I requested to be discharged from the medical center early. I didn't tell the others - a.k.a. my boyfriends. I had a hunch it would bite me in the ass later on, but I couldn't spend another night there.
Being alone in the bed and four walls was too much for me, and when my parents arrived after receiving the news after returning from an abroad case, they immediately encouraged the discharge to be approved.
That was a first for my parents. They were always so worried about me and never wanted to go against the doctor's orders, but I guess one look at my current state seemed to seal the deal.
It was the medical center's fault, honestly. This wasn't Witchling Medical Centre we got treatment from. This was a medical center run by the government that was connected to the facility Jax was forced to get examined at.
The moment I realized their connection, I was not down for anything. Not to forget the fact we were all separated into our own box rooms. My room didn't even have a window, which was only making my condition a hell of a lot worse, and when I requested a change, it was denied.
Three times…until I broke their stone walls by 'accident'. No regrets.
I wasn't sure what was going on with the others aside from the fact that Jax was getting a facility check and Connor was going to make sure he stayed with him.
From Miya and Mia's brief visit, I’d learned that Connor had passed out after vomiting and experiencing sensory overload. He hadn't dealt with it for a long-ass time, but with the circumstances, it was just too much.
Jax was able to stay conscious until the ambulance ride. That was when he passed out and spiked a fever thanks to the after-effects of our battle - or maybe it was my fault. I'm not sure.
Finnick seemed to be the only one who didn't pass out. Kaito and I ended up being found locked in the washroom, curled up against a wall. Finnick had found us and they had to call more ambulances to transport us to this hell hole.
Kaito seemed to be okay, but was dealing with exhaustion because he'd come from wherever he'd been training the last month right to school, and then we dealt with the after-exam madness.
I was grateful I hadn't hurt him badly. The majority of the scratches we’d made upon each other during our exchange would heal just fine. Mia and Miya brought us special creams to put on the wounds after we took the bandages off to make sure the skin would heal well and not leave any scars.
It was appreciated, especially because I knew their Korean products were more expensive than the generic hospital stuff.
Witchling Academy was officially closed for a full-blown investigation. All remaining classes, exams, and activities were canceled, and anyone who lived in the dorms was forced to either stay at Megumi's hotel temporarily in the common building they had for emergency stays or return home for an extended holiday break.
The news of Leia's death spread through the school and was all over the gossip blogs. It seemed that she wasn't loved by many at the school for her apparent cocky behavior, but the way she died hit everyone hard.
Witchling Star Agency, the FBI, and the CIA were all on the scene, and it was publicly confirmed that Leia had been kidnapped, beaten, raped, starved, and tortured before the final moment where she was hung purposely in the student council room to try and frame one of us.
If we hadn't had our exam, we would have been screwed, but what was currently paining me was the shit-talk happening that said Leia deserved it. I don't know why it made my blood literally boil. In a few instances, Marianna had to take control to somehow tame my emotions.
We both agreed that Leia did not deserve such an end. Compared to everyone who knew her by name, rumors, gossip, and her relations to Connor's biological father, who was now also being investigated for possible involvement in Leia's death, she was just a girl trying to figure out who she wanted to be in the world.
No one deserved to be beaten, tortured, starved, and sexually exploited. No one earned the reward of being hung in such a humiliating way.
It was the first time this week I could think about it and not rush to the washroom to vomit, and I was even more thankful I wasn't into social blogs like others or I wouldn't have the privilege to ignore the bullshit.
Starlight had to shut down some fishy activity going on online, where Mia and Miya found out some group was making fake accounts using my name and trying to add flame to the damn fire regarding this case.
They sent an official letter stating that Jax and I did not have social media accounts of any kind and only used our Witchling Academy blog accounts for official business.
It had to be some real crazy shit because it ticked off Starlight and even Katsume enough to do a separate investigation on who was doing it. That was soon passed on to Sebastian, and within a few hours the group of seniors were tracked by their IP addresses and immediately charged for fraudulent activity, stealing one's identity, and cyberbullying. And one of them was further charged after finding some stuff on his hard drive that dealt with children.
I wasn't sure what that revolved around, but Starlight brushed it away saying it would all be dealt with and I had nothing to worry about. I wondered if she was tired of assisting me in all these crazy mishaps that had been happening the last couple of years.
She didn't show it, but I was beginning to feel guilty because of how much time and effort she had committed to my wellbeing and the safety of myself, my friends, and my boyfriends.
Apparently, once the holidays were done, Witchling Star Agency would officially be protecting the student council, with the inclusion of Connor, Finnick, and Kaito.
With everything we had going on for our final semester and the obvious threat left behind from someone who didn't want us graduating, it was insisted upon by the magic council that we were protected during all hours of the school term.
I didn't want to think about the money alone it would cost for such security that was usually reserved for celebrities, but it seemed as though my parents had issues with the request, which was something that had never happened during their careers.
To be fair, even I was shocked for them to cut things early with their cases and return so swiftly. It made me feel like a burden, honestly, but it was the first time I'd seen Dad so distraught at the idea of me being "alone".
I was sure if it was their choice, we wouldn't be entering our final semester period, but they didn't bother trying to bring up the topic - no matter how tempting it was. Maybe it was the look in my eyes when they tried to bring the idea of school up in the hospital room or on our drive home.
That glare of conviction told them there was no way in hell I’d back out of this. I’d been through seven semesters at Witchling Academy and dealt with my share of magical mayhem with a dose of pure madness.
We'd dealt with loads of near-death experiences, and though this wasn't a part of the school curriculum in the slightest, no way were we going to give up now.
Especially with that threat looming over our heads.
I secretly wanted to race towards that graduation stage, and nothing was going to stop me from achieving this milestone in my life. Something deep inside me told me that the Shadow Kingdom was going to do anything in their power to stop us from reaching the end.
That only confirmed that there was something waiting for me and Jax upon graduating. Who knew if we'd be given information that revealed more about our past or finally get to have a transparent conversation about what lay ahead of us after we graduated.