Cold Hearted, You

02

NOTE: Please be aware of the chapters point of view.

02

I reached for my phone from the night stand as I raised a brow when I saw the notification. It is filled with messages from my friends, notifications from my i********: and twitter account as well as missed calls from my mother. It probably is about my sister. It has always been a great idea to mute my phone.

After taking a photo of me to post on my i********: story, I reached for my bag and walked myself out of my unit. Modeling for bag brands means I am almost equal to social media influencers. I am not an introvert who is shy to meet new people nor even show up in front of the camera because if I am, I wouldn’t choose to model. I just hate it when people try to disturb my peace. I may have a cold attitude but I know how I should act when I am at work.

Being almost equal to social media influencers, I have to do the same thing as them. Promote the brands that send them their products and post photos here and there. I don’t usually do it like them but I only do when a brand sends me their product to promote. I got thousands of followers because of my modeling job. That is why some cosmetics brands, clothing brands and more send me their own products as well.

“The car is ready, Miss.” Manager Perez said when I walked out of the elevator.

I gave him a nod as he accompanied me outside of the residence like I am such a VIP, which I am. Before hopping on the back seat, I stopped and looked around the lobby. He must have noticed it because he did the same thing.

“Did you fire that staff already?” I questioned, still wondering my eyes until it landed on that same male staff from earlier. My lips pursed as I looked at this manager in coldness. “Why is he still inside?”

He gulped hard before answering me. “He is one of the new employees who just got transferred to this branch, Ms. Krystal. He is one of the top employees that is why we can’t just fire him without the Chairwoman’s approval.”

A deep exhale escaped my lips as the mention of my dear mother popped up again. She just always has a way to ruin my day. First, making her other daughter come inside my unit without my permission and now this.

Without giving him any reply anymore, I hopped inside the car and slammed the door a little hard to close it. I saw how he jumped a little because of the impact which is not much of a difference with my driver. He didn’t dare to question me anything and just drive because he knows I wouldn’t answer it as well anyway.

My thoughts are clouded once again on the way to school. I just couldn’t help but think of what happened this morning. It happens almost every single week but every time they come, it is me who has to suffer mentally. I had to fight the urge of being weak because seeing them every time makes me wanna go down to my knees and cry. I am long gone from that but every time they appear in front of me, the anger inside me makes me wanna do the things I have been trying to avoid.

Cry.

If they just choose to leave me alone and not show up in my unit, things would be much easier. They can contact me and mom even saw me in school but why? Out of all places, why do they need to invade the place I am most comfortable off?

“Pick me up at the same time,” I told my driver before hopping off the car.

I stare at the building in front of me. Empire International High School. This school is the one I have been attending for years. I just enter different buildings per level. I am a junior now, 11th grade with only two years left before leaving this area since I will be turning college by that time. And going to college means the time of seeing my mom will be lessened.

This school is really known by many people. It is one of the top and most prestigious high schools in the city which is why many parents want to send their kids to study here but it’s not easy. Anyone can enter this school, may you be rich or not, as long as you qualify to the standard then you will be fine.

Some of us hold a scholarship in academic terms and some don't so they still need to pay the tuition. But because the academic ranking is a big fight in this school, it’s not easy to be on top and get a scholarship which is why those who can’t afford the tuition choose to transfer at the end.

This one is typically owned by my family which only means, as the heir of our family business... I own this school. My mother is the Chairwoman of the school board which is why I get to bump into her from time to time. If I am not observant enough, I wouldn’t be able to point out that she spends time here just to see me and still call it an accidental meet up.

I walked inside the building with poise. My face is straight and lips shut. There are pairs of eyes watching my every action but I don’t care. My purpose for coming here is to maintain my top spot and to learn. Their judgement or whatever it is that is on there doesn’t matter to me. They aren’t important to me unless they are a threat to my rank.

“Krystal!”

A familiar soft voice called my name. I turn to my back to see the familiar face that I already expected to see this early morning. She wore the proper uniform with her hair beautifully styled down that makes her an eye to the students even more.

Yvonne Elizabeth Lim. Out of all people, she is probably the only one who has seen me in my fragile state whenever I had a sudden breakdown. She is my best friend and probably the person whom I trust the most right now with everything in my life. She knows everything and technically, she was the one who opened me up to the world again after what happened. She was the one who almost brought me back to my old me if I didn’t only manage to stop myself from doing so.

“Just arrived?” I asked when she stood in front of me. She nodded innocently with a sweet smile plastered on her lips that made me smirk.

Our presence in the middle of the hallway is eye-catching to everyone. It is because of how they dubbed us as. We are known as Empire International High School’s K&Y, which is basically the initials of our first name. In this school, K&Y is also known as the flower duo. Although we are both visually gifted, our personalities are very opposite. She is sweet and warm while I am cold as ice and… mean as what they describe. She is the dream girl of K&Y while I am the fearful girl which is pretty accurate.

“Your mother’s coming,” She suddenly said, looking behind me with both hands placed in front of her politely.

I heaved a sigh and turned to my back to see my mother just a few meters away from our spot. Unlike her, I have my arms crossed and expressionless just like I usually am whenever we meet her.

“K&Y.” My mother said. She puts on a sweet smile as I only look at her blankly. Taking advantage of the students eyeing us, she leaned to kiss my cheeks which she knew I wouldn’t avoid. She looks at me, adoring, while I remain blank. “Krystal, my daughter.” 

I look away, without minding on giving her any response. She heaved a deep breath before turning to my best friend next to me who is ready to greet her at the same level that she gave to me. The kind of smile that Yvonne can give is the one that I can’t put on anymore.

“Yvonne,” My mother says, leaning towards giving her a peck on the cheeks.

“How are you, Chairwoman Vargas?” She questions warmly.

“Doing great, Yvonne. Thank you for asking.” My mother responded with a sweet smile. I purse my lips when I notice her eyes on me again. She looked hesitant but decided to take a head on. “Your sister went to visit you this morning. Did you meet her?”

She is careful with her words. I can feel that because of how she looks at me. It’s desperate and longing.

I nodded simply. "I assume she still hasn't told you what happened.” I straightly answered that left her in disappointment. Her lips parted, speechless. She should have expected that.

I know why she called me this morning. She wanted to make sure that I talked to my sister. They are each other’s partners in crime if I can put it that way. It gets pretty irritating whenever they visit me together because they took a long time to leave. It’s not easy to have a lonely fight with two stubborn women.

“The guys are waiting in the Pearl Bar. We need to go.” I told Yvonne as she just nodded in response. I turn to my mother once again. “Please stop ordering the staff in the residence to let anyone enter my unit without my permission.”

“She is not just anyone, Krystal. She is your sister.” She pointed out, trying her best not to raise her voice.

“Still. It’s my unit and I own it. I get to decide who will come inside and who will not. Please respect that.” I said firmly.

Without any more bother, I passed by her without bidding a goodbye. Yvonne followed a few seconds later after saying her goodbye to my mother politely like the usual. It was her who is always left with things like that. If only I can, I would definitely transfer to a different school but I know they wouldn’t release my records that easily.

“I know you want to ask. Don’t stop yourself.” I said, breaking the silence between us.

She hesitated until a sigh escaped her lips, giving up. “Ate Jessica… she really came this morning?”

“She dropped some of her brand new designs.” I only answered.

She responded with a slow nod and remained shut afterward. One question has always been enough for her. She didn’t dare to push it every single time because she knows my limitation to things like this. I’m just really thankful because she understands my attitude now.

Loud voices are heard even just a meter away from the opened door of the place that can only be accessed by my friends. I opened the door and an unfamiliar guy who was standing in front of our friends while trembling immediately welcomed us. I went straight to my usual spot at the corner of the room which has the view of the school grounds and just let them do their thing.

"A new guy again?" Yvonne exclaimed, getting the attention of the crowd just a meter away from my spot. They didn’t even notice our arrival since they are so focused on that guy.

Cameron nodded. “This guy spread a rumor that Daphne was making out with a different guy every single night in the bar!” He exclaimed that made me slightly chuckle. It made them all look at my direction with amusement obvious in their eyes which I just avoided.

“But Daph is not allowed inside the bar yet,” My best friend pointed out the most obvious thing.

“And that is exactly why he is right here!” Max says before he pushed the guy.

Just like the usual, they began to make fun of that unfamiliar and unnamed guy. They would even say sarcastic words and do their thing whenever someone tries to bother with anyone in our circle of friends. They keep on doing that until they are starting to get very noisy and it’s getting on my nerves now!

“You know it’s bad to spread rumors right? Especially if it’s not true.” Lance says firmly.

That exact moment, I have reached my peak. An annoyed sigh escapes my lips which makes two of my friends look in my direction. I stood up from my seat and approached the door but before I could even walk out of the room, Gianna suddenly stopped me by my wrist.

“Where are you going?” I look back at her, releasing my wrist from her hold.

“Outside. They are too loud for me to handle.” I answered which made me chuckle.

I walked out of the room and heard Yvonne telling them to finish up immediately. They follow her more than they do to me but our friends are much scared of me than of her. They know their limits but sometimes, they pass that line without even noticing and that is when the beast inside me comes out.

"You are the most fearful girl in this high school but you never joined them bullying others." She said with a small and short chuckle.

I simply glanced at her before focusing my attention in front again. "You are the dream girl in this high school yet you joined a group full of bad people."

That irony always hits me. Our circle of friends is known by the whole student body. Not just because all of us are on the top rankings but also because of the way each of us solve our own issues such as what they were trying to do earlier. We were almost dubbed as the group of bullies who are not totally a bully. It just happens that the guys in our circle cherish the girls so much that they are willing to go to lengths to do what they were doing earlier.

I was clouded by my thoughts when she suddenly held my wrist, making the two of us stop. When I look at her, her brows are furrowed and eyes glaring at me as if I did something very wrong. I just stared back at her gaze before a frustrated sigh escaped her lips.

"You are not bad. You just learned from a very bad experience.” She pointed out that was enough to make me smirk.

Very bad experience. Did that really do be great? Despite liking how I am right now, my ways of handling things and my personality, I still can’t erase the fact that what if what happened two years ago didn’t happen, will I still be the same person as I am today? I might have been stuck to that kind of girl who is being taken advantage of by those who want to.

My side lips rose up, forming a smirk, as I already expected for her to say that. “You just always know how to defend me, aren’t you?”

“It’s because that’s the truth!” She raised her voice a little and that made me release a scoff in amusement.

I reach for her to have it let go of my wrist. A small smile forms into my lips as I look at her before giving her a nod. It has always been Yvonne who has been trying to set things right. She always tries to point out that I am not as bad as everyone thinks I am. She accepts how I am right now but for her, I am not the person who I am right now. That it was just my mask that I built for myself in order to cover up what has ruined me in the first place.

An unconscious smile forms my lips again but it was immediately replaced with a frown. Just a split second I turned to my side to walk again, I suddenly bumped into someone without knowing who it was. Due to how hard the impact was, I ended up on the ground with my ankle almost twisted. I heard a gasp around our spot as I groaned when my butt came in contact with the hard floor.

“Krystal!” Yvonne called as she immediately went next to me. She started checking on my legs and even asked me about my ankle which I just shook my head in response. She helped me stand up with an arm on my back to guide me. “Are you okay?”

I only responded with a nod probably because I was still shocked by what happened. It’s very unexpected for me to face this kind of trouble because students usually try their best to avoid my direction. I am not a fearful girl for no reason. With the use of my hand, I wiped the dust off from my skirt as Yvonne helped me with my blazer.

“A-ate Krystal, s-sorry! I d-didn’t mean to!” I look down to face the girl who bumped into me. She is on her knees, pleading, which made me look at her blankly. “P-please forgive me! I-i didn’t see you c-coming. I was in a rush so I d-didn’t see you. I’m really sorry!”

I can hear laughter and whispers from the students who are starting to crowd our area little by little. They remain with their distance, afraid of getting themselves involved. This is what I hate about the title of fearful girl. Because of that, whenever someone just happened to bump into me accidentally, they will always take the blame and beg me for forgiveness while on their knees. Whenever that happens, it stresses me out because they just keep on proving that I am that scary.

Like what I always do during this kind of situation, I passed by her without saying anything. It is not my obligation to make her stand up from her knees because it was her who forcely made herself end up in that position. Maybe back then, I would have done something but things are different now.

Back then, they would plead with me for forgiveness because they are afraid of being reported to my mother. I always get good treatment because they don’t want to be in trouble with the Chairwoman especially if they are after the rankings. But now, they would plead me because they are afraid of me. Not with my connection but myself.

“That is the third time this week,” Yvonne pointed out as I could feel her worried eyes on me.

It is indeed the third time already. I don’t know what is up with me this week that I keep on encountering things that would purposely ruin my mood and make me burst out. Starting with those students who keep on giving the same reaction for a third time just now then to my sister’s return again and the talk with my mother earlier. What could be worse from this?

"There's better be no next time.” I exhaled a frustrated breath before stopping on the balcony space of the second floor where a view of the road outside the school premises is seen. “I don't think I can keep my patience anymore when this keeps up."

The two of us stayed there for a couple more minutes to help me calm down. I don’t know if staring on the road even helps but at least the irritation died down a little with the help of Yvonne’s silence. But of course, that irritation would always be taken back after a few seconds especially when it’s my own mother who ruined my peace.

I made my way, lazily and frustrated, into my mother’s office. Our calculus professor approaches us earlier when we are just a few meters away from the Pearl Bar saying that I was being called at mom’s office for a reason that he doesn’t know. I could just ignore it but our professor watches me leave so I have no choice but to follow.

“It was her auntie!”

I look at the slightly tanned skin guy, who is sitting on the single couch in front of my mother’s table, weirdly. I just entered the room and this is what I have to face? Can my day even get worse?!

“Krystal?” Mom says my name as the guy suddenly looks at me with wide eyes.

“Krystal?” He repeated. I raised a brow because they keep repeating my name countless times and it is getting irritating! I am not in the mood to hear them repeat over and over again!

I saw mom nodded in response but I remained shut with my arms crossed. “Yes! She is your childhood friend, Krystal. Can’t you remember her?”

Childhood friend? Wait he is…

“You are Krystal?” He repeated once again with wide eyes and shock evident in it.

I gulped hard when my own name started to ring in my ears already. I glared at him and heaved a deep sigh before giving him an answer.

"Yes, weirdo! I'm Krystal, Krystal Erin Vargas!” And you probably have forgotten that… because you were out of nowhere as well.