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Aldrel swallowed thickly, looking down in pure anxiety at the blank page staring back up at him from its firm position on his desk. It wasn't going anywhere. Neither was he. It was time to face his demons.
"According to article number one as presented in the..." he started. Then he shook his head and hurriedly scratched out the top line. No, no, that wasn't right. Introductions were first. Right. Introductions.
...What did that mean? Rel groaned audibly in exasperation as he threw his head back then forward, catching his face in his hands. A moment of quiet peace passed. Then another short sound of vexation left Rel's mouth and with a frantic mania, he mussed his hair with a speed that could only be described as aggressive. He flopped down, arms outstretched so his wrists dangled off the edge of the desk, chin planted on the bottom half of the lined paper. He whimpered quietly.
The sound of a low coughing came from Rel's left and he turned his head quickly, catching the disapproving eye of his classmate who glared and shushed him. Rel shot up quickly, face flushing with embarrassment. He mouthed a "sorry," inclining his head a little in apology. He caught a glimpse of the student's paper. They were already on their third paragraph. He choked back another groan. Why was he even taking this class? His academic counselor had explained it to him, but to be honest, it hadn't made any sense to him. But what was he supposed to say? So he'd just nodded pleasantly and made a sound like he'd understood everything. But he didn't. Rel didn't understand anything. He missed high school.
Just then, the deep timbre of a man whose voice he was intimately familiar with rang in his ears. Startled, Rel jolted, earning him another glare from his studious deskmate. He withered under the harsh steel of their gaze. He muttered another apology before turning his attention to the words being spoken through the communication device Circuit had instructed him to keep activated at all times. Panic set in as he glanced down at the paper once more. Had he wanted it to disappear? Had he himself wanted to disappear? Yes. But that was a theoretical. If he walked out of the examination now, he definitely wouldn't get to retake the test, and he certainly wouldn't be passing this class. He didn't want to suffer through this again.
He removed the ear piece and stared at it. For a moment, he seriously contemplated turning it off. Putting it in his pocket maybe. He could pretend he hadn't heard anything. Maybe he could tell Shadow he'd already used up his powers and he didn't want to waste anyone's time. Maybe, maybe, maybe... His hands were shaking.
Finally, with a grimace and strained sigh, he put the piece back in his ear. "Understood," he said lowly, rising from his seat with a despondent resignation. This time, his classmate shot him a look of pity. Rel shuffled out of class, head hung low to avoid making eye contact with the professor, whose burning gaze was following him all the way to the door.
Halfway through his walk to the teleportation pad, his phone screen lit up with the name of a contact that hadn't been changed since the man himself had put it in along with his number.
the coolest mentor ever ;) ♥✭♥✭♥✭
heyo just heard about the mission. all good?
Rel responded quickly with a brief,
no
He stopped short in the hall and thought briefly on the exact meaning of the text he'd received. Right. He'd misinterpreted again. He wrote again,
oh you meant with getting to the mission. everything's alright. I'm just getting to the telepad now.
The reply from Circuit came as Rel was opening the door to the discreetly hidden teleportation pad.
LMAO UR ENGLISH 101 MIDTERM WAS TODAY I FORGOT.
followed shortly by
that really sucks. sorry kid. ill scold mr. meaniepants shadow later :(
& i know ur teacher hates u lol so ill see what i can do on my end to get u an exemption
Rel sighed and did not bother replying. He closed his eyes, and seconds later his presence was being announced to the base. It didn't take him long to shed his civilian clothing and pull on the skin of Aether. As he exited his dressing room, he took note of all the people already gathered in the room. He nodded a general greeting to the heroes he was familiar with and silently made his way towards his closest friend on the team.
"I learned something today, Gabriel," he said quietly, by way of introduction. "Humans are creatures who crave pain. You desire to suffer. Why's that, Gabriel? And why must you drag me into it too?" Rel's voice cracked on the last sentence, his bottom lip quivering. Still, he made no eye contact with the heavily clothed hero, and didn't particularly expect a response either. Instead, he kept his gaze focused on the tall, darkly clad figure at the front of the room while he waited for the man to issue his orders.
"According to article number one as presented in the..." he started. Then he shook his head and hurriedly scratched out the top line. No, no, that wasn't right. Introductions were first. Right. Introductions.
...What did that mean? Rel groaned audibly in exasperation as he threw his head back then forward, catching his face in his hands. A moment of quiet peace passed. Then another short sound of vexation left Rel's mouth and with a frantic mania, he mussed his hair with a speed that could only be described as aggressive. He flopped down, arms outstretched so his wrists dangled off the edge of the desk, chin planted on the bottom half of the lined paper. He whimpered quietly.
The sound of a low coughing came from Rel's left and he turned his head quickly, catching the disapproving eye of his classmate who glared and shushed him. Rel shot up quickly, face flushing with embarrassment. He mouthed a "sorry," inclining his head a little in apology. He caught a glimpse of the student's paper. They were already on their third paragraph. He choked back another groan. Why was he even taking this class? His academic counselor had explained it to him, but to be honest, it hadn't made any sense to him. But what was he supposed to say? So he'd just nodded pleasantly and made a sound like he'd understood everything. But he didn't. Rel didn't understand anything. He missed high school.
Just then, the deep timbre of a man whose voice he was intimately familiar with rang in his ears. Startled, Rel jolted, earning him another glare from his studious deskmate. He withered under the harsh steel of their gaze. He muttered another apology before turning his attention to the words being spoken through the communication device Circuit had instructed him to keep activated at all times. Panic set in as he glanced down at the paper once more. Had he wanted it to disappear? Had he himself wanted to disappear? Yes. But that was a theoretical. If he walked out of the examination now, he definitely wouldn't get to retake the test, and he certainly wouldn't be passing this class. He didn't want to suffer through this again.
He removed the ear piece and stared at it. For a moment, he seriously contemplated turning it off. Putting it in his pocket maybe. He could pretend he hadn't heard anything. Maybe he could tell Shadow he'd already used up his powers and he didn't want to waste anyone's time. Maybe, maybe, maybe... His hands were shaking.
Finally, with a grimace and strained sigh, he put the piece back in his ear. "Understood," he said lowly, rising from his seat with a despondent resignation. This time, his classmate shot him a look of pity. Rel shuffled out of class, head hung low to avoid making eye contact with the professor, whose burning gaze was following him all the way to the door.
Halfway through his walk to the teleportation pad, his phone screen lit up with the name of a contact that hadn't been changed since the man himself had put it in along with his number.
the coolest mentor ever ;) ♥✭♥✭♥✭
heyo just heard about the mission. all good?
Rel responded quickly with a brief,
no
He stopped short in the hall and thought briefly on the exact meaning of the text he'd received. Right. He'd misinterpreted again. He wrote again,
oh you meant with getting to the mission. everything's alright. I'm just getting to the telepad now.
The reply from Circuit came as Rel was opening the door to the discreetly hidden teleportation pad.
LMAO UR ENGLISH 101 MIDTERM WAS TODAY I FORGOT.
followed shortly by
that really sucks. sorry kid. ill scold mr. meaniepants shadow later :(
& i know ur teacher hates u lol so ill see what i can do on my end to get u an exemption
Rel sighed and did not bother replying. He closed his eyes, and seconds later his presence was being announced to the base. It didn't take him long to shed his civilian clothing and pull on the skin of Aether. As he exited his dressing room, he took note of all the people already gathered in the room. He nodded a general greeting to the heroes he was familiar with and silently made his way towards his closest friend on the team.
"I learned something today, Gabriel," he said quietly, by way of introduction. "Humans are creatures who crave pain. You desire to suffer. Why's that, Gabriel? And why must you drag me into it too?" Rel's voice cracked on the last sentence, his bottom lip quivering. Still, he made no eye contact with the heavily clothed hero, and didn't particularly expect a response either. Instead, he kept his gaze focused on the tall, darkly clad figure at the front of the room while he waited for the man to issue his orders.