Secluded in greens and lakes is the camp, dominated by cabin houses whose porches have gasoline lantern that hissed and threw its white glare in great circle during night. Outside each cabins dozens of tent pitched near it. In the heart of the camp stood the biggest cabin amongst all and it served as a great dining hall for the campers, students and camp officers alike. In the dining hall was the only single television in the camping ground—the only single thing that connect every campers to the outside world as mobile phones and all types of gadget were collected at station zero. Even cameras are prohibited and only a single camp officer was given the task of taking camp pictures.
Xhemin was on the dining hall watching a jackrabbit through a window as it bounced along ahead, his great ears flopping with every jump, trying to get away from the packs of campers that were pa.s.sing by. She was there sitting with a bunch of campers that she didn"t know and who were kind enough to have let her share a table with them.
After that long hike, Ziggy had attended to her swollen foot and left to attend some officer"s duty together with Huzey. Since she had injury, the rest of the officers had to cover for her and for the meantime she ought to take her lunch alone. Her foot was still in pain but she had managed to walk, limping slightly on her way to the dining hall.
Xhemin"s mood was completely spoiled at station zero, Darryl was one heck of a jerk round there and to add up to her ill fate today, she ended having a swollen feet—so much trouble for just one day.
When the jackrabbit was gone lost in the pack of woods leaving Xhemin nothing to entertain herself, the girl went to anchor her gaze to her food that had gone completely cold. Somehow, she managed to swallow each bite to feed her empty stomach. Half way through her meal, a sound of commotion stole her attention away from her food and fixed it into the door where new comers arrived. It was a group of young bloods, out ordinary as Xhemin may say and they came in a grand, backed by the camper"s whispers of awe and astonishment. Who wouldn"t be thrilled with the fact the one who just came in where pack of elites, their proud and sophisticated stature as well as their high quality leather boots upheld their status.
Xhemin actually didn"t care about them as she was the least person who cares about the elites, she don"t even know whose son is who and whose heiress was the luckiest and fairest of them all. All she cared about the moment was the boy floating in the entrance–Darryl—Darryl and the girl walking up, her arms linked in his, her long curls swaying in the air with a good vibe—Collet. The two were walking pa.s.s through her table, sparing her no glance of recognition, as if some time machine had caught them up, back to the days that they haven"t met each other. That as if she and Darryl never happened.
Xhemin"s ears began burning and her temper had pa.s.sed the boiling point. Was this the reason why Darryl had cut her off and had totally ignored her in the station zero? Was it because he had reconciled to his lovey-dovey CGC heir? And just like that she will be treated as if "no one and nothing"? Was she some sort of a pa.s.s time?
Xhemin was bewildered by the whole thing and at the moment all she could do was murder her lunch mutely and pretend the pack of elites didn"t exist. However, their laughs, giggles and exchanges in the nearby table came in a tingling pain in Xhemin"s ears that proved it hard for her to ignore them completely especially also that they had been the topic in their table as soon as the pack came in.
"Wasn"t that the Lagdameo heir?"
"I think soo…Miss Collet is close with him and the look in her face confirms it.I haven"t seen him on the news for a while so I could barely recognize him"
"That"s definitely him. Look at that face and his eyes. He got hazel eyes"
"Wasn"t it been rumoured lately that he had an affair with someone apart from Miss Collet?"
"Sure did! I think I"ve read it in some gossip section of a magazine. They said he had brought the girl in the opening ball of the L Empire"s equestrian compet.i.tion. "
"I"ve heard about it too. They call her the Lagdameo heir"s woman, the rumours had been going in circles lately"
"Was that even true? Look at him and Miss Collet now, they seemed to be okay and happy together"
"Well it must just be an affair, nothing serious I may say"
"I doubt. I think the Lagdameo woman poses a real threat and I"m sure the L Empire isn"t happy about it."
"I think soo too. I believe the CGC and L Empire wanted the young master and Miss collet too end up together to put a merger"
"Well then. I feel sorry for that other woman, whoever that woman is. No matter who she is, she will always be nothing compared to Miss Collet. In this country, she"s the real deal. Whoever gets her gets the crown."
"And the L Empire sure wants the crown so they will always root for Miss Collet"
"They will not only root for it, they will kill for it"
The camper"s exchanges made Xhemin more uneasy. She was just quiet, her mouth was a little open and she breathed swallow as she tore her gaze toward where the elite campers sat. She had enough of it, if Darryl thinks she can be easily kept under the carpet and be forgotten just like that, well sorry, but as much as Darryl want to end it and just moved on, for Xhemin, the show has just began.