Chapter 5
1499 Words
CHAPTER 5: Stay close
"Grace, you are going to have to calm down about this, whether Olivia deserves this or not, she is your bestfriend and you should be bothered about how she is fairing. Aren't you bothered that she is not here yet?" I ask grace, but she gives me a disgusted face and scoots away from me the next minute.
I scoot after her and hug her.
"Why is my baby mad at me uhn uhn?" I start to act cute even though I don't enjoy being like this.
But it's one of the things that gets Grace to soften up whenever she is angry at me.
And I hear someone chuckle beside me.
I can't help but pause and turn my head to my side to know who, and surprisingly, it's the scholarship student.
Her chuckle is sweet to the hears, so I shake my head I don't need that I have Grace and if she is being rigid, I have Olivia.
"The both of you, you look so cute together, are you guys dating?" She asks and I nod back at her.
Grace on the other hand has found someone who wants her attention, so she naturally stands from my embrace and sits beside her.
And in no time they are chatting and laughing like they've known eachother for years.
Olivia on the other hand is no where to be found and knowing her, she is not someone to comeate to a gathering like this. .
She is punctual by nature, so why is…
I reach out to my pocket for my phone and realise it's missing.
"Damn, Olivia we left our phones at the recreation hall." I tell her as I remember how we misplaced it.
"Right." She says as she reaches out to her purse.
"Go get it then." She says in a tone of dismissal which I have gotten used to and continues chatti g with.
"Yes ma'am." I say silently and courtesy like an English man which Joanna finds funny.
"So funny." I hear her say, but I need to reach Olivia, so I take up to jogging my way back to the recreational hall.
Because for some reason, we are not allowed to bring in out personal cars and the school's transport except the ambulance is not always around on days like this.
The bonfire site is already filling up, and more people are arriving, but I don't sight Olivia anywhere near us which is strange.
As soon as I get to the recreational center, I hear the sound of my phone ringing and as soon as it stops, Grace's own starts.
I wonder who it is.
But when I pick up my phone, I feel my heart skip a beat.
In panic and disappointment in myself.
Olivia is one person who would call at most twice even if she is in an emergency situation, but here.
She has called ten different times in the past hour.
And now, it was a strange number calling.
Oh Olivia, I'm so sorry. I take my sit and dial her number, but it goes straight to voicemail.
What in the world is going on?!
Olivia's POV
Austine for some reason has a car and we are on our way from my hostel room after I took my bath and had a change of outfit and hairstyle to the bonfire sight.
We are two hours late and it's evening time, but Austine insists that I eat something before we go join them.
This so unlike me, but I follow after him anyway for a few reasons which I have validated.
One being I feel grateful and indebted to him.
As he opens the door to my side of the car and helps me out, he reminds me…
"Just stick to me for this next week and I would take care of it. It is my fault that their attention will be on you, but next time, try to steady your walking step, so I don't have to carry you in front of so many people." He says as we await our order.
And I don't know whether to be angry at him or not.
But at least he lent me a shoulder to cry on, and even sleep on.
I take my gaze to admire the birds out the window so I don't have to look at him massage hís shoulders every now and then.
It must ache him since I rested my head for about an hour an a half.
But just when the silence and beauty of the birds is beginning to settle with me, I hear the shutter sound of a camera and our order comes in.
"Have a healthy meal." The waiter says with a bow even though the meal is nothing close to healthy.
Austine and I are both having hamburger with extra cheese and some drink to go with.
I notice him put his phone away, but I can't being myself to take about the fact that he was taking photos of me secretly.
That's beaceue I don't know what to say honestly, but then I remember my phone is with him.
"My phone…" I want to request it, but Austine makes a shh sound with his index finger on his lips.
"Just eat. I'm starving." He says, but I know he isn't and is only doing it to save me from the embarrassment of my stomach grumbling earlier when I woke up.
"Remember, hold unto me. Infact, being your hand." Austine says as we arrive at the bonfire sight.
There is music and people are gathered in groups roasting marshmallows and corn over the fire.
"Uhn." I don't get the time to think when his warm hand holds mine and it reminds me of the time when he held my hand back at the leisure hall.
"Let's go." He says and we continue forward.
Him holding my hand worked like magic because the murmuring and pointing of hands that started when we first came to the site.
People kept pointing and making disgusting remarks.
When it's totally not my fault that I got austine's attention, and if anything, I would so like to know why a large number of peke asked me out enough for me to be the second runner up when I barely talk to other people.
I sight Rolland and Grace beside some new face and I'm excited.
"Those are my friends, I'm going there." I tell Austine as I try to disengage my hand from his, but he tightens his hold on me.
"You mean the ones that didn't pick up when you needed them the most?" He asks with anger in his tone and I can't help but wonder why.
I honestly want to te him it's none of his business and they are my friends not his and that he has no right at all to judge them.
But I find mysf saying something totally different because he was there for me when they weren't.
It would be ridiculous to still defend them for that reason.
"I'm sure they have their reason." I pause as I try to explain.
But just when I turn to look at them again, I realise that Grace is leaning in to Rolland.
And the next thing she does is kiss him.
I lose awareness of my surroundings again, because I can't fantom why she did that.
"None of my dates have ever cried when they were with me, how do you always manage to make an exception." He asks and that's when I realise that my eyes are blurry again.
"Why am I such a cry baby, uhn? Something got into my eyes." I defend myself, but Austine smiles and closes the distance between us.
"It's fine," he says before bringing the sleeve of his shirt to tap my lower eyelid.
"We don't want you ruining your make up now, do we?" He asks and I nod, because I fear a breakdown of I try to speak.
"Good girl." He says and kisses my forehead and I swear that I felt my heart jump the moment he did that.
"Now, let's head to where you will be having fun this night." He says and leads me to a bonfire that is obviously more well defined.
But I'm not surprised, however my jaw drops when I see who I will be having fun with.
Gathered around and making loud jokes are Tiffany, Gray, Romeo and Elliot.
The group of school jorks.
They were like the popular highschool music band or the best basketballers in grade twelve.
The most popular and most wealthy in school and they knew how to take advantage of people with their influence.
But there right in the middle of them all with a red wig is my mentor.
Ryan was never a red head, he is a blonde by birth and a top tier black hat hacker in the field.
My mentor.
- Writer
