Chapter 256: Temper
Two days into the second eight-day at the Golden Friction Academy arrived, Irwin was leaning against a wall. A few steps away was the closed door of the card reforging course. Pasilha and Roubi stood nearby. Eyes closed and face sunken. There had been two parties the day before, the last ending only hours ago, and they attended both.
I wonder why they go to parties so much, Irwin thought.
He'd left early during the first one when the two Ingitzions, drunk, had come on a bit stronger. He glanced at them, catching Pasilha's looking back.
She grimaced, then forced a smile on her face as she scooted closer.
"I'm really sorry about yesterday evening," she said.
Irwin nodded. He'd wanted to talk with them about it, and now was as good a time as any.
"It's okay. Listen, I've already got someone I like. I probably should have told you, but I had kind of expected you to..."
He held back from saying that he'd expected them to take the hint and leave him alone.
Pasilha nodded, looking at her feet. "Yeah, Skylar told us. But… when we get a bit drunk, it's sometimes hard to keep a hold of ourselves. Is it true that she's an Ignitzion?"
Irwin nodded. "Yes. She had to leave because of the cold world I had to go to, and I'm hoping to head to Igniz."
He left out that they also had children, as that was something the Ignitzions thought about way differently than humans did.
Roubi had moved closer, looking at him with hollowed eyes in a weary face.