Mingled Flavors, Part 2

"What were you two whispering about?"

Connor joined us once he finished conversing with the receptionist. Without waiting for an answer, he took a dime from his wallet and inserted it into the vending machine before selecting his beverage. For those who are interested, tea with extra sugar.

"You weren't talking about me, were you? I presume you had positive things to say about me."

"Don't flatter yourself like that," Reyna grumbled, taking yet another sip of her coffee.

"Then what were you talking about?" he shot back.

Not sparing him a glance, she twirled the cup in her hand, creating a small whirlwind in its center. "We were discussing the written exam."

He gave us a long look before shaking his head. "Nerds," he grumbled, only to have his attention stolen by the vendor's beep.

Then without giving us the chance to react, he reached for the cup. Connor's lip quivered as he realized how hot it was, but he didn't complain. His pride would not let him do so. Watching him fight to keep the tears from falling while barely gripping the cup with his fingertips was amusing.

I let out a sigh, barely stopping myself from laughing at him. Reyna simply turned away, not wanting to witness her brother's anguish. Or so I assumed, but her little grin told me otherwise.

"This Guild is ruined..." she declared.

Connor didn't allow that to pass by. "Your point being?"

Reyna used her free hand to retrieve her tablet. "I was just mumbling to myself," she shrugged as she rose to her feet.

"You're always carrying that thing around, aren't you?" I muttered.

"It's because she doesn't want anyone bothering her," Connor replied in her stead, shaking his hand after grasping it with the other. "She does that often, but she can't fool me."

"And you still couldn't notice she dyed her hair—"

"Zip it."

As we walked towards the elevator, I kept my gaze fixed on her back. "That tablet. Are you simply holding it for—"

But, just as I was about to finish, she hissed, "No, this isn't just for show. I'm working on something. A project. While I'm away, doing so on my tablet is considerably easier than on my phone."

I wondered whether she was working on that said project before Connor and I joined in the—wait, even before considering that...

"What about your laptop?"

It was portable, and a lot more efficient than a tablet. In case it broke down, she could just get a new one. That was one of the many benefits of being the daughter of an influential person. Money shouldn't represent a problem. If she didn't simply buy a different laptop to use while traveling, then I'm certain something bad must've happened that I'm not aware of yet. Was she perhaps too embarrassed to talk about it?

Connor grinned while he pressed the elevator button. It felt as if he had expected me to ask that question. "She smashed it, with her fist. Now she's being punished."

"So she broke it herself, huh..." I whispered, having all my previous theories blasted away.

Reyna fixed her gaze on the back of her brother's head. "And I believe I'm about to break this tablet soon..."

"You wouldn't do that, sister," Connor murmured, not concerned in the least. He was so sure his remarks were correct that he didn't even turn to see what she was up to. "You might be able to work on that spell on the lab's computer, but not while we're away from home. Oh, and I'm not going to lend you mine even if you ask for it. I'd cry if you were to break it... as you did the other one."

He chuckled like some sort of lunatic, then stepped into the elevator as it opened, leaving Reyna seething. The cup in her fingers trembled, and I thought I heard the sound of something boiling—but it was probably just my imagination at work.

I realized that was Connor's way of having revenge for the dot imprinted on his forehead by Reyna, which happened not long ago, I dare add.

"Maybe we should calm down a bit," I tried to be the voice of reason. It would break my heart if I were to see an accident befall that fancy tablet (or Connor, although he wasn't as important). "You can always get back at him later."

"You'll be the one to get back on him later, Gray."

I could do something like that whenever I wanted, but she was probably referring to the upcoming competition. Well, if that was enough to cool her down, then I was okay it with. But winning against him was a whole different story.

Waiting for us, Connor leaned against the wall, one hand in his pocket as he took a sip from his sugary drink. "I heard that you know?"

"I wanted you to," she strode onto the other side of the elevator, leaving the space in the middle just for me.

Perfect, I thought. Being caught between those two was the last thing I wanted. It definitely wasn't as if they were about to chomp each other's heads off at any given moment... Who am I kidding? Just say the wrong word and they'd jump at each other's throats, leaving me to fend for myself (which I wasn't really capable of doing).

I sighed as the elevator's door closed, knowing I didn't have much of a choice in the matter. Sandwiched between them, the air was thick enough that it could quite literally choke me to death.

All I could do was pray this pair of siblings wouldn't be too much for me to handle.