2 The Return of a Student

The bus's doors slide open at the waiting station as passengers exit and others get on. Edward, still inside the bus holding onto the poll, stepped out of the bus. He was wearing a jacket and carrying a backpack on his back. Edward looked around the waiting station as he found the street sign and smiled.

Minutes later, Edward walked up to the hill leading to his destination; along the way to his journey, he asked for direction from the locals, and it led him here, at the top of the hill.

Edward saw a building in the distance, so this is the so-called latte Dormitory? Edward thought as he walked closer to the building.

Some of its windows are clean and reflective, and it looks like it was built in the 90s. It is described as old and run down. Edward steps in the front door and checks his surroundings before entering. He puts his hands on the doorknob.

He turns the door a little and peeks inside; the lobby is full of girls, some with mugs in their hands.

Edward opens the door and enters slowly; the entry tiles on the floor are clean and easy to slide; he is now inside the lobby; he is met with many stares and whispers, "What does a boy doing here?"

"We are getting another one?"

These are the words each girl said as she looked at Edward with curiosity and disappointment on her face, as the entry room became loud, as the other girls called out to their friends from their room, and they came out to see Edward in full display.

As the crowds gathered, most of them were suddenly pushed away as a figure emerged from the group. Edwards's eye focus on the figure as he looks at its face to see her hair is blonde.

The eyes were pink as crimson, and the face looked feminine.

However, as Edwards thoroughly looks at the boy up and down. He notices that this person is a boy, he thought to himself. "Oh, it's Auryan," one of the girls said quietly.

The blonde boy approaches Edward, with his face fully locked into him,

"Are you perhaps Edward Althaus?"

"Ah-Ah yes, I am Edward Althaus and your Aryan, right?" Edward said as he heard one of the crowds mention the name Aryan.

"Yes, that's right, I'm Auryan," he extended his hands; Edward saw this and shook his hand.

The two walk to the second floor in the left hallway after all the chaos settles down as Auryan guides Edward to his room.

"The two will be the first male student who will be able to live in this dorm,"

"It's only the two of us?"

Edward was surprised that the two would be the first male student to live in this dormitory. Auryan counties to explain the inner working of the dorm. As they finish talking, they stop at a front door,

"This is your new room; the moving company has already delivered your belongings inside, and here are your keys."

Aryan tosses the keys, and Edward sees this and tries to catch it, but the key ends higher than Edward expected; it makes a sound on the floor.

My bad, Aryan said. Edward crouched and picked it up from the floor; he inserted the key into the keyhole. The door opened, and Edward was greeted by a cardboard box arranged and piled up. Aryan peaks inside as Edwards goes into his room, pulls off the box, and opens it,

"Do you need a hand?"

"No, thank you, I'll be able to tidy things up." Edward replied, "Alright then if you need any help, you can just call me beside your room."

Got it! Edward said as he saw Aryan leaves and closes the door for him. Edward was relieved when he was alone; Auryan is a talkative person with a feminine face that he could be mistaken a girl, His body is slim tone and muscular of a body.

Edward thought of Aryan as he opened some boxes and counties to decorate his room and furniture.

He opened one of the boxes and saw it was filled with old and brand new books, "Oh yeah, my journals; I told him to leave it behind; it can't be helped." Edward mutters as he drags it and pushes it to his small open closest.

Edward begins to clean up the room and adds a sheet of cover to the bed; after that, he includes his curtains to his window; as Edward finishes unpackaging the rest of his stuff from the cardboard boxes, he decides to take a shower.

He then goes out to his room with his towel and changes clothes. After an hour, he asked Auryan how to get to the bathroom so that he could enter the bathroom without any distribution from the other residents.

Following a nice shower, Edward returns to his room with his newly changed clothes. And took sleep at the dorm at night.

The following day as Edward took a twenty-minute walk down the hill as he walked, he could see the Campus from his stance.

Finally, at a close distance within the gate, I could see the top sign saying,

Victor's Academy is a school for young adults to come and learn and discover themselves.

The expression on Edward's face changed when he saw the campus because he was wearing a navy blue jacket from the school and remembered what Ryan had said to him a few days ago. He begins to recall what happened three days ago.

==========

"Pfft⸺ Wh-What did you just say?" Edward asked as he accidentally spits out the drink from his mouth.

"Like I said do you want to join a school?" Ryan repeated, "First of all, why do you suggest that? And second, isn't that for kids!"

"Come, you practically still look young compere to me." Ryan points out Edward's appearance.

"There is also the fact that you are currently a NEET, and you haven't even paid your rent,"

"Do you even know what NEET even means?" Edward said, "Of course, I do know; my granddaughter teaches me how to use the internet."

Ryan said as he pulled out a smartphone from his pocket and showed it to Edward. What is this thing? He asked Ryan.

"Whoa, you living under the rock," Ryan says, "Shut it. I have seen this on the TV, old man."

"Now looks who is talking, aren't you an ancient one,"

"Urk, yeah, you're right…."

Edward went silent as he looked out his window as the afternoon light shins inside the room, and cloudy skies gave shade to that outside.

"I have been worried about you since the wedding has be⸺."

"...…." Ryan notices Edward's expression of a soul while drinking a beer in his hand; back then, Ryan remembers Edward enjoying a fulfillment life after the war, but tragedy struck, making Edward go missing for the past years until now.

"Look, Edward, I know you have been through a lot; you saved my life countless times back then. Without you, I could have died back then. I sometimes think I don't deserve this life."

Edward then turns around to see Ryan looking down, reminiscing the old times,

"Could you please accept what I'm offering? I don't want to leave any regrets behind, especially you?" Ryan said as he bowed down at the tea-table.

"*Sigh* Sure, I'll check it out." Edward said as he decided to change for once, "really? Now that's great,"

The older man was then please and smiling hearing this. As he finally got an answer from Edward, he clapped his hands together and said, "Alright, men, time to charge!"

"What do you mean charge in⸺?"

He was suddenly cut off when the door and window suddenly flung open. People in suits walked inside his apartment; Ryan ordered the gentleman to pack up Edward's stuff and start moving. Edward was now confused about the situation. Ryan then explained.

"Starting today, you will be attending Victor's Academy as Edward Althaus, and second we will have to cut that long hair."

"You could have picked a better surname than Althaus? And why my hair has to be cut!"

"Deal with it," Ryan said.

They watched as the black-suited men began to pack and move out some of Edward's furniture, and his belongings were placed in a cardboard box and moved outside.