Thick, heavy clouds hung over Lakeburgh, suggesting the afternoon would bring a relentless downpour. Under the gray sky, Shaine threw her arms toward the ceiling in a desperate stretch. "Finally," she groaned, "math is over."
"It was only first period, Shaine," a girl noted, adjusting the thick brown braid that rested over her shoulder.
"Maybe, but it felt like an entire lifetime passed by that whiteboard," another girl chimed in. She pushed her black-framed glasses up the bridge of her pointed nose, a stray blonde strand from her high ponytail falling into her face as she offered a small, knowing smile.
Shaine giggled, nudging the braided girl. "See? Even Edith agrees with me."
Edith Henderson was as cheeky as she was brilliant. With her natural blonde hair reaching mid-back and a perpetually cheerful spark behind her lenses, she had been the very first person to welcome Shaine to Stonfilia High. It was Edith's kindness that had made Shaine's first week as a transfer student feel like home.
"Hah, I just sleep through the whole lecture," the brown-headed girl boastfully claims, sitting on Shaine's desk with her legs crossed.
"That's so like you, Bea," Edith said, giggling along.
Beatrice Hamel Toddbern is the daughter of a prominent businessman, a fact underscored by her family's silent stake in Stonfilia High. It was a secret kept under lock and key, known only to Shaine and Edith. But beneath the polished exterior of a shareholder's daughter lay a darker history, one defined by her years as a notorious delinquent at her previous school, an identity even hidden from her own family. That reputation didn't intimidate Shaine, who had seen past the rumors to find a friend. Still, Beatrice hadn't entirely traded her fists for textbooks; she still secretly sought out fights with local thugs outside the school gates, claiming it was the only way to kill time.
Shaine chuckles a bit and slightly hits Bea on her elbow. "When are you going to act like a proper lady, Bea?"
Bea snorted. "Don't even start. BTW, Shaine, how's your cousin? We were shocked to see him go home in a wheelchair." Her brow furrowed in confusion, waiting for an answer.
"He should be fine by now, but his mom doesn't want him to come to school just yet." Shaine smiled to herself.
It feels a little lonely without that guy, she thought.
Second period had only just begun, but Shaine's mind was already miles away. The teacher's voice, a steady echo of basic alchemy and complex formulas, became nothing more than background noise. To any onlooker, she looked studious, her pen moving rhythmically across the page, but she wasn't taking notes; rather, she was doddling random sketches. Strangely enough, through the numerous scribbles and doddles, she made a familiar scene. A tree, again.
Without realizing it, her hand had traced the jagged outline of a twisted oak tree perched on a lonely hill. It was a perfect, haunting replica of the one on her grandfather's land. She stared at the drawing, her brow furrowed and her lips parted in a silent, distant realization.
"Ms. Moores!"
"Present!" Shaine yelped, bolting upright. A ripple of suppressed giggles broke out across the room as her classmates turned to watch the spectacle.
Her teacher adjusted his glasses, a sharp glare cutting through the classroom. "Since you're so alert, perhaps you could read the second paragraph for us?"
Shaine cleared her throat, her heart hammering against her ribs as she found the place and read the passage with practiced composure.
"Thank you," the teacher replied dryly, turning back to the chalkboard. Shaine slumped onto her desk, letting out a long, shaky breath of relief. Too close, she thought. Just as her pulse began to settle, the school bell let out a triumphant ring, signaling the start of lunch.
"See you tomorrow, class," the teacher called out over the sudden scrape of chairs.
Edith bounced over to Shaine's desk, her bag already slung over her shoulder. "Come on, Shaine! Let's go eat by the field."
Bea strolled up to them, a mischievous grin spreading across her face. "Why? Is it so you can spend your lunch hour fantasizing about Shaine's team captain again?"
Edith's face turned a brilliant shade of crimson. She shot Bea a frantic frown, her eyes darting around to see if anyone had overheard. "Stop making things up!" she hissed, giving Bea's shoulder a playful, embarrassed smack.
"The blush says otherwise, Edith," Bea laughed, easily sidestepping the second hit. "It gives everything away."
Shaine giggles at her friends before standing up; she grabbed her pack and started walking out with her friends playfully arguing behind her. Her attention is drawn to each student they pass by; she would stare at them until they had passed by, and she even made an underclassman blush with embarrassment due to her blank stare.
Stepping out of the building, they were met by a sudden gust of wind and the earthy scent of freshly mown grass. The sky had darkened into a much deeper gray than before, though stubborn rays of sunlight still managed to pierce through the heavy clouds. They made their way to a grassy hill overlooking the field, a natural, bowl-like depression designed to keep stray balls from rolling too far out of play.
The soccer team was already beginning their drills, but Shaine had opted for a rare afternoon off, or been forced to.
"Shaine!" a high, familiar voice chirped from the direction of the school.
Abby came sprinting toward them, a plastic bag clutched in one hand and her backpack swaying wildly with every stride. Her hair bounced in sync with her hurried steps, her bangs pinned back securely by a simple white clip.
Shaine stood from the ground and greeted her sister with a smile and a small wave.
Shaine couldn't help but giggle as her sister stood panting before her, completely breathless. "What was the life-or-death rush?"
Abby didn't answer immediately; she just bent over, bracing her hands against her knees as she caught her breath. Instead of words, she simply thrust the plastic bag toward Shaine. Curious, Shaine reached inside, her fingers meeting the comforting heat of a paper-wrapped bundle. As she pulled it out, the sweet, buttery scent of freshly baked cookies drifted into the damp afternoon air.
Finally finding her wind, Abby straightened up with a triumphant beam, like she won the game of tag against her own breath.
"Looks like you've been busy in the home-ec room," Shaine teased, her voice softening. "Come on, let's share." She looped an arm over Abby's shoulder, steering her toward where Bea and Edith were waiting.
Bea and Edith greeted the younger girl with matching grins and a welcoming wave. The four of them settled onto the grass, the click and snap of opening lunchboxes mixing with their easy, lighthearted chatter as the first bite of lunch began.
"So what's up, Abby? You aren't just here to deliver these yummy cookies, are you?" Shaine began, biting onto one of Abby's still warm cookies.
Abby's gaze drifted toward the edge of the field, her laughter sounding strained and a little too hollow. What is she hiding? Shaine wondered, the lighthearted mood of the lunch suddenly feeling fragile.
Not one to let a mystery slide, Shaine shifted her weight, deliberately positioning herself directly in Abby's line of sight, but her sister's eyes remained stubbornly fixed on something in the distance.
"Spill," Shaine said, making Abby groan a bit under her breath.
Abby peeked towards Shaine; her eyes stared at her with a stubborn look, almost screaming "Tell me." firmly.She sighed in defeat, knowing her sister would never let anything slide out of her fingers. Abby pulled her pack onto her lap and began to rustle inside it; Shaine tilted her head in confusion and anticipation as her sister kept rustling in her pack searching for something.
When Abby stopped rummaging abruptly, silence. She sighed and pulled out a small pink envelope with a heart sticker, keeping the fold of the opening intact.
"I found this tucked into my locker this morning," Abby murmured, her voice trailing off as she avoided her sister's eyes. "I wasn't sure what to do with it. I thought maybe you or Elly would know... but I forgot Elly's still out." She held out a small, dainty envelope.
Shaine took it, turning the paper over and over in her hands. The seal was still perfectly intact. "It's unopened," she whispered, more to herself than the group.
"Is that a love letter?"
Shaine snapped her head toward Bea, who was mid-crunch on a chocolate chip cookie. "A love letter?" Shaine repeated, certain she'd misheard.
Bea swallowed her bite and, with the practiced ease of someone used to getting her way, snatched the envelope from Shaine's grip. She held it up to the light, squinting as she inspected the corners. "Powder-pink paper, a shimmering heart sticker on the back..." She handed it back with a knowing smirk. "Yup. That's a love letter, alright."
"I usually get those from the boys over at the neighboring school," Bea announced with a self-satisfied grin, causing Edith to nearly choke on her lunch.
Edith cleared her throat, her face flushed as she turned toward Shaine. "Well? What does it say?"
"No idea. The seal is still intact." Shaine gently handed the envelope back to Abby, whose eyes went wide as she stared at the pink paper.
"Go on, open it," Shaine urged, crossing her arms with a cheeky smirk. "It would be rude to leave your secret admirer hanging without even reading what they wrote."
Abby swallowed hard, her fingers trembling slightly as she worked the seal open. She carefully unfolded the crisp sheet of paper and squinted at the handwriting. Taking a deep breath, she began to read aloud so Shaine and the others could hear.
"Your smile is as sweet as freshly baked cookies," Abby read, her voice small. "I yearn for your attention with every passing day, yet it is never given. I can only watch you from afar; if I were to draw near, I fear my heart would simply explode. You are like the first day of spring—so peaceful, possessing a beauty I cannot explain. I only hope that someday you will see me as someone special and not just another stranger."
"Eek! That is the sweetest thing I've ever heard!" Edith squealed, grabbing Bea by the shoulders and shaking her violently.
Shaine let out a dry chuckle, crossing her arms over her chest. Her eyes remained half-lidded and sleepy, a bored but amused smile playing on her lips. "All I can say is... that is officially the cheesiest thing I've witnessed all day."
"It doesn't say anything about meeting in a place or something?" Edith asked, looking straight at Abby's eyes with wonder.
Abby flips the paper up and down but doesn't see anything other than the one she had read. She shook her head gently from side to side, making Edith frown a bit; she stared back at the letter and felt a little flushed. She wasn't the type of girl to attract this kind of romantic spotlight, at least; that's what she told herself. She and her sister were two sides of the same coin: both habitually overlooked, though in Shaine's case, it was mostly because she was too "dense" to notice the boys staring at her in the first place.
"I wonder who you might be?" She whispered to herself and the letter.
In that split second, the world around her blurred, and a rapid flash of images began to flicker through her mind like a fractured film reel. Amidst the haze, a single figure kept surfacing: a boy with porcelain skin and hair the color of melted chocolate. He was laughing, a bright, infectious gummy smile lighting up his entire face.
"Zabane," she whispered, the name slipping past her lips before she could even think to stop it.
Abby shut her eyes tightly before opening them again slowly; the images began to slowly fade away as her eyelids fluttered open.
"Who's Zabene?" Shaine asked, looking curious about what her sister had just randomly blurted out.
Abby shook her head and smiled at her sister; she stared back at the letter in her hand and recalled the images that appeared in her head. Who was that? She asked herself. Her attention was drawn to specific letters at the bottom of the letter, Z.B. was written with beautiful calligraphy.
"Could this be from... that Zabene?" she whispered under her breath.
A sharp, metallic crack echoed across the field, pulling Abby's attention toward the diamond. Her gaze landed on the batter: a boy with fair skin and what seems like tufts of chocolate-brown hair peeking out from beneath the sides of his helmet, as far as she can see. He settled into his stance, and as the pitch came flying toward him, he swung with a clean, explosive force that sent the ball soaring into the afternoon sky.
The rest of the baseball team swarmed him, offering high-fives and grins for the massive hit. In the middle of the celebration, the boy turned his head toward the hill. His eyes locked onto Abby's for a fleeting, breathless second. Abby's face flushed a deep pink, but the heat vanished as quickly as it had come when the boy abruptly looked away.
Okay, maybe it's not him, Abby thought, her brow furrowing in a small, disappointed frown.
"You okay?"
Abby pulled her gaze away from the baseball diamond, turning back to see her sister already reaching for another cookie. She shook her head with a faint smile, finally letting the mystery rest as she joined in on the lunch.
A few dozen meters away, tucked into the shadow of the bleachers, a boy stood perfectly still, panting due to the heat. He was smiling, a soft, private expression, as he watched the girl on the hill enjoy her lunch.
"Hey, let's grab some food," a voice called out behind him.
With one last, lingering glance toward the group under the tree, the boy finally gave a slow nod. He set his bat down on the grass with a dull thud and unbuckled his helmet. As he pulled it off, his messy, chocolate-brown locks sprang free, the fluffy strands bouncing around his face. He turned to follow his teammate, a shy, sheepish grin tugging at the corners of his mouth. A faint, tell-tale blush bloomed across his fair cheeks, a soft contrast to the intensity of the practice he'd just finished.