The Domus Paranormal Academy

The invitation

It seemed to me that I was listening to one of those obnoxious jokes that only produced annoyance instead of humor.

“And you will do that because...

“Because we're going out," he replied with quiet obviousness.

“ What else do you need to know? We'll have dinner, talk, and then we'll see what happens.

I blinked, very confused. I even c****d my head like a puppy at an unfamiliar sound.

“Are you and I going out? “I repeated to check if I had understood correctly.

He nodded.

I gave a fake thoughtful pout, interlaced my fingers over the table and then looked at him even more confused.

“Excuse me. “I smiled a fake friendly smile to sweeten my next question in an exaggeratedly soft voice: "Where in this conversation did you ask me and I agreed? Because I don't remember.

Lucian laughed without peeling his lips, very confident.

“It's clear to me that's what you want, so you'll get it.

Granted, his level of confidence was impressive. He was impressively stupid and arrogant.

“When did it become clear to you? “I asked again, puzzled, "When I told you you were an asshole or when I got up from my chair and left the poker game so I wouldn't have to look at your stupid face anymore?

“When you sat at that table and challenged me," he pointed out, her eyes now narrowed. You wanted my attention, didn't you? Well, you got it.

I couldn't believe it. Internally, I had to laugh. Outwardly, I could only have a "really?" face. "Is that really what comes out of his unbearable mouth!"

“Are you telling me you'd rather see what happened the night of the games as a cry for attention than what it really was? “I blurted out.

Lucian raised his eyebrows, implying that he found this amusing.

“And what was it really?

“A demonstration that you can't win every time," I clarified, serious.

He widened his smile. A few slits appeared around the corners of his mouth. He had a wide, masculine, mischievous mouth that reminded me of the big bad wolf.

“Be that as it may, see you at seven o'clock," he simply said, putting the final point.

He tapped his knuckles on the table and got up ready to leave. But then I blurted out, loud and clear:

“No.

Lucian paused and turned back to the table. His bushy eyebrows sagged, still with the winning smile stamped on his face.

“What? “he asked me as if he had heard a meaningless joke.

I tapped the same way he had tapped the table and stood up to face him. Facing each other, I was several centimeters shorter, but I was able to hold his gaze very well.

“That I'm not going out with you because I don't want to," I repeated with decisive firmness.

And several of them listened to me. Suddenly I felt many looks on me, heavy, curious, critical, but I did not look around and did not pay attention to them. I kept my focus on Lucian's gray, mocking, sparkling eyes to give weight to my words, to make him understand that I had meant what I said.

He understood.

His corners lost their strength in the same way as on the night of the games, and his expression became serious, almost stern.

Seeing that, I gave him a triumphant smile and gently patted his shoulder.

“You'd better try the other nine on your list.

I grabbed my backpack, my tray and advanced down the dining hallway without looking back. I got to the back, emptied the tray, left it there and walked through the doors in an exit that I didn't know if it looked triumphant, but I felt it was.

I joined the stream of students in the main hallway. I was walking, but I couldn't even feel my legs. I didn't even realize Valery had followed me until he appeared beside me, panting from running.

“Marise, you have titanium ovaries! “she exclaimed, trying to keep up with me, talking and breathing all at the same time. You made him look like an ass in water!

“Like what? “I asked, laughing nervously at the comparison. What does that mean?

“Surprised, choked up, in shock, not knowing what to say," he clarified, and instantly played it down. The point is, it was epic that you turned him down, although it's obvious that, as soon as another girl says yes, he'll forget all about it.

True, he had left Lucian speechless, but that was tantamount to giving him a bad haircut. In the end nothing would happen. He was going to feel embarrassed and angry for a while, but then the hair would grow back and the cut would be nothing more than a funny memory that he would gradually forget.

“I did it without thinking," I confessed. I just wanted to break his nose.

“Well, it doesn't matter," she sighed, "It's enough that at least once in his life a girl has put him in his place. I assure you that no one will forget what you've done.

Of course not. At Domus nothing was forgotten.

Except what was convenient to forget.

Valery invited me to have one of those rare healthy smoothies to relax at his favorite place: Bat”Fit, one of those places for people who wanted to slow down the natural process of death and went to the gym. Didn't anyone invite me for coffee anymore after dramatic and stressful events?!

The place wasn't bad, though. It had a lot of large windows and the tables were outdoors surrounded by a garden. Obviously, everything was eco”friendly, even the toilet paper in the bathrooms. At one of those tables were Dash and Otsana, so we went straight to sit with them. As we did so, I put my ass hard against the chair and let out a lot of air.

“Uh, I sense an aura of anger around here," Otsana commented as she raised an eco”friendly glass to her lips.

“I feel like I could rip the Statue of Liberty out of its place and plant it in Timbuktu," I mumbled. I threw my backpack on the ground next to me.

I was trying to suppress the anger that Lucian had provoked in me, but I could feel it still oozing out of my pores a little. That nerve in saying that I wanted his attention was what made my blood boil the most.

“What happened? “Otsana wanted to know, understanding that my discomfort was serious and had a cause.

I didn't want to tell him, so I tried to change the subject.

“What is that key? “I asked her, and pointed to the large silver key that hung on a necklace that matched her clothes. It was a little strange, not the shape of a normal key.

“It's my Domus room master key," he said, not giving it any importance. I got it for being a leader of the painting club. But seriously, did something happen?

Valery finally announced it, unable to hold it in:

“Oh, yes, it's just that Lucian asked Marise out about twenty minutes ago.

Otsana and Dash were shocked. Their eco”friendly glasses stopped halfway to their mouths. They almost blinked at the same time. They looked alternately at Valery and me, waiting for one to disprove that. Then they understood that it was true.

“What? “spat Dash, shocked, "And what did you say?!

“No," I answered with obviousness.

They were stunned again. They looked at each other's faces and then at me. Their reaction made me understand that my "no" had been almost a feat, something extraordinary.

“But, woman, from what ...you? woman, from what revolutionary planet did you come from? “Dash exclaimed, between fascinated and stupefied.

“I admit I didn't expect it," Valery confessed, still shocked as well. I thought Lucian would do anything but this.