Eli leaned against the thick trunk of the old tree, his chest rising and falling a little faster than normal. His hands were buried deep in his pockets, but his mind was nowhere near his feet.
He wanted a moment. Just a moment to wallow a little. But the universe seemed to have other plans.
He shifted his position slightly, and there was a quiet crack.
“What the,” he turned, only to see something glinting on the wood.
His eyes widened. “Shit.”
Attached to the bark was what looked like a thin gold leaf decoration, tucked into the natural lines of the tree. It shimmered faintly under the dying light of day, and the tiny, broken edge where he leaned in made his stomach drop.
“I think that’s… really gold.” He stared at it in disbelief. “Why is this even here? Who puts gold on trees?”
He couldn’t even be sad in peace!
Eli backed away slightly, muttering apologies under his breath to Jace’s ancestors, when a familiar voice rang behind him.
“Eli!” Doha exclaimed. “We’re waiting for you. The drill is done, and Master As finally commended Zeno.”
“He was very genuine in giving compliments to Minji.”
Eli’s mind drifted away from the golden leaf. He bit his lip and nodded. “Yeah,” he muttered.
Doha crossed his arms, giving him a knowing look. “Don’t do this.”
“Do what?”
“You know what,” Doha said, walking closer to him. “Don’t act like you don’t feel anything. I know you too well, Eli.”
Eli looked down, his shoulders tense.
“Minji’s still super dense. I think Zeno is, too,” Doha continued. “I don’t think he even knows that Minji likes him. And she’s clueless about your feelings for her, too.”
Eli ran a hand through his hair, tugging slightly at the ends. “I just needed to take a shit, Doha.”
Doha raised an eyebrow. “You said it was the cheese.”
“Yeah.”
“We didn’t have any cheese, Eli.”
Eli froze, shoulders stiffening even more.
Doha’s gaze softened. “You’re a hundred times smarter than me but I’m better at reading feelings.”
Eli’s head lowered again. “Why did I have to like her?”
Doha let out a long, deep breath.
“You can’t help who you like,” Doha said. “You just do.”
“I know,” Eli replied quietly.
“I mean, it’s not like I ever had a chance,” he added with a small laugh, but it didn’t sound right. “She smiles more at him. She looks at him like she’s looking at something that saved her. When she looks at me, it’s all annoyance.”
Doha stayed still, eyes forward.
Eli looked up at the tree branches. “I knew it for a while. I just didn’t want to admit it.”
“Nothing is ever certain,” Doha said softly.
“I mean, yeah. Maybe.” Eli let out a long breath. “But I think I already lost.”
There was silence between them.
Doha finally said, “You know… I may root for Zeno a lot. He’s like this star that just keeps climbing. But in this—” he turned to Eli “—in this, I’ll always root for you.”
Eli smiled, but it didn’t quite reach his eyes.
“It’s better you root for him for this one, too.”
“Eli…”
“You’re not giving up, are you?”
Eli’s eyes fluttered closed.
“I wish I could,” he muttered.
Doha’s brows furrowed at the honesty in those words.
Eli wasn’t being self-pitying or dramatic. He meant it.
The ache that came from loving someone who never looked at you in the same light.
He patted Eli on the shoulder.
“Let’s head back soon. Before they send Master As to look for us.”
Eli nodded faintly and straightened his posture. However, he froze when he suddenly remembered something.
“Doha,” he called out.
“I might have broken something… important.”
***
The group was in a new house. This one was right next to the lake. Their humble ’lakehouse’, as Jace called it.
Zeno’s attention went to the floating notification hovering lazily in his line of sight.
[Romance Skill Upgraded! Current Grade: B]
New Passive Added: Charm Pulse
“Charmed someone with your natural personality. Resistance to affection lowered by 3% for nearby targets.”
Zeno narrowed his eyes at the message and tapped it off
“Minji must have a weak heart,” he mumbled to himself. He hadn’t expected the compliment drill to make that much of an impact. All he did was say what he saw—and maybe he’d used a touch of honesty.
It was well past midnight, yet the lights in the spacious new house were still on. It had been Jace who led them here, through a winding path of lush trees, only for the group to discover another “house” on the property—if one could call a three-story villa with a karaoke bar and garden pool just a house.
Why even have a pool next to a lake?
“I stopped questioning anything Jace owns,” Doha said as he chowed on a cob of corn.
Inside, Master As stood tall (well, as tall as a five-foot man was) with his arms behind his back, peering at a whiteboard he must have wheeled in from the depths of mystery. Jace, Minji, Doha, and Eli were gathered on the couch, visibly exhausted from the day’s earlier drills.
“What now?” Doha whined. “We’ve sung karaoke, we’ve danced with spirits, and we’ve emotionally disarmed ourselves. Can’t we just drink like normal people?”
“Nonsense! Alcohol makes you lose muscle mass,” Master As exclaimed. He banged a marker on the table. “In this precious time between today and tomorrow, we shall improve your ASS.”
“I’m sorry, what?”
“ASS,” Master As repeated proudly.
“Acting,” he declared, writing it in bold capital letters.
“Synergizing—because you must be able to connect to one another as actors.”
“And the last S?” Minji prompted.
“Soultegration,” Master As said confidently, like he didn’t just make up a word.
“Soul Integration?” Eli asked, scratching the back of his neck.
“No, no. Soultegration. It’s the connection with oneself. The trademark is pending.”
Master As spun to face them. “You must come to terms with yourselves. Only then can your performance reach its apex. Which is why—yes, you guessed it. Another analysis.”
“No!” Minji groaned. “We just got emotionally wrecked an hour ago!”
“You may have, but your soultegration was weak,” Master As said with a straight face.
“Where did you even find this guy?” Zeno muttered to Jace, who only smiled innocently.
Master As stood in the center, voice lowering to a dramatic timbre. “But tonight, we go deeper than the flesh. Deeper than personality. I ask you one thing.”
“Have you ever considered… the possibility of a past life?”