family?"
Mirabel nodded. "With my parents and a younger brother, he goes to school here while mom and dad are both working at Court. What about you?"
"I grew up on the academy, my mother died when I was young."
"I'm sorry to hear that", she said sincerely. "Do you have any siblings?"
I shook my head. "None that I know of, at least."
Mirabel hesitated a little before she asked the next questions. "And what about your father? Did you know him?"
I shook my head again. "No, most Dhampir's doesn't."
"Did... did he visit a lot when you were younger?" She twisted a little on the spot, not daring to look me in the eyes. I didn't even get mad that she assumed that my family was like the families of most Dhampirs; a Dhampir mother and an absent Moroi father. I hated to say and think that it was the way of our society, but I couldn't very well deny it.
"My mother was a Moroi and my father was a Dhampir. They dated in high school", I explained.
Mirabel's pale cheeks blushed bright pink. "Oh… I'm sorry… I didn't mean to jump to conclusions like that", she said, lowering her head in an attempt to hide that she was ashamed.
"You do not need to apologize", I assured her.
"I have never met a Dhampir with a Moroi mother and a Dhampir father", she confessed. "You don't hear that a lot."
"Does that make me special?" I asked with a smile.
Mirabel returned it with an even brighter smile. "Perhaps."
We reached the end of the long corridor that divided into two, one leading up to the girls' dorm and the other leading up to the boys' room. I could have spent a while more walking around with her, she seemed very relaxed, friendly and she had been good company for the short time it took to follow her to the feeders and back. She didn't seem at stuck-up as her friends.
"Well, this is me", Mirabel said and nodded towards the corridor to the girls' dorm. "Thank you for the company."
"It was my pleasure", I smiled.
A little awkwardly, she reached up on her toes and gave me a hug, careful not to hurt my already injured hand.
"I'll see you around", she said before walking down towards the dorm door.
I hope that you had a good weekend!
Love, Zeraphime