As soon as I stepped out of the restroom, I saw the Smirnovs walking together at a leisurely pace toward the stairs after the cafeteria. Looking more closely, I realized there were more kids than usual, and soon understood why: Stas was walking with Tatyana, casually putting his arm around his classmate's shoulders, and behind them trudged Dasha, looking gloomy. Poor Dasha.
I hurried to help her, quickly joining the little procession.
"Why do you look so gloomy?" I asked, deliberately lowering my voice.
"And you?" Dasha answered, returning the question.
"What about me?"
"Your eyes are red, like from crying."
Although Dasha spoke quietly, vampire hearing was sharp enough to catch that phrase despite what I hoped. At least, Stas and Diana immediately turned around. Things weren't looking good.
"I went outside to get some fresh air, and something got in my eye. Barely got it out!" To hide my clumsy lie, I tried to say the last part with surprise.
"Fresh air? In this freezing cold?"
"Yeah. In the hospital, you know, they ventilate every three hours, no matter if it's plus fifteen outside or minus twenty. But at school, they heat so much the thermometer probably shows no less than twenty-seven!"
Dasha nodded understandingly, and the signs of worry on her face immediately vanished. If my classmate believed my explanation, the same couldn't be said about Diana and Stas. However, the guys didn't press me further in front of everyone.
"Alright," I tried to steer the conversation back to where I wanted. "What happened to you?"
"They announced the theme of the New Year's Ball over the loudspeaker."
Another dance? How many events do they hold at this school! On one hand, the news made me happy, if only for a moment, because it gave me a chance to make up for the missed Halloween for obvious reasons. On the other hand, I worried it would be hard to catch up on school after days spent in the hospital. I'd have to study late into the night, hunched over books, if I wanted to keep up with everything — but first, it would be good to get used to the new range of feelings I wasn't sure I could control at all.
"What's so bad about the ball? We'll all have fun together one last time before exams."
"It's going to be a White Ball," Dasha said, her voice sinking as she spoke the words. I had no idea what that meant; it sounded like just a name.
"What, everyone has to come dressed in white?"
Dasha smiled sadly.
"If only."
The veil of mystery was lifted by Rostova, who spoke up:
"A White Ball is when the girls ask the guys to dance, not the other way around."
So that was the problem. While everyone around already had a kind of ready-made partner, Dasha would have to go searching. For a moment I sincerely felt sorry for my friend, but then I snapped back: and who would I go with myself?
"Look," Artur called out to the others, "Asya's feeling down too!"
"Keep laughing, Artur. Viola has probably already invited you."
"Of course," she replied proudly and kissed her boyfriend on the cheek. All I could do was feel the misery of my situation, since I had to sort everything out in just one month. I had to set priorities and focus on the most important. First came school, if I still planned to get into Kserton State; second, my father's cheerful legacy; and only then thoughts about the dances. But that was if I used my head. I really wanted to put the ball higher on the pedestal and break free for a little while from the vortex that, like a living thing, was pulling me deeper every day, knocking me down with new troubles again and again.
I took Dasha by the elbow, pushing away worries. The touch of someone I trusted calmed me a bit. Constantly boiling in thoughts about the first change and worrying about keeping at least small scraps of normal life was draining my already exhausted body, tired of all the changes. The closer the full moon came, the stronger and longer-lasting the effects of sharpened hearing or smell became. The desire to take something into my own hands and feel, if only briefly, control over my fate was like a lifesaving gulp of air for a drowning person, and it pushed me to say:
"What if we go to the ball together? I don't have anyone to ask either."
My gaze involuntarily slid toward Stas, who, as if sensing it, pulled Tatyana even closer, and a strange feeling spread through my chest, making my heart pound hard against my ribs. At that moment, all the days I spent in the hospital flashed before my eyes.
Stas was always there and came more often than the others. He was kind and gentle with me, filling in for Kostya. He brought other kids to the ward, sometimes after hours, using his status as the chief doctor's son. Without Stas, I would have gone crazy from boredom and inner torment, locked in a single room alone with myself. The gratitude I felt toward Stanislav was so great I wanted to repay him somehow, but what could I offer someone who already had everything?
Dasha smiled weakly, and it seemed to me that a quick solution to her problem didn't make her happy but rather made things worse. I looked at her questioningly, trying to guess why. After hesitating a bit, she decided to explain, though I saw how hard it was for her to admit.
"Actually, I have someone in mind," Dasha said, nervously rubbing her forehead. "I just don't know how to invite him. And whether I even should. What if he says 'no'?"
"He might refuse just because he already said 'yes' to someone else while you were gathering your courage," Viola spoke up, and Dasha's cheeks flushed with embarrassment. She surely didn't expect anyone but me to hear that part of the conversation since she was trying to whisper. It was easier for Dasha to trust me, as our friendship grew stronger every day, while she seemed hardly willing to get closer to the Smirnovs: as soon as Stas joined Tatyana, Dasha's voice immediately faded, and I couldn't understand why.
If only she gave the guys a chance to get to know her better, things could have been different within the group. Even though I'd known the family only a short time, how the Smirnovs tried to help me proved that natural essence wasn't the main thing. The kids were still good and sensitive people in their own way, ready to selflessly help if they could.
I noticed that other classmates were simultaneously curious about the Smirnovs and the Yakovlevs but tried to keep their distance. They seemed to sense the power emanating from them, and with it, danger. Only a few flew toward the fire like moths, unaware they might burn. Not long ago, I was one of those moths.
"She's right," Dasha replied even quieter. "But I have no idea how to start."
"You approach, say hello, and ask: 'Will you go to the White Ball with me?' Then wait for the answer. After that, it depends," Viola said monotonously, and I felt like nudging her in the ribs.
Violetta always spoke in a similar way, but she had no understanding or sympathy for other people. Viola was straightforward and blunt, which I admired, but at the same time it created a certain barrier between her and others. I wished she would be gentler with Dasha because I saw how hard it was for my friend. It was neither the moment nor the time to bluntly tell someone who wasn't ready what to do. I hurried to fix the situation, wanting to encourage Dasha and not to strengthen the wall between them.
"Do you want me to go up to him with you? Let's find him in the school and be back in a flash? We'll probably manage before the bell rings."
Darya shook her head.
"He's not from our school."
Arthur and Stas whistled, then both shouted loud comments. Their words mixed into an indistinct cocktail, but from their wide smiles it was easy to guess they were very curious about who Dasha's chosen one was.
"Boys!" I called sharply, genuinely angry. "Don't be jerks!"
"Ooooh," Stas replied, "we can get offended, you know."
"If you don't want to be hurt, don't hurt others yourselves."
Arthur patted me on the shoulder, and for the first time I noticed how heavy his hand was.
"You were really missed at school, Mother Teresa."
A sharp pop sounded in my head, something switched, as if someone pulled a lever, and the walls of the dam parted, releasing a flood of emotions I didn't even know I had.
"What did you call me?"
At first, I didn't recognize my own voice. It sounded like it was coming from somewhere else, but everyone was looking right at me. A wave of trembling ran up and down my body. My hands clenched into fists so tightly that my knuckles ached. The heat from the core of my being surged outward, already reaching toward Arthur.
I came to my senses only when a scream tore from Tatiana's lips. The dark veil before my eyes lifted, and I didn't understand what was happening. The scene shifted abruptly. Arthur was lying on the floor beneath me, blood running from his nose. He stared at me wide-eyed, but inside there was neither fear nor pain. Only some silent understanding and pity. He sprawled on the floor, not even trying to resist.
"What the…?"