I ignored his comment, “I missed the real you. I don’t like this!” I yelled in frustration.
He chuckled, there was something dark and evil to it, “Oh, you don’t like this? Why do you care?”
“What?”
“If you want it that way, then you should have said it sooner.” He smirked evilly, walking past me while ruffling and messing my hair as though I was a dog.
So we really changed… Me, covering my emotions and building a facade, him pretending. Nevermind that. At least we learned.
“Wait!” Something tells me I just dug my already dug my own grave, and reached now to the inner core, enough to reach the hell.
“C’mon. You’re taking too long, stupid.” He said, looking scowling at me. I tried to keep up with his pace but failed. Seeing me, he scoffed at me, judging me with his now restored dark gaze, and reached out around my neck to strangle my neck.
I choked and slammed his hand away but his grip around me was hard so I didn’t have a choice but to choke to death as we walked through the now empty hallway.
He was silent the whole time, and I watched as slowly, the corners of his lips turned upward. At first, it was a small, cute and genuine smile, but as it widened, I cringed at the sight.
Although my plan of changing him backfired, at least I learned one thing. He can’t smile. Or, the smile he makes doesn’t suit him.
“One more thing, Eion.”
“What is it again?” He demanded, his smile breaking away.
I hesitated but said it anyway. “I already told you about this and I’ll say it again. Don’t smile… Just, don’t.”
“Why?”
“It doesn’t suit you, your character. I mean, to put it bluntly, you look like a shark when you smile.” I flashed him a small smile. My cute, adorable smile. It’s really true! There’s really nothing wrong with his smile, it’s just that he doesn’t know how to control his facial muscles.
When smiling, he really looked like a shark with those strong sets of pearly white teeth as his whole gums also showed. And adding with his blank eyes, the smile he makes looks like a constipated shark, no, more like an evil scheming shark.
His emerald eyes turned dark again, shooting me his infamous signature glare.
And for the first time, I’m so glad to be glared at.
****
Time seems to be getting faster and faster as our lives change. I thought everything’s fine and settled now.
My friendship with Emma and Hannah, check. With Luke. Check.
And about Eion…
“Where is he?” I asked Dax. Eion has been absent since yesterday. That guy, we were doing fine and was just having our ‘ friend’ bond, embracing it and nourishing it.
Dax shrugged in reply, his face confused as I was, “Don’t know.”
I turned to Leroy. He shook his head no before I had the chance to ask. “Maybe he’s sick?” He wondered, flashing me a positive smile.
I just nodded in thanks and focused on my life. Right.
For a few days, I had let it pass. It took me almost a week or so to ask again, really worried now, especially that winter break is starting tomorrow.
“Maybe his sickness was extended,” Leroy suggested again. We are now sitting at our usual table at the cafeteria, hanging out.
I scoffed at the idea. That’s impossible for a robot-like him, I mean, evil scheming, smiling shark. “For almost a week? Are you two really his friends? This is the second time this happened.” I flashed them an accusing look.
“Hmmm… Worrying like a girlfriend?” Leroy added, his eyebrows moving playfully.
Dax grinned at me slyly, “I thought you hated him?” He added.
“Hmm… Things between you two have been really different these past few days.” He looked at me like he was accusing me of murder. I cocked my eyebrow at him. Oh, they still didn’t know…
Ignoring their comment, I leaned my head on my hand. “Something is just wrong here. I can sense it.” I turned to Luke. “You.”
“Me?” He pointed to himself.
I nodded, “You know where he is?”
“Hmm… let me ask him.” He grabbed his phone from his pocket. Typing something on it, it beeped a few minutes later.
He read the message, his forehead knitting. “He’s… leaving?”
“Leaving?” We shrieked. “To where?”
He stayed silent and then as if a lightbulb appeared on his head, he snapped his fingers, his mouth forming an ‘o’ shape. “Oh, I remembered him saying he has some important business to attend to!” He exclaimed.
I hit his head at that, “You should have said sooner.” I rolled my eyes. He just groaned in pain. Guilty a while later, I apologized to him.
“Let’s go there,” Dax suggested.
At this Leroy perked up, “Yeah, since we’ll be in our winter break, why not make the most of it!” He exclaimed like a child.
I glanced at Emma and Hannah curiously as they appeared at our table. I looked back at the two idiots and asked, “What ‘there’ are you talking about?”
Dax and Leroy just look at each other with a stupidly wide grin on their faces, not telling us anything and letting mystery befall us.
*******
Three hours later as our class was dismissed, I found myself getting dragged towards Dax’s car. Before I know it, we are here.
Oh, so it’s the ‘there’ they are talking about, wow.
I looked at them sarcastically, and said, “Wow, thanks for the surprise. Yehey, so happy.”
But I guess I have to salute them then, they succeeded in their plan. I should have known that this is the place they are talking about, where everything started.
“Good to see you again Snow!” Mr. Tim boomed as soon as we entered the ice cream shop.
I can’t help but smile so brightly at him, “You too Sir! How’s it going?” Gosh, I missed this man so much! I looked around the shop, there was one worker getting the orders of customers at the front.
My eyes trailed to the shop, it’s still the same. Except, it looked a little older. And I looked at the man in front of me.
With a bright smile on his face, his face looked older as a stubble of beard was present on his chin down to the jaw, his hair gone ungelled and there were heavy and dark bags under his eyes. Did he look a little stressed?
“Still stressful… since I don’t have the help of Eion.” Sir Tim shrugged.
“It will all be okay, sir.” I patted him on the back, comforting him.
He shrugged it off, telling me it was okay though, just a little stressed out but not enough to make him go insane, I laughed at this. He greeted the squad and motioned for us to sit.
We chatted for a while, then ordered their usual orders and reminisced about the memories.
“Wow, who knew we could be friends right?” Emma said.
I nodded my head, “Yeah, and even have relationships with each other.” I emphasized the word relationship, looking at Emma and Hannah with wide eyes.
Their cheeks turned flushed, and I smirked. I’m okay with them now, but I enjoyed teasing them here and there.
“By the way, how did you guys end up with each other?” I asked. Now that I think of it, I still don’t know the whole story, little and every detail.
“Tell us yours first before we tell it,” Emma countered back, now smirking. I snorted at her, “Oh you know mine well. Luke falls for my adorable and beautiful face and personality.”
I flipped my hair and smirked. “He courted me, and boom, there we have it. Now answer my question.” I narrowed my eyes at them, smiling so sweetly.
“Chill Snow,” Dax interjected. “It just happened.”
“Happened? Really?” I huffed. I rolled my eyes at them and turned to Hannah.
Leroy blocked my sight and interjected, “It’s a certified secret.” He winked at me.
Oh c’mon! These guys… After an hour or so of hijacking Sir Tim’s shop because of my loud squad, we finally went home. Luke drove me home.