Favored by Indivia

15

Chapter Fifteen.

In which she realized her place.

-

[Ross Pagette Monstine.]

“I think Matthias would enjoy this reference.”

My hands were busy flipping through the different photographs that I managed to take a few days ago. Different sets of views were before my eyes, and I am finding some good spots in each and every one of them. I knew that I simply could not use them all for him to paint, as that would be wasteful of lessons. However, I am finding a hard time picking one.

Should I just let him pick? That does seem ideal.

Everywhere that I would go, I would be quick to see anything that would be an interesting piece for Matthias to tackle. It feels like instinct from now, on that even if I was not thinking about him—I would be quick to remember him when I would see an interesting reference. From what he had been doing for the past week, I could say that he really does have the hand for this type of thing.

Maybe it was his hard work, as I could see how much he had improved over time.

Chasen was right when he mentioned that Matthias could do anything that he put his heart into. I would know since I had seen how much he worked in improving himself. I also seem to notice that Matthias is naturally quiet, but he always made sure to not make things uncomfortable between us. He does not say anything offensive or over the line, and he is easy to talk to. Whenever we would work on our art, I only made sure to say something when he needed extra help.

However, I did notice that I had spoken less during the lessons.

Not because I did not want to bother him, but I could see how he was improving on his own.

“You look busy, pretty lady. Do you mind if I crash here?” Samantha greeted, taking a seat across from me.

I do not know why she bothered asking me when she already made herself comfortable. She’s in her formal clothes, giving me the impression that she’s already pissed enough after a long debate with her schoolmates. Samantha only looks dangerous from afar, but she is not particularly one who would be burning in anger just because.

However, I do admit the sheer sight of stupidity is enough to release all the crazy blood she had inside of her.

She doesn’t usually get annoyed after debates, as she was born for that kind of thing—but Samantha mentioned that a number of her classmates seemed stupid, that she feels like she’s losing brain cells by talking to them. Every time that she would remember any particular thing that irked her, she always needed to explain everything to us.

So I reckoned she’s in a bad spot right now since she had been exposed to something she hates.

“How did it go, Sam?” I asked, despite already knowing the outcome.

She scoffed, arms crossed as she seemed to remember what had happened back to her room. “I got perfect grades, of course. I left the second I was done since they were speaking the language of the idiots. I rather not get f*****g influenced or were they expected to see me bobble my head when they f****d it up.”

“Damn, was it that bad?”

“Worse one I have so far.”

It didn’t take long before Vivian and Elizabeth join us in the cafeteria. The week was hectic for everyone, as all had their major exams and the activities that usually took us a week to complete. The four of us all have different courses, so we all hardly had any chance to get together for a while.

To see them all doing well made me glad. There used to be a case where we all were stressed to even talk it out with someone. Maybe it’s just because this was the first exam of the semester, so we are not that panicked as we would during the finals.

“Ross, I missed you so much,” Elizabeth greeted me, her hands easily pulling me for a hug. I could feel how hot her head was. People would often assume that she’s sick whenever she’s this stressed. The truth was, Elizabeth’s body just gets hot when she had been through a lot. “You don’t know how boring people are in my class.”

I sighed. “If you are this clingy, I would assume that they are insufferable.”

“They’re the worse,” she cried.

Vivian hardly looked like she had been through so much. She’s taking the same course as my brother—Civil Engineering. I did remember how she hardly even flinch at any math subject offered to her, so I don’t doubt that it would be the same when she attends college. The problem that Vivian have is mostly her inability to entertain new friends.

“You look like hell, Sam,” Vivian greeted, slowly offering her some juice. It feels like we we’re appeasing an angry demon who got loose from its cell. “I thought you could handle the debate?”

She grabbed the juice, her forehead creasing upon remembering. “I could handle the debate—but I never said anything about their stupidity. I hardly spent enough time defending myself, since the asshole as fidgeting so much that his words doesn’t make any sense. I wasted all the time I learned for the debate.”

“I wish that I am smart,” Elizabeth groaned, her head resting on my shoulders. “Or atleast had the backbone to walk out my class after my presentation. Everyone was so dry and boring that I felt like I spent a month with you guys.”

I noticed how Vivian was looking at the photographs. She had been in the call with me the last time I took them, so I know she knew what these are for. Vivian had stopped trying to talk me out of it, but seeing how this was the first thing I am handling after the hectic week that we have speaks dangers for her.

“Oh, this is beautiful Ro,” Elizabeth chimed, her finger pointing to the first photograph that I wanted to tackle with Matthias. “Where is this?”

“Revef St. I heard that there was a new spot, so I checked it out.”

That seemed to gather Samantha’s attention as she looked at the photographs. “Do you need them for a subject, Ro?”

“Just some reference for painting,” I answered, not willing to elaborate further.

“You never need those beore,” Elizabeth mentioned, slowly leaning down to look at my photographs. She didn’t bother to touch them, as if preserving something she shouldn’t.

While I know she didn’t mean anything when she uttered those, I felt my skin shivered. Elizabeth is one to always get some tea from people, as she easily gather attention wherever she goes. I am sure she had heard some stories that include Matthias and Ryli. The last person that I ever wanted to know about my involvement with Matthias would be her. Even if I know she wouldn’t be one who would spread such things—I just don’t want to face her reaction the second that she realized what I was doing.

As her eyes met mine, I was welcomed with a smile. “I really envy your dedication, Ro. I wish that I have those.”

“You have a dedication to gossip. Maybe you should change your course,” Sam muttered, sipping her juice as if it was tea that needed to be spilled. I simply chuckled, amused with their antics despite their exhausted minds.

“Maybe you should change your course,” Eli taunted, her voice clearly mocking the words with an annoyed expression. While I know that she truly didn’t mind, it still did made us laugh regardless. “Shut up. I always wanted to be a flight attendant, so I am doing everything I could to achieve that.”

“Seems like dedication to me,” Vivian commented, offering a look at Elizabeth.

“Do not belittle yourself.” I added.

Sam even seemed to agree, nodding her head in the process. “You’re already small enough. Don’t add insult to injury.”

“You f*****g—”

Elizabeth couldn’t even get angry, as she was quick to let out a laugh. We all knew better that Samantha had some venom injected to her tongue, so she would always be quick to sputtter nonsense. Even still, she is the softest of the group—that, I could attest.

“Oh, I grabbed that new film yesterday.” Samantha mentioned, eyes focused on us with a smile. “We should all head to my dorm after class and watch it. It had been a while since we have done that.”

Vivian seemed excited, her feet are practically bouncing under the table. “Wait, you did? How do you manage to get that? I thought it wouldn’t be available until next week.”

“I have my ways,” she shrugged.

“For someone who’ll be a lawyer in the future, I hope you know how sketchy that answer was.” Elizabeth muttered.

To which Samantha only rolled her eyes. “Shut it, shorty.”

“Listen to me, you little b***h. I’m 5’3!”

“Only an inch above the minimum height requirement for your course.”

Both Elizabeth and Samantha would always be the first to argue about the most amusing things. Vivian and I hardly even insert ourselves to the argument, since they could continue about it for hours. Elizabeth is easily ticked, and Samantha liked pissing people off. It was a dynamic that worked on its own way, since none of them hardly take any offense in the long run.

“Before we could get ahead of ourselves,” Vivian sighed, her hand raising her folder to put a divider between the two females. “I am down with the movies. Are we staying at your place until tomorrow morning?”

“Yeah, you guys can crash to my place. My brother would be staying at his girlfriend’s place until next week, so I have the place all to myself.” Samantha easily agreed.

Elizabeth peeked her head out from the covers. “Oh, do I still have some clothes at your place? I don’t have an extra in my lockers.”

“Yeah, I think I seen some.” Samantha agreed.

Sam’s place is usually our place to crash when we have some rough weekend, or we all wanted some time to spend together. Her place is good, and it has the best view. I mean, I would offer our dorms but my brother usually doesn’t remember when we have guest and would walk around the dorm without a shirt on.

Let’s just say that I needed to keep my brother’s chastity—as I already deleted the number of photographs they have of his abs. Of course, they aren’t even embarrassed enough to take it before his eyes. Ryder would often see that as a trigger and excuse himself.

“We’ll head by 4.” Samantha mentioned.

I flinched, remembering the commitment I have after class. “Actually…” I trailed, and I knew they were aware that I am about to decline the invitation since I am hesitating. “I need to take the extra lesson after class, for the art competition. So I don’t think I can come that early.”

“Oh, that’s fine. Call me as soon as you are available to catch up, and I’ll fetch you.” Samantha easily fixed the situation, which always made her so reliable in things like this.

When I felt my phone vibrate, I easily excused myself from the table. Keeping my distance from everyone, I saw that the caller is Matthias. It had been a while since we last saw each other, as I know that we needed time to study our own subjects.

“Hello,” I answered, excited to tell him about the new reference photos. “We—”

“We have a lesson today, right? Is it possible if we could cancel it tonight?”

“What?” The answer felt so immediate that I hardly had a second to think about it. I easily fixed it, catching my breath before I would lose them. “I… of course, that’s fine. We don’t have usual schedules, so I don’t mind. It had been a busy week.”

Remembering that the man had responsibilities even after the classes does make me feel bad for him. I could only think about how many he had missed making sure he achieve the grades that were expected of him. There was a small hope inside of me that wished he didn’t attend any work-related during these busy weeks, too.

He must be having a hard…

A pause.

I couldn’t even continue my thought, as I spot Matthias in a distance. The man had a different smile on his face, one that I had never seen before. He still has his phone pressed on his ear, as I hear the excuse he has on the other line. In a normal occurrence, I would have called for him but I didn’t. For I know the room that he was currently lounging out.

When the bell rang, Matthias easily excused himself from the conversation.

And just as he hung up the phone, Ryli came running towards him. My sister looked like she was bouncing as she did, looking pretty excited when she reached Matthias. She did not look worried about the exams, as what I expected from her. I am sure she would not really mind this hell week since she hardly even gets bothered at major exams. Ryli is naturally gifted, and there is a reason why she’s at the top of her class.

I knew that I needed to move away, and come back to my friends—but for some reason, I found myself looking at them. They look happy, animately talking with clear excitement from Ryli. Matthias was mirroring her expression, his expression soft and looking pleasantly amused to see her so pumped. It was a type of exchange I never received from Matthias. Unlike our interaction, he seemed genuinely interested in everything flowing out of Ryli’s mouth.

Seeing that woke me up.

It had been for a while now, maybe this is simply because I am enjoying the class that we take—but it seemed like I had forgotten the very worry I have in involving myself in Matthias’s life.

I clearly have forgotten that he’s my sister’s boyfriend.