Chapter 6

Iris yawned as she left the teacher’s room. When her eyes fell upon Ayisa waiting in front of her, she rubbed them. Then she rubbed them again. Then a third time.

“What are you doing here?”

Then she rubbed them a fourth time after she saw Ayisa pull out the five bills from her pocket.

“Umm… I’m here to return this,” Ayisa said, unsure how tired her teacher was for her to keep rubbing her eyes like that.

“You’re kidding. What did you eat? What did you do the entire day? Are you hungry? Want to grab something now?”

Ayisa waved her hands. “N- No, it’s nothing like that.”

“Come with me.”

They went to the same spot as this morning, away from the teachers’ office. Ayisa then told her everything that had happened. How she walked around town, how she ran into Layis, and how Layis challenged her.

“You have quite an exciting day,” Iris said as she accepted the untouched bills, still a bit surprised to see them returned to her without the slightest change in their number. “Still, making friends already? You’re impressive.”

Ayisa let out a startled squeak. “Imp- Impressive… You consider that friendship?”

“Layis isn’t a bad person. She may have a weird way of introducing herself, but she harbors no ill will.”

“Will it be fine if I…” Ayisa trailed off.

She couldn’t admit not believing Iris’ nullification in front of her. It must be a difficult process on top of everything else she did. But the unease remained. If Ayisa still had the curse, wouldn’t she be affecting Iris right now? Wouldn’t making friends be dangerous?

“It’ll be fine. Don’t worry. I mean, she didn’t say anything bad, did she? Layis isn’t good with words, so don’t take what she says too literally.”

“I see… Umm… Miss Iris? Sorry, but can I ask you something?”

“Of course, Dear. What is it? You need to know which alcohol is the best? You’re way too young for that!” Iris laughed.

Ayisa panicked, shaking her head. “N- No, I’m not going to ask that!”

“Just kidding. I do recommend tequila, though. Or whiskey. But maybe start with beer?”

“Drinks are expensive…”

“Oh?”

“The strawberry smoothie cost forty…” Ayisa twiddled her fingers, looking down at the floor.

Ayisa had spotted the total amount Layis paid by accident. The numbers were… astounding. Layis rejected her attempt to pay for it by herself, maybe realizing she didn’t have a lot of money, and the money that she did have wasn’t even hers. Ayisa felt terrible. Maybe she did curse Layis, just not in the way she expected.

“Oh, well, we are here after all. Don’t worry, you’ll understand once you get through economy class. Anyway, what did you want to ask?”

Ayisa lifted her head.

“Do you think I’m… weird?”

“Weird?”

“Yes, weird.”

Iris caressed her chin, looking at the teenage girl in front of her.

“Please, be honest,” Ayisa pleaded.

“Oh, yeah, you definitely are.”

“Eh? I'm that bad?”

“You told me to be honest, remember? But I don’t think being weird is necessarily a bad thing.”

“Huh?”

“Weird is used to describe anything different. If I have three apples, then I look away, and now there are four, isn’t that weird?” Iris said, pulling an apple out of her pocket and throwing it at Ayisa. Ayisa caught it in time.

“Ye- Yeah?”

The red apple was small, half the size of her palm. She had never seen this kind before. Could it be from somewhere far away? Why did Iris carry around an apple anyway?

“But that doesn’t make me appreciate the extra apple any less.”

“I see… So, Miss Iris likes apples.”

“Everyone loves them.”

“I don’t.”

“Well, even the most perfect person gets things wrong sometimes. Don’t worry about it.” Iris patted Ayisa's shoulder.

She brought the apple to her mouth, but Iris stopped her before she could take a bite.

“Take it back to your room, wash it with clean water, then eat it.”

“... Alright.”

“Anything else?”

Ayisa couldn’t think about anything. Based on the schedule Iris gave her, she would have magic classes tomorrow. She could think about Layis’ request later.

“If there’s nothing, then you should go back and rest. An exciting day awaits.”

Ayisa nodded, bringing the apple back to her room.

•••

Ayisa sat by the bed in her sleepwear, the apple Iris had given her in her hands. When was the last time she ate an apple? Not in the forest, for sure. Sometime long before that. All she remembered was her disliking it.

Ayisa took a bite.

It’s sweet…

It wasn’t as bad as she expected. This one was certainly better compared to some things she ate back when she lived in the wilds.

Ayisa took another bite, her teeth making a crunching sound as they dug in. Did the last apple she ate not taste as good as this? It must have been so long that she had forgotten, or maybe Iris knew where to get the good apples.

She couldn’t say she loved it, though. Iris was right. If a perfect person could be wrong, someone like her would be full of faults.

But despite all that… She still took me in…

Ayisa hopped off the bed. She pulled the curtains that covered her floor-to-ceiling window. She unlocked its key and stepped out onto the balcony. A gentle breeze caressed her skin. Ayisa looked up at the calm night sky, clouds floating freely high above.

She leaned on the railing, her gaze shifting to the town beyond Grenary’s walls. It shone in the night, with countless lights glowing in the dark. Some came from the still lit-up windows inside buildings, others from the many streetlamps scattered around town. A small crowd of people walked under those lights.

It was a beautiful sight. A sight she never expected to see, something Iris had given to her.

Iris had given her a chance. A chance she didn't deserve. A chance she received anyway.

Ayisa must make her proud.

I’m going to try my best tomorrow.