Just then, as the two headed down the hallway, Simon was already waiting in front of his class. He was leaning up against the wall with his hands in his pockets, but as soon as he saw Mai, he jumped up and started to wave.
"Hey, so you haven't died of embarrassment." Simon said. "I'm starving and was wondering if something happened."
Suddenly, Simon's eyes noticed the beauty standing by Mai's side. In nearly an instant, Simon could feel certain feelings in his stomach. He immediately placed his arm around the back of Mai's neck and pulled her down and away from Shirley.
"Hey, who's the cute friend? I've never seen you hang out with anyone cute like that other than me?" Simon confidently whispered.
"What a big head you have. It's no wonder you haven't seen her, she's a new girl who just started to attend. I'm looking after her right now since Mr. Hilston asked me to."
Turning around, he took a peek at her once again and could see Shirley's smile that seemed to always be plastered on her face.
"I never offered you this before because there was nothing in it for me, but how about a little arrangement. You help set me up with Mrs future Lockheart and I'll do my best to help you with Chris."
"How the hell would you even do that? You don't even know Chris that well!" Mai angrily whispered back.
"So what? I can get to know him! With my charm it shouldn't be a problem and then we can start hanging out as a group of friends. Yes he rejected you but that doesn't mean he will reject you forever. You'll still be able to upgrade from girl friend to girlfriend in the future."
Usually Mai wouldn't agree to such a thing, but hearing Simon's words reminded her of the dream she had. In the dream she had been called Chris' wife.
Meeting Shirley, now, maybe it wasn't a dream. If that was the case, then wouldn't that mean Mai and Chris needed to get together somehow and this was the start.
"Fine, deal!"
Heading back, Mai introduced Shirley to Simon, and allowed her childhood friend to give the tour while they were walking around and headed off to the school canteen. The two of them got on surprisingly well.
By the time they sat down the two of them were both joking and laughing as they talked to each other while eating their food, and Mai couldn't help but think the two of them definitely looked cute and suited each other.
'I guess I'm just one of those destined to be alone forever.'
When lunch was almost over, Simon made a suggestion to all of them.
"So Shirley, since you just recently moved to our village, I'm guessing you don't know too many people yet. Why don't I add your number, and on the weekend, all of us and a couple of my friends can hang out together." Simon suggested, winking across to Mai.
"Sure." Shirley readily accepted and the three of them now exchanged their numbers.
The rest of the day was uneventful and was more of the usual school life. Chris acted as if Mai had never confessed. The only ones that would constantly remind her were Vicky and her two cronies as they talked about it behind her back
But she didn't care, or at least she acted like she didn't.
On the way home, she decided to walk back on her own again. Simon seemed preoccupied to take her back on his bike. She was reminded of the rumours going around about him, and felt bad. Also now that he was trying to get with Shirley, she didn't want to ruin his image or make Shirley get the wrong idea about the two of them.
The rest of her day also proceeded like all those before yesterday. Nobody cared that it had been her birthday just one day ago, or that she had humiliated herself. At least the dramas she allowed herself to watch after her homework would never judge her.
'I wonder if I'll have the same dream again.' Mai thought when it was time to head to bed.
However, it was a struggle for her to get to sleep. Her mind kept wandering to see her best friend Simon talking to Shirley at the canteen today. They seemed like a really good fit.
'If the two of them get together, I bet they'll start going on dates and will soon want to be together, without me.'
This thought started to sting deeply in Mai's chest and she felt a lump in her throat as she imagined Simon never talking to her again. If he left her, then she would feel truly alone. With this once again tears started running down her face, and one fell on to the green gem she was wearing.
For the second day in a row, Mai had cried herself to sleep, and when she opened her eyes again, she found herself in an apartment she had never seen before.
The apartment was mostly empty as it looked like everything was being packed away, and even Mai herself appeared to have been in the middle of packing things inside. Currently in her hand was a picture frame of her and Chris, looking older than they were now.
'So I really am dreaming about this again? Is this after the funeral?' Mai wondered, as she placed the frame back and tried to get her bearings around the apartment.
It was a small cozy apartment, which had several things that suited her taste inside, but at the same time things she had never seen before. She looked out the window, and was surprised. She could see a street with cars and several high-rise buildings all around.
'Did the two of us move to the city after getting married?' She started to wonder.
Walking around she didn't really know what to do, unlike other dreams, this all felt so real. In dreams you would get fractions of their memory, but she could remember everything, and when she rubbed her hands against the chest of drawers it felt so real, and that's when she spotted something.
At the end hanging on the corner of the chest of draws was a mobile phone. It didn't look like one she recognised but she somehow knew it was hers. Optics screen phone with a pin on it.
She tried her usual PIN and it worked. There was a picture of her, with her arms wrapped around Chris' back. Finally there was the date on the top right, april 15th 2032.
'Exactly ten years huh, I wonder what would have happened in those ten years.'
Looking at the phone again, this time her eyes wandered to the photo.
'I look so happy.' She thought. 'We really seem to be happy to be together, so why did you not want me as your girlfriend, Chris?'
However, looking through the phone a thought came to her head, concerning a conversation that had happened today. She went through her list of contacts and as expected there was a familiar name, one she had just learned today.
Shirley Whitwaker,
The number also seemed to be the same one given to her only hours ago.
'Should I give her a call?'
******
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