Chapter 88: One step at a time
And then, with a breath too soft for anyone else to hear, Silvia looked away, her resolve holding but bending just enough.
"One step at a time," she murmured to herself, gripping the tome tighter, her newfound fire flickering but not extinguishing.
She turned back to the board, voice brisk and commanding.
"Open to page 56. Converging elemental threads."
The lesson began, her examples sparking like firecrackers, drawing the class in despite the tension.
But the air pulsed like a heartbeat—charged, uneasy.
Lor sat still, eyes on the board, but Kiara was watching him.
Watching his jaw, his silence, her sharp mind turning, trying to read him, to find the why behind that kiss that didn’t feel like hers, didn’t ignite the fire she craved.
And Lor?
He didn’t give her a single glance, his hazel eyes fixed ahead.
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The dining hall buzzed with low chatter and the clink of cutlery on plates, a symphony of mundane academy life.