After a while, the saleslady arrived with the dresses. I tried them on one by one and chose a simple white dress with a plain design. Asher also bought me a pair of high-heeled sandals. I almost stumbled while trying them on.
"Is it okay? I can barely walk in these heels; I'm not used to wearing them." I said, still wearing the dress and sandals.
"Perfect, you're so beautiful, Aria. The dress and heels look great on you." Asher said.
I felt embarrassed and awkwardly smiled at him. But honestly, hearing those words was heartwarming, especially coming from Asher. It made me feel truly beautiful.
He offered to take me out to eat before we left the mall, but I was full from our earlier cafeteria meal. So, we just bought ice cream. Asher also wanted to drop me off at home, but I told him to take me to the university instead because that's where my bike was. I'd also pick up Kai on the way home, since I planned to drop by his school.
When we arrived at the university, I quickly got out of his car in the parking lot.
"Asher, thank you so much for the things you bought for me." I said.
"No problem, Aria. You're always welcome." Asher replied.
"And I have to go now; I have a business meeting." he added. I nodded, and he drove off. I went to my bike.
Just as I was about to pedal away, I heard someone call out, "Aria!" I turned around to see Carissa, the president of the art club, running towards me.
"Why, Pres?" I asked, surprised.
"Get to the art club." she said, which startled me.
"B-but how? I didn't see my name on the list of those who passed." I said.
"Cairo came to the art club earlier. He was furious and destroyed all the canvas paintings in the room. He threw around the chairs, and what he wanted was for us to accept you into the art club. He's Cairo Hayes; we couldn't defy him, so you're in." President Carissa explained.
I was shocked by what I heard. Instead of feeling happy, I was more annoyed. Cairo really went overboard by destroying the art club's paintings. Is he out of his mind? Does he think I'd be grateful for his actions? Now they were forced to accept me because of his nonsense.
It's infuriating. And I don't even know how he found out I didn't pass. Maybe Denzel told him. But why is he interfering? What does he care about the decisions of the art club judges? Why is he acting like this?
"Don't worry, I'm not joining the art club." I said calmly.
"B-but… that's what Cairo said. That we should accept you into the art club." Pres said.
"He's the only one who said that. I do want to join the art club, but I respect the judges' decision. If I didn't pass, it means I still have things to improve in my art skills. I accept that, and I'm annoyed by what he did." I explained.
"He'll be angry if he finds out you're not in the art club." Pres responded.
"And he'll be the one to get angry? Don't worry, I'll talk to him. He'd better get ready for me." I said, extremely irritated.
"What's your plan now?" Pres asked.
"I'm planning to audition for the art club again, and I'll prove to Cairo that he was wrong. I should be accepted into the art club because I'm qualified, not just because he insisted and intimidated you all." I said.
"You're something else, Aria." Pres replied.
I wondered what she meant by that. I had already made my decision earlier, when I talked to Asher. I would audition again for the art club, and it was because of him, because he's my inspiration with his constant belief in me.
After the art club president left, I stayed in the parking lot. I planned to wait for Cairo. I could still see his car from here, he hadn't gone home yet. I wanted to confront him about the chaos he caused at the art club. I was really angry. I would go home later; I needed to talk to him first.
Soon enough, Cairo arrived with Denzel and Sade.
"Aria, are you going home too?" Sade asked.
"Yes, but I still have someone to talk to." I replied meaningfully. Sade and Denzel then looked at Cairo, probably understanding what I meant.
"Hey you, Cairo! I found out what you did at the art club earlier. You're out of your mind!" I shouted at Cairo, unable to hold back my anger.
"Dude, you guys go ahead." Cairo told Sade and Denzel. The two of them just patted him on the shoulder, laughing and shaking their heads.
"You're in trouble again, dude, with Ms. Aria." Denzel teased Cairo. Then the two of them got into their car and left the university. Cairo and I were left alone.
"So you found out, huh? You should actually be happy because they're going to accept you into the art club." Cairo said.
"Be happy? Really? You want me to be happy about what you did? You're ridiculous." I shouted at him, my face showing intense anger. His face reflected his own deep frustration, his eyes narrowing with irritation.
"And you're the one who's angry, Aria?" he said, pointing his finger at me.
"You think everything can be solved by your tantrums. You went and destroyed the paintings there without even considering that each painting represents the hard work of an artist. You did that just because of your crazy behavior." I said angrily. I'm so irritated and upset for what he had done.
"What the f*ck, Aria, am I the bad guy now?!" he yelled at me.
"Yes, you're the bad guy! What you did was really bad! You should have just left them alone; you have no respect for the judges' decision." I retorted.
"Damn it! F*ck all those f*cking judges! They didn't see that you're talented; they failed you in the audition! Aria! Are you taking their side now?" Cairo shouted back at me, his face close to mine, his anger and frustration evident in his eyes.
"And you want me to accept that I'm in the art club just because of your tantrum? Are you trying to make me feel like I can't pass that club on my own merits?" I yelled back. His face contorted with even more rage at my words.
"THIS IS BULLSH*T! DO YOU REALLY THINK, ARIA, THAT THIS IS THE REASON I DID THAT?!" he yelled furiously at my face, gripping my shoulders tightly. He was so angry it seemed like he might hit me.
"Yes, Cairo! What other reason could there be?!" I shouted back.
"I DID IT FOR YOU! BECAUSE I'M ANNOYED SEEING YOU CRYING OVER THAT BULLSH*T ART CLUB! WHAT ELSE DO YOU WANT ME TO DO, ARIA?! I'M DOING EVERYTHING I CAN FOR YOU, WHY CAN'T YOU SEE THAT, ARIA?!" Cairo shouted at me, his anger palpable.
He still hadn't let go of my shoulders. I was stunned by what I heard. I couldn't speak. I just stared into his eyes, which were burning with rage. What did he mean? And what did he mean by being annoyed seeing me cry... wait, did he see me with Asher earlier? Yes, I did cry earlier and I wiped my tears quickly, but did he see that? I was bombarded with questions in my mind.