Beep-beep-beep! The piercing sound of the alarm shattered the silence of the morning, but it didn't affect the two girls who were sleeping soundly on the single bed.
Their room was a mess. Snack wrapper trash and some soft drink cans were scattered on the floor. A laptop played one of the episodes of the currently hot Korean drama "Crash Landing on You." It seemed like the two girls had stayed the whole night to watch the drama and accidentally fell asleep when the morning came.
One of the girls started reacting to the alarm sound. She had long, straight hair and a round face and was chubbier than the girl lying next to her. She grabbed her glasses from the study table, which was placed behind the bed.
"Cel, can you please wake up and turn off your alarm? It's so disturbing. Why did you set the alarm too early and can't even wake?" Said Elysia while shaking Celestine's body to wake her up.
"Uhmm. It's not my alarm." Celestine whined as she felt annoyed someone had disturbed her from her sweet dream.
"Really? It's not my alarm, either. Where is the mobile phone?" Elysia searched around the bed but couldn't find it. She believed the ringing mobile phone was inside their room. She followed the sound and pulled one of the snack wrappers. She found the mobile phone, and it was hers.
"Omg, Cel. It's my alarm. But how come I couldn't remember that I set my alarm? Can you remember, Cel. Or, you couldn't, too?"
"Huh! You're such an annoying, my best friend. I want to sleep longer, but you keep asking me questions I don't know. It's your phone; it's not my phone!"
"Tch! You're such a useless friend that I have ever had!"
Elysia picked up all the snack wrapper trash and the soft drink cans, then threw them into the small dustbin next to the cupboard.
"Celestine!" Suddenly, she shouted.
"Oh my gosh, Elysia. What happened to you, huh? It's early morning, and you have been acting weird." Celestine gave up on her sleep, so she helped Elysia tidy the mess they had done the previous night.
"Eh, why are you standing rooted there? Hahaha, don't tell me you saw a ghost inside this room." She shook her head while laughing at her best friend.
"Ely? Please don't scare me." She looked around the room and approached Elysia from behind. She turned her around and was shocked to see her face. She looked so worried, and it felt like she had done something wrong.
"Hey! What's wrong? Why do you look so stressed?" Asked Celestine.
"What is the date today?" Elysia looked into Celestine's eyes. She tried to find the answer she wanted. At the same time, she hoped it would be a piece of good news.
"What? That's all? I thought you'd accidentally killed someone based on the look you gave me. Emm, today is Sunday."
"Cel, I'm asking the date, not the day of today!" She sighed and rushed to pick up her phone on the floor.
"16th of February." She mumbled to herself.
"Cel, I think I want to kill myself. How could I forget the most important day in my life?" Elysia clawed at her hair, her fingers tangling in the strands as if trying to tear away her frustration.
"Hey, calm down, please. I don't know that we have an important event today. I think you've mistaken something. What's about today?" Asked Celestine while trying to calm down her friend.
"It's not our event. It's Zane! Oh my gosh, why am I so stupid?" She looked like she wanted to cry. Looking at her poor state, Celestine hugged her closely.
"Shush, don't cry. When did you care a lot about him? You both just met, but look at you. I have never seen you like this. And, what's so important about his event?" Elysia gently broke away from Celestine's embrace.
"Today is the final day of the Rugby match. I promised Zane that I would come early to watch and support him. Today is the most important day for him, Cel. Will he feel disappointed in me? For breaking our promise?" She demanded the answers from Celestine. Her eyes brimmed with tears, threatening to spill down her cheeks.
Celestine sighed deeply. "Look at me, Ely. If he loves you, he would understand without you needing to explain everything to him. You do believe in love, right? You know how powerful the love is."
"Really? I'm scared he…" Celestine stopped her from thinking negatively.
"Okay, enough. I think you should take a bath. We have some time left, and I believe we can make it before the match ends."
"Yeah. You're right. I don't have time for this. I need to be ready and be there to support my love." She gave Celestine her brightest smile before she grabbed her towel to take a bath.
"Ely, are you sure he loves you as much as you love him? I hope you fall in love with the right person." Celestine could only mumble to herself. She dared not discuss this with Elysia. She might be wrong about Zane's intention towards her best friend. Maybe he wanted to be close to Elysia and know her better. She just wanted Elysia to be happy. If Zane could make Elysia the happiest woman in this world, she would support them and try her best to make this relationship last longer.
Elysia wished she could be Zane's girlfriend. They first met when he saved her from being hit by the Rugby ball.
"Hey, miss! Watch out!" One of the Rugby players screamed loudly when he accidentally kicked the ball outside the field. However, Elysia couldn't hear the screaming because she was wearing her earphones while listening to the K-pop song at full volume.
She was confused when she looked at the people around her waving at her. She looked in the direction that people pointed. She saw a ball speeding at her. She was unable to think and react to the situation. Her legs were rooted like she was tied to the ground. She could only close her eyes and pray so the ball wouldn't hit her.
In a second, she felt someone embrace her. She could smell a masculine vibe from that person. The body was tough, with sufficient muscles.
"Are you okay?" She could feel the vibration from his voice. So deep and mesmerising.
Elysia slowly opened her eyes. She was stunned to see a pair of beautiful eyes with long lashes. She paid attention to the details on his face. High nose, thick eyebrows, and kissable lips. He was the most handsome man she had ever seen.
"So handsome." The words slipped from her mouth.
"Huh? What do you say?"
"Oh. No, I said that I'm okay." Elysia distanced herself from him. She was afraid she would make another mistake. It was an embarrassment that she openly praised him without knowing who he was.
"Your face looks as red as a tomato." He was smiling when he said this to Elysia.
"Huh? Really?"
"Yeah." The man gently touched and smoothed the redness on her cheeks.
"Let me cool it down for you," he said, blowing a soft breath onto her face.
Elysia could not resist his charm. He was so perfect. Her heart was melting for him, and it kept beating. It wasn't caused by the shock she got from nearly being hit by the ball, but it was caused by the man she just met and stood before her. From that moment, she believed God sent this man to her, and she decided to pursue his love and make this man hers.
It was nearly noon. Elysia pulled Celestine's hand and rushed to the stadium. The game was supposed to be conducted in the evening. However, it was brought earlier because the weather forecasted rain from around 2 p.m. until nighttime. So, the game had been started at 8 a.m., and it would be finished around noon.
When they entered the stadium, they could hear the cheering from the other side. Elysia approached one of the supporters.
"Hey, may I ask you what happened? Has the game ended already?"
"Yeah. They have announced the winner." Said the supporter. She looked so disappointed.
"Oh. And who is the winner?" Asked Elysia anxiously.
"Who else? It's the same team again." The supporter walked away. She seemed like she didn't want to discuss further about the matter.
"Same team? Does it mean that Zane's team has lost?" Elysia looked at Celestine. She was so worried that she couldn't think how to face Zane later. She had promised Zane that she would come and support him. Did it mean she was the reason why they lost? Because he was upset at her for breaking their promise? Too many things on her mind. She couldn't stand still. She could feel her legs weaken.
"Hey, Ely. Can you please don't think too much? Win or lose isn't something that we can predict. It will happen naturally. We can plan, but God determines the result. There isn't nothing that we can do." Celestine felt Elysia was too dramatic. She took matters seriously when it was about Zane. She would behave like an immature child when Zane couldn't get what he wanted from her. She would blame herself for not being able to make Zane happy. His happiness would be her priority.
"No! You won't understand, Cel. I need to make Zane happy. If he is unhappy, me too. I won't be happy until I can help him to get what he wants. He wants to win this game. He wants to defeat that selfish man! It's my fault for breaking our promise. It's my fault, Cel!" Elysia bit her mouth. It had become her habit when she wanted to stop herself from crying.
Celestine took a deep breath. She feared losing her composure and getting mad at her best friend. She hated to see her like this because of a man.
"Ely, calm down, and please stop blaming yourself. We should find and see Zane first rather than finding whose fault it is. Okay?" Celestine put a reassuring hand on Elysia's shoulder and pat it to calm her down.
"Sorry for making you worry about me. I think you should go back first. I will go and find Zane. I need to talk to him." Said Elysia without looking at Celestine.
"You don't want me to accompany you?" Asked Celestine with concern.
"No, you shouldn't. I know what to do. This is about me and Zane. I don't want to involve you in our problem. I hope you understand. Can you?" Finally, she looked at Celestine. However, her eyes told Celestine that she had ordered her to stop being a busybody. She was a nobody, but just a friend. She warned her not to cross the line. Honestly, Celestine felt disappointed to see her childhood friend had chosen a man over her. A man she barely knew as compared to her being her friend for years.
"Okay. As you say so. I'll go back first." With that, Celestine walked away with a disappointed heart.
Without looking at Celestine, Elysia took her mobile phone and dialled Zane's phone number.
"Zane, please pick up." She walked back and forth on the stadium platform. She waited a few minutes, but Zane didn't answer her call. She was so worried that she decided to find him in the locker room, where they normally changed their clothes.
She arrived at the locker room. She knocked on the door before she entered.
Knock-knock-knock. "Uhm, I'm Elysia. Zane's friend. Can I enter the room? I want to meet Zane. He didn't answer my call. I'm so worried about him." Asked Elysia politely.
The door was opened by Zane's teammate. "What are you doing here? Zane isn't in a good mood. He doesn't want to see anyone, especially you." He emphasised while trying to close the door but was stopped by Elysia.
"No! Please don't close the door yet. Please let me see him. I really want to see him right now. Please, I'm begging you. Or, can you please tell him I'm willing to do anything for him? As long as he can forgive me. Please?" She begged him to allow her to enter the room. She would do anything as long as she had the chance to meet Zane. She felt she couldn't live without him. She never felt like this before. She really loved this man.
"Okay. You, please wait here. I will ask Zane whether he wants to see you or not." He closed the door and let Elysia stand outside, patiently waiting.
After a few minutes, the door was opened by the same person.
"Zane told me to let you in." He opened the door, and she entered the room.
Zane was sitting on a chair. He looked so distressed, and it broke her heart to see him like that.
"Zane, I'm so sorry. I broke our promise. Can you forgive me?" Said Elysia while looking at him. However, he didn't look at her. He looked at the video playing on his mobile phone. It sounded like today's game, but she was unsure what the content was.
"Zane?" Elysia said his name again, as he hadn't responded to her before.
Zane closed the video and put his mobile inside his training bag.
"Forgive you? Huh! Don't you think it's too easy?" He looked at Elysia fiercely, like he wanted to eat her alive.
"Zane, I know you're mad because of me. I'm unsure whether I'm the cause of your team to lose…"
"Yes, you are!" Zane shouted at her, and it shocked her. She had never seen this kind of Zane before. Of course, she hadn't. They barely knew each other. She didn't know what he liked or disliked besides his background. Zane was never opened up to her. Whenever she asked about him, he was disinterested in talking about it. She ended up not knowing anything about him.
"I'm mad because you're useless!" His words cut through her like a blade, each one slicing deeper, shattering her heart piece by piece.
"Zane, how could you…" The tears she fought so hard to hold back now streamed freely down her cheeks.
"What?! You want to deny it, don't you? Let me say it again. YOU ARE USELESS, ELYSIA." Even though her heart was so painful from being called useless by someone she loved, she couldn't deny the truth because she was so useless for not being able to make Zane happy.
She wiped her tears. "No, I don't deny it. I'm indeed useless, Zane. So, you can ask me anything, and I'll do it for you as long as you can forgive me. I promise I'll make you proud of me." She reached out to hold Zane's hand. Thankfully, he didn't reject it. She could feel some burden had been pulled out from her shoulders.
"Really? You'll do anything I asked for?" Zane closed the distance between them. He approached her slowly until her back was against the wall. A single misstep from either of them and their lips would surely brush against each other. He took her glasses and pulled her face closely. Her heart raced, making it difficult for her to breathe. She could feel his breath beside her ear.
"Zane, what are you doing?" She struggled to find the right words, her nerves making speaking even harder
"You said you'll do anything for me, right?" He asked while looking into her eyes, trying to find whether she was lying.
"Yes. I will do anything for you." She was firm with her decision.
Zane stepped back and pulled himself far away from her. Elysia felt disappointed because she had expected a special moment between them.
"Okay. I will text you later and tell you what I want you to do for me."
"Sure. Just text me whenever you're free," she said with her sweetest smile. Yet, Zane's expression remained indifferent, as if he didn't care.
"So, does that mean you've forgiven me?" she asked, her voice trembling with anxiety.
"Not yet. Until you prove to me that you can make me happy and proud of you," said Zane with a serious face.
Even though he hadn't forgiven her, she was still satisfied because she was given a chance to be with him. She would grab this opportunity and do her best.
"Sure. I understand your reason. Don't worry. I won't disappoint you again. I promise." She left the room and was determined not to make another mistake that would cause her to lose Zane forever.
Zane grabbed a towel and wiped his hands, a grimace of disgust spreading across his face from the mere touch of her.
"So, what have both of you been talking about?" asked the teammate who let Elysia in just now.
"Nothing special. As usual, she's being stupid and believes everything I said," he said with a sinister smile.
"I thought you were in a bad mood because you're jealous of seeing Lilith supporting your opponent? And it wasn't because of that ugly duckling girl."
"Lilith. How dare he touch my Lilith," he growled through gritted teeth.
"Yes, I'm mad because I don't want to see any man approach Lilith, the only woman I love. This wouldn't have happened if that stupid girl hadn't ruined my plan!" He was furious, his eyes blazing with anger.
"And, what are you planning to do? How do you want to teach that stupid girl?"
"Heh! Just you wait. She's already under my control. I'll use her to make Lilith mine. Consider this her punishment for her mistake," he said with unwavering confidence, a wicked smile creeping across his face.