Chapter 9 : Seriously

Sam sat back with a satisfied smile. "You know, I always wanted to be that cool senior who helps the little ones. Guess we're doing it already."

"We're second-years," Adom pointed out, amused.

"Details, details." Sam took a spoonful of his soup and grimaced. "Ugh, it's gone cold." He traced a quick square pattern in the air, and a warm glow settled over the bowl. "Besides, remember how lost we were last year? Would've killed for some friendly advice beyond 'direction before force, focus before flow.'" He affected Professor Kern's monotonous drawl again.

Then, with a gasp, Sam's spoon suddenly froze halfway to his mouth, his shoulders tensing visibly. He stared intently at his soup as if it held the secrets of the universe. Something about his friend's deer-in-spellfire expression triggered an inexplicable surge of anxiety in Adom's gut. He fought it down, irritated at his body's betrayal.

"What–" Adom started to turn.

"Don't," Sam squeaked. A blush crept up his neck. "It's... it's Mia Storm."

"Hello, boys."

Sam managed a slight nod, his eyes still fixed downward. His mouth opened briefly as if to speak, but nothing came out.

Adom's heart did a strange little skip that had no business existing in someone his age. He turned to face Mia Storm, and for a horrifying moment, his adult perspective and teenage memories collided. His throat went dry.

Seventy-nine years of experience meant nothing to teenage hormones, apparently.

Around them, Adom noticed the familiar signs - a boy nearly spilling his drink while pretending to read, another one trailing off mid-sentence, several others suddenly finding reasons to fix their hair or straighten their uniforms. At least he wasn't alone in this particular brand of teenage awkwardness.

Her presence seemed to fill the entire cafeteria - not just because she was the most popular student at the Academy, but because of the way she carried herself. Silver curls framed a face that always seemed to hold a hint of amusement, as if she knew something you didn't.

In another timeline, Mia Storm would become the youngest Archmage in history, only to fall during the catastrophic Dungeon Break of Valanya. And, embarrassingly enough, she had been Adom's crush throughout his years at Xerkes. Perhaps 'crush' was too mild a word.

"Oh, hello Mia. How're you doing?" Adom managed, his voice cracking slightly. Fantastic.

Sam let out an audible gasp, making both Adom and Mia turn to look at him.

"Is he okay?" she asked, her eyebrows raised slightly.

"He's practicing to be a mime," Adom said automatically, his mouth running on autopilot while his brain tried to sort out which memories belonged to when. "Very method."

The corner of Mia's mouth twitched. "Actually, Adom, I was looking for you."

That was new. In his previous run through adolescence, their most meaningful interaction had been when she'd sneezed and he'd dropped his entire lunch tray. He didn't even know she knew his name back then.

"Found me."

"Your glasses." She pulled them from her bag. "From the duel? You left them behind when Damus, um..." She made a vague exploding gesture.

"Thank you," Adom smiled, taking them back. "You spared me a trip to the lost objects office." His fingers brushed hers, and his treacherous teenage body decided to send his pulse racing.

"My pleasure," Mia said, then added with a slight tilt of her head, "It's actually the first time I've seen you without them. It suits you pretty well."

Sam gasped again, louder this time.

Adom sighed, shooting his friend a look before turning back to Mia. "Thank you. I–"

"Mia!" One of her friends called from across the cafeteria. "We've got five minutes!"

"Oh, right - I have Healing next," she said, then paused. "Aren't you in that class too?"

Adom opened his mouth to answer, then closed it. Was he? The class schedules blurred together - this was so long ago he couldn't remember. "Different section," he said finally, hoping he wasn't lying.

"Ah, that explains why I haven't seen you there." She adjusted her bag. "I should go. Talk later?"

"Yeah, bye," Adom replied casually.

As Mia walked away, Adom turned back to find Sam staring at him with an expression that could only be described as religious awe. A fresh wave of remembered anxiety washed over him - that old, familiar feeling from his first time through adolescence. His palms were actually sweating. Seriously?

This problem would need to be addressed.

"You okay there?" Adom asked, trying not to smile.

Sam's response was muffled by the table. "How do you just... talk? Like that? To her?"

"Sam," Adom said finally, "she's just a person."

Sam was... not convinced.

Adom sighed, fighting another wave of unwanted teenage anxiety. His body might be betraying him with racing hearts and sweaty palms, but his mind was clear enough - he just had to survive puberty. Again.