While Jelo was at the front of the group, walking in uncomfortable silence and trying desperately to ignore the whispers still trailing behind him, Atlas appeared at his side. His roommate's expression was serious, more serious than Jelo had seen it in a while.
"What exactly happened back there?" Atlas asked quietly, his voice low enough that only Jelo could hear.
Jelo glanced at him, a little confused. "What do you mean?"
Atlas's jaw tightened slightly. "What were you and Mira doing away from the class? Why were you two together in the first place? You disappeared at different times, but you came back together. And you both looked like you'd been through hell."
Jelo felt his stomach twist. He'd known this question was coming, but he still wasn't prepared for it. He couldn't tell Atlas the truth—that he'd hunted a Dabba, eaten its heart, knocked Mira unconscious, and then made a deal with her to keep his secret. That was far too much to explain, and far too dangerous to share.
"It was nothing much," Jelo said carefully, keeping his tone casual. "I just had a problem, and she helped me solve it. That's all."
Atlas stared at him for a long moment, his dark eyes searching Jelo's face as if trying to read the truth beneath the words. "That's all?" he repeated skeptically.
"Yeah," Jelo confirmed, nodding. "That's all."
The silence between them stretched uncomfortably. Jelo could feel Atlas's suspicion radiating off him in waves, but he held his ground, keeping his expression neutral. He wasn't going to elaborate. He couldn't.
When Atlas finally realized that Jelo wasn't going to reveal anything more, he let out a frustrated breath and dropped the issue. But the tension didn't leave his shoulders, and his expression remained troubled.
"Fine," Atlas muttered. "Keep your secrets."
Jelo wanted to say something, to reassure his roommate that everything was okay, but the words died in his throat. Because everything wasn't okay, and lying about it felt wrong even if it was necessary.
Atlas's gaze drifted away from Jelo and landed on Mira, who was walking a few feet ahead of them, her posture straight and her attention seemingly focused on the path toward the portal.
And something twisted inside Atlas's chest.
It was sharp and unexpected—a stab of jealousy that he didn't understand and couldn't explain. He didn't know why it bothered him so much, but the sight of Jelo and Mira together, the way they'd emerged from those ruins side by side, the way they seemed to have shared something he wasn't part of… it gnawed at him in a way he couldn't shake.
Why her? Why Mira?
Atlas barely knew her, had only exchanged a handful of words with her since they'd arrived at the academy. But something about the situation felt wrong. Possessive. Like she'd taken something from him without asking.
He clenched his fists at his sides, his jaw tight.
-----
The class began heading toward the portal, moving in a loose formation as the teacher led them back across the barren wasteland. The strange, chemically tainted air seemed heavier now, or maybe that was just the weight of unspoken tension settling over the group.
Jelo, Mira, and Atlas naturally fell into the front of the formation, though the air between them had shifted subtly. What had been comfortable earlier now felt strained, like a string pulled too tight.
Atlas walked stiffly at Jelo's side, his posture rigid. Every few seconds, he would shoot sharp, irritated glances toward Mira whenever Jelo wasn't looking. His eyes would narrow, his expression darkening, as if he was trying to figure something out or working himself up to say something.
Mira noticed.
At first, she tried to ignore it, keeping her eyes forward and her focus on the path ahead. But after the third or fourth glare, her brows knitted together in genuine confusion. Why was he looking at her like that? What had she done to him?
She glanced sideways at Atlas, meeting his gaze briefly. He didn't look away, just kept staring at her with that sharp, almost hostile expression.
Mira's irritation flared, but she chose not to engage. She wasn't going to start something in front of the class, and certainly not in front of the teacher who was already watching them like a hawk. So she turned her attention forward again, deliberately ignoring him.
Jelo, meanwhile, remained completely oblivious to the silent war happening on either side of him. His focus was on the path ahead, on the distant hum of the portal growing louder as they approached, on trying to process everything that had happened today.
The fight with the Dabba. Eating the heart. Knocking out Mira. The deal they'd made. The embarrassing return to class. The teacher's lecture. The endless whispers and stares.
It was too much. His mind felt full, overloaded, struggling to keep up.
He just wanted to get back to the academy, back to his room, and collapse.
After a while of lectures, the teacher finally stopped. "And that's it for today's field trip." She said. "Now legs turn back and head to the portal"
The students turned around and started walking back to the portal.
When they finally reached the portal, its swirling energy casting flickering blue and purple light across their faces, the class began filing through one by one.
Jelo reached it first. Without hesitation, without looking back at Atlas or Mira or anyone else, he stepped through the shimmering barrier and felt that same strange, buzzing sensation as reality twisted around him.
A moment later, he was back in the courthouse structure within the academy, the sterile white walls and harsh lighting a stark contrast to the desolate wasteland they'd just left. He stepped aside to let the other students through and took a deep breath, feeling some of the tension finally start to ease from his shoulders.
He was back. Safe.
Behind him, students continued emerging from the portal one after another, blinking and adjusting to the sudden change in environment.
And then Atlas stepped through.
But instead of moving aside like the others, Atlas turned sharply on his heel the moment he cleared the portal. His eyes scanned the emerging students until they locked onto Mira, who had just appeared from the swirling energy.
Atlas strode toward her immediately, his expression hard.
"What do you want with Jelo?" he asked, his voice low but intense. "What's your plan?"
Mira's head snapped toward him, her eyes widening slightly in surprise before narrowing in immediate irritation. She was annoyed—both by the question itself and by the fact that someone ranked F was speaking to her with such boldness, such audacity.
"Excuse me?" she said coldly.
"You heard me," Atlas pressed, stepping closer. "What do you want with him? Why were you two together out there?"
Mira's jaw clenched. Who did this guy think he was? They were both ranked F, both at the bottom of the academy's hierarchy, and yet here he was interrogating her like he had some kind of authority.
She dismissed him with a scoff, turning away. "None of your business."
But Atlas wasn't done. His frustration boiling over, he reached out and grabbed her arm.
Mira reacted instantly. Her combat instincts kicked in, and she easily twisted out of his grip, shoving his hand away with more force than necessary. Her expression cooled dramatically, her eyes turning sharp and dangerous.
"It's none of your business," she repeated, her voice dropping to something quiet and threatening. "And you should never speak to me again."
Atlas's eyes hardened, his own anger rising to match hers. For a moment, they just stood there, locked in a tense stare-down while other students moved around them, oblivious to the confrontation.
Then Atlas leaned in slightly, his voice dropping to barely above a whisper. "If anything happens to Jelo," he said, each word deliberate and weighted with meaning, "you will not like the consequences."
Mira's eyebrows rose slightly, surprised by the intensity in his voice, the conviction.
Before she could respond, Atlas turned sharply and stepped away, heading after Jelo without another word.
Mira watched him go, her frown deepening. The entire interaction had been strange. Unsettling, even.
What consequences could Atlas possibly mean? He was only ranked F—same as her, same as Jelo. What could he actually do? What power did he have to back up a threat like that?