It was almost 7 PM when Aiden said goodbye to his colorful group of friends. The 2-D boys and girls were certainly a peculiar group. Perhaps due to the high of having lunch with three of the "Goddesses," Louis was upbeat; as for the rest, Aiden, Saya and Antonio wouldn't lie, it was a rare opportunity, and they were all, for one reason or another, moved. So, when classes ended, the energetic Frenchman proposed that the group go out to play.
Surprisingly, no one opposed, not even the girls of 2-D, the infamous B.A.D. known for their seriousness regarding the academic. They were also, especially Lucille, delighted after finally having had a pleasant conversation with Jin.
Blair, the delegate, agreed, not before reasoning to herself that "Well, I wouldn't mind a change of scenery right now. Besides, classes just started, it's now before it really gets tough."
Lucille, on the other hand, always liked to go for a walk or shopping when she was in a good mood, and this time was no different, she just went along with the flow and signed up. Saya, at Louis's request, tried to drag his sister along, to no success this time around. For unknown reasons, she politely declined the invitation, but made sure to state that it was appreciated.
The group of six young people at the peak of their adolescence went to the shopping district, and took a couple of turns around the usual places. They walked around an hour in a mall where the girls checked out accessories —always grinning at finding good deals—, bought extravagant and colorful drinks; the guys on their side accompanied them without complaining, patiently waiting their turn. When it finally came, they chose a noisy and epileptic inducing arcade, where they had a pretty decent collection.
Starting from the back, a section of retro video games, followed by a virtual reality area; in the front, the typical rigged games to lose all your money; the second and third floor were full of more kinetic games and activities. Almost every five meters, there was a vending machine with drinks and snacks.
They stayed in the room for about an hour and a half, during which they tried various activities: Lucille beat, although the correct term would be beat up, Louis in a fighting game in the virtual reality section, while Saya laughed with all her might watching the show; Antonio broke a record in the retro section. Stoic as he posed, inside he felt a deep sense of pride doing so.
This was how most of the harmonious afternoon of the young people passed. Someone once said that a teenager shouldn't be buried in books all the time, the boys, and girls present that afternoon could not agree more in their hearts and exploded spirits.
Aiden had a good time too, he could not lie, but compared to his normal behavior he had been hushed; he was rather reserved, usually, but when the spirits increased so did his extraversion. This time, however, he remained mostly as a secondary character, in the background. He had played nothing and only bought a bottle of water during the whole time they were walking around, which surprised Blair.
He asked what was wrong with him, if he didn't feel well or if he had something on his mind. A little taken aback, he didn't know how to respond. Saya took the lead in that situation. He began to joke about how Aiden had spent most of his monthly income on Maika.
—And for nothing, poor thing. The girl changed schools after the fire incident, even stopped attending when classes resumed —said the unreserved blonde-haired Asian boy.
Blair suddenly felt everything click; the recent long face, the dark circles under his eyes, the depressed attitude, why he was buying the same super cheap menu every day. It all made sense, at least to her, and she pitied the unfortunate young man, who looked no different from a downhearted puppy in her eyes.
The poor thing did not even have a functional dining room in his residence, she thought. That's how she came up with the perfect way to cheer up the young man who had been her subordinate last year. As the class delegate, she couldn't allow low spirits in her classroom that affect the average grades of the entire class.
—I started cooking in the evenings recently, to relieve stress, after all, a teenager can't be drowned in books all the time; privileges of winning the affection of the staff —she said, puffing out her chest and with a proud smile—. By pure coincidence, I thought, if I'm already cooking anyway, it doesn't cost me anything to make a little more and save it for the next day. I'm not superb yet, but what do you say, Aiden, would you like me to prepare something for you for a few days? Until you recover from this financial depression, of course. So don't worry and just accept.
Blair's expression transformed into an innocent and dazzling smile that not only moved Aiden's heart, but the hearts of all those present by such a display of affection and sacrifice for a single classmate. Truly, the unconditional act of someone was called one of the four goddesses. The four youths were on the brink of tears, thinking that a pair of wings would extend from their delegate's backs, while Lucille looked proud and gave her friend a pat on the back.
Thereafter, the afternoon was over, so the youth's said goodbye and returned to their respective dormitories. Either to do homework or review the material for the next day, which is almost a necessity, even for geniuses, to keep up with the demands of school in most academic institutions in this city.
—The delegate is a saint!!! The angel of our building, she almost moved me to tears! —said Aiden on his way to the reserve dormitory—. I feel bad for not having thrown myself on the rail tracks as her sub-delegate this year, but I have more important things now.
He did not feel like waiting for the bus on the only line that would leave him close, so he decided to walk to the dormitory, tacking the scenic route even.
He was used to leaving his suitcase at school, but this time he had decided to bring it with him to copy some notes. Aiden tightened his grip and gave a small jump onto the sidewalk.
He walked, taking his time, avoiding the events of the day in his mind. Suddenly, the night devoured the last remnants of the day. There were no stars tonight, but the sky was just as beautiful as any other night. The shameful moon, occasionally, revealed its splendor; however, stayed present behind the cloudy veils in the sky, watching Aiden walk calmly.
Despite being summer, a cold wind cut through the warm night from time to time. A shiver made the boy tremble while a gust blew around him.
Aiden took the phone from his left pocket and immediately entered an instant messaging application. The familiar logo and green background loaded in less than a second, put the suitcase under his arm, and with both hands sent a text that said: "Howdy, any issues with the move?"
With the phone still in his hands, crossed his arms and shook his shoulders when a gust of wind slightly shook all the hairs on his body, making drop the suitcase. The ugly feeling of shiver colored as dread at lunch had not left him completely.
Then, the sudden vibration and generic tune from the phone made him tense his muscles for a moment. He checked instinctively who the caller was, let the synthetic melody sound for a few seconds, and answered.
—Hey.
—Hey.
Both remained silent after exchanging greetings. He wouldn't know from the other side, but a slight smile had formed on the caller's face; especially, the same as his own.