I Need Talk To You

[Lynette POV]

I failed my school debut.

I was determined to change my image and leave the awkward and asocial me behind, so I tried to smile and pretended to be a shy little lady, but it didn't work. Actually, I didn't even get a chance. Before I knew it, people already feared me. To be fair, they didn't exactly fear me, but they were intimidated. I thought things would be different here, turns out they're not.

I wasn't the only chosen one here. So even if I was special, I wasn't special enough to become this famous –or should I say infamous? However, having enrolled school in the middle of the year and being Aoban's sister didn't help in going unnoticed. And then, the incident happened. Yep, the Pikachu incident. With the barrier, and all the first-class mages -aka the teachers- patrolling, the Arcane Academy was one of the safest place in the world and it had never been attacked –until Pikachu. So it may seem ridiculous, but it was a huge issue, especially since Pikachu supposedly used a hybrid attribute. And then there is me, the transfer student who directly got involved in the incident on her first day. Now, most of people thought of me as some kind of a thug, causing problems as soon as I arrive.

Um… Excuse me, people? I was the victim, remember? Nobody cares…

The results? I was shunned. The students were avoiding me and of course, I couldn't make a single friend. I am now absolutely sure to be cursed…

It's not that bad though. I'm probably trying to convince myself that I'm not that pitiful, but I don't really hate the situation. Of course, if I could have the normal social life of an average teenager, I would gladly have it, but I'm used to being alone so the situation isn't so hard to accept. Besides, even without friends, school life is keeping me busy.

For example, right now, I'm running. Why, you say? Because I'm chasing someone. That's right. The idiot has been running away from me for about five minutes. Which means it's been five minutes I've been running like a fool in the middle of the corridors, trying my best to avoid bumping into someone.

"Sorry! My bad… Oops! Sorry! Excuse-me!"

Damn it… Not only I hate running, but now I also look like an idiot. Once I catch him, he's dead.

I was trying my best to keep up but unfortunately for me, he was fast, I was not. My stamina has always been a disaster and any physical effort was complicated for me. Moreover, I'm short. Doesn't matter, you say? Yes it does. Because I'm shorter, I need to make bigger steps to match his. So no matter how much I tried, I couldn't reduce the gap between us. Instead, it kept increasing. But after a few more minutes, not seeing me behind, he probably thought I had given up as he started walking again. I took advantage of the moment and finally caught up. Alerted by the sudden sound of my footsteps, the boy turned around and noticed me. He tried to run again, but this time, I didn't let him. Now that I finally got you in sight, you're not getting anywhere…

『Bind.』

Losing its momentum, the boy fell loudly on the ground, as the other students around him gave him weird looks. Knowing that he won't be leaving anytime soon, I finally stopped to catch my breath. I think I stayed there at least a few minutes, doing nothing but breathing deeply. Well, what can I say? Running is exhausting, especially for me. Once my breathing finally returned to a slow and rhythmic pattern, I walked up to the boy who was still struggling to get away, unable to comprehend why he couldn't move.

"Finally, got you."

"What the hell is wrong with you?! Leave me alone! Why are you chasing me?"

"Because you're running away! Why are you running away?"

"Because you're chasing me!"

At this rate, this discussion won't be going anywhere… I sighed.

"I need to talk to you," I explained.

"No way, get lost!"

"I just have one question."

"What is it that you don't understand in 'no way'? You're really not right in your head! Just leave me alone! Do you have any idea what's going to happened to me if a teacher sees us together?"

I tilted my head in incomprehension as I gave him a silent answer.

"I'll be in huge troubles!" He yelled out in frustration. "Because of your lies, I'm in a tight situation! I received a warning from the headmaster and I am to stay away from you! If a teacher sees us right now… They're going to get the wrong idea and think I'm bullying you! And me? I… I…"

"You?" I repeated.

"I don't know! Maybe I'll be transferred to a lower class, maybe I'll be forbidden to participate to any competitions or worse! Maybe I'll be expelled!"

I gave him an apathetic look as I answered with a disinterest voice.

"Oh… How terrible for you."

Sensing my sarcasm, the boy glared at me.

"Whose fault do you think it is?!" He asked.

"Yours?" I tried to guess.

"Yours! If you hadn't lied, I wouldn't be in this situation!"

"If you hadn't tried to intimidate me, you wouldn't be in this situation," I corrected.

The boy was shaking in frustration as he couldn't find anything to respond. That's right, this is Frost. One of the boy who kidnapped me the day I transferred to threaten my brother. After the incident, I had expected for them to retaliate anytime for revenge, but they surprisingly didn't. I finally understand why. Seems like the headmaster's word is absolute.

Frost eventually stopped struggling to get free of his invisible bind, so I released him.

"『Release.』"

His eyes widened, he looked up at me as he understood that I was responsible for his temporary immobility, but he didn't try to run again.

"Look, it's already forgotten so let's leave the past behind." I suggested. "I need to talk to you."