MATTHEW'S POV
I dug through my closet, unable to choose a satisfactory outfit. We're just going out for a drink, so I didn't understand why I felt the need to dress up.
My eyes wandered at the contents of my wardrobe until I spotted a yellow hoodie hanging in the corner. It had the words 'Don't let the past define who you are, there's always a future to change it' inscribed on the front.
It was the hoodie Samantha bought for me. I hadn't gotten the chance to use it. I might as well wear it now to also show her I kept it.
I took my school uniform off and replaced the top with a plain brown shirt that peaked underneath the hoodie. As for the bottom part, I grabbed a random black and white jogging pants. I closed the door of my closet and walked up to the mirror, examining my reflection.
I picked the phone up from my bed, and my wallet as well since it was right next to it. At the same time, the screen lit up to show I had received a text from mom. I opened it to see what it was about.
'Hi, son. How are you? It's my break right now so I decided to text you.'
How thoughtful of my mom. She never fails to check up on me whenever she gets the chance. I was lucky to have a mom like her.
I texted back quickly when I remembered that, if I don't reply to her, she was gonna fight the guards just to see me. I didn't want to witness that. It will be horrifying seeing my own mom punch or kick someone in the face.
'I'm doing well, mom! Do you remember the competition that happens yearly at the university? I won!'
As I sent the text, I took a picture of the prized jacket that sat on the bed and sent it to my mom too. Not long after, my phone chimed.
'That's great, Matthew! What class were you put in?'
'Gymn class. We had a competition on who was the fastest.'
'Ah. It looks like those seven years in track n' field did you a favor, huh?'
'It did.'
I glanced at the time on the phone and saw a lot of minutes had passed. I was keeping Samantha waiting.
'I'll talk to you later, mom. I kind of have somewhere to be.'
'Where? What time will you be back?'
'We're just going out to celebrate. And I'll make sure to not stay up late.'
'Okay, I trust you. And my break's about to end.'
'Bye, mom.'
'Goodbye.'
That was the end of our conversation. I hurried to the door so Samantha and I could leave. When I exited the room, I almost bumped into Ashley.
"Woah, sorry." I said and pulled my body back from crashing into the black-haired girl. She squinted her eyes at me, displaying suspicion.
"Where are you going?"
"Um... Out?"
Ashley crossed her arms and a wry smile made its way to her face. "I think I told you I'd be looking at the 'rash' you were telling me about when we get here."
I completely forgot about that. I was too excited to go somewhere with Samantha that I didn't remember Ashley and I made plans to examine the weird mark on my back.
"Could we make it quick? Please? We'll talk again when I get back, I promise!"
Ashley clicked her tongue and I sighed. "That will depend if I still don't know what to do."
"Fair enough."
I let Ashley inside my bedroom and closed the door. I sat on the bed and she sat on a chair. I turned around and lifted my hoodie and shirt halfway up, giving her a slight view of my back.
After I did this, the room went quiet. A couple of seconds later, I got worried as Ashley still didn't react to it. I was about to speak first, but she seemed to find her voice and yelled, "Are you kidding me, Martinez?!"
"What? What's wrong?"
"This is not a rash! It's a tattoo!"
"Huh?!"
I ran to the bathroom, anxious and confused. My back was facing the mirror that hung above the sink and I gasped because of what I saw.
The last time I saw the 'rash', black swirls surrounded it. Now, as Ashley said, it looked like I got a tattoo, as a black drawing of a rose was imprinted on my back.
The anxiousness overwhelmed the confusion, and questions began to invade my mind once again.
'When did this happen? And how? I was sure it was just a rash! Why does it look like a tattoo? Where did I get this? Why is it a rose? Does it have a particular meaning? Oh man, if my mom and the principal find out, I'm doomed. They'll think I became a delinquent because I have this on my back. Wait... Ashley's the principal's daughter!'
I walked back to Ashley, and without sounding very convincing, I said, "I swear I didn't get a tattoo, I don't even know how this happened."
I know I shouldn't be thinking about expulsion when an odd tattoo magically appeared on my back, but I was still a student too, okay?
Ashley gestured for me to come closer. "Show me your backside again."
I did as I was told. Ashley hummed, inspecting every inch of the mysterious mark. "I think I saw this drawing before."
That made me feel slightly better, but still nervous. "You do?"
"It was in one of my dad's books. Unfortunately, I do not have it and it was left back at home."
Ashley pulled my shirt down, indicating she was done observing it. "I'll get it on Sunday. Since tomorrow is Saturday and we have to go down the underworld, I can't go."
"I see. It's okay." I sighed deeply a few times to calm myself. Ashley noticed this and patted me on the shoulder skeptically.
"We'll figure this out, Martinez. I'll do whatever I can to help."
I felt comforted by Ashley's words. I made the right decision to turn to her for help. I didn't feel alone anymore. "Thank you, Ashley."
"Matthew?" I flinched at Samantha's voice from the other side of the door. "I-Is everything alright? You've been in there f-for some time now."
I felt like a jerk now. Samantha had waited and was worried that something happened to me. I owe her for the patience she has.
"Um..." I look at Ashley and the door back-and-forth, not knowing what to do. The blue-eyed girl was oblivious to what I had in mind and casually opened the door to reveal Samantha standing with a concerned expression. I tried to stop Ashley, but it was too late.
"Oh!" Samantha stepped back, surprised that Ashley was with me. "Am I i-interrupting something?"
"No." Ashley shook her head. "I just went and discussed something with Martinez. Nothing serious." She side-eyed me and gave a knowing nod. Samantha caught sight of this, yet remained quiet.
"Yeah, it's nothing important." I backed Ashley's statement up. If Samantha found out about the black rose on my back, I might as well never show up here again.
"O-Okay." Samantha didn't press any further. "A-Are we still going to t-the café?"
"Yes!" I moved closer to Samantha until I was at arm's length. "Can you wait downstairs? I'll just finish up with Ashley a little bit."
Samantha wanted to say something but decided against it. She then nodded, turned around, and descended the stairs. I looked back at Ashley to see she was staring at Samuel's door that was ajar. That guy can't lock a door, can't he?
"Are you going for it?" I asked. Ashley shrugged and bit her lip. Her blue orbs softened for the first time, abandoning the fierceness that was always shown in her eyes.
"Samuel is a nice guy, Ashley." I tried to assure her with my own comfort words. "He'll understand you."
Ashley closed her eyes for a good moment before reopening them. She trekked towards the front of Samuel's door and glanced at me. I got the message and left her there. As I went down the stairs, I heard her say, "Samuel? It's me. Can I come in?"
I didn't linger to listen anymore and power-walked my way to Samantha, who now has a sling bag hanging from her shoulders. She saw me approaching and smiled. "Are you r-ready?"
"Mhm. Let's go." I said after apologizing quickly for making her wait.
I opened the front door for Samantha. She gave me a small smile as she walked out, but stopped not too far. "Mister A-Angelo?"
The principal was still here, busy with his phone. Upon hearing Samantha's voice, mister Angelo looked up. "Ah, yes? Can I help you?"
"We're just w-wondering why you're s-still here? Aren't you suppose t-to be at the elite b-building, sir?"
"I was just finishing up with an employee. The plane is ready to go for the flight to France, which will happen in one week."
This hyped me up. Since my mother was a stewardess, I've often gone with her on flights and we'd stay at a hotel. But, of course, it was short-lived and it has been a while since my last trip to another country. Sure, the reason for this flight was because we needed to search for the 'Shoala' flower that was said to make people forget a part of their memories, nonetheless, I was excited.
"And what about you, kids?" Mister Angelo crossed his arms. "Where are you two going? And at this time?"
"Oh... Well, we were just going out to grab drinks and-"
"Going out?" The principal interrupted, an eyebrow raised in a questioning manner. The way his tone shifted made both my and Samantha's cheeks red. We began to defend ourselves after the short stun.
"I-It's not like that, sir! We're going to hang out-"
"N-No, sir Angelo, we j-just wanted to celebrate by going o-outside-
"-as friends!"
We finished at the same time at 'as friends' and our faces were hot. The principal gazed at us for a while before breaking into a small smile. He sighed, "Young love."
Because of our distance and his voice became soft, we didn't quite hear what he said. "Pardon, sir?"
"Oh, don't mind me. I was just feeling a bit nostalgic." He waved us off. "Anyway, do you students want a ride? I'll drop you off anywhere as long as it doesn't pass the school."
"Yes, please." I said. "It's near the school."
The principal opened the door to the driver's seat. Before he went in though, he spoke. "Great, let's go, then."
I opened the door and stepped aside so Samantha could enter the limousine first. She smiled gratefully with a faint blush on her cheeks. I followed in after her and sat down. The soft-leathered seat crinkled underneath me as I slammed the door shut. The roar of the engine swelled excitement in me as the car sped up.
I sometimes wished it would only be like this - a normal day out with friends, your worries were just homework and projects, not this elite stuff. I knew that I was the one who dragged myself into this. And honestly, I don't think I hate it, although some circumstances happened and it made me question everything, but there were also good things that came out of this, and that was meeting Samuel and the others. Just sitting here right next to Samantha felt good.
I closed my eyes and leaned back, finding comfort in the leathered seat of the limousine. After a long day of running and unanswered questions, I needed something like this. I needed to relax and have fun.
"S-So, about this place..." Samantha spoke up which caused me to open my eyes and look at her. "This café... What was it c-called again?"
"Beanylicious café?"
"You said a friend b-brought you to t-this café."
"True."
"Oh, I see. Well, um..." She started playing with her fingers and kept glancing down at her lap. "I was wondering i-if you have anything to do a-afterward?"
"Hmmm..." I thought about it. "I don't think so. Why?"
"I j-just - I mean you're s-still relatively new here so I..." She pursed her lips into a line. "I wanted t-to show you places too."
My heart jumped out of my chest at the last line. It was a simple gesture and it probably meant nothing, but I couldn't help but blush and feel warm inside when she said that. Then, I got excited. It was just Samantha and me, going sightseeing in the city. We might have fun and get to know each other more in the process. I could find out her likes and dislikes. This was an advantage for me so I wouldn't get on her bad side. I wasn't going to pass this chance.
"Well, I'm free after this." I tried to hide a smile. "And I'll appreciate it if you do show me around."
Samantha lit up and giggled, her smile mesmerized me. "I don't m-mind. I know a lot o-of cool places here anyway!" She proudly said. "And the city v-view here is amazing."
"I can't wait." I chuckled, keeping my answer short as I may stutter as well because of her cuteness.
"Don't stay out too late, kids." I forgot Samantha and I weren't alone. "The streets may have dangerous people capable of hurting someone, even high schoolers like you."
I coughed, remembering the time someone followed me and Samuel. "Of course, mister Angelo. We won't stay out after dark."
Feeling assured, the principal proceeded to drive to his destination. Samantha and I looked up at the dainty shop that gave off a faint scent of coffee and sweets.
Looking through the glass door and windows, we could see there weren't many people, unlike the time I was first introduced to this shop.
I cleared my throat as I glanced at Samantha. "So, shall we?"
I opened the door for Samantha - again- and she smiled - again. I was scoring points with this 'open-the-door-for-her' gesture.
When we entered, Samantha looked around the place, taking it all in. I was studying her reaction, what she thought of this place. She turned to me and our eyes met.
"W-What?" She squeaked out.
"Oh..." I looked away. I scolded myself for staring and I probably creeped her out. "... I was just wondering... What do you think of this place."
"It's cute." I could see her nod in approval. "And they sell s-sweets! This place could b-be the perfect place to hang out after school f-for a quick bite."
"I agree. And speaking of bites..." I walked up to the counter. "I'm hungry. Come on."
She followed behind and stopped to look at the menu. We stood in silence, waiting for a cashier to notice us and for Samantha to finish picking what she wants.
As for me, my eyes darted around the shop until I noticed something.
At every occupied table, there were two people sitting across from each other. Others were giggling as they talked, some were holding hands across the table, and one became lovey-dovey with each other.
I could feel warmth on my cheeks when I realized that all of the customers here were couples! And it didn't help that we were here too.
I could hear Samantha mumbling about what to get. She gave up and asked me instead. "What do you think I s-should get?"
"I could help you there, miss!" A cashier piped up. Getting a menu, he pointed at a specific letter item, which had a chocolate mocha drink, a strawberry frappe, and a caramel ice cream.
"Couples get a discount for this item since it's the owner's and her husband's anniversary today! So, they thought of this promo. Would you like to order it?
Samantha and I tensed up. If someone were to touch my face, they might think I had a high fever.
The blonde and I looked at each other, our faces red. We thought of the same thing.
'Couple?!'