Enzo

It was easy. Mia said she liked me, so now we're girlfriend and boyfriend. I kissed her sweet lips to show the whole class she was mine.

Pam is mad at me again. Diego and Noah seemed confused that my girlfriend was a scholar, but big-brained Elijah wasn't. He didn't look surprised.

"I think she can bring out the good side in you," he said.

"What does that mean? Am I not good?" I asked, irritated. Elijah and Noah exchanged glances, and Diego laughed.

"Are we going to tell him that?" Noah joked. Everyone laughed. He's the dumbest in the group, constantly cycling through new girlfriends without even breaking up with the last one.

"Tell me what?" I asked.

"You're really a bad dude," Noah said, smirking. The others laughed, but I'm not bad. I know that.

"Have I ever done anything bad to anyone?" I asked, now angry.

"Dude, are you serious? You've punched guys for no reason," Noah said, his smirk growing wider.

"That's just because they made me angry. That doesn't make me a bad person," I shot back, glaring at them. But they were all looking at me like I was insane.

"Are you being serious or...?" Elijah asked again, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes, I'm serious. Do I look like I'm joking, you fools?" I snapped.

"No," Diego said, looking me straight in the eye, his expression serious.

"Good," I muttered. I couldn't believe my friends thought I was bad. I haven't done anything bad to them.

"Did you guys bring any cigarettes?" I asked, uncomfortable with where the conversation had gone.

"Yeah," Noah replied.

"Let's head to the hideaway," Diego suggested.

While we were hanging out, Pam stormed in, furious.

"What did you do in class, Enzo?" she demanded.

"What?" I asked, frowning.

"You kissed a scholar. Are you serious?" she yelled.

"Why do you care who I kiss? It's none of your business, Pam. Just leave me alone," I snapped, growing impatient with her.

"So now your girlfriend's a scholar? Don't you have any shame? You're the one who said they're disgusting and filthy!" she shouted, and the others looked at her with confusion.

"Why don't you go find a boyfriend and stop bothering me?" I said coldly.

"Oh, I will, Enzo. I don't want you to be my boyfriend. You don't even love anyone. I'll find someone better than you, and you know what? It'll be easy because you're the worst," Pam spat out, her anger boiling over.

"And you're the worst," I shot back. "Good luck finding a boyfriend, Pam. If anyone actually dates you, either they've got brain damage or they're the biggest idiot on the planet."

She tried to slap me, but I caught her hand mid-swing. "You'd better keep your hands to yourself, Pam. Because if someone slaps me, I'll hit them back ten times harder," I warned, my voice dark with anger.

The other boys pulled us apart, but I was furious. Who does she think she is, trying to slap me? I've had enough slaps at home, and now she thinks she can add to that? I can't hit Papa (Gerado) back when he slaps me. I can't slap Pedro or Louis either. They haven't hit me in years, but they did when I was younger. So if I ever get the chance to slap someone, I'm not just taking out my anger on them. It's multiplied by all the anger I've bottled up from my family too.

"Enzo, she's always liked you," Noah said after Pam stormed off.

"But I don't like her. Why don't you get that?" I yelled back at him, my voice louder than I intended. The anger from Pam trying to slap me kept swirling in my mind, bringing up memories I didn't want to relive—memories of the way people in my family slapped me. I couldn't push them away.

Noah and the others stared at me, wide-eyed, shocked by how I'd snapped.

"Whoa, whoa, calm down, buddy," Diego said, slinging an arm over my shoulder like he always did when things got tense. Noah just blinked at me with those shining, stupid blue eyes of his.

"Why are you comforting him? I'm the victim here," Noah complained, pouting. Diego, who sometimes tried to act like the papa of the group for no real reason, extended his other arm around Noah.

"There, there," he said in mock sympathy.

"It's not funny. He yelled at me. I'm hurt," Noah grumbled, sounding more serious than usual. His voice had that genuine edge, and I suddenly felt guilty.

I sighed, feeling mentally drained. The weight of everything was pressing down hard. I didn't even know how to explain it. Papa, I thought. I'm so tired.

Manuel

I saw Enzo come out from the school gate, looking really exhausted.

"What's wrong? Are you okay?" I asked, putting my arm around his shoulder.

"No," he replied.

"Why not?" I squeezed him closer.

"My friends think I'm bad because I punched some stupid dudes," he said.

"Well, it's not right to punch someone unless you are defending yourself," I explained.

"I'm defending myself from their stupidity," he shot back. It was pointless to argue with him. Who am I kidding? He's Gerado's son. Same genetics. I didn't even want to do a DNA test to find out if he's really his father.

"How do you know they are stupid?" I asked, feeling a mix of concern and frustration. Maybe he thought I didn't care enough about his issues. I cared about him, always offering advice and solutions, but he never listened.

"From their faces," he said, dismissively.

"You can't judge people from their faces," I insisted.

"I can. I judged you from your face. And I can judge Louis from his face. And Juana, Mia..." He paused.

"Oh, so her name is Mia," I noted.

He didn't say anything.

"Well, you don't have to say anything because now I know her name is Mia," I continued, opening the door for him to get in.

"I want to sit in the front," he said.

"No, you can't," I replied.

"Why not?" he pushed.

"For safety," I explained.

"What about your safety then?" he asked, challenging my authority.

"Get in," I said firmly. He stared at me for a few seconds before getting in without another word. I didn't like being rude to him, but I also didn't want to keep arguing about why his safety was more important than mine.

Mia

Everyone calls Lorenzo "Enzo," which is cute. Only teachers call him Lorenzo. So, I also started calling him Enzo. Most of the time, he spends time with his friends. I can never find him alone. Even his friends come to school when he comes to school.

One morning, he took my hand and asked me to go with him. His friends were not there yet, so we walked outside from the classroom to the school garden. The school garden is really huge, with benches outside where students can sit and talk. He took me to a bench and sat closer to me, touching our bodies.

I waited for him to say something, but he said nothing. He kept looking at me, smiling, and then looking away.

"Do you want me to say something?" I asked him.

"Yes," he replied.

"Okay, say it," I prompted.

"Do you like this school?" he asked, and that was not the question I expected.

"Yes, I really like it," I answered.

"What's your favorite subject?" he continued.

"I'm okay with every subject. I want to pass the exam and go to university, and..." While I was talking, he kissed my lips. His lips felt amazing. Oh, Enzo. I waited for this moment. I can't believe I'm kissing him. I put my hand on his beautiful face to feel it. I couldn't take my eyes off him even after we parted our lips.

"Enzo, you are so gorgeous," I whispered because he actually is.

He looked at me like he didn't believe me. Then he kissed my forehead.

"I love you," he said suddenly, touching my hair, and he looked dead serious.

I smiled at him, feeling unsure. My parents never wanted me to have a boyfriend until I turned 18. I felt a little betrayal inside me too.