Spiral Fruit Cake

The hallways were filled with small groups talking excitedly, while others stayed inside their classrooms, buried in books and focused on their studies. But unlike them, my daily routine already involved many hours of research in the library and studying with Professor Arven, not to mention the training with Nina and Lyra.

So I liked to take advantage of the few moments I had to do something that had nothing to do with any of that. That's when I learned about a place that had recently become popular. A bakery that had just opened near the school, a place beloved by students, mostly due to the fame of its delicious little cakes.

It was a true phenomenon. Many students were seen with small packages from that shop even at school, and the topic had become even hotter in recent days due to the launch of a new cake flavor. It was made with a magical fruit called a spiral fruit, a newly discovered plant that provided a new flavor with every bite. And, of course, I was curious about that effect.

I intended to visit the shop to see if it was really everything they said it was. I had a perfect plan. I would go after classes, when I had time to wait in line, and I would buy a slice of the cake to try. Everything would go as I had planned.

At least, that's what I thought.

"I can't believe we had the same idea."

Halfway there, I ran into Darin. The last person I wanted to meet. I knew that my plans for a quiet outing were over.

"I was worried about waiting alone, but thank god I met you," he said, grabbing my arm and leading the way.

What I really wanted to do was run away, but I knew it wouldn't do any good. Knowing Darin, he would just run after me. In the end, the best thing to do was just go with him to get it over with.

But as we entered the street where the bakery was, we were surprised by a gigantic line that almost wrapped around the corner. Their launch seemed to be an even bigger success than I had thought. I had never seen so many people gathered in one place.

"Do you really want to face that line?" I asked Darin.

"It's not even that long."

Darin's notion of size surprised me once again.

As we walked to the back of the line, some students passed us, already leaving the shop. One of them was floating a few centimeters off the ground, held back only by a rope that a friend was pulling with difficulty. They laughed really loudly.

Shortly after, another one passed us with his hands covered in metal cutlery, stuck to him as if he were a walking magnet. Seeing those bizarre effects only added fuel to the fire of my curiosity.

But it was another detail, much less magical and infinitely more familiar, that suddenly caught my eye. Under a person's hood, there was a small tremor. It was the twitching of ears that I would recognize anywhere.

"Didn't expect to see you here, Nina."

"Haru?"

"What? Why the surprise?"

"And who said I'm surprised?"

Nina tried to hide it, quickly changing her expression, but I'd seen how wide her eyes got when she saw me. I was also surprised to see her there, even if I didn't show it. Our meeting even made me forget for a moment how annoyed I was to have run into Darin earlier.

"Hey! Why don't we buy with Nina?" Darin said, squeezing in next to her in line. I knew what he really wanted was to skip the whole line.

"Is it okay if we join you?" I asked, trying to be more polite than he was.

"Hmph, do whatever you want," she replied, her face visibly flushing.

While we waited for our turn, I started to regret it. Not because I was there, but because I had accepted Darin's company. He wouldn't stop talking for a single minute. I could even see Nina starting to get annoyed with his presence.

"And then Haru put the wrong powder in the flask, so everything exploded. The room smelled so bad we couldn't stand it."

He narrated stories about everyday events as if they were the most surprising things in the world. And I didn't know how much longer I could take it. I needed to do something.

"Darin, wasn't the Lyra fan club meeting today?"

Darin's eyes widened in surprise.

"What? It was today?" He pulled a flyer for the event from his pocket. After confirming, he started running as if his life depended on it. "Sorry, but I have to go."

Little did he know, he didn't even need to apologize. His absence was actually a favor he was doing for us.

"There's really a fan club for Lyra?" Nina asked.

"Strange, isn't it?"

We couldn't hold back our laughter.

***

With Darin out of the picture, the atmosphere became more peaceful. But it was a strange kind of peace, because the silence between us felt awkward. Thinking about it, I hadn't had many moments with Nina outside of school, and when we were together, it was always when she helped me with magic.

What was I supposed to say to start a conversation? I'd glance at her, but she didn't seem bothered by the silence.

Nina's gaze was fixed straight ahead. I watched her every expression, trying to imagine what she was thinking. But the more I looked, the more I noticed things I hadn't before. Had Nina always been so pretty? The way her face reflected the low sunlight... the subtle shine of her lips... everything about her seemed to have its own unique charm.

While I was caught up in strange thoughts, Nina turned to me and pulled me by the shirt, yanking me out of my momentary trance.

"They're calling us inside," she said.

"Huh?"

When I came to, I realized the line had moved. As we took our final steps toward the counter, a kid next to us sneezed, and a cloud of small blue sprinkles shot out of his nose. Nina let out a laugh, but quickly tried to hide it when she saw that I had noticed.

I'm not sure what was more interesting about all of this. The strange things that happened to those who ate the cake, or how hard Nina fought to hide her emotions.

We reached the counter, where a friendly clerk greeted us with a smile.

"Hello, what can the couple get today?"

"Couple?" Nina reacted immediately. "As if I'd ever be with this one."

Did she have to put it like that?

"My apologies," the clerk said, flustered. "But then, what can I get for you?"

"We'd like your new cake, the spiral fruit cake," I said.

"Unfortunately, we've sold almost all of them today. There's only one slice left."

Nina and I exchanged glances, as if trying to guess what the other was thinking. We silently questioned each other about what to do in that moment. Nina opened her mouth to speak, but I acted first. There was only one possible decision.

"You can have it, Nina. I was just curious about the effects, I didn't really want to eat it that much."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Hmph. Don't come asking me for a piece later," Nina replied, her head bowed and a slight blush on her face. Her ears also twitched slightly.

The clerk handed Nina her slice in an elegant paper box, and she clutched it against her chest as soon as she had it in her hands. When I suggested we could sit there and eat it, I got an almost frantic "No!" The atmosphere of the shop, with people laughing hysterically and all the unexpected effects, was a very vivid reminder of the risks. Nina must have been worried about that.

As we crossed the exit door, we were surrounded by the silent normality of the street. And in the center of that quietness was Nina, walking with the box hugged to her as if it were a treasure. Her silence was noticeable, although she seemed to want to say something at every moment, opening her mouth only to close it and look ahead, as if the words simply failed her.

"It's really okay," I said.

"If you want, I can give you a piece. A very small one," she murmured so low I almost couldn't hear it.

Nina, who was normally aggressive and always teasing me, also had these moments where she seemed cute and defenseless. Sometimes I wondered if she really hated me when she reprimanded me during training, but seeing her like this, so shy, reminded me that it was just part of her way.

We were already close to the school. The sun had practically disappeared, and night was beginning to fall. Soon we would have to say goodbye, but for some reason, I wanted to extend that time with her.

"Thanks for the cake," she said, still hugging the box.

"It was nothing. Think of it as a way for me to pay you back for all your help in training."

As soon as I mentioned the training, her ears twitched. I knew that gesture meant something more.

"So, about the training... Do you want to continue?"

"Of course, why would I stop?"

Her question seemed sudden. It had never crossed my mind to stop training with Nina, and I was still a long way from understanding everything about the threads. Besides, she had a unique way of teaching me. It was clear, direct, and efficient. It would be a waste to give that up.

"It's just that... you learn so fast that I thought you wouldn't need my help anymore."

"That would never happen," I replied. "I always learn something new from you. So as long as you can, I want to keep going with this."

Nina relaxed her shoulders and, even while trying to hide it, let a small smile escape.

"Okay..."

"See you later, Nina," I smiled back before turning to head toward my dorm.

In the end, I realized that Nina was worried not just about my training, but about the possibility of us no longer spending time together. The truth is, I couldn't complain either. It was thanks to her that I understood the basics of this world's magic. Besides... I liked being with her, even when she seemed annoyed.

I was walking to the other building, where my dorm was, still thinking about her expression as we said goodbye. When I then heard a voice call out to me.

"Hello, Haru, how are you?"

I turned quickly and was surprised to see Kael.

I don't know why, but in that instant, a shiver ran down my spine. It was more than just an intuition. It was a deep, silent certainty that this meeting hadn't been by chance. There was something bigger, a reason. One that I would still need to understand.