"Some people make an entrance. Camellia made a daily announcement."
Naveah's Thought
«If there's one thing I've learned after being friends with Camellia for over thirteen years, it's this: silence around her is usually the calm before the storm.»
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Camellia had been my best friend for as long as I could remember.
She wasn't just my best friend—she was the sister I'd never had.
She knew every embarrassing story from my childhood, every habit I didn't realize I had, every fear I'd never admitted aloud, and every dream I'd quietly hidden from the rest of the world.
And I knew her just as well.
I knew when she was pretending to be okay.
I knew when she was hungry—which, to be fair, was almost all the time.
I knew the exact smile she wore whenever she was about to get herself, or me, into trouble.
Most importantly...
I knew that if Camellia Anthony Kilian was unusually quiet, something was definitely wrong.
At seventeen, Camellia was effortlessly beautiful. She had warm chestnut-brown hair that framed her face perfectly, bright azure-blue eyes that always sparkled with mischief, and the kind of pearly white smile that could convince almost anyone to forgive her.
Almost.
She was the youngest child and only daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Anthony Kilian, with three older brothers who were just as protective of her as my seven brothers were of me.
Sometimes we joked that if our families ever had dinner together, the entire conversation would just be our brothers trying to outdo each other.
Leaving the bicycle garage, we walked toward the academy's main hall, where the first orientation of the semester would soon begin.
The campus buzzed with excitement.
Students hurried between buildings, laughing as they reunited after the break. Teachers greeted familiar faces, clubs set up colorful welcome booths, and first-year students wandered around with maps in their hands, looking completely overwhelmed.
I smiled to myself.
No matter how many years I spent at Ashwood Academy, the first day always felt different.
"Back to Earth, Naveah."
I blinked.
Camellia was waving a hand in front of my face.
"Hm?"
"You've been zoning out for almost a minute."
"Sorry."
She folded her arms dramatically.
"I've decided something."
"Oh?"
"I fell in love..."
I sighed.
"Again?"
She stared at me.
"...Excuse me?"
"What?"
"You didn't even let me finish!"
I shrugged innocently.
"In my defense, you've had at least five celebrity crushes this year."
"They weren't crushes."
"You made three wallpapers."
"They were artistic appreciation."
"They were shirtless edits."
She gasped so loudly that two passing students turned to look at us.
"Naveah Delcrov Graysen!"
I bit back a smile.
"I meant," she said, pointing a finger at my face, "that I fell in love with the movie you recommended."
"Oh."
"That's all you have to say?"
"I thought you meant another actor."
"I have standards."
"You absolutely do not."
She clutched her chest as if I'd physically wounded her.
"You're so mean to me."
"I'm honest."
"Same thing."
"Not even close."
I laughed.
"So... which movie?"
She blinked.
"...Huh?"
"The movie."
"..."
"The one you fell in love with."
"..."
"Camellia."
"I know."
"So?"
"I forgot the title."
I stopped walking.
"You forgot."
"I remembered the plot!"
"The title, Cami."
"It'll come back to me."
I raised an eyebrow.
She looked toward the sky as though divine inspiration might rescue her.
Then, without warning, she turned to me.
"Did I tell you how amazing your new haircut looks?"
I narrowed my eyes.
"You're changing the subject."
"I'm complimenting my best friend."
"Cami."
"I'm serious."
Instinctively, I touched the ends of my wolf cut.
"It really suits you," she said softly.
For a second, I forgot what we were talking about.
Then I smiled.
"Thank you."
She smiled back.
"And now..."
I folded my arms.
"What was the movie called?"
She groaned dramatically.
"You never let anything go."
"Nope."
She sighed in surrender.
"ABO Desire."
"Oh."
"I knew you'd judge me."
"I wasn't expecting that one."
"It was so good!"
"I'll pretend I didn't hear that."
She nudged my shoulder.
"Liar."
I laughed and reached for her wrist.
"Come on."
"We're going to be late."
We started toward the locker corridor together, weaving through groups of students who stepped aside with friendly greetings.
"Morning, President!"
"Vice President!"
"Welcome back!"
Camellia waved enthusiastically at almost everyone.
I simply nodded.
"You know," she whispered, "one day I'm going to teach you how to wave like a normal person."
"I wave normally."
"You blink."
"I do not."
"You blink respectfully."
"I don't even know what that means."
She burst into laughter.
Neither of us noticed the pair of curious eyes watching us from the second-floor balcony above.
Not yet.