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"Magic is believing in yourself, if you can do that, you can make anything happen."
-Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
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CHAPTER-06-We Imagine
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"I'm not gonna leave you so easily but right now I have to..." Skyler whispers slowly before Riley's voice yanks me into the reality.
"Skyl... is the time waiting for us?" Riley addresses walking past beside us giving him a stern look and not even concerned what she spoke a minute before. Skyler's hands slip away from me and he follows her without even glancing back at me.
Watching him leaving along with her, keeping an arm around her shoulders and talking after every laugh escaping alternately makes me wonder, did I lose him for real?
Even if I did lose him then why to this group of morons who literally doesn't have brains and why to this girl name Riley, who always gets caught in detention for firing some deadly sarcasm at the teachers. She spends number of times doing random stuffs i.e Listening music while siting under the bleachers, sketching around and chewing bubble gum 24/7 hrs and her favourite thing hanging out with this special edition of group of boys a.k.a Bad-boys. I remember the first meeting of Riley and mine which was probably during our freshman.
I was rushing into the girl's washroom it was an emergency after drinking liters of water, I saw her sitting in one of the stall, not doing any thing just sketching something in her diary. She arched her brows while unplugging the earphones, "Occupied... Use the next one."
It wasn't a perfect time to have a fight with her so I just rushed into the next one, "You should have locked it atleast!"
She didn't reply and it didn't matter any piece of a thing to me because I was totally uninterested in dealing with her. Till that time she was the loneliest girl of our school and everyone knew she doesn't talk much to anyone. No one exactly knows that how she ended up being so good friends with Dylan, Gray.... Skyler.
I know Skyler doesn't belong between them or maybe he does I shouldn't think much.
Few steps ahead of me, unfortunately I come across a person, whose glimpse is enough to spoil my whole day. Drake Flynn. I didn't talk to him since Zoe bit the shit out of him.
He walks ahead of me to the entrance, glancing back at me but I don't look into his eyes at all besides I just walk past beside him into the class displaying a good sign of ignorance. Reality jolts my thoughts, again I have to keep my head straight to the board and mind over Mrs. Fiona's words because sharing this class with him isn't same as before.
I see only few seats empty inside the class which also have that one seat, unoccupied beside Drake where I used to sit before and another one is in front of... Gray Morgan.
A girl walks beside pushing me, "Oh Sorry... I didn't see you there!" She fakes an apology. She looks exactly one of those bitches who are always ready to steal your boyfriends. Her heels taps over the floor as she walks to Gray Morgan. I know she pushed me to take that lucky seat.
Although, I see Gray smiling at my sight and he nods to the empty seat in front of him. I don't know why but I chuckle looking at this girl's expression when Gray says to her, "This seat is reserved lady and if you still want to sit here then I don't know but I feel like not well today and I can puke right any moment." I avert my gaze around the class and no more empty seats except the seats around Drake's and Gray's and so I definitely choose the front seat to Gray.
Mrs. Fiona enters requesting, "Class take your seats!!" This girl makes her way to the seat beside to Drake with a frowning look.
Gray leans to his front and says, "You are welcome."
I smile, "Honestly just don't puke!" It didn't cause any detrimental and I hear him chuckling although I don't forget that Gray is Dylan's friend just like Skyler Foster. However Gray didn't talk about Dylan and Zoe at all during the class but he mentioned something.
"Hey." His voice chimes slowly when Mrs. Fiona writes something on board. I tilt my head a little and see him leaning over his desk and looking at me with a smile.
"Hey.." I say slowly and take my eyes back at Mrs. Fiona.
"Free after school?"
I chuckle then I lean a little back and say, "Do I know you very well?"
His voice sounds as a whisper, "That's why I'm asking you... we both can know each other very well." Maybe he is too planning something just like Skyler after all these both belongs to same group and have same intentions. He speaks again, "We can study together..." I look at him when he says 'together' He continues, sitting straight upright, ".....I'm different from Skyler.... Don't you worry." I sense that he almost smirked after finishing his sentence.
"Do you really wanna just.... study?"
His smirk finally gets curved enough to make him look like an another player, "What else you are thinking about...?"
I smirk back, "Possibly.... you will talk shits about Dylan... just like Skyler and nothing else."
"I thought--"
"Keep your imagination to yourself I'm aware of the plans of you guys!"
"Ms. Rivera do you have any problem with Mr. Morgan?" Mrs. Fiona asks.
I turn back to her, "Nothing...I'm sorry!"
Mrs. Fiona gets back to her teaching after giving a strict warning look. Gray passes a note. I open it under my desk.
Your house? or Mine?
Then I hear him telling, "Studing...."
I don't reply to him till the bell goes ringing. He remains seated even after the students starts leaving. I stand up picking my bag. I look at him and says smilingly, "Are you really so desperate to study with me?"
His lips curves into a pleasant smile, "Are you scared of studying with me?"
"I doubt that does even the study involves in it or just interrogation or just threatening?"
"What about your house? You will get to know then..." He smiles, "I will text you once again after the school ends and if you say 'yes' then I'll be waiting in the parking lot."
"And if I say 'no'?" I say with an arch forming over my eyebrow.
He steps little closer but I don't move a bit. The class has already formed the silence, "Don't make another bad-boy fall in love so easily." And he leaves walking past me.

Now then I think my life, how it would be if I don't have Zoe in it. Probably, Lame.... Boring.... and that's the way exactly I feel right now. She has again decided to skip lunch with her drama-club-friends.
Waiving the lonely thoughts I look around the cafeteria, dozens of familiar faces but no one to talk then my eyes lands on Drake Flynn chattering with his friends. Anxiousness gushes into my veins for sudden, I dig out my phone from my bag but the battery percent doesn't want me to do much things.
I lay my eyes back on my lunch bag which contains a healthy sandwich made by a health-conscious-mom.
I squint at my boring lunch food and pout, "Let's chew you up!" But I'm not hungry anymore. I stand up, saving my lunch for later.
I enter into the library to read the unfinished novel.
I held my pace till the bookshelves. Between the rows of them I sit down at the corner. Probably the section where no one can lay their eyes on me. Last rows.
Its true that reading novels is a best escape from reality. I feel my stomach is going to rumble and starts eating up its own lining. I take out my sandwich and savour on it delightfully.
"I always thought about your mom's sandwich..." This voice leaves a sudden jerk in my body. Skyler walks to me.
"You never tasted them."
He sits next to me, "I should have, right?
"Mr. Foster... I'm not in a good mood of another negotiation so kindly leave!" I take another bite of my sandwich.
He doesn't move a bit and actually he looks completely settled beside me with his knees reaching at the peak and fingers interlocked around it.
"Alright!" I speak, "I'll leave!" I was about to stand when his hand pulls my wrist to his side.
"Better you sit." He smirks.
I huff, "Now you'll threaten me, huh?"
Skyler smiles, "Mabel... "
"Goodbye!"
"Just a minute Mabel... Sit beside me.." He lay his head over my shoulder.
"This is so--" I forgot, I'm in library and almost broke the silence.
He interrupts, "Awkward and weird! I know."
Sitting stiff beside him and the way he has closed his eyes and leaned to my support looks like I'm babysitting a kid.
"I'm just sleepy... I promise I won't talk about Dylan and Zoe at all!" He sighs lowly shifting closer to me. My heart pounds. I just hope no one sees us.
"Alright just a minute!" I finish my sandwich in few minutes then continue reading and also after a minute he is still beside to me in his same posture.
I look at him once and he isn't sleeping but reading along with me. I almost lost staring at him. He is so close. Just a thin layer of my cloth separating his cheek from touching my bare shoulder. I know I'm thinking the worst thing and it is even telling me to cringe but I'm just feeling the calmness beside me.
Skyler looks drenched in his confusion while reading and blinking alternately putting his lashes into my display, "Mabel, why are you reading this novel?" I don't speak and his words deceive my thoughts. He says quite slowly, "It doesn't have a happy ending... Don't read it."
His cold icy blue eyes leads his way to mine and freezes my stare at him. I was never close to him like this before. The flecks of his eyes haven't changed a bit, it is so him.
"The story never ends here... In our imagination they still live and we make their happy endings....It is up to us what we imagine." I say slowly.
He smiles, "Is it?"
I nod and then the reality jerks me for a sudden, "Are you done sleeping? Now get aside!!"
Skyler smirks, standing up after holding the bag of his, "I wanna spend more time with you."
"What?" I huff.
"Keep your things to yourself and come with me!" He says smugly.
"What type of shit you are speaking!"
His reply comes in a sort of smirky smile, "Good shits."
Luckily after I gathered my belongings, He pulls me up straight up to to his chest and drags me across the library, gripping my hand into his.
"Where you are taking me?" I ask as he keep stepping ahead.
"We are skipping school." He pushes across the crowd and I look at us walking towards the parking lot.
"No!"
"Wanna ride?"
"NO!"
"It sounded 'Yes' to me!!" He steps close to me, "I won't eat you up.... come with me."
"That's a threat!! You cannot threaten me!!" I huff throwing my bag over my shoulder.
"I don't go against anyone's wish..." He smiles pulling me close to his side.
I give up and pull my arm away, "First tell me where you are taking me?"
"You will take me..."
"Will you stop telling me things in riddles?" I scowl.
"Alright... first let's get in my car..."
"NO! SKYLER! First you listen to me..." I pull him towards me from his sleeves.
"Say... I'm listening."
"Is any of this thing related to Dylan and Zoe?"
He doesn't speak for a moment then he pulls his arm away from me, "Do you know that you question a lot." He smirks. I squint at him but in next other minutes, He picks me up in his arms which only leaves me shock, "Are you now more comfortable?" He starts walking till his car.
"No Skyler--" I try to hold a grip around his nape.
"Shut up Mabel..." He looks down at me and smiles. He lightly once hitches my weight in his arms, "you are lighter than I thought." He winks.