"I'm scared to get close and I hate being alone/ I long for that feeling to not feel at all/ The higher I get, the lower I'll sink/ I can't drown my demons, they know how to swim." (Bring me The Horizon, Can you feel my heart?)

Those last three weeks had proven to be the most frustrating ones in Fayez's all too long existence.

Despite his best efforts, he hadn't learnt anything new about the Institute, its headmaster or even what the students were supposed to accomplish during their time at the school.

Well, maybe it wasn't entirely true that Fayez had been trying his hardest at uncovering the ISB's secrets. He would have probably been more successful, had he asked other students about it. Yet, for someone who had spent his whole life in a secluded castle, asking someone something as simple as the time or if they could give him a tissue was already an accomplishement in itself.

Actually, he had done it twice in three weeks. The first time, he had asked a girl whom he knew  belonged to Ashur's team if the library was still opened after 10pm. Then, one week later, he had asked one of Helmut's friends if he had seen the guy around lately.

Those moments had been quite stressful, and Fayez had probably appeared as a rather awkward person, but he had felt incredibly proud of himself afterwards.

However, it was obvious that inquiring about the Institute would require much higher social skills. He still had a looong way to go before he could think of doing just that.

His inability to get more information about the Institute wasn't the only reason for his current gloomy mood, though.

He was way too proud to consciously admit it to himself, but he was weirdly annoyed and saddened by the fact that Ashur had apparently kept his promise, for none of the three prefects had interracted with him in any way during these last three weeks.

Of course, Helmut had told him that the prefects usually didn't talk much to the new students, that is, until they had proven themselves to be dedicated and trustworthy enough. That was the reason why Fayez couldn't asked Ashur or Zephyr why they were giving him the silent treatment. (he remembered too clearly his previous interactions with Akhenaton, and didnt' want to feel like his brain was frying again). They didn't talk to him because they weren't supposed to talk to him. He was a Nobody.

The problem was, despite frequently repeating to himself this perfectly rational explanation, Fayez couldn't help but think that there was something else behind their sudden coldness toward him. He had somehow connected to all of them, on his first days at the ISB, and surely they were perfectly aware of that - they seemed to have pretty sharp minds, after all.

No - no. That was beyond ridiculous. He had just happened to find himself on their ways on a few occasions, thanks to his never-ending clumsiness. Now that he was back at being a normal, invisible student, they had simply forgotten about him.

Even Akhenaton barely acknowledged his existence at the training anymore.

But could something as intense as Akhenaton's obvious dislike for him really fade this quickly ?Or was Akhenaton only following Ashur's orders not to meddle with the awkward vampire, who for some reason always kept his gloves on all the time?

He sighed deeply as he entered the cafeteria. When he had first arrived, he had avoided going to common rooms, for fears that some people would try to talk to him and that he wouldn't know how to handle a conversation.

Now, he knew that nobody would pay him any attention, and that he would most likely sit alone in a dark corner.

True, Fayez was someone who enjoyed being alone, but he had quickly discovered, since his arrival at the Institute, than being alone among a crowd was much harder than being alone when there was truly none else around.

Still, he had to go to the cafeteria, because he had found out that twice a week, they served blood which didn't come from humans but from supernatural creatures, who volunteered to donate a bit of their blood.

Of course, there weren't many students willing to suffer from a temporary blood loss for the sake of others, so it was on a "first-come, first-saved basis".

After being served a glass of drink, which wasn't anything near enough to quench his thirst, Fayez decided against staying in the cafetaria and started making his way toward the exit instead.

But at this very moment, his eyes met those of a tall and shy girl who, just like him, didn't seem like she had any friends at the Institute.

He stopped in his tracks as she smiled at him, her expression slightly guarded but friendly enough that he hesitated on what he should do.

Go and sit next to her? Run away and spend the rest of the day in his bedroom, cursing himself for his cowardice?

He was obviously going to opt for the second option, when she nodded at him, motioning him to sit next to her.

He gave her a tight-lips smile, and carefully took a seat on the wooden bench.

They were silent for a few minutes, both of them fidgeting on the bench and thus betraying their growing discomfort.

"So, is it this moment in stories when the awkward boy and the awkward girl try to bond by telling each other about their inexistent social life and never-ending misery?" Fayez asked - out loud, because he was a lost cause.

She startled at his bluntness, before letting out a rather funny and loud snort. The discrete girl then blushed and apologized, covering her mouth with a dainty hand.

"Exactly. And then we become best friends because, as everyone knows, nerds always get along."

He smiled at her, and she smiled back. The tension between them was no longer, and Fayez marvelled at how easily they had broken the ice.

"My name is Nassiba."

"Nice to meet you, Nassiba. I'm Fayez. Who's your prefect?"

"I actually belong to Master's Akhenaton's section, just like you."

"Oh - uhm. I'm sorry I didn't notice."

Fayez could have hit his head repeatedly against the wall just to punish himself for his own stupidity. He gave Nassiba a contrite look but fortunately, the young woman didn't look offended in the slightest.

"That's alright. There are a lot of us, and I'm not the most - ah. noticeable one."

She seemed a bit saddened by the admission, so Fayez decided not to pursue the topic any further.

"I've heard about our upcoming first night of mission." he started, and she immediatly looked at him closely, which didn't surprise him.  "Master Akhenaton told us that we will be leaving the Institute for a night, and that it will be some sort of baptism of fire."

"That's correct."

"Do you have any other information about it?"

"I wish, but no. I don't really talk to the other students, so my guess is as good as yours."

Fayez nodded, and they fell back into a comfortable silence. At some point, something in the atmosphere seemed to shift, and Fayez looked up to see Akhenaton and Zephyr entering the cafetaria. For some reason he couldn't explain, he always instinctively knew when one of the three men were close.

Zephyr seemed to be talking to Akhenaton about something pretty exciting, as his eyes were wide, and he kept hitting the brunet's arm to get his attention. Akhenaton, on the other hand, looked a bit annoyed by his lover's childish behavior, but Fayez could have sworn he saw him fighting a smile. Finally, Akhenaton nodded at something his boyfriend said, and Zephyr beamed, before kissing a quickly reddening Akhenaton full on the lips.

"Close your mouth, else you'll swallow a fly"

"Uh - what?"

"Come on! You couldn't be more obvious in your blatant attraction for the Institute's hottest prefects"

Fayez turned to face Nassiba, ready to refute the evidence, only to start laughing when she gave him a knowing smirk.

"I'm just surprised to see Master Zephyr looking so - happy. I mean, who could be this happy in such a deadly place?"

Nassiba nodded, her expression turning somber. Fayez blamed himself for ruining the mood. He knew that she was thinking about the same thing as he was : it wasn't that uncommon for students to die during their missions outside of the castle. During the last three weeks, they had already attended two funerals.

And their first mission was going to happen in two days. How could they believe they would make it alive, when they didn't even know what kind of danger was awaiting for them?

After several minutes of Nassiba looking at her lap and Fayez looking at Zephyr and Akhenaton, it was Nassiba's turn to break the silence.

"Are you going to the party?"

"I haven't heard about a party."

"Well, there's going to be a party for all the students belonging to Akhenaton's section. It's a bit of a tradition to throw a party for the new students before their first mission." Nassiba explained to a bemused Fayez.

Fayez thought about it for a second, more curious about the party than he would have expected. What kind of party could take place in such a morbid decorum? Would they light candles at the local cemetery? Build a haunted house in the forest?

"Why would they throw a party before the mission, though?" he eventually asked. "Wouldn't it make more sense to party after it, if everything went according to the plan?"

"Well, I guess that there's no reason to celebrate when some of your fellow students died during the mission. They are partying  before the mission to rejoice about the fact that they are still alive" Nassiba shrugged, a pretty cynical grin on her sharp-edged face.

"That's absolutely reassuring."

"Isn't it? That's why it's called the First and Last Party."

"I'm not going."

"Really? I thought that maybe you could come with me. You know,  so we could spend a whole night sitting at the bar and watching the other students flirt and dance with each other. That's sounds like such a nice way to have fun together"

Fayez snorted, but still shook his head, not wanting to make a promise he wouldn't be able to keep. If it was his last night on Earth, he certainly didn't want to spend it watching the others having fun while wallowing in self-misery.

"Look, I know misery loves company, but I think I shouldn't go"

"And what will you do? Sleep? You'll sleep when you're dead and you ain't dead now. Well, technically you are - I guess."

"What supernatural creature are you?"

"That's not something you can bluntly ask. How rude."

Fayez looked at her more closely. Of course, he didn't really know Nassiba yet, but he could tell that behind all the humor and cynism, she was a very sensitive person and that she was scared shitless, just like he was. Plus, despite being new at the Institute, and apparently as asocial as he was, she seemed to know more about the Institute than he did.  He was supposed to get more information, and it would be useful to have another friend, apart from Helmut, who he had barely seen lately.

"You know, I can think of one reason why you should attend  "The First and The Last Party" with me."

"Huh?" was Fayez's eloquent response, as he was caught once more time looking at the two handsome prefects.

"Zephyr will probably be there. Ashur and Akhenaton, too."

Had Fayez had a heart, he would have felt its pulse quicken, as an unwanted hope started to flourish in his chest.

"Why would they be there?" he cautiously asked, trying not to sound as excited by the news as he felt. "I would have thought that prefects don't attend these kind of events."

"For all I know, they usually don't" a now smugged-looking Nassiba admitted, before winking at him. "However, I heard that Zephyr has an unconditional love for parties, and where he goes, Ashur and Akhenaton go."

He wasn't going to go. So, what if the three prefects were most likely going to be there? They wouldn't talk to him anyway - not that he cared in the slightest. Just like he had told Nassiba, he was going to spend the night in his own bedroom. What was the point going to a party when you knew you were going to spend all of your time suffering in a corner, with the false impression that everyone else is having the fun of their life?

"Okay. I will go with you to the fucking First and Last Party. What a stupid name!"

"Yay, I knew you wouldn't be able to resist the sex on legs temptations that our prefects are! I cannot wait, I've heard that when Zephyr finally lets loose, he becomes completely wild."

Fayez found it hard to believe, but Nassiba's excitement was contagious.

This was going to be the first party of his life, and hopefully, not the last.

A/N: Shamefully unedited. I was just excited and wanted to publish this chapter asap. I will edit it later this week-end. (Zephyr's excitement is apparently rubbing on me.)

Next chapter: "Wild"

Have a lovely week-end folks and don't hesitate to share your thoughts on the chapter/story! Thank you for your support and for giving this book a chance xx