POV: Aria Akari
Standing outside of the boy's dormitory, I felt a crisp breeze of wind brush across my body as I buried my mouth within my scarf in hopes of warming myself up.
My attire wasn't appropriate for the late autumn weather as I wore a rather casual fit, consisting of a black hoodie with a graphic design of a rose in the middle, a pleated burgundy short skirt paired with long thin black socks and black loafers.
If I knew I was going to be standing outside this long, I would have considered dressing warmer, although, I guess this is my fault as Rai did tell me to go back to my dorm, which reminds me…
Curious, I shifted my focus towards Rai's bags of groceries, which were untouched with the exception of his blueberries as many of them were crushed while the rest were scattered around the pathway like marbles.
I should at least pick up the rest of his groceries-
Abrupting my train of thought was none other than Atticus, who speared Rai from out of the boy's dormitory as the two of them were entangled with one another, tumbling past me until Rai separated themselves by kicking Atticus away, allowing himself to freely recover off the ground while Atticus tumbled backwards until he recovered his footing and positioned himself into a stance resembling that of a sprinter.
Rai!
Thrusting towards Rai, Atticus initiated an exchange of hand-to-hand combat with an orthodox boxing stance as he tried to strike Rai with several deft punches, but despite Atticus having the physical advantage blessed by his Aspect, Rai was somehow able to perceive every strike with nimble weaving, inspiring a vexing grin across Atticus's expression.
"Just wait until I get my hands on YOU!" Atticus bellowed, seething with rage as he ended their exchange with a feint into a heavy spinning back kick towards Rai's chest, urging Rai to respond with an immediate block as he raised his guard, allowing the attack to connect as the impact sent him skidding backwards across the pathway while Atticus began to pursue him, chasing him down as if Rai had committed a grave sin.
He's allowing Atticus to attack him, but why?
As Atticus approached Rai, the aura around his fists began to surge as Rai immediately raised his guard, alerted by the threatening power born before him as Atticus began thrashing his empowered fists into Rai's guard in delight, his every strike whittling down Rai's defenses until his guard was soon broken as his arms fell to his side lifelessly, trembling from the accumulated pain he received from enduring the ruthless thrashing of Atticus, who bore a grin of ecstasy which widened by the passing second as Rai gritted his teeth in apprehension.
Rai, you have to fight back or Atticus is going to kill you!
I understand that you want to hide your Aspect, but is it truly worth losing your own life because of your reluctance?
"Rai!" I shouted anxiously, dropping my bag of groceries as I prepared to activate my Aspect in order to assist Rai, but in the moment that I moved, Rai's eyes locked with my own as he sharpened his gaze, his baleful eyes issuing a command that struck my very essence as my body instinctively obeyed out of fear, leaving me frozen in place with cold sweat trickling down my face as I questioned his nonsensical demand.
I don't understand.
Why…
Why won't you let me help you?
I have the power to end this senseless scuffle with a mere order and yet, you still refuse?
Upset, I remained still as I watched Atticus grapple Rai onto the ground with a brutal slam, caving in the ground beneath them slightly, but despite the lack of resistance from Rai, Atticus was far from satisfied as he locked himself on top of Rai and began thrashing his empowered fists into Rai's face in a relentless manner, causing a few of the bystanders to grimace in revulsion as the sight we witnessed was nothing less than unpleasant.
Painting the once polished grey stone pathway was none other than Rai's crimson red blood as his face was battered beyond belief.
This isn't the same as your fight with Jacob.
Unlike Jacob, who only fights when his pride is provoked, Atticus is different.
He is a sick individual who adores the sadistic pleasure of tormenting someone until they're on the brink of death!
So tell me, Rai…
Allowing Atticus to revel in his pleasure, Rai remained passive, choosing not to resist as Atticus eventually struck his fist into Rai's face with a destructive strike, breaking his nose and burying his head into the earth below as the impact created a reverberating shockwave that was felt by every student present to the disturbing scene unfolding before them.
Why do you choose to suffer?
With a sigh of relief, Atticus combed the bangs of his hair back with his hand as he stood from the ground and looked down at Rai, whose conscious was still intact, despite the pummeling he had just received as he rested within the body-sized cavity of the earth in silence.
"You truly are a despicable bastard." Atticus uttered with content as he deactivated his Aspect and regrouped with Jordan and Jacob, who were somewhat disturbed with the way Atticus handled Rai until they disregarded their concerns as they then began following behind Atticus, who was in the midst of putting back on his jacket as the three of them headed off into the distance.
With the area settling down, I walked towards Rai, who was unusually unfazed, despite what he had just gone through as I crouched beside him and observed his injuries, which consisted of a black eye, a broken nose, swelling along his jaw and severe bruising with a few gashes marred across his blood-spilled face.
"Was it worth it, Rai?" I asked solemnly as a crisp breeze of wind brushed across my skin once more, carrying many cherry blossom petals along with it as the frigid air that once affected me was now nulled by my blood, which boiled with anger as I hated myself for accepting Rai's absurd demand.
For the second time now, I watched Rai allow himself to be beaten senselessly and as the Student Council President, I did absolutely nothing to help him as I found myself repulsed by my own incompetence.
"I'm afraid I don't understand what you're asking." Rai replied casually, pretending to be oblivious as his mysterious nature was beginning to irk me, but with a calming sigh, I kept my composure and allowed Rai to raise himself into a sitting position as I stood from the ground.
Upon Rai rising up, a concerning about of blood flowed from his nose, but despite his current state, Rai was more focused on his bags of groceries, which were inadvertently destroyed during his fight against Atticus as he picked himself up from the ground and walked towards the scene of his ruined groceries.
Dropping onto a knee at the arrival of what used to be his blueberries, his eyes had dulled out while I watched one his emotions die before me as Rai showed his respects.
You can't be serious right now.
Giving him a moment to grieve, Rai eventually came to his senses as he cleaned up his ruined groceries to the best of his ability and stood from ground while I approached him.
"Rai, what are you going to do about your wounds?" I asked, despite knowing his answer as I knew he would reject my offer, but this time, I had no intention of obeying his outrageous demands anymore.
"I'm planning on going to the infirmary-"
"No." I asserted, the stern tone of my response surprising Rai?
"What?" Rai asked, confused.
"I said, no." I asserted once again, but with a sharper tone this time, inspiring a nervous chuckle from Rai as I stared directly into his eyes.
"Aria, what are you-"
"With the exception of Ms. Jennifer, who is currently unavailable as it is too early in the morning, I can assure you that in terms of Aspectual Restoration, I'm superior compared to any nurse that is currently working within the infirmary as paired with the natural affinity of my Aspect, my healing would guarantee the best results, although it may take awhile due to my lack of experience." I affirmed with confidence as I stepped forward and narrowed my eyes towards him.
"Whether you like it or not, I'm going to heal you and this time, you will NOT refuse. Do you understand?" I asked sternly as Rai nodded slowly.
"You at least owe me this after you had the audacity to threaten a prominent noble such as myself." I added with a wry smile as Rai chortled.
"Using the noble card against a peasant? How cruel." Rai remarked as I began heading towards my dormitory with a triumphant hum.
"Yep! Now let's go!" I ordered cheerfully as Rai let out a sigh of defeat and began following behind me.
~
Entering inside of my dormitory, we were welcomed with several curious gazes as I even overheard a few girls whisper their fantasies of me and Rai between one another.
So immature.
They act as if they've never seen a boy inside of our dormitory before.
"Aria, I don't think it's appropriate for me to be here… I mean what about your roommate? I'm sure they wouldn't want a random boy whose face is covered in blood to be inside of their dorm." Rai voiced, concerned as he covered his nose with the collar of his sweater in order to prevent any blood from spilling across the marble floor of the dormitory.
"Sarah is my roommate, but she took a leave of absence and should have left around thirty minutes ago, so there's no need to worry about any complications such as that and besides, I'm sure she wouldn't mind anyways as the only reason why I'm inviting you over is so that I can heal you." I replied as we headed down the corridor to where my dorm resided, passing by a few students along the way as they glanced at Rai as if he was an anomaly.
"I see, but aren't you worried about your reputation?" Rai asked as I furrowed my eyebrows, unable to understand his troubles.
"No…?" I answered, too tired to even bother deciphering Rai's vague question as healing him was my only priority, but had I been aware of the surreal misunderstanding that would soon arise from my actions, I would have graciously allowed Rai to visit the infirmary instead.