Aileen
“Unfortunately, you are wrong about something,” a voice snaps me back to reality.
I heard footsteps walking forward and the room suddenly fell silent.
“And how am I wrong Rosalia? Did I not say the truth here?”
Rosalia? Why does that voice sound so familiar? Did I know her or something?
“No, you did not. You’re mistaken if you think she’s arrogant. Cause you haven’t seen what real arrogant people look like in reality then.”
Everyone gasped audibly in shock.
“And why are you taking her side in front of us? Isn’t she the woman who stole away your man? You should hate her, shouldn’t you?”
Did I steal her man? Are they talking to Skylar’s ex-girlfriend? But, Skylar called her Lia. Wait, that’s her nickname for Rosalia. No wonder.
Skylar still calls her by her short name. Which means he still likes her a bit, or maybe he’s used to calling her that.
“No, there’s no reason for me to hate her,” Rosalia replied. “And she didn’t steal my man. He was never mine, to begin with. And we are over long ago. If he wants to be in a relationship with her, that’s their matter. I don’t want to interrupt between them. But! I know for sure that she’s not arrogant or egoistic. Cause, she’s not selfish. She can never hate anyone truly.”
Why’s she talking in my favor?
“And how can you say this so confidently? How long do you know her? She joined a few days ago!”
“Hm, that may be true. But, I have a good eye for character. She’s a good girl, it’s reflected in her nature. She’s polite, and she’s hella rude to Skylar. She doesn’t bat an eye to him. Of course, she has to be a good person!” she spoke with enthusiasm.
“Isn’t that the only reason you think she’s good?”
“What? No, no. I certainly had some valid points, didn’t I?”
No, you didn’t! She likes me because I’m rude to Skylar? Does she hate him or something? But she used to date him before. Aww, everything is so confusing for me!
I don’t want to think anything at all!
“Rosalia, you are surely blind! Get your eyes checked as Skylar said!” one of them retorted. “Crazy woman! Let’s go girls.”
“Yeah.”
Thank god, they are finally leaving.
“You can come out now. You don’t have to stay hidden anymore,” Rosalia yelled from outside the door.
Yikes, how did she know I was inside all along? I didn’t even make a sound, did I? Then how?
“Are you feeling shy or something? Why aren’t you coming out?”
I placed my hand on the doorknob, uncertainty lurking in my head. Should I?
Without waiting any further, I opened the door and headed outside.
Rosalia stood a few steps away from me with a smile on her face which didn’t look welcoming at all.
“Finally you came out,” she added, folding her arms. “I thought you were planning to stay there forever.”
I stood face to face with her and replied, “Why would I do that? I was going to come out any minute. It’s because they”
“It’s because they were standing you couldn’t come out. Yes, I understand that,” she added.
The grin on her face looked so irritating but I couldn’t say anything against it.
“Why did you stand up for me? I thought you didn’t like me.”
“Hm…and what might be the reason behind it?”
“Because…. because……Skylar keeps pestering me. And as his ex-girlfriend, you don’t like that of course.”
She bursts out in laughter, making me puzzled.
Did I say anything funny here?
“You are so funny, Aileen,” she remarks, stopping her laughter. “You think I hate you because Skylar likes to hang out with you. You have to be kidding me if you think that’s true.”
“Isn’t that the case here?” I inquired.
“Hm…no, no. In fact,” she stepped forward, holding her hand towards me. “I would like to befriend you if possible. Would you like to be friends with me, Aileen?”
What?
Why would she want to be friends with me? Is she genuinely asking or does she have a plan in mind?
I can’t seem to find her words and intentions honest.
“Do you not trust me?” she asked, smiling mischievously.
“Uh, no, I”
“I can see it in your eyes. You don’t have a shred of trust in me. And you must be thinking I must have some intentions behind my offer, right?”
She’s reading me like an open book! Am I that easy to understand?
“Uh, no. I’m not thinking like that,” I stuttered in my reply. “I was just….. surprised, yeah.”
“Surprised? Why so? Because of Skylar?”
I nodded. “Yeah. That’s why I thought you wouldn’t like being friends with me.”
She giggled, reaching out her hand to caress my face softly.
“Silly girl. I would never hate you because of Skylar. Cause I just don’t fucking care about him. He doesn’t even exist in my diary. And I know that you don’t get along with your classmates. So, I want to give you company. Is that so wrong?”
She noticed that also. Is she keeping an eye on me? Well, if I think about it, it’s easy to tell considering how I came to college and went back home without interacting with anyone.
I’m really living a miserable life, aren’t I? On top of that, David is Why the heck am I even thinking about him? He’s not feeling the same way towards me, right?
“What are you thinking? Mind letting me know?” She asked, withdrawing her hand away.
Pushing aside all the thoughts from my head I faced her and replied, “Well, I don’t mind being friends with you. It would be my pleasure. I’ll finally have someone to talk to.”
This may be a risky move, but I’m all up for it. And turning her down makes me feel bad.
Her face lit up the very second with a gleeful expression.
“Really? Thank you,” she shook my hand with quite enthusiasm. “I’m glad to be friends with you Aileen.”
“Me too.”
“As a celebration of our friendship would you like to grab some boba tea together?” she suggested.
“Sure, why not?”
She’s not as bad as I thought she was. I shouldn’t judge people based on their first impression.
We drank boba tea and talked a bunch during lunchtime. They also went to sit in the class next to each other.
For the entire day, I didn’t receive a single text from Dave. And I was enjoying the day so much, I almost forgot about him and my anger.
But, when we were heading out of the college campus together, I saw a car waiting outside the gate.
And I recognized it immediately. It was Dave’s car. Why is he here now? To pick me up from college?
As if that’s going to have any effect on me? After ignoring me for an entire day since yesterday he’s here to pick me up? No way!
“Aileen, what happened?” Rosalia tapped on my shoulder, snapping me back to reality.
“Uh, no. Nothing.”
“Are you sure? You look a bit absent-minded. You can tell me if there’s anything wrong”
“No, I’m fine. Let’s go!” I insisted, increasing my pace to avoid Dave’s gaze.
“Hey, wait for me a bit,” Rosalia yelled, running behind me.
I tried to mix in the crowd, but then suddenly I bumped into a chest that appeared from out of nowhere.
I almost fell down, but an arm wrapped around my back holding me in place.
“Are you alright?” the voice spoke, and the scent of his perfume hit me immediately.
I looked up to find Dave in front of me.
I froze in the spot. How did he manage to find me? I thought I could escape past his eyes. My plan failed horribly.
“You thought it was easy to hide from the Alpha’s eyes. You are so wrong,” my wolf chuckled in amusement.
It’s not funny, alright?
“To me at least! Playing cat and mouse, aren’t you? How does it feel to be caught? Enjoying the game?”
“Aileen, are you hurt?” Rosalia asked, standing right behind me. “Why were you in so much hurry to leave? You could’ve hurt yourself badly.”
Dave looked into my eyes deeply with a load of concern. “Your friend is right. You should be a bit careful, or else you might hurt yourself.”
“I…I’ll be careful,” I stammered in my reply. All I wished at that moment was just to push him away but if I did that Rosalia might find it weird. So, I had to restrain myself.
“You should!” Rosalia stated. “Thanks for saving her Mr.”
“It’s David,” he interrupted with a smile. “David McGarten.”
“David…. McGarten?” Rosalia repeated and her jaw dropped in surprise. “Aren’t you the Alpha? Why are you here?”
He chuckled, removing his hands from my back only to place them on my shoulder. “Why? Haven’t your friend told you about me already?”
Blaming me? He’s so evil!
Rosalia looked at him puzzled. “Uh, no….”
“Strange, and here I thought everybody at college knew her because of me,” he comments, gazing at me from the corner of his eyes. “Guess, I was wrong?”
I slapped his hand away politely replying, “It’s not mandatory for every single person in college to know you, is it? That’s why she doesn’t know who you are to me.”
“Hm…that’s understandable,” he mused turning to Rosalia. “Let me introduce myself then. Aileen’s friend, I’m her father, and I’m here to pick her up.”
“Aileen’s father? Oh, right! She’s the Alpha’s daughter. Of course, you’ll be her father,” Rosalia remarks in surprise. “How could I forget about it?”