#alexandre chen

“Hello, again!”

“O-oh, hi! Did you eat well?”

“Yeah, it was delicious..! And I hope you had a good meal as well!”

“Mhm, mhm! These two are really good cooks, I wonder if Yuudai or Lena has a big family..!”

“Who knows… Both are active people, so they surely know about the ideal ratio for one person and multiplied by sixteen..!”

“Or that too..!”

“So um… Nikki. Mind telling me a bit about astrology..?”

“Man, I hope I won’t take too long..! If I end up chatting so long and you want me to stop talking, tell me, okay?”

“I don’t mind hearing you talking about your passion, but yeah, I’ll let you know if I wish to have a break.”

We discussed what astrology entailed and how I make birth charts, as I gladly listened whenever Alex asked questions. While trying to keep the topic simple, I however did wind up talking much longer than anticipated. Part of me always feared I was going to make him sleepy, but it seemed like he was genuinely interested.

“So you need a time of birth, the birthday and the birthplace to accurately determine what position the signs are? And then you calculate that..?”

“Yeah!”

“That sounds like a lot. It’s fascinating, though...”

“Want me to continue talking about it..?”

Alex nodded in response, so I carried on until I decided that it was a good time to stop for a bit a while later. He picked up fast.

“...I should talk about myself, shouldn’t I? I’m sorry I just listened to you go on and on..!”

“Hey, it’s alright. I’m glad you listened to my rambling though…”

“But if you want so, I’d be happy to learn more about you..!”

“I loved learning more about what you do..! Anyway as for me..!”

“I… Actually didn’t expect to make it this far to be scouted by the academy. I was just simply… Enjoying writing my books, letting my imagination go. Getting recognition from something that was the center of attention from the world… It was the least of my concerns.”

“It felt good to be free once I got the invitation though...”

“Except well... Here we are.”

“Free...?“

“Oh, huh... Well...“

I just remembered what Ann said a bit yesterday as well… I wonder if it’s related to what the author just said now… Or if I’m overthinking. Should I ask… He did hear his sister talking yesterday though, so Alex might be still wanting to avoid it for all I know…

“...”

More seconds are passing and I’m even more wanting to just ask. But is right now the right moment..? With some people still around in the dining hall... I don’t know if it’s ideal.

“Um… If you’d like to… We can talk later in our room..?”

“M-Maybe so! Yeah! Seeya later!”

Before I even had a chance to speak again, he ran out of the hall. I was worried for Alex, honestly. Although I really didn’t want to come off as nagging, so that would be definitely brought up later… If I get the occasion, that is.