Unrequited II F4 Thailand

A Lack of Adjustment

The next day at school was a nightmare. People kept coming up to me, asking:

"You're engaged to Ren?"

"Can I get an invite to your engagement party? Can I get an invite to your wedding?"

"Have you guys been secretly dating? How long?"

I even got a few: "Slut, gold digger, whore."

"AHHHHHHHHHHH!" I screamed at the top of my lungs. The wind whistled with me as my voice continued to crack from my sudden outburst. Gorya pats my back as I lean onto the railing, exhausted from this day. "I should've skipped school today," I said.

She gives me my water bottle, and I accept it gratefully, taking a huge chug of it. "Did your mom force you to come?"

I shook my head, "Auntie Cel did. Mom was nowhere to be found." I closed the bottle with the cap and said, "She got a little mad at me for missing the assembly this morning. She told me not to let this affect me and hold my head high, I guess to motivate me." I sit on the pavement and rest my back on the railing, "I feel like I am alone."

"You have me," Gorya says, and I smile at her while bringing her into a hug. 

"And thank you for that. Are we still heading to Uncle Ga's later?"

"I won't ask what you and Ren talked about. But what I want to ask you is how are you feeling?"

I think about her question, about what happened in the last ten hours with Ren and my mom. I'm not okay. But I take a deep inhale and out before giving her a small smile. "It's wild, but I know that if you're with me, I'll be okay."

She gives me a reassuring smile back, and her phone rings. "Wait, someone's texting me." She pulls out a Zamzung X Fold3. My eyes widen in surprise, "You got the X Fold3?!" She looks at me and sighs, "Thyme bought this for me. He wanted me to have a new phone since mine kept breaking. And look."

She shows her screen, and all I see are incoming messages from Thyme with his emojis and texts saying, "Where are you? Answer me. Goryaaaaaaa." I burst out into laughter, and a few tears manage to escape. Gorya whines, "Stop, this is so annoying. I'm grateful for the phone, but it's such a hassle. He's always texting and calling; I can't even explore the features yet."

"Block him."

"What? I can't block the person who gave me this phone," she said as she texted him back. 

I shrug and stand up, helping her stand with me. I look towards the door that separates us from the rooftop to hell. Gorya asks, "Do you want to skip?

My eyes widened, "Gorya? Skipping school? No way."

She rolled her eyes, "What's your pick?"

I look back at the door, "No, tempting but, no. I can't escape the inevitable."

...

"I feel like I should wear motion-sickness glasses when I ride with you."

I close my door and scoff, "My driving feels fine to me." She follows me into the shop and says, "The driver isn't the passenger. They don't feel the same things."

I bow to her, "Ok, ma'am, I'll try to drive slowly for you." She laughs as she opens the door for us and Uncle Ga greets us, "Nova, it's been a while since you last visited."

Kaning walks in from the back room and comes to greet us, "Hey guys!" I hug her and say, "Hey, I missed you guys. I'm sorry, things have been crazy lately." 

Uncle Ga claps his hands and points at me, "You're an engaged woman." Kaning says, "Congratulations?" I sluggishly take a red rose in my hand and cut the stem short before handing it to Kaning. Uncle Ga sighs, "Rich people confuse me. People have been saying it's arranged. Didn't Ren just come back from France?"