Chapter Thirteen: The Love

Aesha’s POV

That’s it. My life is officially over.

First of all, my twin siblings, Sean and Shaelon had come to a fight. As Shaelon told me, they had a large argument in the library, resulting into an…..accident – like Sean called it. Luckily, Kennedy stopped Sean from hurting our sister any further. They weren’t talking to each other since last Tuesday, which was the day of the fight. This one isn’t like any other fight they always have.

Next, was Brent. He’s slowly climbing towards the popular rank. It’s like we completely lost him. It’s like it wasn’t him anymore. At all. He suddenly turned into a jerky narcissist. What happened to my friend? That was the one of the questions that’s been on repeat in my mind. That isn’t even the worst part yet. The horrifying yet weird thing is, he’s dating Willow Thompson. Yeah, that hotheaded girl who had been dumped by Cole.

Then there’s Cole. He wasn’t ruining everything, really. The only thing is, I don’t know what to feel when I’m with him. No, wait. I meant my feelings are mixed up when I’m with him. I’m always comfortable and hurt whenever he’s around. Ironically, he’d been a big help cheering me up and he’s the person who’s always with me and there for me. Neither of us mentioned the kiss last Monday, though. Honestly, I loved the taste of his lips and he was a good kisser, too. But it felt like he kissed me because I needed it. Not because he wanted to.

Oh, and I don’t even want to start on Cylene.

Damn, I lost my life completely. My old life , that is.

But what’s really bugging me is my best friend. Ever since Monday, I haven’t seen her, nor talk to her. I understand that she wants time for herself, but does she think I’m mad at her? I don’t want to make her feel like she was an outsider. I already lost Brent, I don’t want to get separated from my best-est friend.

“Aesha?” Cole snapped me from my deep thinking. I realized it was a Friday noon and I’m sitting in a table here in the cafeteria, away from the center table. Cole understood that I wanted to get away from Brent.

I smiled apologetically at him, “Sorry, I was just kinda spacing out.”

He nodded his head. “So,” he said, “I wanted to take you somewhere later afternoon. Are you, um, are you busy?”

I pouted a . “Yeah, I’m going to be busy apologizing to Cylene. I want her back.”

He looked a little disappointed, “After that, can we hang out already? Please,” Then he gave me those adorable puppy dog eyes. Goddammit, how did he know I can’t stand those?

I laughed and gave him the biggest smile. “Maybe. I’ll try,”

Realizing he was staring at me funny – he was smiling - , I tilted my head and questioned him, “Why are you looking at me like that?”

His smile got wider, “Sorry, I haven’t heard you laugh in ages. I miss it.” That left me blushing.

“Where are you taking me?” I asked, trying to change the topic.

Cole gave me a mischievous grin, “It’s a surprise,”

I frowned at him, “Tell me!” I pleaded.

“Nope,”

“Please,”

“No,”

“Come on,”

“No, I won’t tell you,”

I crossed my arms over my chest. “You’re no fun,” He chuckled at this.

“Aesha,” he said softly, “Are you still upset about your friends?”

I looked down on my food. Yep, I still was. A lot.

“Yes. I need them here with me. Even my brother and sister are fighting. I’m not satisfied with just…..you, no offense.”

“I’m satisfied with just us,” he whispered.

I looked up at him, scanning his face. What did he just say? He’s satisfied with just….us? How did it became ‘us’? There was never us.

“Oh,” was all I could say. I hate it when the conversation turns awkward. Really awkward.  

"Can we talk about something?" he asked suddenly. Oh no, he doesn't mean.....that thing, does he? No, please don't talk about that.

"Yeah, s-sure. What is it?" I said even though I was afraid what's he going to say.

"About last Monday," he said slowly, "About the kiss."

I was right. He was going to talk about this.

"What about it?" 

"I-I...." Whatever he was going to say, he was hesitating Thank God.

I nervously stood up from my seat. "You know what, Cole? J-just save it for later. I-I need to talk to someone." My eyes darted to a person who was leaving the cafeteria. It had to be her.

His brows furrowed, "But-"

"Sorry, Cole. Gotta go, bye!" I said, bolting towards the door. I had to catch up with her.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I went to the hallways, looking for her.  .  She has to be here. I saw her head outside the cafeteria. Then I finally saw my best friend.

She was by her locker, getting her books. Her head hung low, and she looked…..sad. She wasn’t like she used to be, like she lost her cheery attitude.

“Ken,” I came up to her, biting my lower lip.

She looked up at me, her eyes full of hurt. "Aesha," she said softly.

"A-are you mad at me?" I asked nervously. I hope she wasn't I just hope she was not.

She sighed. I guess she was.....confused? Like she doesn't know what to say? Please, Kennedy.

"I have no idea," Kennedy whispered, "what to say." I knew it.

I grabbed her shoulders and twisted her to face me. "Kennedy, don't ever think I left you. You're my best friend. Please don't leave leave, please, I want the old Kennedy back."

"It's hard to change a broken heart, Aesha," she said. Wait, what? Who broke her heart?

"What do you mean?" I asked her. But that only led to the worst. Tears started to fill her eyes and then a tear rolled down her cheek.

I hugged my best friend. "It's okay, Ken. If you don't want to talk about it, then I won't push you."

She stopped crying not long after. I mentally reminded myself to ask her about it during the right time.

"Should we walk to our next class?" I asked.

She gave me a small smile and nodded. "Good," I said.

I heard someone coming up behind us. It was, of course, Cole. "Hey," he said to me.

"S-sorry, Cole. We have to go to our class," I said.

"But we're still going out, right?"

I frowned at the phrase 'going out' but I still said, "Yeah, sure. See ya later,"

~~~~~~~~~

I was in the parking lot, with Kennedy beside me. Cole said   he has detention, but he’ll sneak out anyway. But I guess his escape went a little long. Kennedy and  I walked towards her vehicle.

“You’re riding a bike home?” I asked, looking at her old blue bike.

She shrugged, “It’s better than nothing. And you know I don’t have a driver’s license yet.”

I cocked an eyebrow, “Are you sure?” She flashed me a comforting smile. “Trust me. Just enjoy hanging out with Cole, okay?”

I nodded, “Okay,”

Kennedy stepped to her bike and touched the handles. “So,” she said, “Are you two going out?”

I blushed instantly, “No…..why would you think that?”

She looked at me as if the answer was obvious. “You’ve been together for a while. And can’t you see that he likes you?”

“He doesn’t like me, Ken.” I protested, my brows furrowed.

“He does, Aesha. You just can’t see it ,”

“Whatever you say,” I muttered under my breath.

After a long time of complete silence I just suddenly blurted out, “We did kiss, though,”

I expected her to squeal so loud, it would damage my eardrums and she would tackle me into a bone-crushing hug. But instead, her eyes just widened a little. “Really?”

My face was now as red as a tomato. “Y-yeah. I was kinda sick last Monday and I was with him, and then he just kissed me to make me feel better. To heal me.”

She gave me a smirk that said I told you so. “He does like you,”

I gulped, remembering Cylene. She was still mad at me, I knew that. I had to bring my friend back.

“Have you spoke to Cylene lately?” I questioned her.

She smiled apologetically, “Last Tuesday. Sorry, but she’s still mad at you.”

“I know,”

An idea burst into my mind. “Ken, I think you should go home now.”

“Why?” she asked, confused.

“I need to make up with Cylene,” I said.

Her eyebrow arched, “B-but what about Cole?”

“Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it,” I assured her while starting to walk away.

“What about your ride?”

I mentally slapped myself. How can I get a ride? I decided to consider the first option that came into my mind. “I’ll catch one with Sean,”

Kennedy sighed. “Fine, but promise to tell me all about it tomorrow.”

I nodded and bade goodbye to her.

Sean wasn’t mad at me, was he? He’s only angry at Shaelon…

 ~~~~~~~~~~~

Thank goodness, Sean didn’t leave yet. I spotted him from afar.

I sent Cole a quick text message to inform him about it:

Hey, I gotta do something. Pick me up at your house, I’m there.

I stuffed my phone back into my pocket and trudged towards my brother. Ever since the fight, he seemed to be wearing a permanent scowl on his face. I hated my siblings fighting like that. It might even last forever if I don’t do anything about it.

I tapped his arm, “Sean,”

He turned to me, “What?”

I gazed at his black motorcycle, hoping he would say yes. “Can you give me a ride?”

He looked puzzled. “How about Cylene? Cole?”

“Uh, Cylene’s pretty mad at me, so I need to go to her house right now to apologize and Cole’s busy,”

He bit his lip in frustration. Wrong move, Aesha.

“Yeah, sure. But I need to get a few things done first. It’ll just be for a few minutes,” he said, running a hand through his brown hair.

I sighed in relief and headed back to the school with him.

~~~~~~~~~

The whole campus was silent, of course. So only our feet was heard against the marble floors.

“What do you need to do?” I asked Sean softly.

“Just getting something…” He mumbled.

We went to his locker which was a bit far from where we came from. I can tell he was mumbling something, But I’m not sure what was that about.

“Did I do something to make you mad?” I asked him. It feels like talking to Kennedy again. Only the person I was talking to was really angry. But not at me, I think.

“No,” it sounded like he was guilty.

“Then what’s the matter?”

But he didn’t answer. His back was turned to me, and he stood in front of his locker.  

“Sean,” I began, “I’m your sister. Please, I deserve to know what’s going on,”

I felt he was about to say something, but different footsteps cut him off. I turned to see Shaelon, walking through the hallway. She was about to absentmindedly pass by us, then she noticed us.

Agh, World War III is about to start.

Shaelon smiled innocently, batting her eyelashes. “Sean, Aesha,” she acknowledged us. My gaze turned back to my brother. His teeth was gritted and his hands were balling up to fists.

“Go. Away.” Sean said.

Shaelon pouted playfully, “But why?”

I stepped in between them. As their big sister, I should be responsible and not let them fight. “Guys, what is going on?!” I guess I said it a little louder than I expected. Ha, I didn’t even have to use my powers.

Shaelon smiled sweet-innocently again. Ugh, I’m beginning to get sick of that smile, I thought bitterly. Maybe Shaelon had a fault, too.

“Go ahead, Seanie. Tell her your little secret.” Shaelon dared.

But she didn’t get a response. Sean just stood there, probably about to explode. Then, after what seemed like forever, he said, “No.”

My sister narrowed her eyes, “Okay, fine. Then I’ll just tell her myself then.”

Okay, I’m really confused right now.

Shaelon started, “He-“

“Shaelon!” Sean cut her off, “Just go!”

Shaelon smirked as if knowing that he was going to tell about it sooner or later. She turned on her heel and went out.

I didn’t dare ask another question to my brother the rest of the day.

~~~~~~~~~~~

 Cole's POV

I waited outside our house impatiently, waiting for Aesha. What's she doing in there? I wondered. Finally, before I decided to come inside, she walked out of the door with a smile etched on her face.

 “What happened?” I asked her.

She walked towards me, her face beautiful and cute as always. “Cylene happened,” she replied.

My eyes widened a little, “Are you okay? Is she okay?”

Aesha chuckled, “It’s fine already, Cole. We’re cool now. I explained everything to her and she forgave me,”

I sighed, running my fingers through my hair, “Oh, okay then.”

I was happy that things are beginning to get better in her life. She’s back again with her best friend and Cylene isn’t angry with her anymore.

“Cole? Should we go now?” she asked, her eyes sparkling with joy and excitement.

I nodded, “Yeah, sure.”

We hopped on my motorcycle and surprisingly, she seemed used to it. She put the helmet on her head with ease and climbed into the vehicle without any problem. When we were all settled, she wrapped her arms around my waist and buried her face on my back.

I enjoy this closure.

“Drive,” her muffled voice said. And so I did.

~~~~~~~~~~

I carefully held her waist and lifted her out of the motorcycle. Aesha laughed softly when I set her down on the ground.

“So, where are you taking me?” she asked.

I pulled out the cloth from my pocket and covered her eyes with it. “Trust me, you’ll like it,” I said, whispering to her.

She gave me a confident smile and I held her hand, intertwining our fingers.

I placed my other hand on her shoulder and helped her walk inside the building. We went inside. The building was just an ordinary one, for business and meeting purposes. It’s one of the many places my family owns. I guided Aesha towards the elevator.

I pressed the ‘up’ button and the elevator started moving.

“Let me guess,” Aesha said, “We’re going up the building.

“Yep,” I replied, popping the ‘p’.

She crossed her arms over her chest, mumbling something about hating surprises. I smiled even though she couldn’t see me and turned to face her. She wasn’t saying anything and she was calm. I brushed away a strand of hair from her face and kissed her forehead.

“C-Cole,” she said, heat rising to her cheeks, “Why did you do that?”

“I wanted to,” I replied. I needed to.

“Okay,” she sighed.

The elevator created a ‘ding’ sound and we got off. We were in the rooftop and the soft breeze was fanning us.

“Where are we?” Aesha asked me. I led her near the edge of the rooftop, where a bench was. I let her sit and took off the blindfold. “Open your eyes,” I said softly, noticing her eyes were still shut.

She blinked, her eyes adjusting to the light and when she saw the view.

The building had a complete view of the Golden Gate Bridge, where the cars were passing by. The bridge sparkled along with the water because of the setting sun. It was magnificent.

“Wow,” Aesha said, turning her head towards me, “I love it, Cole. Thanks.”

Now I really wanted to tell or ask her something. The kiss. What if she felt like it was no big deal? That it didn’t mean anything?

“So…can we talk about the kiss now?” I asked. Aesha bit her lower lip and looked down on her lap. Maybe this wasn’t the right time.

“I-I…..yeah, sure.” She said. I moved closer to her, holding her hand in mine.

“Did you like it?” I questioned.

Her brows furrowed, “Why am I supposed to like it? It was just some kind of healing, right? It was nothing,”

My face dropped. So she didn’t feel it? The spark between us?

“No, it’s something else,” I said, getting frustrated.

“Then what did it mean?” she asked.

She’s being stupid. Why can’t she just understand that I have feelings for her? It was just simple: either she says she likes me back or she didn’t.

“You mean you don’t get it!? I like you, Aesha! A lot! I can’t believe you’re so naïve!” I shouted, really angry. What’s wrong with this girl?

“But-“she started but I interrupted her.

“Aesha, this isn’t some stupid ‘friends’ thing! I want to be more than that.” I got up from the bench in anger. I headed to the elevator, leaving her behind.

Screw Aesha.

I’ve spent days being nice to her and she doesn’t have a clue what I’m trying to say. I left the popular group, I broke up with the most popular girl in school and I was always there for her, and she’s going to say something like that?

I wasted everything.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Two thousand eight hundred plus words? Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh I'm so happy! This is like so loooooong. What if I make it three thousand by adding more words, huh, huh? *wiggles eyebrows* 

Poor Cole, though. And anyway Aesha's got a perfectly reasonable reason for acting like that. And Aesha's life is getting better....or worse?

What do you think is happening between Sean and Shaelon? And tears for Kennedy again! Sorry for the heartbreak, Ken! Anyway, just a quick warning: straight to Christmas day already the next chapter. I wanted to speed things up :).  So next chap....christmas!!!!

OH MY GOD O_O. 3000 plus words. I'm so happy!!!!!!! Broken record.. awwww yeahh! (just like the boys say)

-Vireen

 P.S. Are you frikkin' happy now, daughter of hearth? there a new chapter for you. Is waiting for a whole week too much to ask?

P.P.S. I added a new character in the 'cast' his name is James and is played by Niall Horan. Guess who he is. I already told you, daughter of love, so don't tell anyone.