Complications

Chapter Sixteen – Done For

Circe, Loki, and Vidcund are sitting in a booth at a restaurant near Sim State University's central campus, the latter holding an ice pack to his forehead following their second-round victory against Aurora Skies Academy. Circe looks down at her cell phone and sighs, placing the device back in her pocket before turning to her two love interests.

"I just got word that Academia Le Touré creamed Desiderata Valley University in round two," Circe states, seemingly annoyed by this news, "Apparently it was so one-sided that DVU forfeited before the second half."

"Oh," Vidcund squeaks as Loki scans the empty dining room, "Well, what's so bad about that? I mean, just because they pounded DVU doesn't mean they're going to pound us, too."

"Vidcund," Circe begins. Next to her, Loki crosses his arms and lets out an exasperated sigh, "the people that go to Academia Le Touré are insanely smart. Their average I.Q. is in the mid hundreds. It's no wonder why they won the tournament the last ten years in a row."

Loki pounds his fist on the table, "Hey! Can we get some damn service here?!"

At that moment, Pascal approaches the table, beaming. "Hey guys! Congratulations on making the finals. I'm so proud of you…and Craig, I guess," Pascal adds, bringing his hands together, "Next week's going to be a real challenge, but I think you guys can do it, assuming Loki doesn't get himself locked in a phone booth again."

"Now that was only partially my fault," Loki speaks up, "Which reminds me, I'm having a cat house delivered to our residence tomorrow for Stinky."

Vidcund tilts his forehead, "You bought Stinky a cat house?" Loki nods, "Why?"

"Because if it weren't for Stinky, I'd probably still be stuck in that phone booth. And it smelled like piss…fresh piss," he remarks, giving a shudder, "Now where's my damn water?!" Loki questions, slamming his fist on the wooden surface.

…

Early Sunday morning, Loki groans as he sits at the kitchen counter in his pajamas, his head aching after a day filled with distress and a night filled with terrible service at the restaurant. Sunlight seeps through the blinds in the living room, the brightness from the window only causing him more discomfort as he takes a sip of his coffee, his hand running through his matted, unstyled hair.

Mere seconds later, a surprisingly-refreshed and cheery Vidcund walks into the room. He pulls out a chair and takes a seat down next to Loki. "So, get this," Vidcund says, locking eyes with his tired roommate, "A few days ago in Botany 375, our terrarium fell and shattered all over the greenhouse," Vidcund explains as Loki struggles to fake interest, "We asked our GST what we should do about the plant, and he told us not to photosympathize with it," Vidcund completes, holding in a chuckle, "Get it?" Vidcund asks before bursting into a fit of uncontrollable laughter.

Loki stares at Vidcund bizarrely, appearing more concerned than amused by the tale Vidcund just told him. "You're such a dork," he says, watching as Vidcund finally manages to calm down, wiping a single tear away from his eye.

"I know," Vidcund states, his face still red as he sits up from the counter, "You tell me that every day, remember?"

Loki watches as Vidcund grabs his coat from the front closet, dusting his hands off on his signature white pants. "You're sexually attracted to that," Loki's mind wanders as Vidcund gives a small wave to him and exits out the front door. Loki sighs, "What is wrong with me?" he mumbles, resting his head on the counter. Stinky jumps up onto the marble-printed surface, walks over to Loki, and sniffs his hair.

"Rough morning?" a familiar voice speaks up behind him.

Loki lifts his head up and turns slightly, groaning when he locks eyes with Pascal, who is standing a few feet away from the counter. "Go away, Pascal. I don't want to talk to you about it," Loki mumbles.

"Man, if I had a nickel for every time I heard that," Pascal laughs, shaking his head at the thought. "But seriously, as your teacher and friend – status pending," Pascal quickly adds as Loki narrows his eyes at the latter remark, "I feel as though I should help you with your problems and not accidentally make them worse like I usually do," he says, taking the seat next to his rival, "So, what's the problem?"

"Pascal, be honest," Loki begins, unable to believe that he is about to cave in and share his feelings, "Do you think I can do better than Circe?"

"Do I think you can do better than Circe? No," Pascal quickly replies, "Do I think Circe can do better than you? Maybe."

Loki sighs, "Wow, this made me feel a lot better," he grumbles, resting his head back on the counter, "Thanks, dingus."

"Look, if you want my advice, which I guess you do," Pascal begins, staring down at his top student, "Don't fake something you're not into. Trust me, it just makes everything worse."

Loki sits up in his chair and sighs, Pascal's words actually ringing true for once in his life. "So, you don't think I'm into Circe?"

"No," Pascal responds, "And I'm usually the last person to notice these things. But it doesn't matter what I think. You just have to ask yourself if you like her or not, and if you don't, then you should probably tell her how you feel, so you're not stringing her along and getting her hopes up."

Loki sighs, knowing that he would have to face the truth sooner or later, as he stares at the blank kitchen wall. "You're right," Loki realizes, turning to Pascal and flashing him a smirk, "Well, I guess there's a first time for everything. Thanks dingus," Loki genuinely states.

"Oh. Uh, you're welcome," Pascal nods, Loki's sincerity catching him off-guard.

…

Loki flies across campus, dressed and ready to go, his body filled with determination as he sets off to finally tell Circe the truth about how he's been feeling since the start of the Winter Physics Tournament. Loki slows down suddenly, spotting a small group of students standing in front of the physics building, their green ALT emblems staring him right in the face.

Loki looks both ways and crosses over to them, narrowing his eyes suspiciously as he approaches their team leader. "Excuse me?" Loki steps forward, "What are you guys doing here?" he questions.

The leader looks up at Loki, confident in his presence on Sim State campus. He adjusts his jet-black bangs and folds his arms over his torso. "What does it look like we're doing here?" the young man repeats, smirking slightly as his teammates appear at his sides, "We just came here to study our competition for next week. I'm Damion," he introduces, "And this is Adrian, Jamian, and Phil," he says, gesturing to his teammates, "We're the top students at Academia Le Touré in both the physics department and the university."

"Congratulations," Loki mutters, still unimpressed by their credentials. "So, find out anything good?"

"Not really," Jamian says, "Their team is a total snooze. Even their leader is a dud and can only make campus headlines," he remarks, giving a laugh with the others.

"I didn't think it was possible, but I already hate these guys more than Cindy," Loki chimes in his mind as he stares out at their competition. "So, I guess you're pretty confident that you're going to win, huh?"

"Well obviously we're going to win," Adrian remarks, rolling his eyes at the clouds.

Loki steps forward, "And why's that?" he wonders.

Adrian turns to his other team members and smirks. All four of the young men stare down at Loki. "Because…they have a girl on their team."

Loki steps backward, feeling as though he has been punched in the gut, his face instantly falling at this comment. "Excuse me?"

"They have a girl on their team, genius," Damion repeats, "How could they be so stupid? Especially since everyone knows that men are superior to women."

Loki continues to stare bizarrely at Damion, unable to believe the shit that this team leader is spewing. "Please tell me this is some kind of joke."

"It's not a joke," Adrian confirms, crossing his arms smugly, "We're going to annihilate Sim State next week and make that bitch cry."

"Oh yeah?" Loki steps forward, unable to contain his rage any longer, "Well my girlfriend, Circe, is as tough as nails, and we're going to wipe the floor with you and your misogynistic bullshit!" Loki screams, waving his arm out definitely. Loki turns around and storms off the premises, all the way to Circe's apartment complex. He stops on the front pathway, locking eyes with Vidcund, who is exiting the building, adjusting his coat. Vidcund's eyes widen, his stomach dropping as he is caught red handed.

Loki walks over to Vidcund, Vidcund cowering a bit Loki places his hands firmly on his shoulders. Vidcund closes his eyes, terrified of Loki's response. "Vidcund," Loki speaks, sounding surprisingly calm for someone who might've caught his girlfriend cheating, "Listen, whatever rivalry we've had in the past, we need to put it aside for a week to focus on this final round."

"Uh…okay," Vidcund concludes, slowly opening his eyes and staring straight at Loki, wondering how someone could be so oblivious, "May I ask why?"

"I just ran into our competition in front of the physics building," Loki explains, still fuming from their encounter, "Guess what? They're misogynistic assholes. They think we're going to lose just because we have Circe on our team!" Loki reiterates.

Vidcund scrunches his forehead. "Are these guys for real?" he squeaks.

Loki nods, "Apparently so, and now, we can't just win next week," Loki tells Vidcund, never feeling more competitive in his life, "We have to beat their asses down!" he proclaims, "Now come on, get Circe, we gotta study."

"What about Craig?" Vidcund wonders, stopping in the doorway.

Loki shrugs, waving away the thought, "Eh, maybe in a few hours. That guy smells funny."