3 Throbbing

Eirin gulped. 'Are they talking about me?' she thought while trying not to make a sound.

"Did you listen to the details? Miss Regina said to talk to the madam first and take their consent. Not kidnap her like a barbarian would." The girl's voice slowly calmed down, but Eirin could sense anger in her every word. "You're not a rookie. Why are you making obvious mistakes?"

"What did you say!?"

Eirin's eyes widened after realizing that there was a man with them in the restroom. Her fear got ahead of her and didn't notice it was also the same man who mentioned her name. 'Why is a man inside the women's restroom?' She thought and flinched as she felt a sharp pain near her neck.

"Cali has a point, Shade. We can't let anyone see us here, especially the target." It was another man's voice. "It's not like you to act like this. Were you injured yesterday?"

Eirin wanted to run, but there was no way for her to leave with those unknown people waiting outside the cubicle she was in.

The man named Shade clicked his tongue. "Didn't you guys hear what that old lady told us yesterday? They wouldn't come with us unless we use force."

'Who are they talking about?' Eirin winced as the pain prolonged.

"I know… but we need to be extra careful with this mission. It'll be bad if the Ministry of Proprius notices our advances. The æons are also lurking everywhere."

'Ministry of what? And æons? What are those things? Are they role-playing?' Eirin could not grasp the situation at all. 'One moment I heard my name, and the second I heard words I'm not familiar with.' She thought while still keeping herself silent.

"Do I look like I care about that?"

Eirin heard a clicking sound. "This is pointless. An arrogant person like you would not get it at all until you're beaten into a pulp," the girl named Cali said.

"I dare you repeat what you said."

Eirin felt the cold and hot air mixing in the atmosphere. 'What in the world is going on?' Sweats dripped out of her temples, but her body shivered in the cold.

"You guys! This isn't the time to fight each other." The man with the gentle tone said. "Let's talk about this calmly, okay? Is there a problem you can't tell us, Shade? This isn't like you."

Eirin's heart thumped faster as the pain worsened. 'Who are these people?' She could not see their faces and could only hear their voices. 'And they all sound dangerous.'

Silence filled the air, but Eirin could feel the tension. "This place reeks." The man named Shade said, triggering Eirin's confusion.

'Is he saying that this restroom smells bad? Why did they choose this place then!?'

"Those freaks lurk around this place like pests."

Eirin looked around to find a way to escape, but the moment she stood up, she bumped into the trash can near the toilet seat, creating a loud sound.

'Shit.'

Her heart thumped so loud she could hear it through her ears. She held her breath, frozen still, and wouldn't move to not create any more sounds.

"Let's get out of here for now."

The moment they left, Eirin gasped as if she ran in a three-day marathon. Her legs weakened, and she fell to the floor. "W-What was that?"

"Hey! Luxfield! Are you here?"

Eirin quickly stood up from the floor and opened the door. She heard her teammates click on her tongue. "Miss said to do a dress rehearsal before you eat lunch." The teammate said and left after without waiting for Eirin's response. As soon as she was left alone, Eirin heaved a sigh and leaned on the wall as if her life was cut in half and she was about to die due to anxiety after hearing those unknown people talking about her. '

As far as I could remember, I'm the only person who has the Luxfield surname at this school.'

The teenage girl stepped out of the restroom warily, keeping an eye out until she arrived at the auditorium. All were waiting for her, and they went through the last rehearsal with the costumes. Everyone performed well, except for Eirin's anxious heart.

"Will you be eating with us?" the senior, Serena, asked.

"No, thank you."

The other members glared at Eirin before they left, leaving Eirin alone backstage. Her body felt exhausted as she shut her eyes close to prevent the thoughts from distracting her.

"Eirin? Are you here?"

Eirin turned around to face the door, and she quickly stood from her seat. "Bright!" she said as a good-looking man walked towards her. His almond-shaped eyes turned small as he smiled, causing comfort to Eirin's uneasy heart. He was Bright Goodwin.

"Wow, you look pretty in that," Bright said, complimenting the white tutu dress with sparkling glitters Eirin was wearing. However, he soon noticed the expression on Eirin's face. "Is there something wrong?"

Eirin stared at Bright and shook her head. "You just have great timing, that's all," she said. "We need to talk about something important."

"Okay? What is it about?"

Bright made no hesitation as he looked into Eirin's eyes, but Eirin felt quite awkward asking the boy about the uncanny experience she had the other day. "Did you… perhaps went somewhere yesterday after class?"

The adorable guy tilted his head. "No. I got club practice." He said as he moved closer to Eirin. "Why? Did something happen?"

Eirin gulped. The cold air coming from the air-conditioner made Eirin break out in a cold sweat. "No, not really." She smiled, but Bright only stared at her, knowing that it was her habit to smile it off despite being in an uncomfortable situation. "I just… saw someone that looked like you. It wasn't a big deal, really."

"Do I look that average?" The young man pouted as his puppy eyes twinkled. He clung to Eirin's arm and cuddled with her while acting cute like that. "Do I?"

'If he keeps asking me that, I might say that he's the most adorable guy I have ever seen in my entire life. No, maybe he's that only guy,' Eirin thought as she shook her head. "No, not really." Trying to act nonchalant with Bright's gestures.

Bright laughed at the little reaction he received from the girl. He sounded so happy that it reminded Eirin of her best friend, Ava. 'They're really alike. Dazzling.' She thought as she removed Bright's arm. "Don't you have class today?"

"Nope. That's why I'm going to watch your dance recital." Bright leaned closer. His dark brown eyes stared down at Eirin, causing her to gulp. "I'm excited to see you dance again." His voice sounded so close to Eirin's ear.

Eirin could not bear seeing that smile without feeling her heart fluttering. "W-Wait, did you grow taller?" She compared their heights to hide her embarrassment. Being always on the taller side, Eirin's height was never an issue. The teenage girl only hated it when she was younger because she was much taller than her peers.

Bright shrugged. "I don't know." His smile grew wider while looking at Eirin. "Maybe you got smaller. It's cute." Eirin froze and felt something swirling inside her stomach after Bright ruffled her hair and giggled. The quiet backstage made Eirin feel like they were the only people in the world, and flowers started appearing around Bright in her eyes.

'There's no way a girl as tall as I am could be cute.' She thought and cleared her throat. "It's amazing how you can call a girl like me with that word." Eirin removed Bright's hand from her head. They were the only ones backstage, and the silence made Eirin's heartbeat the only thing she could hear. When Bright's wide smile grew, Eirin did not notice that she was already staring at him too much.

"You're cute, Eirin."

Her face heated up, and she spun around. If it wasn't for her teammates arriving, she wouldn't be able to escape from Bright and there was no way she could explain what was going on inside her head, either. "Y-You better go now." Eirin nuzzled Bright out of the backstage while avoiding his eyes.

"Break a leg!"

Eirin's members glared at her again after seeing her with a beautiful-looking man. "I don't understand boys. What do they see in that girl?" Eirin heard, but she ignored it and went to the dressing room to prepare.

'I'm glad I brought lunch.'

"Your hair is really soft." Eirin ate her lunch while the hairstylist worked on her hair. "It's so silky and straight. Pretty." The hairstylist said. She's been used to receiving compliments about her long brown hair looking pretty all her life. Eirin has had beautiful hair since birth.

'I just want this to be over.'

After preparing, everything was ready and Eirin stood in the middle of the stage, waiting for the curtain to lift. She kept taking deep breaths with her eyes closed. Silence and anticipation mixed in the auditorium. The moment she heard the curtain opening, she opened her eyes and people greeted her with cheers. Before she could even smile, she felt something on the back of her neck. It started throbbing like crazy and she could not help but wince. '

What is going on?' Eirin thought as she only stood there, and the people stared at her.

"Eirin? Hey." She could not hear her members' voices.

Eirin's eyes scanned the auditorium, and she noticed a man near the fire exit. His jet-black eyes stared as if looking into her soul and planning to devour her. The pain didn't subside, and Eirin stood still.

The music then started playing and the other ballerinas danced around her, distracting the audience from what was going on.