- "Every decision for something is a decision against something else" -
~ Anonymous
A thick fog of silence prevailed for what seemed like an eternity with the exception of Emma's laboured breathing, the light surrounding chatter and the symphony of humming machinery and air conditioning. It was all a lot to process at once and nothing was more suffocating than the hostility he felt protruding from Emma. Despite this, however, everything else around them continued almost as normal. The resounding beep of the scanner came alive malignantly every now and then as people continued to scan their grocery, the replenishers continued to work the same 9 - 8 job that they did everyday with the same robotic and drained movements until something enticing scooped them out of there, people continued to murmur about what escalated. At the end of it all, people went about their business, regardless of what happened and it was nothing really special or unexpected.
Emma felt her blood run cold and she grew an even deeper disliking for the boy before her the longer she stared at him. He surpassed 'annoying', an adjective she was yet to put a finger on. Watching the way he became startled and the pity that flooded his eyes made every cell in her body shrivel with cringe. Despite the pain, she released a hearty chuckle from the depths of her chest cavity only for him to hear. She grunted internally. She supposed it was like they said: only the weak would stare at unsolved problems and shiver.
Lifting her palm to her chest, she reassured herself of the material of her hoodie and clenched it tightly like her life depended on it, quivering under the nauseousness. Her sharp gaze held a rich fog of gray.
"You know... Sanchez, one thing you should learn..." she croaked and winced in pain while holding her chest, "is that you only pity... the weak."
Her words came out broken and hoarse. It hurt each time she let a word roll off her tongue. The broken words left Liam lost in thoughts and confusion and he made a twisted expression, gathering his fingers into a fist.
"Besides..." she continued, "someone else's mistake has nothing to do with you."
"W- what the hell is that even supposed to mean-"
"We're still working on a bargain. You shouldn't let the other party off so easily now, should you?" she scoffed in disgust.
Liam bit down on his lower lip. She must have lost some form of sanity from the hit, he thought, or was she just so obsessed with being first place that not even her health was something of concern even in dire straits.
"What are you? A work-driven maniac? W- what happened? You look like you got beaten up in a serious fight. I know it can't just be the hit that left you looking like that..."
She stared at him intensely and struggled to weave her fingers together. She mumbled, "Well, we both are two different people writing our own history books after all, as we continue to live. I already know what I want written inside mine."
"What are you talking about? Don't you think you should be a little self-centered right now and care about yourself at least?"
She gritted her teeth and soon somewhat of a smirk played off on her lips. "I am being self-centered right now. Besides, I never do anything that isn't of benefit to me. You can either live with your problems, leave your problems or solve your problems after all."
Liam raised an eyebrow and threw a glance around them. No one in particular was paying them any particular attention. The grocery replenisher who had initially notified him about the accident seemed caught up in a serious conversation with other employees and the cashiers from earlier seemed occupied also. It was almost as if life proceeded as normal but restrained them in a time frame.
"Emma... just tell me what happened. A hit to the head doesn't just leave someone's face looking like that. Maybe... I could help y-"
"I want to offer you a proposal," she cut through.
He swallowed hard. A proposal? What was it with her and deals, he wondered.
"Having expectations of others, Sanchez... you'd just be waiting for disappointment and heartbreak. You should stop. How about instead you hear out my proposal?"
"Go on then," he murmured with his heart running on a treadmill.
"This is the second deal I'm offering you," she said, the hoodie keeping her face hidden half the entire time, "I can compensate you with lunch for the remaining of the month that I'd be teaching you and provide you with an easy pass of earning status at school. I think this would be of great benefit to you seeing that you are the only student in the class who's not engaged in a co-curricular activity. With status, it should be easy on your behalf to maneuver some things. It can be quite useful, trust me."
Liam narrowed his eyes and felt anxiety begin to pent up out of nowhere.
"And what would I have to do-"
"Well it's simple," she muttered melancholically, "Never bring up, talk about, hint to or even mention this situation ever. Not even after we have finished discussing about it."
"And what if I refuse?"
"You'd never refuse... If I compensate you with lunch for the remaining of the month, you can save money and plus, the longing for status... for betterment- I see it in your eyes. I think it's a reasonable offer... but I wasn't finished," she trailed off suddenly.
"I- " she was hesitant for moment before she exclaimed, "I need to you to- to find a way out of this. Help me escape..."
His pupils dilated and his lips parted. All he could hear was his pounding heart between his lungs. It was something unexpected. No- strange rather. The longer he stared at her, the more he felt the growing warmth of the irritation and the desperation to be out of the situation despite the incessant pain.
"Emma... what if I told you I may not be able to do that? That request... you know how impossible that is, don't you?"
"A wise man once said anything is solvable just with the right formula and tactics. Nothing is impossible. It's not that I can't do it myself... It's just that I'm not in the right position to do it myself," she ended with a dry rash cough.
"But how?" he interrogated, squirming to his feet. By the then, the ice pack was half melted.
"All you have to do, is just make one call for me. I'll tell you the number."
"But isn't that something you could do?"
"Sanchez, it hurts to move. I thought you would be smart enough to know that."
Just in that moment, steady but quick footsteps began to approach them. It spiked the adrenaline in her body and her heart began to rock like a thousand men on horses. They both knew it was them, coming to inform them about how near or far the ambulance probably was and for the second time, since he joined the school and came to know her, he saw her soft side come to life.
"Sanchez, I am counting on you for this... Just call the number I'm about to tell you, please...," her gaze softened and she lowered her eyes that now came into view, "I don't own a phone!"