Bloodline Evolution: I Can Choose Opposing Paths-Chapter 51: The New Roommate

The landlord looked between them twice before letting out a soft laugh.

"Well," he said, scratching the side of his head. "That certainly saves me an introduction."

Neither of them responded.

"...You two know each other?" he asked again, just to confirm.

"Yes," Luna answered at the same time Aren muttered, "Right."

The landlord blinked.

"Okay..."

He cleared his throat awkwardly before stepping back toward the hallway.

"Well, that makes things easier then. Since you know each other already, help each other out. Keep the place clean. Don’t burn it down."

He gave them a stern look, which was reasonable as he was renting out to Mystics.

"I’ll be leaving now. Keys are already programmed to both of your IDs. Rent’s due on the first. Utilities are auto-split."

And just like that, he was gone.

The doors clicked shut and silence filled the apartment.

Aren and Luna stood three meters apart in the middle of the living room.

The afternoon light spilled through the window, casting long shadows across the carpet.

Aren spoke first.

"...How come you’re here?" he blurted out before he could stop himself. "You didn’t reply to my text, so I thought—"

Luna blinked.

"You texted me?"

"...Yeah."

She frowned faintly, already reaching into her coat pocket.

"My father—" she paused, looking mildly irritated at the thought. "He went through every possible procedure after the incident."

"He thought I still had demonic influence on me, so he sent me for all types of screenings and evaluations."

"Overkill much?" Aren muttered.

"He doesn’t think so."

She finally pulled out her phone and glanced at it.

Her brows knit together.

"...Oh."

Aren let out a slow breath.

"So you didn’t ignore me."

Another pause.

"Sorry...I didn’t even see it."

Aren ran a hand through his hair.

"I thought you just decided to disappear."

She turned back quickly, her eyes meeting his.

"I didn’t—!"

He raised a hand, a faint smile escaping before he could stop it.

"It’s fine, I know you didn’t mean to."

The tension between them eased slightly as another awkward pause went by. Then Luna glanced around the apartment again before asking,

"Do you...go to Imperial Mystic College as well?"

"Yeah...Lightning major."

"Huh?" Luna tilted her head. "Wasn’t your main element Water?"

"Unless..." She stared at him. "My god, Aren. You’re Line 3?"

"Yep, thought it just kind of...happened."

Aren had realized it after they started talking. Luna was standing in the middle of the room with a bunch of cardboard boxes and suitcases littered everywhere.

"But...let’s leave that for later," he smiled faintly. "Shall I help you move in?"

Luna giggled slightly before nodding her head. "Yes, please do."

It took nearly five hours.

By the time they were done hauling boxes, rearranging furniture, and moving her army of stuffed animals, the sun had long since gone down.

And they had only finished moving half of her things. The rest was still near the main entrance.

Aren stared at the mountain of remaining boxes through the open bedroom door.

"...You said this was reasonable."

Luna, already seated on the floor surrounded by neatly stacked containers, didn’t look up.

"Is it not?"

He dropped back against the couch cushions and let out a slow breath, drinking the rest of his now water-diluted coffee.

Aren barely managed to beat the lull of sleep and headed toward the kitchen, mostly to distract himself from the sheer amount of unpacking left to do.

Opening the fridge, he was surprised to see a bag of basic groceries.

Huh, the landlord is pretty thoughtful.

Inside, there was a carton of eggs, a small bag of rice, with assorted vegetables.

"You hungry, Luna?" he turned his head, asking.

She wandered into the kitchen, completely drenched. She was wearing a white button-up shirt, that had become slightly see-through due to the sweat.

Heat climbed up Aren’s cheeks before he turned away immediately.

"Yeah, I could eat," she said softly before plopping down on the nearby countertop stool."

Aren cleared his throat.

"Go... wash up first."

She tilted her head.

"Why?"

"...You’re sweaty."

There was a pause. She blinked down at herself.

Then back at him.

"...Oh."

By the time Luna returned, the sound of something sizzling filled the kitchen.

She was now in comfortable pink cotton pajamas along with a small snowflake hair clip as she pinned her long hair into a bun.

Aren hadn’t turned around immediately, focusing on the dish he was making. Tomatoes softened as he cooked it, their juices filling the entire room. He cracked two eggs into the center, letting their yolk combine with the sauce.

Rice steamed quietly in the nearby cooker.

Luna slid back onto the countertop stool, resting her chin in her palm as she watched him.

"...You really can cook."

"Yeah," he answered while sliding the dish onto a plate. "My entire family can, I’m probably the worst out of us."

He set the dish in front of her before turning to fill a bowl with fluffy white rice. Then he slid it over to her with ease.

"Thank you for the food!" she said quickly before picking up a spoon and took a bite.

"It’s really good...way better than what the chefs make at home."

Aren paused mid-motion and looked at her. He had completely forgotten that she was technically a "young master" as well.

He took the seat beside her, picking up his chopsticks and transferring a piece of egg into his bowl.

"Well then, Young Miss," he said dryly, "care to explain why you’re here?"

Luna paused, the spoon in her hand froze midway before lowering back into the bowl. She stared intently at the steam rising from the rice.

"...My father wanted me to enlist," she said softly.

Aren didn’t interrupt.

"I didn’t want that," she continued. "I wanted to enroll. Properly."

"At Imperial Mystic?"

She nodded.

"He didn’t agree."

The kitchen felt quieter now. Even the gentle bubbling from the hot pan seemed distant.

"So you fought him?" Aren asked.

"Not directly." She hesitated. "I... asked for help."

"Captain Eric."

Another nod.

"He helped me file independently. Even got me a scholarship," she exhaled slowly. "I’m funding myself now."

Aren looked around the apartment again, it was a far cry from what a young missus would be accustomed to.

"That’s why this place," he said.

"Yeah."

Aren studied her for a little longer before an idea popped up in his head.

"You know," he said slowly, "most people rebel against their parents by getting a bad haircut."

She blinked.

"...What?"

"You could’ve just dyed it black or something dramatic."

She looked at him dead in the eye before muttering.

"You’re so stupid."

Shit...did I mess up? I really thought that’d work!

Aren braced himself to get scolded, instead—

She burst out laughing.

It caught him completely off guard as he stared at her. Luna shook her head, still smiling.

"This is ridiculous," she muttered. "All of it."

Aren relaxed slightly.

"For what it’s worth," he said, tone softer now, "I think you made the right choice."

She looked at him.

"You do?"

"Yeah." He shrugged. "The military would’ve been boring for you."

She stared at him before taking another bite.

"Yeah...I guess you’re right," she said, mouth full of food. "Phanks, Arenth."

Aren pressed his lips together, trying hard not to laugh. She didn’t notice at all so he didn’t bother bringing it up.

After they finished, Aren put the dirty dishes in the dishwasher machine before turning back.

"...So," he began, eyes drifting toward the counter instead of her. "You’re... okay with this?"

"With what?"

"You know." He gestured vaguely around the apartment. "Having a boy as your roommate."

She looked at him.

"Obviously not."

His heart dropped half an inch.

Then—

"But," she continued calmly, "if it’s you... it’s fine."

They both looked away as the only thing that filled the silence was the sound of the dishwasher that was running.

Aren cleared his throat.

"Right. I mean—"

He rubbed the back of his neck.

"Because we survived life and death together, right?"

She let out a small, awkward laugh.

"Ha... right."

The silence lingered for a moment longer before Aren stood up.

"...I should go," he said.

Luna looked up. "Go?"

"I haven’t signed the lease yet." He stood, brushing his hands together lightly. "And I still need to grab the rest of my things."

He stepped toward the door, slipping his shoes back on. Aren paused with his hand on the handle.

"...Get some rest," he said, glancing back briefly. "We both start tomorrow."

Luna gave a small nod.

"I will."

Aren hesitated for half a second longer.

"See you at school...roommate."