Chapter 66: Group Chat

"Your vitals are stabilizing, which is good," said Doctor Kiera, whose name Starlight had learned from the badge clipped to her white coat. She finished jotting a few final notes on her clipboard, then looked up at her patient. "But the attack took a heavy toll on your system, which is why I strongly advise you to schedule a session with the academy student guidance counselor. Whatever triggered the panic attack needs to be addressed before it happens again."

Starlight shifted uncomfortably. "Can I leave now?"

"You still need some rest, Miss Dawson," the doctor insisted firmly. "Your nervous system just suffered a massive shock. Going straight back to your regular routine right now is a bad idea."

"But I feel better now," Starlight said, her brow furrowing.

"You feel better than when you were brought in. That is not the same thing as being completely okay, Miss Dawson." Doctor Kiera sighed, closing her clipboard with a soft snap. "We need to make sure your body has enough time to recover properly. Rest for at least the remainder of the afternoon. That is a doctor’s order."

She gave Starlight one final look, then lightly patted her shoulder before walking away to attend to another student.

Starlight suppressed a frustrated sigh.

So much for looking forward to combat class.

Ever since coming to Asterion Academy, she had missed the physical release that came with training. When her father had returned one day from one of his endless business trips and suddenly offered to teach her self-defense, Starlight had been genuinely surprised, if not skeptical. She had wondered what could have possibly motivated the man to take such an interest in her when he barely spent any time with his family. Still, she had agreed immediately.

It was not like she had anything to lose by accepting his offer. If she had learned those skills earlier, maybe she would not have gone through what she did with Otto and his friends. What she had not expected was for him to train her himself.

She had not even known the man could fight.

The memory almost made her smile.

Those few weeks training with her father had actually been enjoyable, as he had seemed genuinely interested in spending time with her.

Which was a first, but of course, it had not lasted.

Eventually, he had abandoned the training halfway through and left her in the hands of a hired coach before disappearing on another trip.

Starlight should have known better than to expect consistency from the man.

He had always been like that. His presence in their lives was like candlelight in a storm, flickering brightly one moment and gone the next. She had learned not to rely on him. But thanks to the coach he had hired, she came to discover that she genuinely enjoyed training, the challenge, the thrill and the exhaustion. She even came to appreciate the satisfying ache that settled into her muscles after a brutal session.

That was why she had been looking forward to combat class, desperate to finally warm up, stretch her body, and push herself again.

Only for it to end like this.

She released a slow, frustrated breath. She had always known she would run into Otto eventually. She knew he was still at the academy, and she had spent the past week mentally preparing herself for the moment their paths crossed. But she had never expected it to happen this soon.

What were the odds that he would be among the third-years assigned to assist with the class?

Seeing him after all these years had affected her far more than she wanted to admit. Why would her own body betrayed her like that at the mere sight of that wicked Immpecile?

The thought left a bitter taste in her mouth. "I thought I was stronger than this," she muttered.

"Starlight!" Elle’s voice broke through her spiraling thoughts. She turned just in time to see her roommate rushing across the room with Chloe and Ariel right on her heels.

Starlight barely had time to push herself upright before Elle practically launched herself forward, throwing her arms around Starlight’s neck in a tight hug. Her voice was thick with worry.

"How are you feeling, my Queen Star? God, do you have any idea how worried I was? I couldn’t concentrate on a single thing after Prince Mikhail carried you out! Are you okay now?"

"I’m fine now, really," Starlight said, gently trying to pry Elle off her without much success.

Elle really didn’t need to mention the mortifying fact that she had been carried out of the Training Hall in front of practically the entire class by a werewolf prince. Thankfully, the so-called prince had not been seen anywhere since leaving to answer his phone. Not that she wanted him back. She was simply relieved he was gone.

"But what are you guys doing here?" she asked quickly, eager to change the subject. "What about Combat Class?"

"Class was cut short because of what happened," Ariel answered as she came to a stop beside the bed. "Honestly, almost everyone in the hall couldn’t focus after that. The instructor had to end the session early and told everyone to take some time to pull themselves together."

Starlight’s stomach sank.

A wave of guilt washed over her as she internally blamed herself for disrupting the entire class and drawing even more unwanted attention to her embarrassing breakdown.

"Are you really okay, Star?" Chloe asked, leaning closer as her eyes searched Starlight’s face. "You really scared the life out of us!"

Starlight hesitated as a strange warmth spread through her chest. She felt a sudden lump in her throat, unsure how to process the moment.

Their concern was kind of overwhelming, almost embarrassing, yet deeply comforting. This was the first time anyone outside her own family had genuinely seemed to care about her well-being to this extent.

The thought left her feeling oddly emotional.

Finally, she nodded and offered them a reluctant smile. "I’m really okay. It’ll take more than that to get rid of me."

Chloe continued staring at her for several seconds before finally relaxing.

Meanwhile, Elle finally let go of Starlight and plopped herself onto the edge of the mattress beside her. "Since we live in the same dorm room, I never thought we’d need a group chat. But after being stuck in class, worried sick about how you were doing and having no way to reach you, I think it’s officially time we create one."

Starlight chuckled dryly. "Even if we had a group chat, I wouldn’t have responded anyway. My phone is still locked inside my locker in the girls’ locker room, and besides, you don’t need a group chat to check on people when you can literally text each other directly."

"The point of a group chat is that it lets all of us know and share the exact same information at once instead of making us repeat the same thing three different times," Elle insisted with a stubborn grin. "Do you know how exhausting it is to relay updates individually? That’s why I’ve taken it upon myself to create it in advance. I’m just going to add all of you right now."

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