"Which one?" James asked, wanting to make sure she knew which specific college she was talking about, considering the city possessed at least five of them.
He could feel the crow perched on his shoulder—he honestly wondered when the heck it had gotten up there—and the poor bird did not look like it felt safe in the slightest. It was shaking, its tiny body trembling against his neck.
Up in the thick oak branch, the flock of crows that had been making a racket just moments earlier had fallen completely silent.
Not a single sound came from them; it was as if death itself had just stepped into their presence.
The crow on his shoulder gave another panicked shudder, its mental voice whimpering in his mind.
\Scary woman...\
"Oh, I'm speaking of the community college," the girl replied, offering a gentle, sweet smile. Her emerald green eyes sparkled with an enchanting warmth. "I heard it's actually quite good."
She leaned in slightly, her expression turning softly pleading. "Could you be a dear and help me find it, please~?"
She looked downright adorable. Her pupils dilated just a bit, and the warm orange glow of the setting sun catching the soft contours of her face made her look entirely harmless.
James felt the exact same instinctual pull one gets when looking at a crying baby—something deep within his subconscious was practically screaming at him to help her.
"The campus, huh?" James kept his voice completely calm and even.
Sure, he could help this mysterious girl. While her presence definitely gave him the creeps and her underlying aura felt icy cold, he couldn't read her intentions in the slightest.
Maybe it was just because he was still a total beginner at picking up supernatural signatures, or maybe she was just exceptionally good at masking herself.
Or, realistically speaking, maybe she was just a completely normal girl who happened to have a weird vibe. James had sensed plenty of bizarre auras over the past month, so his mental baseline for what normal human energy felt like was completely scrambled anyway.
For fuck's sake, his history professor gave off an aura that made him feel like the Grim Reaper was standing right behind him, so this girl's chilliness was well within acceptable bounds.
"Yes," she confirmed, her smile widening just a fraction.
James gestured over his shoulder, pointing back down the sidewalk behind him. "You're actually heading in the wrong direction. It's about a mile that way, just past the main humanities buildings."
"Thank you so much!" she gasped, her voice bright with excitement. Before James could react, she reached out and grabbed his hand in both of hers, her eyes practically shining like stars.
"I was so completely lost!"
A second later, as if suddenly realizing what she was doing, she quickly released her grip and pulled her hands back toward her chest.
A deep, delicate blush rapidly spread across her cheeks.
"S-Sowwy! I didn't mean to do that!" she stammered, turning completely red and hiding her face slightly behind her hands.
"It's fine, don't worry about it," James said, forcing a casual smile to brush off the sudden wave of nervousness spiking in his chest.
Wait, why the hell am I feeling flustered? he thought, internally freaking out.
He was dark-skinned—he couldn't physically display a visible blush like that, but the heat burning up his neck was very real.
Calm down, man... He took a quiet breath, forcing himself to keep his cool in front of a girl he'd never met before.
Yet, as he looked at her a bit closer, something about her felt strangely familiar—like he'd sensed her presence somewhere before.
No, it was more like her facial structure reminded him of someone specific, though he couldn't quite put his finger on who.
"You won't miss it," James continued, pointing down the street again. "Just head straight down that way. If you want a shortcut, you can cut directly through the central park, and the main campus entrance will be right across the street."
She looked genuinely delighted. "Thank you!"
"No problem," James offered a gentle nod.
From her subtle body language—the hesitation in her stance, the way her eyes lingered on him—it seemed pretty obvious she was hoping he'd actually walk her there.
But James had a serious gaming session planned for tonight.
He was determined to grind his character up to at least level 20; he couldn't stay stuck at level 17 forever, especially not with Michael sitting comfortably at level 70. That gap was getting ridiculous.
The girl twiddled her thumbs innocently, looking up at him through her long eyelashes with an endearing, timid expression.
"I really don't want to be a bother," she murmured, softly pressing the tips of her thumbs together, "but... could you show me the way?"
James really wanted to just go and grind some levels, but damn—she looked way too cute.
He had planned to game for a few hours, but it seemed like he was going to have to push his session back a bit. Just as he was mulling it over, his phone vibrated in his jacket pocket.
Pulling it out, he looked up at the girl. "One second," he said, tapping the screen to see who was reaching out.
It was a text from Michael.
[ The Sucker ]
You getting on later tonight?
James sighed internally, rubbing his thumb over the screen as he typed back a quick reply.
[ Wildboy ]
Will later, currently showing someone around town.
As he lowered his phone, he noticed the girl watching him with a weirdly intense level of interest, her eyes darting toward the glowing screen before snapping back to his face.
"Sorry about that, my friend was texting me," James apologized, slipping the phone back into his pocket.
She smiled innocently, tilting her head. "It's fine! It must be so nice having friends."
James felt a sudden pang of sympathy hit him in the chest. Man, why am I starting to feel bad for her? He shook his head slightly, trying to clear his thoughts. Not the time to get distracted.
Around his neck, the hidden silver pendant beneath his shirt glowed with a faint, imperceptible warmth.
Almost instantly, the strange, foggy spell washing over his mind vanished, leaving his thoughts crisp and clear once more.
"Look, I want to help," James began, setting a firmer boundary, "but I'm really on a tight schedule tonight—"
Elira's eyes widened just a fraction, a tiny, distressed pout forming on her pink lips as she took a small, hesitant step back.
She clutched her hands tightly over the emerald pendant resting at her chest, looking like she was on the absolute verge of apologizing for even existing.
"A-Ah! Of course... please forgive me!" Elira squeaked, her voice trembling with soft, exaggerated shame.
"I shouldn't have asked! You're already so busy, and here I am, being a total nuisance... I'll just try to find the park on my own. I'm sure I won't get too lost in the dark..."
Times like this were when James knew for a fact that his soft heart was a major weakness. She was so damn cute that it felt almost impossible to resist the guilty impulse tugging at him.
I mean, come on—who could stand there and say no to a scene like that?
To make matters worse, she cast a quick, fearful glance toward the shadowy edge of the street, where the sun was rapidly sinking below the horizon.
She looked genuinely terrified at the thought of being left out in the dark by herself.
James placed a hand over his chest, cursing his own conscience. He looked at the trembling girl, then glanced down the block in the direction of the game store. He had a choice to make.
Letting out a defeated sigh, he gave in.
"Fine, I'll walk you there," James conceded, rubbing the back of his neck with a sheepish grin.
"But we're moving at a decent pace, okay?"
This definitely wasn't how he'd expected to spend his afternoon, but oh well.
Instantly, her entire face lit up. Her emerald eyes sparkled as if she had just won the lottery.
"Really?! Oh, thank you so much!" she beamed, clasping her hands together against her chest.
"You're an absolute savior... um, I didn't catch your name?"
Right, they hadn't even introduced themselves yet.
"Right, I'm James," he said with a friendly smile, raising his hand to offer a handshake.
"I am Elira," she replied politely, reaching out and taking his hand in a slightly awkward, delicate grip.
Up on his shoulder, the little crow let out a terrified, high-pitched squeak.
Its claws dug tight into the padded fabric of his jacket—not quite breaking through to his skin, but damn, the bird was practically hyperventilating.
James used his free hand to give the creature a subtle, reassuring stroke along its back. "It's okay, little guy, you can relax."
The bird remained completely rigid, staring at Elira with wide, unblinking eyes.
Elira gasped softly, her expression softening. "You can speak to animals? That's so wonderful!"
James let out a dry, wry laugh, shaking his head. "Nah, I don't have any crazy powers like that. I just used to feed the local birds when I was little, so I guess they kind of see me as a safe person."
No matter how adorable this girl looked, James was not about to let a single detail about his supernatural abilities slip.
After being warned repeatedly about what would happen if rival factions caught him slipping, he'd much rather play dumb than get himself killed.
"That's so sweet. So they view you as a true friend," she murmured, sounding genuinely fascinated.
"Something like that," James said with a modest smile, even as the crow continued to shiver uncontrollably on his collarbone.
"Can I pet it, please?" she asked, looking up at him with big, pleading eyes.
Noticing her excitement, James shrugged. "You can try."
Elira beamed and slowly reached her hand out to stroke the crow's black feathers.
But the moment her fingers drifted close, the bird looked utterly horrified, burst off James's shoulder, and launched itself into the sky with a frantic flap of its wings.
"CAW!"
As the bird let out a sharp, echoing screech, something chilling happened.
For just a split second, Elira's striking green eyes flashed a deep, dangerous shade of crimson.
A flicker of genuine, venomous annoyance crossed her features—as if she wanted nothing more than to wring the tiny pest's neck.
"Looks like he doesn't like you very much," James remarked, turning his head to watch the crow vanish over the rooftops.
By the time he turned back to face her, the crimson glare was completely gone. All that remained was a delicate girl looking thoroughly dejected.
"I just wanted to stroke its feathers," she murmured softly, looking terribly sad.
"It's fine," James offered, trying to smooth over the awkward tension. "Wild birds don't really trust people right away. You have to build up that kind of trust over time, you know?"
She pouted slightly, her lips forming a small, dramatic frown.
Wanting to steer the conversation away from the bird, James decided to switch topics as they began walking down the sidewalk.
"So, Elira," he started, her ears perking up at the sound of her name. "What brings you to the community college this late in the term? Are you transferring in?"
"Something like that," Elira replied smoothly, tilting her head up at him with an innocent, curious expression.
"My big brother spends a lot of his time there, so I wanted to see what was so special about it."
That comment immediately raised James's mental radar.
Yup, she's definitely rich.
No broke person maintained that level of untouched purity in their late teens, nor did they speak with such refined, upper-crust elegance.
Even though she seemed to be trying to play it down, James could see it in the fluid, graceful way she moved.
She was clearly raised around heavy money—possessing the kind of sheltered innocence that comes from never having to work a single day in your life.
"Sounds like you really like your brother," James noted with a small chuckle.
Elira paused mid-step. Her emerald eyes drifted toward James's neck, lingering on his collar for a second too long before snapping back up to meet his gaze.
"My big brother is the absolute best," she stated firmly.
Internally, James was thinking he'd just run into a massive bro-con. She really, really seemed to idolize the guy.
"But lately... he's been so cold to me," Elira continued, her tone dipping into a sad, quiet murmur.
James raised an eyebrow as they walked. "Really? Do you know why?"
He was just trying to keep the small talk flowing as they neared the edge of the campus park.
"He has this stupid new obsession with his pet," Elira huffed, her sweet voice laced with a subtle bite.
"He used to go out and play with me all the time, but I guess now that he's older, he doesn't care to spend time with his little sister anymore."
James nodded along, feeling a bit of genuine sympathy for her. "Ah, that's tough. But hey, I'm sure your brother will come back around eventually."
Trying to cheer her up, James added with a lighthearted shrug, "Besides, pets don't really live that long anyway. When it eventually passes away, you'll be the one there to comfort him."
Elira stopped briefly, a faint, chilling smile touching the corners of her lips at his words. "You're right..." she murmured softly, her eyes glinting with something unreadable. "Thank you, James."
"Don't mention it," he replied with a gentle smile.
Elira swayed slightly as they walked, deciding to turn the focus back onto him. "So tell me, James..." Her ears perked as she looked over at him. "Dost thou... ah, do you live nearby? You seem remarkably accustomed to navigating these streets."
James caught the slip of archaic grammar—dost thou—but chose to completely ignore it.
Michael dropped weird, formal phrasing all the time, so James was fairly desensitized to bizarre verbal quirks by now.
"Yeah, I've got a small apartment a few blocks from campus," James answered, completely oblivious to the predatory undertone lingering behind her questions.
"Just trying to balance classes, my job, and... well, a few other chaotic things that have popped up recently."
"How dreadful it must be to carry such heavy burdens all on your own," Elira whispered, her voice practically dripping with a velvety, comforting sympathy.
"A young man of your... unique caliber deserves far more comfort than that."
A sudden spike of heat crept up the back of James's neck. For a brief second, his instincts flared—it felt like he was being intently sized up by a dangerous predator, and he did not care for that feeling one bit.
"It's not that bad, I manage," James said, shrugging nonchalantly as they finally reached the brightly lit entrance of the park.
He came to a stop right at the edge of the stone path, refusing to step any further into the tree line.
"Anyway," James said, pointing down the paved walkway, "from here, you just follow this path straight through, and you'll pop out right across from the main campus building."
Elira looked at him as if he had just stabbed her through the heart. Her jaw dropped slightly in pure disbelief. What do you mean, you're making me walk through the woods by myself?
Noticing her horrified expression, James maintained a picture-perfect, innocent smile. "There are streetlamps spaced out along the main path, so it won't be too dark for you."
Elira looked at him, completely stunned. "You... you won't go with me?"
"Sorry, can't do that," James replied smoothly, backing away a step.
James was a nice guy, sure, but he also possessed a healthy sense of self-preservation. She was an innocent-looking, insanely wealthy-looking white girl.
He would not be caught dead alone with her in the middle of a dimly lit park after sunset. One fake tear or misunderstanding from someone like her, and his ass would never see the light of day again.
So while his kindness had gotten her this far, this was officially where the line was drawn.
A/N 2.7k words, this chapter was fun to write, hopefuly i dont forget to add the images.
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