33 Chapter 33: Cultural Festival pt.3

Evan found himself eating a meal that originates from Oceanus. A seaweed base noodle soup that reminded him of ramen, topped with colorful vegetables that added plenty of flavor. He actually picked it out after asking Osser, who was currently eating a sandwich of sorts at the time, for advice on which meal would taste the best. Cole decided not to eat anything, stating that he'd eaten before meeting up with them.

The three conversed about how they felt about the festival thus far, all while Evan ignored the eyes burning at the back of his skull. He was unable to pinpoint where the eyes were coming from, so he decided to ignore it for the time being. Both Osser and Cole had noticed his shiftiness, but didn't ask him what was up as he acted as though not a single thing was wrong.

"Hey guys, I think i'll visit the other booths tomorrow. I'd rather start reading the books I have first." Evan stated, not exactly telling a lie..but not saying the entire truth either. He did want to read his books about both Ophinx and Masain, but the urge to find out what was happening in Astoria was his current priority. The fox felt as though he'd be unable to find that information by sticking with his friends.

"Ah, darling!~ I can't believe you're leaving us, your dates!." Cole pouted at Evan, fluttering his lashes as if that would get him to change his mind. Osser remained silent, but carefully watched the conversation go down. A light pink tint highlighted his natural skin-tone at Cole's choice of words regarding their hanging out.

"We can go on another 'date' tomorrow then!" Evan exclaimed, motioning his fingers in a 'so-called' way to emphasize his opinion on calling their excursion a date. This seemed to placate Cole enough, who suddenly declared that he'd continue his date with Osser. Evan, who was a bit slow on the uptake, didn't seem to realize how happy the entire concept made Osser feel, whose entire being exuded happiness. The male believed that Osser was simply glad to hang out with his best friend.

Having finished his food, Evan was quick to say goodbye and escape the cafeteria, wanting to hide from wandering eyes. However, no matter how far he got, that intense feeling never left his mind. It made Evan feel extremely paranoid and uncomfortable.

Shaking his head to rid of those thoughts, Evan found his first possible information source. One of the students from his support class, Mei Calloi, is from Astoria and her parents are currently here, along with her. Thinking of a way to start up a conversation without seeming both weird and awkward, Evan just decided to go for it, knowing that nothing would really make the conversation seem normal.

"Mr. and Mrs. Calloi, would you be able to answer a few questions of mine? My name is Evan Renelli and i'm in your daughter's support class. I'm worried about my parents in Astoria, considering all the riots, and was wondering if you could maybe ease those worries for me." Evan explained, noticing the apprehensive look on the father and the sympathetic one on the mother. The two whispered to one another, while Mei looked at him a bit confused. Eventually, her parents turned back towards him.

"I guess we could answer a few questions. What would you like to know?" Mrs. Calloi gently said, a small frown visible on her face. Mei and her father, on the other hand, went over to the side, seemingly discussing something that hopefully didn't pertain to him.

"Ah, well..how bad are the riots now?" Evan whispered out, aware that the school did try to keep out what was happening outside of the school by any means. He just couldn't handle being left out of the loop any longer. Mrs. Calloi had a thoughtful look on her face as she pondered how to word her answer, wanting to sugarcoat how bad the situation was becoming.

"They aren't great, the kingdom is having trouble keeping up all under control, but if you parents live far from the capital, it should be alright dear! Most of the issues are happening with the capital and the countries surrounding it, but it hasn't spread that far out." She whispered back, not understanding why the child in front of her was whispering but deciding to follow his lead. She knew that MAH was very keen on keeping the political climate off-campus, so even her own daughter only knew what was happening via her own word.

Evan wasn't completely satisfied with the answer, feeling like something must've been up for his parents to simply stop updating him on anything pertaining to the riots, but he was thankful for the information. Maybe, just maybe, his parents were dealing with something and the entire situation hit close to him. It made sense to Evan, as his parents escaped persecution from the people and the main kingdom.

"Thank you so much for the answers Mrs. Calloi. I hope the rest of your day is great." Evan smiled at the woman, who had at least answered his main question. He had others, but he planned to ask other people to answer them. He left the woman, who ended up walking back to her family, and went in search of someone else to help him out.

While walking around, the eyes on his back intensified and it alarmed Evan, who wanted to figure out who the hell was watching him. His ears and tail puffed up in anger, annoyance written all over his face. Taking a second to breathe in and out as a means of expelling the anger that was rising within him, Evan took a seat on a bench near the main fountain. The scenery was peaceful, with families and students walking around and excitement being a common feature on almost everyone's face.

While sitting down, he felt a tap on his shoulder and quickly turned around, feeling deja vu about the entire situation. Who he saw was not who he was expecting whatsoever.