Charming the Devil

Chapter 5

This week was going to be a stressful week and I could already feel my anxiety creeping up on me as soon as I entered the school gates on Monday. I had one picnic basket full of cookies to be distributed (there was another one which I gave to Nathan to give to his batch mates). I started giving it to people as soon as I entered the gates with the biggest smile on my face (things we do to get votes), and by lunchtime, I was almost out of cookies.

When the bell ran signalling lunchtime, I asked my friends to continue and that I would join them in a few minutes as I wanted to take a count of the cookies remaining in the basket. I had just reached cookie number 13 when someone picked up one directly from the basket. I looked up, ready to greet them, wanting to ask them to vote for me, when I saw Apollo holding the cookie. I sighed, he was inspecting the cookie like it had some hidden treasure map on it. My life has not known peace since I ran for these elections.

I continued counting. He removed the wrapper and took a bite of the cookie. "Mmmhhhh", Apollo ate it like he had never eaten a cookie before. I couldn't help but roll my eyes. When he realised I wasn't reacting to him, he said, "Did you know that there was a medical treatment called bloodletting in the olden days where they would essentially remove all blood from a patient's body when they were sick since it was believed that blood held the most impurities and doing so would make the patient feel better?" Sounds like I wasn't the only one going crazy with these elections.

But I found myself curious about what he was talking, "And? Did it help the patients?" I asked. "It did", he said, "but it also caused a lot of deaths. You see, while the blood is a very essential component in curing any disease, if an organ is damaged, purifying the blood is not going to make the organ magically better. Just like stuffing everyone's faces with a few cookies in the last week is not going to invalidate years of work that I have done to make everyone believe that I am the ideal school president." Oh, he was here to shake my morale. And it was working. It is true, if I wasn't standing for these elections myself, I would have probably voted for him as well. I think it is a well accepted fact around school. The sky is blue, the mountains are high, Apollo for school president. But I did not want to appear weak in front of him and I wanted to try my best till the very end.

"So, you have come to ask me to back off from the elections?", I asked, looking right into his eyes.

"The contrary, actually", he said. I was confused before he made it clear, "I am glad you are running for it. The fire you have to do good for this school and its students will really help me when I assign all my duties to you as my vice president. You will be working directly under me and I cannot wait to eat you up like I devoured that precious cookie of yours". He gave the biggest fake smile I had seen in a while and I gave one back. With that, he trashed the wrapper in the bin and walked out of the classroom.

By the time I joined my friends in the cafeteria, I had lost my appetite. I knew what he hinted at could be a very strong possibility - that I would get appointed as the school vice president. And I did not mind that either, being the school vice president in my last year along with my grades would look really good on my application too. The only downside was that I would be reporting to Apollo and by the looks of it, he wanted to make my life hell so that he could feel right at home.

When I was returning to class after the break, I saw that the classroom walls and the bulletin board had posters of Apollo for the school president. I paused to admire one. A picture of him was in the centre of the poster, wearing our school uniform. Behind him, there was a yellow light, appearing almost like a halo and the words 'Apollo - Your School President' were written above his photo. I guess when you have this strong personality along with that handsome face, you don't need to do much except for just exist.

"I could autograph one for you if you want", the owner of that handsome face came and stood beside him, probably admiring himself. Interacting with him twice in one day, must be my lucky day.

"I was just noticing how easily likeable you are as long as you don't open your mouth."

I don't know where I got the courage from to say these words but I instantly regretted it. That one was going to come back to haunt me. He put his hand on his heart as if what I said really hurt his feelings (yea, if he had any - feelings or heart).

"I didn't think you had it in you to say something so harsh to my face", me neither, brother. "I cannot wait to make you eat your words once I made you my pet."

I turned to him to face his wrath but he looked playful instead of his usual cold self. Maybe he is always low on sugar and the cookie earlier helped make him less cranky. Reminder to self - always carry something sweet to feed the devil and maybe he won't bite.

I wonder how he got to be so popular. Was it only because of his family's wealth? He is very charming, there is no doubt about that. And he seems good with words as well. The kind where he could make you hold a knife to your own throat and you would thank him for it. He also got someone like me, who has been so aloof last few months, to engage with him. He has been on my mind too, there is something just unmissable about him. His cold personality, instead of pushing people away, is what is attracting them. They hold on to every word he says and every time he shows even the slightest of response to them, they just break down and come back for more. I don't think he is popular because of his family's wealth. This popularity is all his doing, and we are all his puppets.

"Kai, you aren't really waiting for me to sign one, are you?", his comment brought me out of my head.

Sensing that I was not responding to him, he just started making his way to his class. He paused after taking a few steps, "Aren't you going to your class?".

"I am", and with that, I started following him as my class was right next to his.