Chapter 8: Truth or Dear: Unravelling secret.
Mikel stood in front of the entrance of the boys' dormitory, smoking and looking at his phone.
He checked the time, still waiting.
"She's never been this late before," he murmured to himself.
He threw the cigarette away and turned to leave. Just then, he saw a girl coming towards him.
Her purple hair bounced as she walked, and her yellow dress seemed to glow in the sunlight.
Mikel smiled when he saw her.
"Danielle," he said as he hugged her. He kissed her, and then they hugged again. "I'm sorry for not coming to see you," she said, her yellow eyes looking at him with a hint of sadness.
Mikel smiled at her and touched her face. "Let's eat lunch at my place." Danielle smiled and nodded. "Okay," she said.
"I parked here," he said, pointing at his car. They held hands and walked to the car. Then Mikel drove off.
As they drove, Danielle couldn't help but notice the concerned look on Mikel's face. "Is everything okay?" she asked, her voice laced with a hint of worry. Mikel's expression changed, and he forced a smile. "Yeah, everything's fine. I was just worried about you being late." Danielle raised an eyebrow, sensing that there was more to it. "Mikel, you can tell me. What's going on?" she pressed, her eyes locked on his.
"It's nothing, Dani," he said, taking one hand off the steering wheel to hold hers. "It's okay."
Dani sighed and nodded.
Soon, they arrived at Mikel's mansion. They got out of the car, hand in hand, and walked inside.
Everything was clean and tidy. Danielle wasn't surprised; she knew her boyfriend was neat.
They went into the kitchen. "I'll get the drinks," Danielle said. "I'll set the table," Mikel replied. "When did you say the others would be here?" "Any minute now," Mikel answered.
As soon as Mikel and Danielle finished cooking and setting the table, they heard a knock.
"We're here!" Evelyn said, opening the door. Antosia, Pristin, Anna, Marble, Evelyn, Aria, and Andrew walked in, each carrying different dishes.
They smiled at each other, exchanged greetings, and went to the dining room.
"Today will be fun," Evelyn said. Marble smiled with joy. "There will be lots of fun things to do and games.
As they sat down at the table, Mikel smiled, looking around at his friends. "I'm glad we could all make it today. It's been a while since we've all hung out together." Antosia nodded in agreement. "Definitely. I've missed our little gatherings." Pristin, who was sitting next to Antosia, playfully rolled her eyes. "You've missed the food, you mean." Everyone laughed, and the tension in the room dissipated. As they began to serve themselves and pass dishes around, Andrew cleared his throat. "So, has anyone heard from...you know, Rachel?" The room fell silent, and all eyes turned to Mikel, who was suddenly avoiding eye contact.
Marble looked at Antosia, then back at Evelyn. "He said he would come, but you know..."
She adjusted her dress and looked at Evelyn anxiously.
"After what happened last summer, I'm not sure he and Krib will be talking. They haven't resumed school yet, so I'm sure they will arrive," Pristin said, looking at the whole group sitting at the dining table.
The atmosphere changed, and everyone ate in silence.
Aria, feeling the tension, decided to break the silence. "I heard there's going to be camping next month."
"Oh yes, there is," Antosia and Evelyn said together. The silence was broken. "It will be really fun this time because our group will be complete, and trust me, Aria, you will love it," Andrew said, smiling at Aria.
Aria's cheeks turned red. She was still shy around Andrew.
He noticed, so he turned to Anna, and they started talking.
As the lunch continued, the group chatted and laughed, discussing their plans for the upcoming camping trip. Marble, who had been quiet for a while, suddenly spoke up. "I'm so excited for the camping trip! I've been practicing my archery skills, and I'm determined to beat Andrew this time." Andrew chuckled and playfully rolled his eyes. "Oh, it's on now! I'm not going to let you win that easily, Marble." The group laughed, and the conversation continued. Just as they were finishing up lunch, they heard the sound of the doorbell. "I'll get it," Mikel said, getting up from his seat. He walked to the entrance and opened the door. To his surprise, it was Krib and Rachel, standing on the porch with awkward expressions on their faces.
"Oh my goodness," Andrew said sarcastically. "It's nice to see you."
"Be gentle, man," Rachel said as he hugged Andrew. He chuckled and hugged him back.
Krib just stood there, smiling at both of them.
"Come in," Andrew said, releasing Rachel from the hug. The whole group exchanged greetings again.
The atmosphere was lively. They finished their food, cleared the dining table, and went to the game room.
The room was quite big, with lots of games.
They all went outside since Marble had said no one was playing indoor games.
They set their chairs around a campfire. Andrew's house was big, very big, so there was lots of space for different activities.
"Okay, we're going to play Truth or Dare," Anna said with a smile. "There's a card and a tab serving as a bottle, so we've written our names on them. It's going to pick two names of its choice, then you select truth or dare, okay?"
"Okay!" they replied. "We all know there are no rules because that's how it works, so let's go," Anna said.
Anna spun the tab, and it landed on two names: Rachel and Mikel. The group cheered and clapped, and Rachel and Mikel exchanged nervous glances. "Okay, you two have to choose: Truth or Dare?" Anna asked, grinning mischievously. Rachel spoke up first. "I choose... Truth." Mikel hesitated for a moment before saying, "I choose... Dare." The group oohed and ahhed, and Andrew rubbed his hands together in anticipation. "Okay, Rachel, truth it is. I'll ask you a question, and you have to answer honestly." Anna thought for a moment before asking, "Rachel, what's the real reason you and Krib didn't come back to school last semester?" The group fell silent, and all eyes were on Rachel.
Rachel adjusted his shirt and pushed his green hair back, revealing his handsome look. He glanced at his friends and then his eyes met Krib's. After what happened, he didn't want to get close to the place that made him feel close to... He sighed and sat back down. "Okay," Anna said, noticing that everyone's mood was still good. She looked at Krib and said, "The tab picked me to dare you."
"I dare you to tell us your secret crush," she finished with a smile.
Krib's red eyes flickered when he saw Anna. He smiled and said, "It's you, Anna. You're my crush."
Anna's eyes widened in surprise, and her face turned bright red. "K-Krib, I...I didn't expect that," she stuttered. The group fell silent, watching the exchange between Anna and Krib. Rachel's expression was unreadable, but his eyes seemed to hold a hint of sadness. Mikel, on the other hand, looked like he was trying not to laugh. "Well, I guess that's a surprise," Mikel said, breaking the silence. "But, Krib, you have to do the dare, right?" Krib nodded, still smiling at Anna. "I'll do it. What's the dare, Anna?" Anna's face was still red, but she managed a smile. "I dare you to...sing a love song to me, right here, in front of everyone."
The group laughed as they waited for the song Krib would sing.
Krib came closer to Anna and kissed her. The whole group was shocked.
Evelyn and Marble gasped.
Antosia was surprised at how romantic Krib was. This was not the Krib who usually snatched candy from her hand and ate it.
Anna was still in shock, but she couldn't deny that she had a crush on Krib, too.
Aria gently adjusted her seat. She was already anxious and tried to glance at Andrew, hoping they weren't the next candidates for Truth or Dare.