Chapter Text
“The Garden Where Dreams Bloom,” the well-known motto of ANAKT University, where Ivan is currently enrolled.
A university with a rigorous admissions process that many aspire to attend, hoping to graduate in the imposing Great Hall: its interior is entirely decorated with motifs of gardens and clouds, and with a capacity for two thousand people, it is the dream that many pursue, yet only a few can claim to have finally “bloomed”—a reference to having graduated within the garden.
For Ivan, that symbolism was somewhat endearing and childish to a certain extent; given the endless references to gardens and achieving dreams, there came a point when that supposed motivation seemed more appropriate for a preschool than for an institution as strict and highly sought-after as that university. Although during his first semester he had a moment of clarity: the “blooming” in the motto could mean that, once they graduate, they’ve begun to bloom, and the rest of their lives will be focused on providing that flower with the necessary nutrients to reach its full potential—since they already know how to achieve it. It was still a bit childish, but he couldn’t deny that it was an optimistic and motivating message.
Even if dreams are supposed to be what blossom, college students tend to associate that blossoming with the person themselves. Of course, how could there be a person who doesn’t define their path in their short life through their dreams? Dreams are powerful motivators, no matter where a person comes from or where they end up; even childhood dreams shape a significant and substantial part of who a person becomes in adulthood and old age. It’s poetic, Ivan thought several semesters ago, and today he couldn’t be more certain of that.
Despite taking in the wonderful, optimistic poetry that filled the atmosphere of his university, at that very moment he was certain he had one dream: not to have a midterm exam, a football game, and a night out with his friends all on the same day, with just a few hours between them.
An impossible dream, undoubtedly.
After only four hours of sleep, he was on his way to take his midterm first thing in the morning (8:00 a.m., unfortunately), and three hours later (11:00 a.m., terribly) he was forced to go to the court with his team for an hour and a half (12:30 p.m., horrifying) until the one-hour game started (kicking off at 2:00 p.m., a terrible situation indeed), and from there heading out with his friends to Till’s house to do silly things together until who knows when. Pretending he wasn’t on the verge of going crazy, he found his greatest joy in his situation: he loved his major, and he’d started studying a month in advance for this midterm—not to mention that he was the best at understanding social accounting in his class. Oh, and the game wasn’t going to be against a well-trained team—or so he’d heard from his teammates during past practices.
He was in terrible shape, by any average standard of well-being based on the amount of sleep someone his age should be getting—but did that really apply to college students halfway through their degree? Of course not.
Even so, he still had one extra “activity” lined up: Mizi and witchcraft. He figured that, after his midterm, he’d take at least an hour to have breakfast and accept his best friend’s “help.” No, he didn’t trust what he was about to do at all, but what did it matter? He also had no idea what her trusted witchcraft expert was going to teach him, but he suspected from the very beginning that it had to do with his other best friend and the thorn that kept pricking her heart: Till, an art student and what people commonly call an “emo” guy.
Lost in his thoughts, he didn’t realize he was already at the university entrance—or at least the one that took him faster to his department. With a weary sigh, he continued on his long walk along the paths of ANAKT.
[…]
He was beginning to regret listening to Mizi.
No, in fact, he was beginning to regret his own naivety.
“But listen to me, dude . It really works—I swear it’s in the magazine exactly like that, and I even found a video to confirm it,” the girl said emphatically, tugging Ivan by the arm to lead him to the dining hall behind his building. “I promise—if you listen to me, I’ll buy you breakfast today and for the rest of the week, okay? Come on, Ivan, don’t be so skeptical.”
With every second Mizi pleaded with him, he began to question a little more what decision had led him to this specific moment in his young life. Well, it’s true that he’s young, isn’t it? There couldn’t be anything wrong with listening to her and playing along, taking advantage of her humble offer to buy him breakfast for a week. He had nothing to lose; now that Mizi had pulled (almost dragged) him far enough to be standing in line at the register, there wasn’t much he could do to save himself from his best friend’s unbeatable determination.
“I’ll agree, but will you buy me breakfast starting today, Tuesday, through Friday? You know I love you very much, right?” the boy asked in a sweet, affectionate tone, clasping his hands together and blinking repeatedly—with great tenderness and innocence, of course.
“I’ll buy you breakfast and a little something extra so you don’t do whatever that was again, okay?” the girl said slowly, with a monotone and coldness so characteristic of a five-year-old robot with a dying battery. The boy burst out laughing, accepting the invitation with a hug. “You’re something else, Ivan, but that’s why we’re friends, right, sharkie?
“Obviously, four-eyed bunny.”
The two of them couldn't stop laughing the whole time they were in line, and luckily Mizi didn't have to ask Ivan what he wanted for breakfast thanks to her amazing (and selective) memory: a sandwich with vegetables, egg, grilled chicken, and avocado, along with a latte with four spoonfuls of sugar. Oh, and a chocolate bar with a high percentage of cocao but a hint of sweetness—that was the little extra Mizi had used to “bribe” him just moments earlier for his terrifying performance as a cute, innocent boy. Creepy, right?
After a while, seeing as the line was moving slowly and the cashier on duty was, of all people, the grumpiest girl working there, they managed to walk out with their humble and wonderful breakfast: the self-proclaimed “buy Ivan off with his favorite breakfast” combo, and a simple ham-and-cheese bread with a coffee just like his best friend’s. By then, Ivan had at least half an hour left to eat his prize and listen to his friend’s innovative proposal. They took a seat at one of the dining hall’s tables furthest from the crowd, each preparing for the new situation: Mizi’s marketing campaign versus Ivan’s common sense.
“It’s that simple: you write the name of the Big T, draw yourself next to him holding hands with little hearts around you, spray a little of your perfume on it, and then slip the paper into your pillowcase. Done! Pretty easy, right?” The girl couldn’t contain her excitement, which was evident in every hearty bite she took of her breakfast. Ivan just raised an eyebrow as he took a slow bite of his sandwich.
“Where did you see that… wonderful idea?” he asked sarcastically, causing her to sigh in exasperation. “I didn’t say I wouldn’t do it, but I’m a little worried about your social media algorithm."
“It popped into my timeline on Saturday while I was procrastinating on my homework, but that’s beside the point,” she said, making a dismissive gesture with her hand, along with one of her classic grimaces. Mizi had learned over time to be brutally honest and not hold back her opinion, after many moments of bitterness and resentment during her childhood and adolescence, as well as attending therapy for two consecutive years. Ivan admired that; it was surely the reason he felt even closer to her, even though they no longer shared that “lie”, something about her authenticity and commitment to her values solidified his opinion of his best friend.
“How about you come over to my place after the game, we do the ‘spell,’ and then we head over to Till’s? Ask my sister if she wants to come too—that’ll give me a better excuse to take the car,” Ivan suggested with a genuine smile on his face, his characteristic fang peeking out from the corner of his lips.
“Yes!” A thousand times yes, sharkie, the girl exclaimed, with a smile that almost shone like a lighthouse on the coast. They high-fived and went on to finish their respective coffees, now catching up on their days: Ivan’s midterm and his splendid ability to finish half an hour before everyone else, and Mizi’s morning dealing with inept and clueless male classmates.
[…]
What an… interesting game, for lack of a better word. It wasn’t difficult, and he didn’t remember the opposing team being so… bad. He couldn’t think of another way to describe it, and that simplicity alone spoke volumes about the quality of the team. They won by a considerable margin, making it clear to Ivan that the pre-game practice had been completely unnecessary, given that the opposing team had about as much experience as a six-month-old baby running around. He felt a little sorry, seeing how badly they’d let down the whole team and those who’d come to watch them, but that would motivate them for future practices—or so the dark-haired wanted to believe. Even so, he stowed everything that might get in the way of walking freely in his bag on his way to the apartment he shares with Sua; he didn’t feel like showering there with his teammates, much less paying attention to the nonsense spilling from their mouths every second. It was too overwhelming, and no one was going to have the nerve to say anything to him for leaving without really bonding with them for the umpteenth time. Who was going to stand up to Ivan, the best captain the team has ever had? No one, it was that simple.
He wasn’t thrilled by the idea of using his status as a weapon and an advantage, but it was his best ally for getting out of awkward and unnecessary situations. As he walked away, he said goodbye aloud to everyone present and congratulated them on their performance—just as any captain would say in his place—even though the game had been so absurd and simple.
As soon as he stepped outside of the lockers, a female figure pounced on him in a matter of seconds; if it hadn’t been for her enthusiastic shout, he would have been terrified in a thousand ways right then and there.
“Captain sharkie! Great game, young grasshopper!” Hyuna, Ivan’s other best friend and partner in crime, squealed excitedly. The boy laughed immediately, hugging the brunette. “Hold on, let go—I just remembered you’re covered in sweat,” the older girl reminded him with a laugh, and they both pulled apart instantly. Ivan had actually waited quite a while before coming out so his sweat wouldn’t be such a big problem, but it hadn’t worked out that well.
“How bad did you guys think the game was? I say, out of mercy, I’ll give the other team a three out of ten,” Ivan commented, still with a mocking smile on his lips. Behind Hyuna, he saw Till chuckling at his joke.
“A three? Don’t be so generous—that’s no more than a one,” Till said mockingly, walking past Hyuna to punch Ivan in the chest. The dark-haired guy found that somewhat endearing, and in an instant he pulled Till toward him. “Hey! Don’t get your sweat on me, you asshole!”
Ivan let go of him with a burst of laughter, which grew even louder when he saw Till shake out his T-shirt with an exaggerated grimace of disgust.
“Leaving Ivan to deal with his sweat on his own, you guys should head over to Till’s place right away—Io must be waiting for you,” Mizi interrupted with a relaxed smile, taking Sua by the hand so they could both approach Ivan. “We’re going with this sweaty, stinky guy from here to his apartment to grab a few things; we’ll let you know when we’re on our way to Till’s.”
Sua spun around abruptly, her gaze shifting between Ivan and her girlfriend as she frowned.
“We are going where to do what now?” she asked, now giving her brother a dirty look because of the mocking smile that had settled on his lips. “Wipe that look off your face, you filthy creature."
The rest of the group laughed at the siblings’ banter, especially when Ivan made peace signs and heart shapes with his hands to further exasperate Sua. In the end, Hyuna, Luka, and Till went to find the latter’s mom, who was going to give them a ride to Till’s house. Sua, Ivan, and Mizi walked to the entrance closest to the brothers’ apartment, which, unfortunately, was far from the court where Ivan’s game had taken place. The only thing more extravagant than having a giant court and an Olympic-sized pool was having exactly the same thing—but with two courts instead of one. ANAKT had nothing to envy any other university when it came to the spaces the campus had, but its only disadvantage was just how massive the entire university complex was—and how tedious it was to get from one place to another for that very reason; walking from ANAKT’s School of Economic and Social Sciences to the nearest entrance took about fifteen minutes. For that reason, judging by which field they were leaving from, they would likely be out of the university in twenty-five minutes, plus another fifteen minutes to reach the siblings’ apartment.
“So? What are we supposed to ‘look for’?” asked the older girl, turning her confused gaze toward her girlfriend.
“Oh, well, I convinced Ivan to cast the spell I showed you the other day—remember?” Mizi said casually, still holding Sua’s hand, while Sua sighed and shrugged. She had no choice but to play crazy while she and her brother tried out weird things for the umpteenth time this year.
“And you think it’s going to work?” Sua asked, this time turning to her right so her brother would know she was addressing him.
“Ah, no idea, but Mizi’s going to buy me breakfast for the rest of the week,” the boy smiled from ear to ear, giving his sister a thumbs-up, and she sighed again in exasperation.
“Sometimes it amazes me that we were raised the same way…” the girl murmured, receiving a pat on the back from her brother as a gesture of comfort, and a kiss on the cheek from Mizi for the same reason. “We’re almost at the exit, aren’t we? We’ve already passed The Bush.”
“Finally. I’m sick of wearing this sweaty, smelly soccer uniform,” Ivan complained, grabbing the shirt by the chest with disgust.
For the rest of the walk, they talked about everything and nothing, pointing out things they saw on the street to use as conversation topics until, finally, they reached the gate to Ivan and Sua’s apartment. With a “Finally!” shouted by the group of three, Sua hurried over to the normal entrance of the building, opening the old but functional metal door to let her brother and her girlfriend through, going in last herself to close the entrance. Within minutes, Ivan was already opening the apartment door, letting out a sigh of relief.
As soon as Ivan closed the door, he didn’t wait a second before rushing to his room, ready to take the much-needed shower that would allow him to function again and return to being a person in tune with nature and the harmony of the universe.
“Shall we go to your room?”
“Yeah, my brother will probably take half an hour to shower and another ten minutes doing his skincare routine,” said the older sister, with a sarcastic smile that quickly turned into laughter as Mizi dragged her into her room.