Chapter 22:

(The next day)

Aelin found herself in that stage between sleep and awareness. She was awake, she could hear the birds chirping. And she felt coldness on her back - Rowan was probably hogging the sheets again. But her eyes weren't open, and she only saw the redness of closed eyes and sunlight. Her senses were numb, probably from staying up so late with the girls.

Alright Aelin, it's time to be a productive person and face the most daunting task known to mankind. Open your eyes. Aelin was in the midst of mentally preparing herself for the world when a loud, blaring horn forced her to open her eyes.

Aelin flipped off her bed. And landed in… water?

She rose for air and gasped. Damn, it was cold. Aelin spluttered and focused herself. Her eyes burned with the chlorine but she realized that she wasn't the only one in the same scenario.

She was somehow in an indoor swimming arena, though the entire ceiling was glass. There was an assorted color of rafts floating in the water. Her peers were just as confused as she. She couldn't have sleepwalked here, so they put her here.

"Wha…" She was Aelin Ashryver Galathynius. Her senses were highly advanced, how the hell did she not notice someone literally picking her up and moving her here. Most people didn't make it past her door.

The horn blared again. Jarring everyone from their confusion.

Arobynn stood in his tight swim trunks. Not a good sight at all. The trunks didn't cover anything. Everyone turned green with sickness.

"Wake up you useless slugs! I had to wake up so early to make sure the transformation was correct. So you better appreciate this."

Appreciate what? Making them wake early, in the freezing cold, with stinging eyes. Was this Arobynn's idea of a Christmas present?

"Today is a warm-up for the fifth competition! The next competition is a little different than normal, and according to 'state law' the next competition is 'a hazard.' But they said I could do it if I gave a warning and a waiver to opt out. So here you go scumbags."

He tossed a bunch of papers in the air, and we all watched in horror as they fell into the water.

Well then.

"Today's assignment is simple. Whoever finishes 35 laps in 10 minutes will get extra ammo for the real challenge. And trust me, that head start could determine life or death."

Everyone was still. Aelin was sure that Arobynn was getting more and more psychotic by the moment.

Arobynn groaned, "Alright, I'm going to take a nap somewhere where you peasants can't bother me. There is a building a ¼ of a mile eastward. Get ready and come back here as fast as your lazy butts can move.

This was by far the most spontaneous assignment given yet. And Aelin took advanced calculus. She hoped the lanes weren't too tight.

"This is swimsuit is too tight. Where the hell did Arobynn get these outfits from?" Manon somehow looked flawless. Despite the hot mess occurring of events.

"I was thinking we would get at least a little more of a break." Lysandra sagged.

"Well ladies, the break is over. It's time we get back on track with the competitions. It is why we are here." Aelin, ever the leader spoke.

Lysandra rubbed her eyes, "Yeah, but the romance was nice."

When was it not?

Ready for the challenge, everyone lined up at the edge. The sun was still not at its peak, and the only sound was the lapping of water, and chlorine conquering the impurities.

The horn blew, and everyone jumped in. The first 10 laps were a daze of movement and gasping for air. Aelin didn't focus on where everyone else was, she didn't even bother looking at them. Her body moved in a pattern, so rhythmic, Aelin began to enjoy the frenzy. With only one goal in mind, to get there first, Aelin propelled herself forward.

When she felt something tug her downward. Into a stinging abyss.

Elide found herself in a downward spiral. Strangely, she began to enjoy the floating abyss.

Elide and Lorcan looked at each other and took a deep breath. They were on kitchen duty, and they both knew the students would be hungry like nothing else. And if they didn't get their food… things were going to get ugly.

"Emrys said we should make smoothies. So do you want to use fruit or vegetables?" Lorcan asked.

"Both." Elide replied.

"Vanilla ice-cream, or just plain ice?" Lorcan, rapid-fire.

"Ice. At this point, they will be so hungry, they won't even notice it tastes bland."

Lorcan laughed, "True, no one even came for their breakfast. I wonder why."

There was a comfortable silence as they worked, chopping the ingredients, and pouring them into blenders. The sun was almost at its peak. Elide could tell that Lorcan was growing uncomfortable. But she couldn't understand why.

Lorcan blurted out, "What are we?"

Elide cocked her head, "Well for starters, we are both humans. Wait, I think you might be the werewolf type."

Lorcan averted his gaze and swallowed, "I mean, are we a thing? Like a thing?"

"What is this, a book by Dr. Seuss? Stop repeating words Lorcan." Elide knew exactly what he meant. She just wanted to make him sweat.

"Are we dating?" Lorcan admitted.

Elide knew she would burn in hell for torturing him like this, but she enjoyed doing it, "You do know that one date, doesn't mean one becomes exclusive."

Lorcan looked disappointed.

Elide continued, "But most first dates don't reveal the most intimate part of one's heart and soul." Elide pretended to think, "So I suppose that counted for….
7 dates."

Lorcan gingerly asked, "How many dates must one have to be exclusive?"

Elide smirked and decided to let him have his joy, "5."

5, 4, 3, 2, 1! Lysandra heard the alarm blaring. She finally arose, sore and tired she slumped down on the nearest seat. Panting, she looked around, there was no one above the pool except her and Arobynn. Yes! She would get the advantage in the next round. Lysandra began to do a little dance when from the corner of her eye, she saw excess splashing. That was Aelin's and Chaol's lane. She whipped her head to the scene. By now everyone was out of the water, except Chaol and Aelin.

What was wrong?

Something was very wrong, Aelin could feel it. It wasn't a cramp. She was fighting a useless force. Unable to identify why, she tried to come up for air. But was repeatedly forced down. She was running out of time, she could sense it in her lungs. She had to be more than 30 feet below the pool level, and something hard went against her head. The concrete. She felt herself get lightheaded.

And her body sunk beyond reach.

So, his plan worked perfectly. Time for the grand finale.

Chaol, still swimming, saw Aelin's body sink and instinctively grabbed her waist and hoisted her up. She wasn't light, and he had a major arm cramp, but he swam to another side. He knew he wasn't the first, but maybe he would get credit for doing this.

Chaol laid her on the pavement, her pulse was irregular and began slowing done. He began to give her CPR. People crowded around him. And he could tell that her dog of a cousin, Aedion was shoving through everyone. He better do this quickly.

He took a deep breath and pressed his lips to hers and gave her mouth-to-mouth.

Aelin shot up. She tried to cough up some water but her mouth was currently… busy. She tried to see what her lips were too busy with, but she could barely open her eyes. There was a muscular figure over her, it was probably Rowan. She kissed him back for a moment and then shoved her dilly-dallying partner aside to cough the water in her throat. She looked up and found people crowding her. She didn't understand why. She understood where she was and why she was there, but why was everyone staring at her like a donkey speaking English, and why was Rowan making out with her right there. Rowan…

Aelin looked at the captor of her lips and was horrified to find Chaol. Smirking at her.

That whore.

Author's note: Uh oh. Someone is going to have their butt handed to them!
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