A Guide To The Opposite Sex (Discontinued)

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Riley POV

Time seemed to pass faster as I dreaded the hours before I left for my flight. I was leaving in the evening so I could land with just enough time to make it to Malibu Creek's graduation ceremony. It seemed weird to think about it as their graduation and not mine.

But really, I wasn't a Malibu Creek Shark anymore. I haven't been for a long time. Ever since I cut my hair and put on my Lakeview Hill Academy blazer for the very first time.

Said hair was now currently styled into a cute A-line bob haircut. It had grown a lot since my departure, as has my personality.

I've matured here in Austria, after seeing for the first time hunger and pain and suffering amongst these little orphans. All so young yet they knew the harsh world better than I. I've seen firsthand that my feelings and petty emotions had nothing on these little kid's real problems. I came face to face with real pain.

I learned that even at your worst, you must always keep a cool head and faith in your heart. These kids taught me that much.

And as I stared at a teary-eyed Tami, I found myself making excuses to stay.

It was as if Lukas knew exactly what was on my mind because he reassuringly touched my lower back. I nodded in his direction and bent down to pick Tamara up.

"No crying okay, kiddo. I'm not dying. I'm just going home." I guess that was the wrong thing to say because she burst into tears, along with a few other kids around her.

"What Riley meant to say," Lukas said in a wary tone as he took her from my arms. "Was that she needs to go back. She misses her friends and family there. But she'll be back, Tamara."

"Exactly. How can I ever forget any of you?" I said as I bent down to ruffle another crying boy's hair.

"Now, let us stop crying, yes? We can't let this be a sad goodbye."

"Who wants cake?" I asked in a way to distract them. It didn't really work because all they did was give a half-hearted smile and sat down around the cafeteria tables.

"Lukas, I don't think I can leave. I mean, would you look at them--"

He gripped my shoulders and spun me around to look at him. "This is not your destiny. It might be my fate, but it sure isn't yours."

I let out a shaky breath, afraid that I'd cry, and blinked a few times. "We'll miss you. But it would be a huge act of selfishness to ask you to stay."

"Not if I want to stay." I murmured under my breath.

"It would be an injustice to rip you away from your world then. You are destined for other things, Riley. And that, is not this."

"Come here," I said in a trembling voice and hugged him tight.

After a second he let go and smiled sadly at me. "As soon as you say your goodbyes, I'll drive you to the airport."

I nodded and sat down with my kids for the last time to enjoy some cake. It tasted of dirt and fear as thoughts of returning home filled my head.

And again, as if Lukas could sense my anxiety, he sat down next to me and whispered under his breath. "Do not be afraid. Face your problems head-on, just like you handle everything else in your path."

* * *

You can do this, I thought to myself as I stared at my reflection. My light brown hair was pin straight up to my chin with my bangs pinned back into a little pompadour.

My makeup was simple and light. I was back in Cali after all. The smogish, hot weather didn't allow for heavy, caked-on makeup. Instead I opted out for some blush, mascara, and liquid eyeliner. The thinest line I could manage to make adorned my lash-line and winged out in the tips.