John cried, voice breaking between sobs.

  "She... she said to me that... that I... umm... everything ended."

  Calum set his book down. "John, I can't understand what you're saying. Speak clearly, oh shit."

  John wiped his tears with the back of his hand, sniffling.

  "When you left, I went to Mimi. Like always."

  He stared at the floor, words coming slowly.

  "We walked. We talked. But today she was... different." His throat tightened. "She walked faster. Put distance between us. Ignored me whenever I tried to..."

  He trailed off.

  "Didn't you ask her why was she ignoring you?" Calum asked.

  "Yes!" John's voice rose, louder than he meant. Then it dropped again, barely a whisper. "She said I'm immature. Like a... like an ugly duckling."His fingers dug into his knees.

  "She said she didn't want me near her. Not in front of her friends... and..."

  Silence.

  "And?" Calum prompted. John swallowed hard.

  "And... in front of Edrin."

  The name came out weak. Broken.

  Tears slipped down his face, soaking into his shirt.

  Calum let out a slow breath.

  “I can talk to Mimi, If you want.”

  “No!”John stood up abruptly, turning his back.

  He pulled the blanket over himself and didn't say anything else

  Calum watched him for a moment.

  “Haaah…” he said softly.

  “Love is heavy my friend.”He opened his book again.

  “You try. You beg. You shout. You deny it.”

  A page turned.

  “And in the end, a quiet dark room feels more comfortable than people. What kind of fools we are?”

  Under the blanket, John lay still, tears escaping from his eyes as he struggled to suppress his own cries.

  Sometimes his jaw opened wide. Yet, no sound came out. His breathing slowly evened out and he closed his eyes.

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  The lamp in the room burned low. The night passed and morning arrived quickly.

  Calum and John left the Phoenix Tower heading towards the academy.

  Today John was unusually quiet. His head hung low. His hair was messy and a blur was present in his eyes.

  Calum walked beside him in silence.

  When they reached the academy grounds, Calum raised an eyebrow, finding that Mimi was already there, standing near the entrance—as if waiting for someone.

  For a moment, Calum thought she might be waiting for John to apologize. He smiled faintly. "John. Look there. Someone's waiting for you."

  He pointed toward the entrance.

  John lifted his head and saw Mimi.

  The blur in his eyes cleared slightly, hope flickered as he also thought the same thing as Calum.

  But then—

  Footsteps approached and Edrin arrived hurriedly followed by a few other students.

  “Mimi, sorry to keep you waiting,”Edrin said, smiling apologetically.

  “No, no, Don’t worry, Edrin. Let’s go. We’re already late for class.”She replied with a faint blush on her face. And all of them walked in together.

  Calum watched the scene beside John.

  The smile on his face stiffened.

  “ Ah.”He didn’t know what to say.

  While John kept staring at Mimi’s retreating figure.Then his voice broke.

  “Calum…”

  “Why, why does my chest feel so HEAVY?”

  “M-my throat…it’s, it’s killing me…”

  His breathing became uneven and he fell to his knees.

  “H-help me, Calum, help me…”

  Calum looked down at John's miserable state before he walked past him, towards the academy. John again cried in a low voice asking for help.

  But Calum didn't stop and took slow steps.

  “If you want to take a rest,” Calum spoke calmly. “You can go back to the tower and I will tell Professor Gilbert that you’re sick.”

  Then his steps halted at the entrance, and he turned towards John.

  “But remember this John.” His voice was steady. Matter-of-fact. “Yes, you loved her, but that doesn’t mean she had to love you back. And now she has someone better in front of her so why do you still think about her?”

  He gave a short laugh.

  “Hehe, John, don't tell me you really think that by doing this you can win her love? Dream on, this love of yours will eat you. And one day, it will ruin you”

  John listened, face pressed against the cold grass.

  He replied quietly.

  "It's easy for you to say, Calum... This pain is just—"

  Calum smiled.And walked into the academy.

  "Easy? Maybe you're right."

  He murmured it softly, leaving John alone outside.

  In the classroom,

  Calum was already seated when Professor Gilbert entered, with John following behind.

  John then sat beside him. His head low and stayed quiet for the rest of the class.

  Afterward, they gathered on the training ground. Professor Gazeff watched John for a while, then walked over to Calum and nodded toward John.

  “He’s quiet today,” he said. “Did you do something?”

  Calum laughed softly. This muscle head was already putting the blame on him.

  “ The heart that was beating with love has stopped—because the love was stolen by someone else.”

  Gazeff understood immediately, rolled his eyes.

  “So childish,” and walked away.

  Calum then looked back at John. Who had stopped training as his eyes were fixed on Mimi.

  She was standing close to Edrin. Their hands touched as they practiced. Her face was red.

  Suddenly—John turned away and ran towards the washroom.

  Calum followed which Gazeff noticed, but said nothing.

  …………..

  “Blargh.. bargh,...

  The sound echoed inside the washroom.

  The white tiles reflected John’s bent figure. Who was vomiting. Tears streamed down his eyes mixing with the saliva.

  Calum stood outside and waited.

  The he heard the small sobs, which were uneven.“ Huek, huek, humm.”

  (This is getting messy.)Calum thought.

  After a while, John came out. But when he saw Calum waiting for him outside, his face turned red and he ran away in embarrassment.

  Calum sighed and rubbed his forehead.

  “Dash.” He used his skill and suddenly the air around him thickened.

  The world blurred.

  In the next moment, Calum was standing directly in front of John.

  John gasped. “Huh—”

  And lost balance, falling to the ground.

  Calum stood over him,. expression hard."Professor Gazeff noticed you," he said coldly. "He came to me and asked if you were alright."

  John's eyes widened, looking at Calum, his eyes questioning him. Had he told the professor?

  Calum understood his gaze.

  “I didn’t say anything,” he lied, “The professor noticed you himself.”

  He paused.

  "He said that if you're sad because your heart is broken, then this academy is not for you. And if you stay like this for one more day..."

  Another pause."He'll expel you.”

  John's face went pale, fear gripped his heart.

  His thoughts turned heavy.What would he do if he was expelled? How would he face his parents?

  Calum then slowly extended his hand toward John to help him stand.

  John took it with a trembling hand. As soon as he stood up, he hugged Calum and thanked him for caring about him.

  Calum let him stay like that for a moment.

  Then spoke.

  "Calm down, calm down. Forget that bitch for now and study hard with me. From now on, listen to me. I'll help you become strong.”

  John, still sobbing, nodded against Calum's shoulder. "I promise," he said, voice thick with emotion. "I'll forget Mimi. And when I become a great mage... I'll show her what she lost."

  Calum's eyes gleamed faintly. Perfect.

  After a brief period of time they returned to the training ground together finding that everyone else had already left. John leaned on Calum for support as they walked back to their tower together.

  Days passed slowly and the autumn season was coming to an end.

  The wind carried the coldness of the icy mountains, moving through the trees that stood naked like someone had stolen their clothes.

  And in this bitter coldness the students sat in the classrooms, giving their first exams.

  John and Calum were among them, wrapped in warm blue coats, writing their papers in silence.