∞ Chap 10: BLACKMAIL ∞

You are, I'm not.

Lina dashed through the hallways, running as fast as her legs could carry her to somewhere she did not know herself. She felt odd glances of the people she zoomed past like a rocket. The delicious rush of wind brushed by her, loosening her ponytail and swinging it from side to side.  Pursuing footsteps echoed behind her. 

“Yah! Kim Lina, stop!”

Lina turned her head towards the voice with no intention of slowing her pace. Jeno was sprinting after her. From another’s eyes they would appear to be in a racing competition, fighting to win the first prize. Jeno was chasing after her, not minding the weird glances of the staff and other artists. His face was red from shouting after her and he was out of breath.

“STOP RUNNING!”

Jeno shouted again, forcing his numb legs to continue on. Last night, he had spent hours practicing their dance. He had fallen to the ground, almost injuring himself because he couldn’t nail down a complicated jump. Now he was running after a petite girl. She saw him and just took off. Jeno had absolutely no idea why she was trying to avoid him this time. He had been peacefully reading his book in the practice room. A squeak of the door had made him look up; only to see Lina tumble forward. She had fallen on the floor with a thump and was staring at him with a shocked expression. Her surprise was a mystery for him. It was just a book.

Unless…

Jeno’s eyes widened.

Lina was still running as fast as her short legs would let her. Jeno’s footsteps began to slow down behind her, and soon enough she couldn’t hear him at all. She looked back. He was gone. Quickly hiding behind a corner, Lina let out a relieved sigh. She leaned against the cool, brick wall and tried to even out her breathing. She placed her hands on her waist and closed her eyes. She had so many questions. And the answers were held by the boy she had just run away from. The big bold letters on the cover emerged in her head as she replayed the previous scene.

“Jeno. He. Is…” she whispered to herself, breaking down each word as she wanted to clearly emphasize it, still hesitant to believe.

“Is…” it was hard to say the final word. She took a quick glance, carefully watching the surroundings. Not many people were there, and they were standing far away.

 “YAH! STOP RIGHT THERE!”

She shot her head back due to surprise, only to see a familiar face. His hair clung onto his forehead as beads of sweat ran down. Nevertheless, his face kept that annoying expression, making Lina’s feet move forward before Jeno’s face registered within her. She wasn’t sure why she was running. His secret was revealed, not hers. Why was she the one hiding, when she was the one with the power in her hands? Realizing that she now had leverage over Jeno, Lina stopped her sprint. Jeno hadn’t expected his shouts to be acknowledged, and collided with the small mass in front of him. The two fell down and quickly scrambled back up.

“HEY! Why did you stop?” Jeno placed one hand on the cool tiled wall and hung his head. His breaths were short and shallow and his legs felt unstable. He struggled to balance himself, using his right hand to push himself off the ground while his legs were kneeling.

“You told me to!” Lina defended herself, feeling unfairly treated. Still, she gave out her hand, offering to help. Jeno coldly rejected her hand, signaling to give him some space. After a few unstable breaths he was able to right himself.

“Meanie,” Lina stuck out her tongue.

“Are you out of your mind?” Jeno exhaled heavily after the mad running session, “Practice starts in fifteen minutes. And here you are, sprinting off like a mad woman.”

“For your information, I have a reason. A reason that you really want to know,” Lina stated, lifting up her head a bit. She looked at him with a challenging attitude; her lips curved into an over-confident smile.

“Weirdo,” Jeno replied, displaying an unamused expression to cover up the curiosity growing inside him. He turned around and walked away. When Lina didn’t follow, he tilted his head. “Don’t be a naughty kid,” he said and walked towards her, grasping her wrist and pulling the girl with him.

 “Watch your hands, ert!” she glared at him.

The grip on her wrist loosened. She withdrew her hand and rubbed the feeling of his grip off.

“I can’t believe it. You look like an annoying grandpa that I could never believe you could be… that,” Lina said, despite the fact that Jeno was standing right in front of her.

“I don’t have time for your lame jokes,” Jeno snapped. He folded his arms and narrowed his eyes to focus on the girl’s expression.

“Can’t believe you’re…,” The last word was a whisper, almost inaudible.

“I’m what?”

Seconds passed, and Jeno received no replies from the girl. He was tired of waiting for her to answer. If she was going to talk, then she should do so quickly. He unamusingly looked at the floor, and his eyes darted to the girl’s feet. She did not have any shoes on and was running around this company with bare feet.

“Weirdo,” he proclaimed with a small chuckle.

Lina looked at him, wondering how on earth he could smile cutely like that. It probably happened once in a blue moon. She shook off her doubts and confessed.

“A wizard.”

Jeno abruptly stopped his foot movements as the words sunk in. He stood there, baffled, eyes glued to the ground, not daring to lift his head up. After seconds of silence, where both did not say a word, he eventually faced her, putting on the most boring expression he had.

“Huh! Your stupidity is on another level,” he tried to put on his typical uninterested face, but failed miserably as she confirmed strongly:

“You. Are. A. Wizard!” Each word clearly carved into Jeno’s mind. He felt a cold sweat break out. His face was burning hot with fear and astonishment, and his body was unable to move. For one second, he felt an irregular heartbeat as he heard the pounding. And maybe the smiley girl standing before him could hear it too.

“You’re funny,” he said, trying to sound calm. “Do you have any evidence or are you just making things up? I know your imagination is great since your titl