Page 10

Y/N sat down at her desk, feeling the weight of the situation pressing down on her as she stared at the syllabus for the next class. She had barely managed to get through the last period with Azul, and now it was time for English, just her and Aisha.

"This is so not fair..I'll catch you in PE later though Y/N" Julia waved at the two before walking off to her own class.

No vampires? It must be a miracle..

But as she looked around, her stomach churned again—there he was, a familiar slightly cocky looking brunette.

Silas.

In the seat across from her.

She shot him a look, but he didn't seem to notice, or at least, he didn't care. He was too busy chatting with some girl beside him, his usual sharp, confident attitude making him the centre of attention.

Typical.

Y/N felt a mix of annoyance and something else—something she couldn't quite place—jealousy? She eyed him up and down, but not in the way people usually did.

From the top, where the soft brown hair fell so casually over his eyes, threatening to obscure his vision yet somehow only adding to his disarming charm, to the tip of his freshly polished shoes, gleaming under the dim light of the classroom.

She eyed the way his uniform was perfectly fitted to his build.

Broad shoulders, a wide chest, oh look a nice..shiny..expensive..watch—wait.

Focus Y/N!

Mrs. Camden, the English teacher, started speaking, snapping Y/N out of her thoughts.

"Alright, class. Today we're diving into something a bit more.

.. thought-provoking. We'll be debating a topic that's come up in recent discussions—'Is progress always good for society?

' Half the class will argue in favour of progress, and the other half will argue against it. "

Y/N groaned internally.Great. Just what I need. she thought, sinking into her chair.

Debates. She could handle this. She was quick on her feet with words; although Silas looked just as eager, like he might just say the same for himself.

Someone with sharp tongue always made things harder.

★

As Mrs. Camden started assigning sides, Y/N found herself on the pro-progress team.

The class broke into murmurs as both sides started preparing their points. Y/N couldn't help but glance over at Silas, who happened to be on the opposing side; and was already scribbling down his argument with that signature smugness.

The debate was intense, with both sides throwing well-crafted arguments back and forth.

Y/N found herself getting more and more absorbed in the conversation, her passion for the subject overtaking her usual frustration with Silas.

But then Silas spoke again, this time with a quiet, cutting observation.

"Sometimes progress isn't about doing what's easiest or most convenient," he said. "It's about what's right. And progress can't always guarantee that."

Y/N blinked, momentarily thrown off by the sudden shift in his demeanour. For a second, she saw the hint of something deeper in his eyes—something other than arrogance.

Still, she wasn't about to let him get the best of her.

"That's exactly the point. Progress means growth, even if it's uncomfortable; then again progress never happens unless for the benefit for a society in general, despite the circumstances which it may have afterwards.

What matters is that it only ever happens for the greater good. "

The argument continued like that until Mrs. Camden called an end to it, announcing that both teams made compelling points but neither had fully convinced her. Y/N's side won, but only by a hair.

As the bell rang, signalling the end of class, Y/N grabbed her bag and stood up, feeling the heat in her cheeks from the intense back-and-forth. But just as she was about to walk out, Silas spoke again, his voice low but direct. "Nicely said L/N.."

"But don't get too comfortable, Y/N. This rivalry's just getting started." He gave her a cocky glare before turning to leave.

★

Y/N dragged herself to the locker rooms, already dreading the forced physical activity that awaited her. It wasn't like she was bad at sports, but she preferred her mind over her body. That's what she liked to tell herself.

Unfortunately, it seemed like PE was going to be another round of forced proximity with none other than a cocky brunette.

"Y/N!" But at least she had Julia for this class. "Does my butt look big in these shorts?"

"Massive" Y/N scoffed. Julia grinned, giving her a playful shove as they walked out of the locker rooms, arms linked.

They made their way into the gymnasium, where the usual loud chatter echoed off the walls. But today, the gym had a different vibe.

A subtle tension was in the air, a dividing line drawn down the middle, separating the students into two factions. "Looks like everyone is wearing their own school's P.E. kit?" Julia mumbled, glancing across the gym at the other students.

On one side, the humans were dressed in red and navy. On the other side, the vampire students of Diagon Prep were in sleek red and black kits, their presence already causing a stir.

Human students whispered among themselves, their eyes darting nervously between their side of the gym and the vampires'. Y/N couldn't help but overhear a few of the more nervous murmurs.

"Do you think they're really as strong as they say?"

"You think they're better at sports?"

"Aren't they basically super humans—but like dead..?"

Y/N's eyes scanned the other half of the gym. The vampires stood out, tall and effortlessly athletic, their movements like they were born to move with precision and grace.

Most were pale, their sharp features giving them a statuesque appearance. Their presence was magnetic, as if they commanded the space just by standing in it.

★

Y/N rolled her eyes.

She was about to turn to Julia and make a sarcastic remark when her gaze landed on him—Silas. He was standing near the front, his posture perfect, his eyes already scanning the room, the faintest frown tugging at the corner of his lips as he caught sight of her.

"Of course.." Y/N muttered under her breath.

"What's up with him?" Julia whispered, following Y/N's gaze.

"I don't know, but he looks like he's already about to make me regret showing up" Y/N said, her eyes narrowing as Silas' gaze flickered over to her.

"Can you not stare like that, please? It's creeping me out." Julia nudged Y/N, and the two girls made their way to their assigned area.

It didn't take long before Coach Daniels, an overzealous P.E. instructor who seemed more enthusiastic than was entirely necessary, gathered everyone's attention. "Alright, everyone! Today we'll be doing a series of endurance drills. Let's see who can keep up."

Julia nervously grinned. "We..got this?"

"We're going to die, Julia." Y/N muttered under her breath, adjusting her sneakers.

★

The drills started out simple enough—running laps, jumping jacks, and some stretching. Y/N found herself doing her best to keep up with Julia, but she could already feel her energy starting to drain.

It wasn't that she wasn't athletic; it was just... well, the vampires didn't have to deal with breathing like she did. And when she glanced over at Silas, standing a few paces away, she could already tell he wasn't having any trouble.

In fact, he looked bored. Like he'd been here before, like this was nothing. As if running a few laps didn't even register for him.

Silas was in his own world, his face an unreadable mask of irritation as he looked at the rest of the class. He was a solid competitor. Strong. Focused.

And then there was Y/N—trying not to breathe too loudly as she took her first lap, already falling behind.

By the second lap, Y/N had started to feel the burn in her legs. She gritted her teeth and pushed herself harder, but she could see Silas speeding ahead with no effort whatsoever.

Every time she tried to match his pace, he would just stay a few steps ahead, like he was trying to let her catch up but also clearly didn't care enough to wait for her.

It didn't help that he occasionally shot her a glance, eyes gliding over her with that unmistakable annoyance, as though her effort was a waste of his time.

"Not gonna make it, huh?" Silas muttered, his voice barely above a whisper as he sped past her again. "You're too slow."

Y/N gritted her teeth, trying not to show how much his words stung. "Shut..huff..up" she muttered, not looking at him.

"You're holding up the whole class." Silas continued, his pace unrelenting. He wasn't even breathing hard.

Y/N felt the sting of his words more than the sweat trickling down her neck. "It's not..huff..a race" she shot back, trying to keep her tone light, but the words came out strained.

"Yeah, but you're still in last place," he said, clearly not trying to be encouraging.

Y/N's fingers curled into fists, but she didn't respond. She was already too tired to retort.

★

By the time the class ended, Y/N was breathing heavily, legs aching, and there was Silas—already waiting by the water station, barely winded, looking like he'd barely broken a sweat.

Y/N stood by the wall, trying to catch her breath, when Silas casually glanced over at her. "You know," he said, "If you put in even half the effort you put into looking annoying, you might actually keep up."

Y/N's eye twitched. "Maybe if you didn't act like such an overachieving bitch. I wouldn't have to keep up with your big head."

Silas raised an eyebrow, 'overachieving bitch?', the faintest smile tugging at the corner of his lips. "You still don't get it, do you? It's not about keeping up with me. It's about not letting yourself get left behind."

Y/N stared at him, trying to process what exactly he meant. But before she could respond, he turned, heading off toward his next destination, clearly not waiting for her to get an answer.

Once again, she was left fuming at his dismissiveness. But there was something else, too. Something nagging at her that she couldn't shake. Something about the way he'd said it.

It wasn't just a challenge—it was almost like a test. And if Y/N had learned anything about Silas, it was that he only bothered to test people he found... interesting.

And for some reason, that made her even more determined to prove him wrong.