"Nutella?"
"No."
"Strawberries with cream?"
I shake my head. "No."
"Ice cream?"
"No."
"I know, how about all of them? Ice cream, strawberries, and Nutella?"
I just shake my head again, and Yoshi adjusts his glasses.
"I give up."
We're alone in an empty classroom. The last class just ended, and Yoshi is trying to cheer me up. It's Friday, and I've spent the week dragging myself around school. I haven't had the courage to tell anyone what happened, not even Dani. I'm so disappointed in myself. I don't think I'm capable of talking about it yet.
"Come on, Rochi. Whatever happened, don't let it bring you down. Fight," he advises me, caressing my cheek.
"I don't want to."
"Let's go get some ice cream. Give it a try, okay?" His pretty eyes plead with me from behind his glasses, and I can't say no to him. He's right. I can't do anything to turn back time.
Yoshi extends his hand to me. "Shall we go?"
I smile at him and take his hand. "Let's go."
We buy ice cream and sit in the town square. It's a beautiful day. Even though it's after four o'clock, the sun is still shining as if it were noon.
"Remember when we used to come here every afternoon after elementary school?" Yoshi asks.
I smile at the memory. "Yeah, we became friends with the lady who sold candy."
"And she gave us free ones."
I laugh, remembering our cheeks filled with sweets. Yoshi laughs with me.
"That's the way I like it. You look prettier smiling."
I raise an eyebrow. "Are you admitting that I'm pretty?"
"More or less, maybe with a few drinks in me I would try to win you over."
"Only with a few drinks? Nah!"
"What about Dani? I haven't seen her at school," he says as he eats a spoonful of ice cream.
"That's because she's missed two days. She's helping her mother with a project at the agency."
Dani's mom runs a very prestigious modeling agency. She's a total badass. She started her own business when Dani was a kid, and it has only grown since. Now her modeling agency is one of the most important in the state. Dani's dad on the other hand is more of a relaxed and go-with-the-flow type. He's a college professor in the art department at a nearby community college. I feel like Dani got a good combination of both her parents' personalities. She's fierce like her mom, but also empathetic and relaxed like her father.
Yoshi shakes his head. "It's the first week of school, and she's already missing classes, typical Dani."
"It's good that she's smart and can catch up superfast."
"Yeah."
Licking my ice cream, I notice Yoshi staring at me as if waiting for something.
"Rochi, you know you can trust me?" he asks, and I know where this is going. "You don't have to deal with things alone."
I exhale sadly. "I know, it's just . . . I'm so disappointed in myself, and I don't want to disappoint anyone else."
"You could never disappoint me."
"Don't be so sure."
His eyes look at me expectantly. "Trust me. Maybe talking about it will help you feel a little better."
There's no easy way to say it, so I just say it, straight out. "I lost my virginity."
"What?" Yoshi almost spits his ice cream in my face. "You're kidding, right?"
I tighten my lips. "No."
"How? When? With who? Shit, Raquel!" Indecipherable expressions cross his face. He gets up and throws his ice cream aside. "Shit!"
People are starting to stare, so I get up and try to calm him down. "Yoshi, it's okay."
"With who?" His face is red, the veins visible in his neck and forehead. "You don't even have a boyfriend. Tell me who it was!"
"Keep your voice down!"
Yoshi grabs his head and turns his back on me to kick a trash can. Okay, that wasn't the reaction I was expecting.
"Yoshi, you're overreacting. Calm down."
He runs a hand over his face and turns to me. "Tell me who he is, so I can beat the hell out of him."
"This is not the time to act like the jealous, overprotective big brother."
He laughs sarcastically. "Big brother? You think this is the reaction of a big brother? You're so fucking blind."
"What the hell is wrong with you?"
He looks at me and a thousand things seem to be going through his mind. "You're blind," he says in a whisper. "I need to get some air. I'll see you around."
And he's gone, just like that, leaving me speechless. Melted ice cream rolls down the waffle cone in my hand and drips to the ground. What the fuck just happened?
Tired and confused, I head home.
It's Saturday, and it's my turn to clean.
Grumbling, I refer to the to-do list my mother gave me. I've almost done everything, only my room is left, so I turn on my computer and play music to motivate me to tidy up. I open my Facebook and leave it open because, now that I don't have a phone, it's become my only means of communication.
I'm listening to "The Heart Wants What It Wants" by Selena Gomez while I tidy up my mess. I pick up the air conditioner control and use it as a microphone to sing the words. Rocky turns his head to the side, and I kneel in front of him, singing to him.
"You're crazy!" my mother shouts from the door. "That's why it takes you so long to clean up! You have the poor dog traumatized."
"You always ruin my inspiration," I mutter, getting up. "Rocky is delighted with my voice."
"Hurry up and get your dirty clothes and bring them to me, I'm going to do the laundry today," she orders, before leaving.
Pouting, I look at Rocky. "She still doesn't recognize my talent."
"Raquel!" Mom yells at me from the stairs.
"I'm coming!"
After I bring her my clothes and finish with my room, I sit down in front of the computer. I go to my Facebook messages, and I'm surprised to find a message from Dani and one from Ares. He and I aren't friends on Facebook, but I know he can still message me. My stupid heart races and my stomach fills with butterflies. I can't believe he still has that effect on me despite what happened.
I open his message, nervous.
Ares: Witch.
Really? Who says hello like that? Just him. Curious to know what he has to say, I answer curtly.
Me: What?
He takes a while, and I get more and more anxious.
Ares: Stop by my house when you can.
So he can use me again? No, thank you, I want to write back, but I don't want to give him the pleasure of knowing how bad he made me feel.
Me: You're crazy. Why would I do that?
Ares: You left something here.
Me: I told you I don't want the phone.
Ares sends a photo.
When I open it, it's a picture of his hand holding the silver chain my mom gave me when I was nine years old. It has a pendant with my name on it. Instinctively, my hand goes up to my neck to confirm that I don't have it. I have never taken it off. How did I not realize that I didn't have it? Maybe I was too busy with my postdeflowering spite.
The thought of seeing Ares fills me with both rage and excitement. That jerk has spread his instability to me. Regaining a bit of my dignity, I type a reply.
Me: You can send it to school with Apolo on Monday.
Ares: Are you afraid to see me?
Me: I don't want to see you.
Ares: Liar.
Me: Think what you want.
Ares: Why are you angry?
Me: And you dare to ask. Just send it with Apolo and leave me alone.
Ares: I don't understand your anger, we both know how much you liked it. I remember your moans clearly.
I blush and look away. I feel stupid because he can't see me.
Me: Ares, I don't want to talk to you.
Ares: You're going to be mine again, Witch.
A sinful shiver runs through me. No, no, Raquel, don't fall. I don't answer him and leave him on seen. He writes again.
Ares: If you want your chain, come and get it. I'm not going to send it via anyone. I'll wait for you here, bye.
I growl in frustration. If Mom finds out I lost that necklace, she'll kill me. After showering and putting on a casual floral print summer dress, I go to rescue my chain. I have my strategy laid out so I won't fall for his games. I won't even go into his house. I'll wait for him to bring the chain outside.
Project Chain Rescue Without Losing My Dignity Along the Way: activated.