CHAPTER 96: DATE [1]

*****

The Student Council room was quiet except for the ticking of a wall clock and the faint rustle of papers.

The afternoon sun streamed through the tall windows, painting the room with a golden warmth.

Maya sat slouched in her chair, hugging a cushion from the couch beside her, cheeks completely red.

Her legs were bouncing restlessly, her hair slightly messy like she’d been pacing earlier.

Rihana sat across from her, perfectly composed, a cup of tea in hand, watching Maya’s meltdown with quiet amusement.

"So..."

Rihana began slowly,

"He said he’d go on a date with you after class and tell you his answer?"

Maya immediately shot up, eyes wide.

"D-don’t say it like that!!"

She squeaked, pressing the cushion against her face.

"You make it sound like I, like I planned the whole thing or something! It just happened, okay?! I just... confessed because it felt right at the moment! I didn’t even think he’d actually say yes, like, who even says ’let’s go on a date and I’ll tell you my answer’ in that calm tone?! Like, hello?! My heart was about to burst out of my chest and he just stood there like some unbothered ethereal statue of elegance and lightning and, !"

"Maya."

"...and then I said yes because what was I supposed to do? Say no? Oh sure, let me just reject the boy I literally confessed to in front of everyone in the classroom! The students were already whispering, my face was redder than a fire crystal, and I swear I could feel the juniors recording,"

"Maya."

"....and don’t even get me started on his eyes! They’re so calm it’s annoying! Like how can someone look that cool while I’m over here looking like a tomato that’s been electrocuted by my own emotions,"

"Maya!"

"W-what?!"

Rihana took a calm sip of her tea before smirking slightly.

"You’re rapping again."

Maya froze, blinked twice, then groaned and buried her face back into the cushion.

"Ughhhh, I know! I can’t help it! Every time I think about it my brain just short-circuits!"

Rihana tilted her head slightly, her teasing tone slipping in.

"You’ve got it bad, huh?"

"Wh, what?! No! I don’t! I’m just, I mean, he’s... you know... he’s Lyrium! He’s handsome and strong and mysterious and has that weirdly calm smile that makes you want to punch him and hug him at the same time but that doesn’t mean I like him-like him! I just, okay maybe a little, but not in that way, like maybe in a ’wow he’s kinda cool’ way and not in a ’I can’t stop thinking about his stupid perfect hair’ way and oh gods I’m doing it again aren’t I?!"

Rihana chuckled quietly, leaning back.

"You should record yourself sometime. It’s entertaining."

Maya lifted her head just enough to glare at her.

"You’re enjoying this way too much."

"Of course I am."

Rihana’s lips curled into a smirk.

"After all, you were the one who confessed to my little brother. This is practically sister-in-law material already."

"R-R-RIHANA!!"

Maya shouted, her face somehow getting redder.

"Don’t say it like that! People will misunderstand!"

"Oh, I’m counting on it."

"Rihanaaaaa!"

She groaned dramatically, collapsing against the table.

"Why are you like this?! You’re supposed to be my friend, not my doom!"

"I am your friend,"

Rihana said, sipping her tea again.

"That’s why I’m giving you a warning."

Maya peeked up, still pouting.

"A warning?"

Rihana’s smirk softened into something gentler, not quite serious, but with a knowing undertone.

"Lyrium isn’t exactly easy to deal with. He’s quiet, unpredictable, and... complicated. Don’t let that pretty face fool you."

Maya blinked, her expression easing.

Then she smiled shyly, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

"Yeah... I kinda figured that out already. But hey, complicated or not, I’m still going to face him. I confessed, might as well see it through, right?"

Rihana gave a faint smile.

"Brave words, Vice President."

"Don’t call me that,"

Maya muttered, groaning again.

"Vice Presidents don’t blush like this..."

Rihana smirked.

"No, but hopeless romantics do."

"Rihana!!"

*****

The room was filled with the faint smell of cologne and the quiet sound of rustling fabric.

Sunlight streamed through the half-open curtains, casting golden patterns on the floor.

Lyrium stood in front of the mirror, adjusting his coat.

He was wearing an effortlessly stylish black trench coat layered over a crisp white shirt tucked loosely into wide, dark trousers.

The fabric flowed when he moved, each fold catching the light.

A slim strap crossed his chest, part of his shoulder bag.

His shoes, black with white laces, gave the outfit a casual edge that balanced the otherwise refined, mysterious look.

He looked like someone who didn’t try to be cool, but simply was.

Ren, on the other hand, was sprawled across Lyrium’s bed, dramatically fanning himself with a notebook while Silas leaned against the wall with his arms crossed, watching quietly.

Ren finally broke the silence.

"My dear Lyrium... my brother in arms... the man who once said, and I quote, ’I don’t care about fashion.’ Look at you now. Dressed like you’re about to attend a black-tie ball hosted by the gods themselves!"

Lyrium adjusted his sleeve with a sigh.

"It’s just a coat, Ren."

"Just a coat?"

Ren sat up instantly, eyes wide in mock offense.

"Just a coat?! Bro, this coat screams ’mysterious prodigy with unresolved trauma who steals hearts by accident!’"

He pointed at Lyrium’s outfit like he was narrating a documentary.

"The black layers, that’s the aura of a tragic protagonist. The white shirt? Symbol of purity, contrast, balance! And the sneakers? The casual rebellion against conformity! It’s like the entire outfit says, ’Yeah, I’ve fought gods and still made it in time for the date.""

Silas chuckled under his breath.

"He’s not wrong though. You actually look... pretty good, Lyrium."

Ren jumped up, pointing dramatically.

"Pretty good?! Silas, open your eyes! He looks like the main character walking out of a time-split dimension just to make every man insecure and every girl rethink her standards!"

Lyrium gave a half-smile, exhaling softly.

"You both are exaggerating."

"Exaggerating?"

Ren said, pacing the room now.

"My guy, you’re going on your first date in your entire life! You can’t walk in there looking like an average academy student. You gotta make her question reality itself when she sees you!"

Silas, trying not to laugh, added calmly,

"Ren’s right about one thing. You don’t want to show up looking casual. Maya’s the vice president of the student council, after all."

Ren nodded furiously, snapping his fingers.

"Exactly! You gotta give off that aura, you know, that ’I didn’t try, but I still outclass everyone in a ten-mile radius’ vibe. Which, congrats, you’re already nailing."

Lyrium rolled his eyes, tugging at the collar of his coat.

"I wasn’t trying to impress anyone. I just... put on what felt right."

Ren smirked.

"And that, my dear philosopher of fashion, is exactly why it works. You’re not trying, and that makes you even more dangerous."

Silas finally pushed off the wall and gave a small smile.

"He’s got a point, though. You look confident. Maya’s definitely going to be nervous when she sees you."

Lyrium raised a brow.

"Nervous?"

Ren slung an arm over Lyrium’s shoulder with a wide grin.

"Oh, absolutely. I mean look at you, tall, red-eyed, that calm face, the coat, the aura of ’I may or may not destroy your world if I wanted to.’ If she doesn’t blush in the first thirty seconds, she’s not human."

Lyrium sighed deeply, muttering,

"You’re being ridiculous."

Ren dramatically placed a hand over his chest.

"Ridiculous? No, my friend. I’m being romantically prophetic! Tonight, destiny awaits you under the fading sun and the whispers of love!"

"Or,"

Silas interjected dryly,

"He’s just going for coffee."

Ren froze, pointed at Silas, and glared.

"You’re ruining the moment, man!"

Lyrium chuckled quietly, picking up his wristwatch from the desk.

"You two done yet? I’m leaving."

Ren immediately stood up and pretended to wipe a tear.

"He’s leaving... my boy’s growing up! From fighting monsters to fighting butterflies in his stomach!"

Lyrium ignored him, sliding his hand into the coat pocket and glancing once more at the mirror.

His reflection stared back, sharp, composed, and calm. But behind those red eyes, there was a faint flicker of something else, nervousness, maybe curiosity.

"Wish me luck,"

He said quietly.

Ren smirked.

"Oh, you won’t need luck. You’ll need self-control not to make her fall too hard."

Silas sighed, half-smiling.

"Good luck anyway."

As Lyrium walked out the door, the black fabric of his coat swayed with quiet confidence, like a shadow moving with purpose.

Ren watched him go and whispered dramatically,

"And thus, begins the chronicles of the White Milk Casanova."

Silas groaned.

"Don’t call him that."

*****

Lyrium walked alone, his long black coat swaying with each step.

The air was cool, carrying the faint scent of mana dust from the air trams above.

Then,

Ting—!

A bright blue hologram blinked to life from his mana watch.

"Ayyo, my brother!"

Rihana’s excited voice burst through before the feed even stabilized.

Her face appeared, eyes glinting like a cat that had found something to toy with.

Lyrium sighed.

’I like the previous timeline’s Rihana.’

"What now?"

Rihana leaned closer to the screen, a mischievous smile stretching wide.

"So~ going on that date, huh? Guess who I just saw leaving the academy gates not even five minutes ago?"

Lyrium’s steps slowed.

"You saw Maya, didn’t you? She’s your friend literally!"

Rihana grinned.

"Ding ding ding, correct! You should’ve seen her, she was so red she could’ve powered a fire crystal. She even tripped over a step while fixing her hair!"

Lyrium ran a hand through his own hair, trying not to smile.

"You’ve got way too much free time."

"Oh, don’t be like that,"

Rihana teased.

"It’s not every day my emotionless brother goes on an actual date."

"I’m only going because I owe her an answer,"

Lyrium replied flatly, though there was the faintest hint of hesitation in his tone.

"Pfft, ’owe her an answer,’ "

She says.

"You make it sound like a debt payment."

He ignored her.

"She confessed. I didn’t. I just told her I’d tell her what I want... after class. That’s it."

Rihana smirked knowingly.

"Yeah, yeah, that’s what you say. But your tone says otherwise. You could’ve rejected her right there, y’know? Yet here you are, dressing up like a dark prince."

Lyrium’s brow twitched.

"I didn’t dress up for her."

"Oh sure, you just happened to wear a tailored coat, clean shirt, and those black overalls like some brooding model straight out of a mana magazine,"

She said, voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Totally just coincidence."

"Rihana."

"What? I’m just saying you look good for someone pretending not to care."

"Shut up."

Rihana laughed, her voice echoing through the speaker.

"You’re such a tsundere, it’s painful. Anyway, don’t screw it up, okay? Maya’s a good girl. A bit clumsy, sure, but she’s got guts for confessing first. You? You’d die of pride before admitting you like someone."

Lyrium sighed.

"You’re done?"

"Almost. Just one more thing,"

"What now?"

Rihana grinned devilishly.

"If she kisses you, I want details."

"Rihana!"

"Fine, fine! Geez, you’re no fun."

Ting—! The feed cut off.

Lyrium exhaled, staring blankly at the fading blue light on his watch.

"She’s insane."

Then, faintly, a smile tugged at his lips.

He looked ahead, the path bathed in the warm glow of dusk, the city’s hum soft in the distance.

His coat billowed slightly as he began walking again.

"Still... I wonder what she’ll say this time."

*****