Fire

Annika's POV

"Look who's here. Gosh, don't you have any decent clothes to wear? You look more like a beggar than an arcanist." Alexa said as Ell and I walked inside the room. Everybody laughed as if what she said was so amusing. Everyone is looking at me, but I don't feel anything at all. If I were the old me, I'm sure I'd be embarrassed.

I am wearing a black hoodie and cargo pants. Both clothes were a little too big for me, so they just kind of hung on my petite body loosely.

"Don't mind her." Ell whispered and guided me to a vacant seat at the back.

"Do you really think words can hurt me?" I said with a smirk.

Alexa went back to her seat, which is beside the red-headed boy she was with yesterday. Their group was seated near each other. Ell must have seen me looking at them.

"That's Red Blackwood, the headmaster's son." She whispered.

"He's a bully. Compared to Alexa, he is the devil. Literally." She eyed me cautiously.

"He's fire. It's best to stay away from his radar. He doesn't usually dwell on someone he doesn't cross paths with, so you'll be good." A little concern is evident in her voice.

My imagination played tricks on my mind.

I love playing with fire.

She straightened herself when a woman stepped inside the room and stayed at the center of the class.

She scanned the room as if looking for someone and stopped when she spotted me.

"Ah, there you are. Annika, right? Welcome to Royal Academy of Arcane Arts." Her smile radiates. She has the beauty of a model.

I heard someone scoff.

"We'll sure welcome her warmly, Miss Belle." I turned and saw Alexa's friend smiling with her group.

"Not that kind of welcome Tanya." Miss Belle looked at her knowingly.

The class started right away, and I silently thanked God for sparing me from the self-introduction.

"The water remembers, air escapes, earth resists, fire burns, and aether…. Watches." Miss Belle begins.

"Your element is your equal. Embrace it with your mind, nourish it with your heart. Your emotions are your foundation. Once your emotion cracks, then your element cracks with you."

All the students, even Alexa's group, were quiet. They seem to focus on the discussion.

It's not bad, though. It was interesting to hear something like this in school.

"Alexa, can you tell the class what emotions fuel our element the most?" 

Alexa confidently stood up.

"Fear and rage."

"Good."

"Rage burns our desire to fight; it's a given. But why fear?"

"Fear, ladies and gentlemen, fuels our will. Our instinct for survival, per se."

Miss Belle walks to the center of the room.

"Annika, I heard you're an air element."

I paused, not knowing how to answer.

"Come on, dear, I'll be here to guide you in exploring your element. So, can you show us what you can do?"

I looked at her blankly.

"What exactly do you want me to do?" I don't plan to be mean to her, but the way I said it sounds like it.

"Just show us a little air manipulation. Each of your classmates presented last week; this way I can assess your ability and monitor its progress."

Everyone is looking at me right now, even Ell.

I cleared my throat before opening my mouth.

"I don't know how."

Some laughed.

"Poor thing." Alexa pouted her lips.

Miss Belle gave a concerned look before talking.

"It's okay dear. I'll help you every step of the way."

She went back in front and began to discuss something about theories on manipulation, but my mind was not at it anymore.

A tiny hard object hit me in the head, and I instantly looked in the direction of where it came from.

Tanya is smiling from ear to ear.

"Loser." She mouthed.

I picked up the object that hit me. It was an unopened candy. I opened it and stared at her before popping it in my mouth.

I smirked and gave her a finger. She instantly turned red in anger. It gave me satisfaction.

Unexpectedly, I caught a quick glance at Red and saw him smirk before turning his head in front.

The second and third subjects passed quickly without any significant happenings aside from the snide remarks Alexa and her two minions gave to me. I don't really react, which irritates them more.

Lunchtime comes, and Ell and I are in the school cafeteria. I wonder why she keeps on following me wherever I go.

"Don't you have any friends? " I asked as I ate the last bite of my tuna sandwich.

"What makes you say that? " she asked.

"Why do you keep on following me? "

She swallowed and sat up properly.

"You are my roommate, and you are new here. This is just a humanitarian act," She answered defensively.

Yeah right.

We both looked at the direction of the noise from the far end of the cafeteria.

We can see Alexa's group along with some other students gathering around someone.

"Looks like someone is at Red's badside again," Ell sang as she stood up and walked away.

Even from afar I can see that Red is tugging on someone's shirt using one hand, while the other has one finger lit up with fire. The boy is on the floor; half his body is lying down, while Red is kneeling on one knee.

Oh, this boy is really trouble.

I inwardly smile.

Students are cheering, and grown-ups in the room seem to not mind at all.

Too noisy.

I secretly turned on my phone and put on my air pods. I hid it well with my hair, so no one sees it. I turned the volume up and stood up. I was about to walk when Ell stopped in front of me and handed me a cone of ice cream.

"Dessert? " I took it from her and continued walking. I walked straight from where the commotion is.

I sensed the room went quiet when I entered the small circle created by the viewers of this majestic play.

Red maybe sensed the shift of the mood and then looked up.

I instantly put the ice cream cone on his lighted finger, and it made a sizzle sound. The fire instantly dies.

"Careful, you might burn the house down."

I smirked and walked away. Students gasped in confusion.

Excitement builds up in my system.

This is going to be fun. Now, I'm definitely on his radar.