Ashton wasn't too happy when he realized that Ava had already left. When she didn't return after a while, Ashton got up with the excuse that he was going to the men's room, but in reality, he wanted to find out where Ava went. So after looking around the whole room and not seeing even a shadow of the person he was looking for, he decided to ask one of their bodyguards.
Chupsy was standing by the door and was the closest one. He sauntered towards Chupsy and politely greeted her. "Hello Miss, If you don't mind me asking, I just wanted to know where Miss Ava is? I don't seem to see her anywhere. Did she leave already?" He was so polite that Chupsy didn't have the heart to ignore him.
"She wasn't feeling well and excused herself to go back to the villa. I doubt she will be coming back, so don't bother waiting for her." She was stern and tried to intimidate Ashton, but the boy didn't even bat an eye. Instead, he politely thanked her and went back to the table where the rest of his group had fun chatting with their companions.
He bent down and whispered to Cain before grabbing his jacket and walked out of the dining room without saying goodbye to the others on the table.
Prince Edmund quickly figured out what was going on and briskly got up without saying anything to anyone and left as well. Everyone was having so much fun chatting that they did not realize that three people were gone. Not until when Ms. Williams clapped her hand to get their attention.
"Children! Listen, if you've finished eating, it's time for EXODUS to have a tour of our school. Akira, Pearl, and..." She was going to say Prince Edmund, but he was nowhere around.
"Does anyone know where his highness Prince Edmund is?" She asked no one in particular. Everyone only shook their head while looking to the left and the right of each other, asking with their eyes. Then, one by one, everyone shrugged, indicating they did not know.
Then, Ms. Williams realized that one of the members of EXODUS was not there either. Her brows raised and suddenly touched the bridge of her nose. She didn't like it at all that one of the members, Prince Edmund, was missing. They need to find them asap.
She turned to look for the group's Manager. The man was busy speaking on the phone, and she had to wait a moment before she could question him. As soon as she saw him hung up the call, she went toward the man.
"Excuse me! One of your members is missing. Will you please give him a call so we can go ahead and begin the tour of the Royal Academy." Her voice was a little stern while she clenched her jaw.
The Manager quickly glanced at the table where the group was seated and looked around to see who was missing. Ms. Williams knew what he was doing and informed him who was missing.
"The good-looking one with blond hair and is always smiling is the one missing." She said while her face was blank of any emotion. The way she described Ashton earned a raised brow from the group's Manager.
He chuckled.
"I see! Thank you!" He quickly dialed Ashton's number. However, it quickly went to voicemail. It seems that Ashton had turned off his phone, and they had no idea where he was. The Manager scratched his head while looking at Ms. Williams, afraid to inform her that he could not get a hold of Ashton.
Just as he found the courage and was about to inform Ms. Williams, Ashton walked in with his two hands in his pockets and a sullen look plastered on his face. Akira saw him and felt bad for her older brother. She knew where he probably went to look for Ava, and it seems he had no luck from the look on his face.
The Manager's face lit up when he saw Ashton. "He's back! We can start the tour now so we can finish early and go back to the hotel so they can rest." He said it loud enough for everyone to hear.
After hearing what the Manager said, everyone gathered to begin their tour.
Ms. Williams invited the Manager and their entourage to wait at the lounge area and let the youngsters go on their own so they could have more fun.
Akira decided to play the part of ambassador and stood right next to Ashton so she could give him the tour as they walked around. However, since Ava and Prince Edmund were not with them, Ms. Williams decided to let Crystal become one of the ambassadors. She took the chance to stick right next to Ashton, leaving Pearl to be surrounded by the rest of the EXODUS members.
They went around from building after building, and the members of EXODUS were in awe of how magnificent the Royal Academy was. But, unfortunately, they were all homeschooled due to their status as an idol, so they had no chance to attend such a prestigious school.
===
Once the tour was over, the Manager was ready to take the group back to the hotel. However, Ashton wanted to stay and hang out with his sister but didn't know how to approach the subject. While he was contemplating, Akira already sneaked a word in with Ms. Williams.
Ms. Williams had to discuss it with the management and faculty members before giving Akira a response. "Let me see what I can do, alright! Go and tell your brother what I said." She told Akira kindly while ushering the girl to go and inform Ashton, who was anxiously waiting to speak with Ms. Williams.
Akira saw how Ashton was fidgeting while kicking an imaginary stone on the ground. She inconspicuously approached him from behind. She then leaned and whispered. "I already spoke with our headmistress and told her about you being my older brother. She will speak with the faculty and management and get back to us. Just wait, alright!"
Ashton's face suddenly brightened before turning around and giving his sister a tight embrace...
Pearl's eyes widened in shock, while Crystal gawked... when they saw what Ashton had done....