Location: Avalon Elite Academy – Cafeteria, 12:46 PM
It should've been loud.
Lunch trays. Student gossip. Laughter and music.
Instead?
Silence.
Tension wrapped around the cafeteria like a wire pulled tight. Not a word. Not a cough. Just the sound of forks slowly scraping across plates and the hum of distant AC.
At the center of it all sat three groups:
The Vales
The Vampires
The Werewolves
And none of them blinked first.
Scene: The Watchers
Caelan leaned back in his seat, eyes cold but steady, arm casually slung over the back of his chair.
Azra sipped her drink slowly, chin high, lips unreadable.
Liora didn't smile, didn't move—just watched.
Across the room—
Cassiel Drennan made eye contact with Caelan, offering a faint nod. A predator's courtesy.
Vivienne glanced at Azra, then back to her drink, as if marking her place.
Lucian smirked, licking a tooth as he watched Jace stretch his arms.
At the far table—
Kai Thorn didn't break his stare from Rico.
Nyra traced patterns on her lunch tray, not looking—but feeling everything.
Rowan tapped the table once. Twice. Then stopped.
They were all listening.
To hearts.
To breaths.
To aura.
Scene: The Aura Shift
It wasn't something the normal students could name. But they felt it.
"Why is it so quiet?"
"Do you feel that chill?"
"It's like… pressure."
"I think I'm gonna be sick."
One freshman dropped her water bottle.
The clang echoed.
No one laughed.
Scene: Eyes, Motions, and Meaning
Noah leaned forward slightly, whispering to Caelan:
"They're not just here to study."
Caelan (low): "I know."
Selene (arms crossed): "We can take them."
Azra: "No doubt. But not yet."
Across the room, Vivienne whispered something to Cassiel.
He smiled without showing teeth.
Lucian (to Nyra, barely audible): "They're good. Polished."
Nyra: "They're also watching every single move we make."
Rowan: "Feels like a storm waiting for a match."
Final Scene: The Bell Rings, But the Tension Doesn't Fade
The lunch bell echoed through the building.
Students shot out of their seats. Some whispered. Some ran. No one wanted to be the last out of that room.
But the three groups?
Stayed seated.
Still watching.
Still silent.
And when they finally stood…
No one turned their back.