CHAPTER SIX

❝Reflection❞

I gave Pink a light push.

"Go ahead. You can do it." I whispered to her.

Her eyes widened. "U-Um, what do you mean?"

I rolled my eyes. "Come on. I know why you wanted to go here. You know what I mean."

Ulysses poked me on my cheek. "Care to enlighten me?"

I sighed and lowered my voice. "See that blonde guy right there? That's Cole, one of our friends. Pink kinda has a thing for him. And I'm pretty sure he likes her too, but they both don't know that. It's a suffering thing I deal with as Pink's best friend."

"You know I can hear you, right?" Pink glared at me, and I just shrugged. "He doesn't like me, and I don't like him. Period. Now if you excuse me, I'm off to talk to Cole."

She flipped her hair at our faces and nervously, yet somehow confidently, strutted towards Cole. When she reached him and he noticed her, she suddenly seemed relaxed and not tense. Pink smiled as she sat down on the chair next to him and they both began chatting away, leaving Ulysses and I dumbfounded.

"Smooth." We both said at the same time.

A few seconds of awkward silence passed between us as we just watched Pink and Cole, who were obviously too deep into their conversation to acknowledge us.

Finally, Ulysses rubbed his hair. "Wanna get out of here?"

"Alone," I crossed my arms. "With you? I'll pass."

Ulysses let out an exasperated sigh and pushed back his pastel pink hair. With one hand, he pushed me on my back, making me protest. "W-Wait, what--"

He ignored my complaints and constant physical violence, and continued forcing me outside the coffee shop until my eyes were kissed by the rays of the sun.

* * *

After convincing me that he wasn't going to do anything weird or just anything, in general, to me, Ulysses and I went to a nearby park to just relax, and possibly grab something to eat.

My eyes lit up when I spotted a hotdog stand. I tapped Ulysses by the shoulder and nodded towards it. 

He frowned. "Oh, that's not healthy."

"Healthy?!" I exclaimed, my eyes widening. "What matters is that it's edible! Stop being picky."

Ulysses held a finger up to my lips. "I never said I didn't like it. I just watch what I eat—unlike you. Now let's just get what you want so you can shut up."

I muttered a few words under my breath as we strolled towards the stand.

"What can I get for you?" The chubby vendor beamed, shooting us with a crooked smile.

"Um," I bit my lip and said in a quiet voice, "One hotdog with ketchup on it..."

"Pardon?" The vendor's smile turned into a slight frown, making him look all the more intimidating.

I gulped, cursing in my head. WHY, oh WHY, can't you just talk confidently and like a NORMAL person for once, Adelaide?! He's just another normal human-being that just wants to sell HOTDOGS. If you can talk to a guy you just met, whose guts you really hate, then you can talk to some vendor— 

"Miss?" The vendor interrupted my thoughts. He tapped his finger impatiently, though he did his best to keep a nice, yet forced, expression in his face.

There are many people waiting. You're going to make me lose customers. His eyes seemed to say.

I looked around to find many people looking at us. Some waiting on the line, some eating on scattered tables and chairs.

"I, uh, um," I struggled to find my words.

Just when I decided to go away and eat something at home, Ulysses cleared his voice. With such confidence, he told the vendor my order. "One hotdog with ketchup on a bun please."

As the chubby man prepared my order, I looked at Ulysses with a slight frown. "T-Thanks." I grumbled.

He glanced at me, his silver eyes glinted mischievously. He gave me a smirk. "What?"

My face flushed in embarrassment and I looked away. Ulysses let out a chuckle as he took a few cash out of his wallet. I turned my head back to him and knit my eyebrows. "What are you doing?"

"Paying," He said, gesturing to the readied hotdog placed in front of us. I didn't realize the vendor giving us an expectant look as if to say, Kids these days. We don't got all day.

"No, I'll pay for my food!" I protested, attempting to take out my wallet from my sling bag.

"It's cool," Ulysses handed in his cash to the vendor before I could do so. He took the hotdog and handed it to me. I just looked at it like it was a dead snake coming back to life. 

Ulysses frowned. "Take it. People are waiting."

I snatched it from his hands, then we sat on a bench whilst watching people who are also eating and strolling by the park. 

I noticed people, mostly girls, from every place gawking and staring at Ulysses in awe and astonishment—as though he was a god. Though it wasn't me they were looking at, I felt slightly uncomfortable. I glanced at Ulysses who was preoccupied with a flying butterfly that landed on his finger. He didn't seem fazed by all the attention he was getting.

As I took a big bite from my hotdog, I nudged him by the shoulder, making the butterfly fly away. He looked at me in mild disappointment. "What?"

"Aren't you feeling awkward with all these stares?" I asked in between bites. My hair wasn't in a bun that day, and instead, tumbled down my shoulders, getting in the way of my face. 

He shook his head. Under the touch of the sunlight, his pastel pink hair seemed more bright and vibrant than ever. "I'm used to it."

"Right," I said, chewing. "Aren't you going to eat anything?"

"I'm not that hungry," He replied.

"Oh."

The wind let out a warm gentle blow, allowing my pink striped hair to dance in the breeze. Birds chirped. Flowers of every color decorated the grasslands of the park. Green, with a mixture of all shades of brown, leaves cascaded down from their branches and scattered everywhere on the ground.

I was just about to swallow the food when Ulysses muttered something. "I'm sorry."

I nearly choked. "Uh, excuse me?"

"I said I'm sorry," Ulysses bit his lip and started fiddling with the sleeve of his blue cardigan. "For you know, the way we met."

I just stared at him in shock. This lasted for about five seconds, then his face turned a bright shade of red. 

He scowled. "Say something at least!"

Summer Lie #6: My pride is too high for me to point out my mistakes.

"Right," I shook my head. "That just caught me by surprise. I didn't think you'd be the type to apologize."

He raised an eyebrow at me, and I realized he was waiting for my actual answer. "Fine. I'll forgive you. I had a really bad day then and was in a bad mood, so you just caught me at a bad time..." I then muttered, "... Especially after spilling that drink on me and not helping me up."

"I heard that," He said.

"Whatever," I continued. "This does not make us friends, whatsoever. I still don't like you, so don't go coming around my house or expecting for a friendship bracelet or something."

He let out a sarcastic laugh as his eyes met mine. "That won't be a problem, trust me."

❀ *:･ﾟ❀ *:･ﾟ❀ *:･ﾟ❀ *:･ﾟ❀

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