Chapter 58 A win is a win

Chapter 58 A win is a win
Chapter 058

RAVENNA

The class eventually came to an end. Professor Bonn collected the assignments from each pair, skimming through them quickly before announcing the scores.

"Miss Ravenna and Mr Dorian," he declared, glancing up from their paper. "Got the highest score. Well, welldone."

I grinned at Dorian, who returned it with a triumphant fist pump.

"Mr Darius and Miss Chelsea," Bonn continued. "Got second place. Good effort too."

I glanced over at Darius. His jaw was tight, entire body shaking with fury. He stared straight ahead, refusing to look at anyone.

I could tell he was absolutely furious. Absolutely furious for losing the first place to me and his friend.

Samantha leaned over and whispered but her voice was loud and clear, "You beat him. That is brilliant."

"Thank you," I whispered back, unable to keep the satisfaction out of my voice.

"You are brilliant, Ravenna," Samantha continued, louder now. Her voice carried across the room. "Absolutely brilliant."

Darius's head snapped towards us. His eyes narrowed dangerously.

Then he stood and walked directly over to where Samantha sat. He stopped in front of Samantha, his burly figure looming over her in clearly an intimidating way.

"You truly think your friend is more brilliant than me?" His tone was cold. Challenging even.

Samantha did not flinch. She lifted her chin, gazed up at him in her own defiance and nodded. "Yes. I do know my friend, Ravenna is more brilliant than you." She made sure to emphasize on each words slowly.

His glare intensified. "Watch your steps."

Samantha's eyebrows shot up. "What are you going to do? Use your car to hit me just the way you did to Ravenna? Or worse? Or probably run to daddy and have him add me to the list of your growing enemies?"

The tension in the room grew think and I knew I add to do something before Darius lost his shit. But to be honest I was enjoying seeing him rattled.

Darius's eyes flashed gold. I needed no own to tell me his wolf has risen tot he surface ready to break free.

Before anything could escalate further, Dorian appeared between them. His hands raised in a calming gesture.

"Alright, alright," he soothed. "Let us all calm down. There is no need for this."

Samantha crossed her arms but said nothing more. Darius took a step back, though his fists remained clenched at his sides.

Dorian looked around at all of us. "So who wants to go to Angelas for a quick break before our next class?"

I perked up immediately. "I am in."

Samantha nodded reluctantly, her glare fixed on me now. "Me too."

Dorian turned to Darius. "You coming?"

"No."

"Yes, you are," Dorian corrected firmly. He grabbed Darius by the arm and began dragging him towards the door. "You need to cool off before you do something stupid."

Darius tried to pull away. "Let go of me."

"Not happening, bro, never happening."

I grabbed my bag and followed them out. Samantha fell into step beside me.

We exchanged amused glances as Dorian continued hauling Darius like a spoilt child down the corridor.

The cold air hit us the moment we stepped outside. I pulled my jacket tighter around myself.

"Is it just me," Samantha began, rubbing her arms, "or is this morning ridiculously cold?"

"It is not just you," Dorian confirmed. "Winter is fast approaching which means we will be on holidays soon for the Christmas season."

"Thank goodness," Samantha muttered. "I need a break from this place."

We reached Angelas a few minutes later. The small café was warm and inviting. The smell of fresh coffee and baked goods filled the air.

We found a table near the back and settled in. I took the seat across from Dorian. Samantha sat beside me. Darius reluctantly dropped into the chair next to Dorian, still scowling.

A waitress came over to take our orders. I asked for hot chocolate and a croissant. Samantha ordered the same. Dorian got coffee and a sandwich. Darius requested black coffee and nothing else.

Once the waitress left, Dorian leaned back in his chair and grinned at all of us. "So. Are we going to talk about how tense that classroom was, or are we going to pretend nothing happened?"

"Nothing happened," Darius growled, a warning to Dorian to back off on what he was trying to do.

"Right," Dorian drawled. "Because you definitely did not nearly shift in the middle of English class."

Darius shot him a warning look. "Drop it, Dorian."

"Fine, fine." Dorian raised his hands in surrender. Then he turned to me. "How are you feeling, Ravenna? After everything?"

I shrugged. "I am fine. Really."

"Good." He smiled. "We were worried."

"I know. I am sorry."

Our orders arrived a few moments later. The waitress set everything down on the table and disappeared again.

I wrapped my hands around the warm mug of hot chocolate and took a sip.

The sweetness spread across my tongue, chasing away the lingering chill from outside.

Dorian picked up his sandwich and took a bite. Then he glanced at Samantha. "How did you cope whilst Ravenna was missing?"

Samantha paused mid-sip of her drink. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, you were worried, right? Did you stay locked up in your room the entire time?"

"Not the entire time," Samantha admitted. "But I eventually came out of the room to watch for her arrival.

"How were you able to convince her to get out of the underground building during the rogue attack without seeing me?"

"Well to be honest, it was hard. She refused to come with me." Dorian grinned. "Eventually, I had to threaten to carry her over my shoulder before she agreed to come with me."

Samantha's face turned bright red. "You did not have to tell her that."

I laughed. "He actually threatened you?"

"Yes," she grumbled. "He is ridiculous."

"I am effective," Dorian corrected with a wink.

I nudged Samantha's arm. "Look at you being carried around by Prince Charming."

"Shut up," she hissed, but the blush on her cheeks deepened.

"I was just worried about you," Samantha deflected quickly. "And besides, Dorian is Darius's friend. I did not want to trust him fully."

Dorian clutched his chest dramatically. "Ouch. That hurts, Samantha."

"Good," she shot back, though there was no real bite in her tone.

A gust of cold air swept through the café as someone opened the door. Samantha shivered and rubbed her arms again.

Dorian noticed immediately. Without a word, he shrugged off his hoodie and held it out to her.

Samantha stared at it. "I never asked for one."

"I know," Dorian replied calmly. "But you are rubbing your arms which means you are cold. So take it."

She hesitated. Then reluctantly accepted the hoodie and pulled it on. It was far too big on her. The sleeves hung past her hands.

I grinned. "Ouu, look at Prince Charming."

Samantha looked away, trying desperately to hide the blush creeping across her face. She pulled the hood up, as if that would somehow make her invisible.

Dorian just shrugged. "What can I say? I am a gentleman."

I shook my head, still smiling. "You are unbelievable."

"I try."

He launched into another story then. Something about a prank he and some other students had pulled last year. His delivery was animated. His expressions exaggerated. I could not help but laugh.

The sound echoed across the café louder than I intended.

Darius, who had been silent this entire time, finally spoke. He did not even bother looking at us.

"Is there a reason you are shouting your laughter across the cafeteria?" His tone was flat and annoyed. "Some of us are trying to think."

I paused staring cooly at him, ook a sip of my hot chocolate and then smiled to myself.

"Some of us do not care."

Dorian nearly choked on his coffee. He coughed into his hand, desperately trying not to laugh out loud.

Darius's knuckles went white around his fork.