Chapter 4- Two Names for One
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I could get used to you.
I chuckled softly. I wasn't necessarily lying. These people were probably all hopeless and insane—actually, I was quite sure of that—but they couldn't possibly be as bad as I thought they were. I knew my thoughts of them were skewed at the moment because of the root of my disdain, Cane. The damned top hat jerk sullied my view of this entire place as a whole, which I knew was wrong but also unavoidable. But I would eventually learn to set my preconceptions aside and give these people a chance.
At least, I hoped I would.
"I like your answer," Vulpe told me, smiling as though he were intrigued.
"Thanks."
I forced a smile back at him.
"Well, we all introduced ourselves. What about you?" Akin asked with a large, playful grin. "I want to actually say your name."
"My name's… not all that nice."
"Oh, come on!" Eri cried from the sidelines. "I want to know! It can't be worse than Eridane. Jeez, you shouldn't be complaining."
"I think Eridane is a pretty name," I told her honestly. Her eyes widened for a moment, and she stared at me blankly.
"Are you kidding? God, Vulpe, there's something wrong with this girl, isn't there?" She giggled, pointing her thumb at me like a hitchhiker—a beautiful, sweet, girly… hitchhiker.
"See, you need to give me your name already. They're calling you 'this girl' now. You can't want that, can you?" Akin jabbed the tip of his index finger into my temple in an attempt to draw my attention. I glanced over at him, then everyone else, and then back down at my lap. I could feel their intense stares on my skin and subconsciously flushed pink—even Leo lifted his head from his meal and inquisitively watched me. He wanted my name, too. They all did.
I was ashamed of it.
It sounded like the name of a typical storybook character, the kind of name that made you want to gag at its sight, the kind that made you want to put down the book entirely. But in the end, you would push through to read the otherwise captivating story. My name was one of those—the ones where you'd question why the author would curse a perfectly good character with a perfectly cringe-worthy name.
I hated it. But after crumbling under all the pairs of eyes watching endlessly, I supposed I would give it.
"A-Alice," I murmured under my breath, almost inaudibly.
"Alice?" Akin repeated loud enough for everyone to hear. I simply nodded my head and kept my eyes down.
"Alice! That's such a pretty name! Why are you so embarrassed by it?" Eri jumped from her chair and hopped up to me, taking my hands in hers and angling her head underneath mine.
"B-Because…"
I slipped my hands from hers and turned away, pleased when she finally pushed out the chair beside me and sat a safe distance away. She was still gazing at me, but from the new gap between us, it felt bearable. I clasped my hands together on my lap until they were stolen by Akin, who planted a tender kiss upon the backs of my palms. I immediately darted my head around, and once his eyes met mine, I found my body growing weak with nerves.
"That is a beautiful name. Don't be ashamed."
"Y-You're… Don't mess with me," I threatened, yanking my hands away from his rough ones.
"I'm not," he repeated, smiling and crinkling his nose at me.
"A…lice?" Leo mumbled from the other side of the table.
"Yes." I smiled at him, hoping to receive one in return, but all I got was a small nod and a bit of cherry on his cheekbones.
"Rise?"
Suddenly, we all turned our stares to Vulpe and raised our eyebrows at him, absolutely perplexed. Did he hear me at all? Where the hell did Rise come from?
"Rise?" he repeated once more.
God, I really didn't hear him wrong…
"Why are you all looking at me like that?"
"What did you say her name was?" Akin questioned prudently
"Rise! Ree-seh. What's wrong with you guys?"
"Damn, she said Alice," Eri muttered under her breath.
"What?"
"Vulpe, my name… is Alice," I told him somewhat irritably.
"Rise."
Why the hell did he keep hearing that?
"A-ri-su! Alice!" I shouted furiously. Maybe if I broke it into syllables he'd finally hear it and use it.
How naïve.
"Oh. But I like Rise better."
"Her name is Alice!" Leo finally exclaimed, his small body shaking with heavy breaths. My eyes broadened. This quiet boy was really standing up for me, just for something so minor like my name. I was absolutely floored with astonishment, and I caught my heart racing a bit with excitement.
"I'm calling her Rise."
"No! Her name is… Alice," he repeated much more quietly now. I had a strong feeling he didn't raise his voice often, and when he did, it probably wasn't to Vulpe; he seemed almost scared of the man.
"Rise, do you mind if I call you that?"
"I suppose not," I grumbled softly, mentally rolling my eyes at him. He was a bit insensitive, but I suppose I could deal with it. He was still nowhere near top hat jerk's level.
"See, she doesn't mind. So why do the rest of you?"
"Because it's just…" Akin sighed and pressed his hands to his temples, massaging them.
"It's just rude!" Eri yelled out, slamming her foot down on the carpeting and sending a small thump through the air.
"But she said it was fine! God, what's wrong with you people?"
"W-What's wrong with us?" Akin clenched his hand into a tight fist and groaned powerfully. I had the feeling Akin knew he couldn't get through to Vulpe, no matter how thoroughly he could explain it. "Never mind."
"What did I do?" Vulpe furrowed his eyebrows and pouted, obviously vexed by their reaction towards him.
"You really don't get it?" Leo mumbled softly.
"What did you say?" Vulpe growled, raising his arm threateningly at Leo, who quickly backed off and cowered in fear.
"No! What the hell are you doing?" I screamed instinctively, slamming my hands into the cold marble. I couldn't let him hurt Leo because of me… Because of my silly name.
Damn, was I that quiet lately? That I nearly let someone else get hit for my sake?
They all looked up at me, evidently shocked by my attitude. I was definitely tougher than I seemed—it just took a while for that backbone to come out. I didn't want to upset people prematurely and possibly get myself killed, but I figured I was safe for the moment. They all seemed kind enough, and this whole thing started because they were just trying to get my name—I'd say that was pretty welcoming. And on the other hand, this was also a part of my morals. How could I expect Leo to take a blow because he was trying to defend me? Definitely not right. Vulpe wouldn't get away with this—I'd make sure of it.
"Don't touch him," I ordered sternly.
Apparently, I was frightening enough, because Vulpe slowly lowered his hand and sat back, stunned. In a moment, Akin peered over at me and grinned cheerily, seeming proud of my "accomplishment."
"Atta girl! Great job, Alice."
"T-Thank you," Leo mumbled shortly after.
"Of course," I proclaimed, chuckling softly to myself.
These people—or to be more accurate, these people and these bunnies—were hopeless. Hopeless, but fascinating.
This was going to be interesting
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