"...Guys, what's up with Gray these days?" Ronan asked, munching on his bread with a strange expression.

For some reason, this bread that he so damned loved... seemed tasteless.

"He doesn't even hang out with us anymore," he muttered, placing the bread back on the tray and pushing it away like it disgusted him.

Ronan then looked around at the group, hoping someone would smile, laugh, or give a normal answer, but instead, all he saw were tired, broken faces.

Selina and Lira were eating in complete silence, not even lifting their heads. Their eyes looked empty, and every bite seemed forced, like their food was made of metal.

Selene sat still with her spoon in hand, staring at her plate as if it were poison. She didn't eat at all; she only moved her fingers anxiously, tapping the table without noticing.

And Lyra…

...She looked the worst.

Her dark circles were deep and purple, her eyes red from sleepless nights. She lifted her fork slowly, like her arm weighed a ton, and took the smallest bite of steak, barely chewing.

"…I don't know…" Lyra finally spoke through clenched teeth.

She gulped, then continued, loud enough for everyone to hear,

"Ever since that exam… he changed. He is not the same at all. He doesn't speak to me, doesn't look at me, and I'm his girlfriend!"

Crackle...

Her fists clenched tightly on the table, the fork bending slightly under her grip as tiny sparks of golden lightning cracked around her fingers.

The air around her shook for a moment.

"Lyra, calm down..." Selene sighed deeply.

She raised her head slightly, her lips trembling before she added with a bitter little laugh:

"…There's no point losing your mind because of that… scumbag," she uttered with a small frown, biting her lower lip while her voice shook a little.

The table went completely silent.

Ronan leaned back in his chair with a bored and irritated look on his face. If Gray had been sitting with them, that look would have been thrown straight at him without a doubt.

Normally, he would attempt to crack a joke and make everyone laugh, but the atmosphere was so gloomy that he didn't dare.

Perhaps, it would just make the situation worse.

"Arrghh...!"

At that moment, someone familiar walked past them, letting out a soft groan that sounded like he had just stretched his whole body and felt great.

His pitch-black eyes looked a little sleepy as he rubbed them slowly with one hand. He didn't even notice the group staring at him like ghosts seeing a living man.

He looked around, saw an empty seat near the window, and sat down without a care. His shoulders dropped as he sighed.

"...Perhaps, I should take a rest day today," he muttered to himself.

Gray had been training every day for the past eight days, and soon, his time over the body would come to an end.

However, he was already pretty satisfied with his progress.

"...The only problem is that it's that dumb bastard that is going to be attending the Ball, and not me," he furrowed his eyebrows.

Honestly, that was his biggest concern.

The other Gray would probably take the opportunity and try to charm any beautiful lady he sees, without thinking about the consequences.

Clank!

Clank, clank, clank!

The sudden noise of several trays hitting the table beside him made Gray slowly turn his head. The group of five had sat down close to him without saying a word.

'Oh… right. I almost forgot these annoying toys still exist,' he thought, almost letting out a sleepy yawn.

They stared at him like they were waiting for something… or like they were trying to see if he was real. Their silent eyes were starting to get on his nerves.

"…Why are you all staring at me?" he asked in a tired tone as he rolled his eyes.

All five of them twitched.

All of them twitched at the same time, because normally, Gray would say something like:

"I know that I'm fucking handsome, but you guys don't need to oggle at me so damn much~"

The difference between the two of them was simply massive.

"Gray... how have you been these days?" Ronan asked, trying to figure out if there was something wrong with him and if that was the reason he was acting like that.

The others' ears also perked up at Ronan's question.

"Great?" Gray answered while tilting his head.

"I've just been training. Nothing strange. Why?"

Roran was a little baffled at how easily he answered his question, but before he could pry more, Lyra silently touched Gray's arm as she always did.

"…Why are you ignoring me… no, ignoring us?" she asked, her gentle golden eyes shaking as she looked deep into his.

And not seeing the familiar hypnotic rings... she bit her lower lip in agony.

"But I'm not ignoring? I've just been busy training, that's all," Gray casually shrugged her question away.

But from the looks of it, he would probably need to act like the other Gray to get out of this damned situation.

"THEN WHY AREN'T YOU TEASING US LIKE YOU ALWAYS DO?!"

BAAM!

Selene abruptly stood up, slamming her hands against the table, causing it to shake. Gray furrowed his eyebrows at her actions before closing his eyes.

'...Fucking hell, I'll do this just this time...'

He blinked once, twice, and then the familiar hypnotic rings appeared.

Swish!

In a single motion, he pulled Lyra onto his lap before gently kissing the nape of her neck, causing her whole body to tremble.

"A-ah~…"

She let out a soft sound before covering her mouth, her entire face turning red as her heartbeat raced out of control.

That small action of pulling Lyra into his lap made everyone sigh in relief.

Gray looked at them with a lazy smirk, one eyebrow slightly raised, as if he didn't understand why they reacted so strongly.

"Why are you all acting like I just returned from hell?" he said playfully, tilting his head.

Lyra leaned back very slowly until her back touched his chest, almost like her body remembered where it belonged.

She didn't say anything at first, but her hands grabbed the edge of his shirt tightly, afraid it might just be an illusion.

"Bro, don't do that ever again! I swear I thought you got kidnapped by a boring old man. You were so serious it scared me!" Ronan let out a long breath and finally smiled widely, shaking his head.

Gray chuckled lightly and shrugged.

"Well, if I don't train, I'll stay weak. And if I stay weak, I can't protect my pretty little girlfriend, right?" he whispered near Lyra's ear, making her toes curl and her cheeks grow even redder.

"Next time, at least warn us, idiot. You looked like a dead statue with no emotions. It was honestly creepy." Selene crossed her arms but smiled a bit, trying to hide the huge relief inside her chest.

"Aw, look at you all worried," Gray teased, leaning his chin on Lyra's shoulder. "Did you miss me that much?"

Selene rolled her eyes, but the corner of her lip twitched upward.

"Shut up."

"I'm… just glad you're acting normal again. It... just fucking didn't feel right before!" Then, Selina finally spoke, staring directly at Gray's eyes.

Lira nodded at her words.

"You're usually annoying and fucking narcissistic. But that narcissistic version is easier to accept than a stranger."

Gray smiled wider, clearly enjoying every reaction like candy.

"So what? Do you all want me to tease you one by one? Should I start with who missed me the most?" he asked with a playful smirk.

Ronan groaned, but finally laughed like his old self, placing his feet on another chair in his usual disrespectful manner.

"That's more like it! Damn, I feel alive again. I even lost my appetite when you were acting like a solemn monk. Thought I'd have to slap your head to reboot you!"

"Tsk, please. You slap me and you'll break your ugly hands," Gray clicked his tongue.

Ronan pointed at him with a wide grin.

"There he is! The walking ego!"

Lyra didn't say a word… she only hid her red face by lowering her head.

But her body language was clear as she was happy, relieved, and comfortable, fully relaxed on his lap now, even letting her fingers play with the edge of his sleeve.

"Don't worry, I'm not leaving~," Gray noticed and whispered softly near her ear.

Lyra nodded happily without speaking, but now, even the dark circles seemed to have gotten away as their "Gray" had come back.

Meanwhile...

'Ugh... why does that bastard act like this? This makes me feel so damned disgusted,' Gray felt a wave of nausea.

Of course, the other Gray hadn't come back, and the hypnotic rings appearing on his eyes were a simple illusion created by using mana.

'...Well, it seems that I'll need a reason to avoid them for now, especially Lyra...' He looked down at Lyra, who was practically beaming.

'This woman is the other me's weakness.'

He sighed inwardly.

'...Patience.'

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