One of Many Firsts

Chapter 3: Teamwork

He bent even closer to me and positioned his mouth just a few inches away from my bright red ear. If I had been able to see myself, my ears probably would have been Rudoph red-nosed red. I still had not moved an inch but sweat already travelled down my palms.

Giving me a comforting and soothing smile, he chirped, "My great idea is: You will come up with the entire contents of the presentation and the script, and I will just present the first and last slides. Wonderful idea, isn't it?" My eyes opened wide like saucers upon hearing what he said and for the first time in an eternity, I moved and swivelled my head slowly at him in disbelief. I noticed the evil glint in his eyes while his lips curled into a diabolical grin. So much for him being a ray of hope; more like a reign of terror.

"You have got to be kid-"

"You have got to be grateful that I'm proposing this," he interrupted before I could finish. His face had suddenly switched back to one of great innocence, almost like a saint. "Because if you do that, I will put in a good word for you to Georgina and then you two get to be besties once again. See, a win-win for everyone!" his angelic smile soon morphed into a villainous smirk while ending with, "Think of it as payment for my service."

No sooner had I heard that than I turned and looked in the direction where Georgina was. She was glaring hard at me in my direction. I could feel her jealousy permeate through my skin and dig deep into my soul. The daggers I had been staring earlier were like toy knives compared to what she was giving me.

Our eyes met.

My eyebrows furrowed and I shook my head vehemently, hoping to signal to her that there was nothing happening between the two of us. Georgina reciprocated with a deftly yet graceful turn away from me, indicating that my plea had all but failed.

"Shoot. Not a good sign," I concluded while turning back to look at Elias who had been savouring the moment the whole time.

"Well, looks like you need my deal more than ever, don't you, Ember? And, if I'm not mistaken, this project takes up a significant part of our grade for the end of year examination. I also know that you want and need a perfect score, so either way you would still be doing a fantastic job while getting a free perk. Isn't that a great deal and great teamwork?" he remarked while spreading out his hands with a face so pure it almost looked like he was advocating for world peace. He should seriously consider a career in acting; he might even give Will Smith a run for his money.

Deep inside, I was so disgusted at him calling me "Ember" as if we were the closest of friends. Even Georgina never called me that. To make things worse, he just blackmailed me into doing all the work and he would freeride into getting good grades. We were right after all - he truly is a jerk. Just what did Georgina see in him?

My eyes trailed to my keychain which is of Hello Kitty in an orange dragon costume. How I wish I could transform into a dragon and burn this creep into ember just for calling me Ember. I wanted to tell him to stop calling me that but decided that I had bigger fish to fry.

"To make the deal sweeter and more enticing for you," he said, interrupting my train of thoughts. "If you refuse, I'll tell Georgina that you tried to hit on me and that you badmouthed her."

I stared daggers at him again, yearning that they would become lasers that could bore through him, wiping him off the face of the earth. I wondered if mine were as lethal as Georgina's.

This was the first time I was getting blackmailed and I really did not have any other choice. "If I refuse him outright, I have no idea what this scumbag might do. Yet, even if I were to agree to it, there's no guarantee that this shapeshifting weasel would keep to the end of his bargain," I thought sourly to myself.

"What's it going to be, Ember?" he asked, this time with an edge in his voice, showing his growing impatience. This time he did not bother with putting up an act.

"How can I be certain that you will not play me out?" I finally replied, sullen.

His face immediately morphed into one showing great disappointment. "Aww, you don't trust me? Look at my face; can't you see that I care about you girls? Does it look like one that will scheme and betray?" he commented, sounding convincingly hurt.

"No," was my curt response.

Elias let out a soft chuckle with hints of being sinister. "You're such a clever girl. No wonder you're one of the top students in our level. You're absolutely right, my dear Ember," he continued while smirking. "There is no guarantee I will keep my promise. But if you do a great job, I might be motivated to keep my word."

I bit my lower lip after confirming my worst fears. I am the proverbial drowning man who would clutch at any straw, I thought resentfully.

I looked at my keychain and then thought of Georgina. I would do whatever it takes to mend our relationship. She is, after all, my first friend and my best friend.

In the end, with a heavy sigh, I relented, "Fine. You got yourself a deal but follow through on your agreement." I wanted to add 'dirtbag' behind but decided against it.

With his eyes forming arches, Elias once again flashed his boyish grin while sticking out his pinkie finger, "You've got yourself a deal teammate! Here's to great teamwork."

I ignored him entirely.

I peered in Georgina's direction. She had her back facing me like a wall getting taller, thicker and more unscalable; unapproachable even. For the first time, I was not sure if our friendship could survive a catastrophe of this scale.