Chapter 64: Sting of the flower
Though it was only afternoon, the sky had darkened with heavy clouds. The lamp posts around the Sexton buildings were now lit with bright flames while the lands around were only going to get darker.
"...thank God," Ruelle murmured, her finger gliding down the parchment until she found Hailey’s name. One subject failed just like her and Kevin had barely passed.
Lucian, who stood just behind her, let his gaze shift from the parchment to the curve of her spine as she leaned in toward the board, head slightly tilted, hair loose near the nape. It was the kind of detail he shouldn’t have noticed—the way her ribbon had loosened.
Her dress clung differently now compared to when she had first arrived, which was looser around the shoulders. It was evident she wore hand-me-downs.
Almost every Groundling at Sexton did, but he had expected her family to be better off than most. Sexton paid a gold coin to every Groundling’s family each year—a quiet compensation for the lives offered up inside these walls. Yet it seemed the coin never reached her.
"Ah, he gave me a high score..." Ruelle said under her breath after tracking her name back and stopping at Mr. Jinxy’s subject. "I guess I was worried for nothing."
"Don’t let comfort become a crutch. You’re still ninth in your class," Lucian reminded her with his hands resting in his trouser pockets.
His words stung more than Ruelle had expected. "I only ranked that low because I got a zero in Seduction Techniques," she retorted defensively and turned to look at him.
It was then that she realised how close they stood. He wasn’t looming but he stood there with his height casting her in shadow. She could see those deep red wine-like eyes that stared at her.
"Why does it feel like you are blaming me, Belmont?" His words were smooth with a slight smile, but his eyes narrowed ever so slightly. She felt it. That quiet pressure, like gravity weighing against her shoulders.
Instinctively, Ruelle took a step behind, and her spine hit the board.
"Did I?" she asked before looking away, unable to hold his eyes any longer.