Drowning In Color | ✔️

Chapter Seven

Literature. One of the few subjects that I try to stay awake in, but end up falling asleep in anyway. It's not that I don't like it. It's just too complicated for my understanding. Yeah, please excuse my dim-witted brain for being unable to comprehend words and sentences not normally used in everyday language.

"Violetta," our teacher, Mr Johnson, called out. His figure towered over beside me, clearly looking down and intimidating me. It worked. I carefully stood up from my seat, ensuring that I do not make the slightest sound as I dragged the chair back. "In stanza 11, how does the writer feel about her current situation?"

I fumbled with the textbook, trying to find the correct lines. "A-Angry, right?"

He shook his head in disapproval and directed the same question to Luka, who was staring moodily at the book. He stood up for attention while I sat back down, already feeling embarrassed, and stared at his performance.

Luka coughed and took a deep breath. "The author describes herself as being unwanted and experiencing a pain. Based on the poem being about love, she could be feeling heartbroken," he explained. Seeing how elaborate and convincing it was as compared to mine, he must have research on it beforehand to come up with that answer.

Mr Johnson nodded at his answer. "Very good, Luka." He applauded. And he turned back to me. "As for you, Violetta, you may wish to get on the same page next time."

I cowered in my seat. My body was shivering as the entire class laughed at the teacher's snarky comment about me. I hid my head under my hood. Not that it would help much, but at least it was comforting being under a dark blanket. My fingers twirled around the drawstring and tugged onto it to tighten it around my head.

When the bell rang, Mr Johnson exited the class with a final dramatic quote, and then a condescending smirk on his face directed at me. I snatched my messily packed bag from the ground and burst out of the back door, rushing past Luka and ignoring him completely. Little did I know that somebody was following me from behind.

"Hey Vee, nice job in Literature class just now. You were really looking ahead of the pages there." That was Joanne, the most popular girl in class. "Also, are you really that insecure that you have to completely change your entire look?"

She's been bugging me ever since I stopped caring about grades about half a year ago. Top in class, unlike me, she probably pays off the teachers to give her a good grade. Or I could just be dumb and jealous that she could somehow ace the quizzes that magically appears on the day after her parties. It's probably the latter, isn't it?

I rolled my eyes and walked away. The chorus of sniggers resounded from the classroom. I didn't want to waste any time being bothered by her. I kept my gaze on the floor to attract as little attention as possible. My free hand was placed in the pocket of the jacket.

"Violetta," a familiar voice called me. He looked concerned about something. What, is he gonna apologize now for embarrassing me in front of everyone? No, that's fucking dumb. It wasn't his fault, after all. I glanced towards his hand wrapped around my elbow. "Hey, you alright?"

I shook my head and continued on. Still, he kept coming up to me and pulling me back. "What the fuck do you want with me, Luka?" He looked away after I said those harsh words to his name, and he bit his lip. Guilt tripping me subconsciously there. "I'm sorry," I mumbled.

He thought carefully about his words before saying anything. "There's a place I really want to take you," he admitted.

I gave him a look that said something along the lines of "Get away from me, you psycho," but refused to actually utter the words. Instead, I questioned as to whether or not he needed me for the project still. Because I thought that he had finished it yesterday. "Is this about the report?"

He shook his head, then stammered. "Well... You see..." I looked as he appeared to be thinking of ways to calm himself down. "I would like to go on a date with you, if that's okay."

My eyes widened. Did he like, ask me out? On an actual date? I thought dates were supposed to be a thing that people go on if they like each other. My words fell short. I was speechless. He assured that it's okay if I don't want to, but in the heat of the moment, I accepted.

"Great... That's great..." he whispered to himself. Luka took my hand and escorted me to his bike. He bowed and helped me onto the bike while grabbing the helmets at the same time. I did wonder why he constantly carried two around, like he was actually expecting to drive a second person to places every day.

With my curiosity, I asked him where we were going. I didn't want any surprises this time, to his dismay. He accused me of not totally trusting him, to which I could say, I didn't. Seeing how hot and cold he was, it was hard for me to accurately predict what's on his mind all the time.

"A café," he said. That's it? That's all he's gonna tell me? Well to be fair, I did ask for the place, and not the specific details. But I pondered over the thought of why this café he spoke of might be so special. Heck, for all I know, it could have just been a random one he passed by along the way on his bike.

Still remembering what happened last night, I hesitated, despite his warnings. Something was telling me to not touch his body. Especially since things became awkward during his sudden blowout. "Why are you doing this?" I asked, making sure there was a rationality.

"Doing what?" He looked perplexed by my words. But I know he knew what I was talking about. For fuck's sake, he actually hurt my arm. Granted, there wasn't any serious injury, but the distress was in me. "I just really wanna make it up to you, okay? For yesterday, I mean." Yup. He knew. He definitely knew.

Since he had acknowledged it, I gave in and held onto his waist. He looked at me and laughed. "Are you sure you don't want to give me a big hug?" he asked, half cringing at his own joke. I hammered his back for making fun of me that way. I changed my mind and grabbed tightly onto the seat instead, no matter how dangerous he said it was.

Being unable to change my mind, we stuck to that idea and the engines roared. The bike accelerated in an instant at what felt like top speed. Then it stopped completely. My body jerked forward and landed itself on his back. "Dude, are you fucking insane? I could have fallen off or something!"

"I know. That's why it's best you hold onto me." He winked. Goddamn this prick! How did he manage to go from brooding over some papers to a sneaky flirt, all over one night?

Unbeknownst to me, my hands had already wrapped themselves around him. One of them pressing against his waist, and the other on his chest. They progressed around his t-shirt, along the outlines of the printed picture which I envisioned in my mind. Unfair, since I had seen it prior to this, but all I had was the memory of it now.

My head leaned just under his neck, where his hood dangled and provided a cushion for me. Well, not that I could feel much behind this robotic head I'm stuck behind. More so, it masked my face as I sniffed hard to catch his scent. This time, the scent of a freshly washed fabric.

I couldn't help it, even though I was fully aware of the risk that I was absolutely close to his ears. My grip tightened. I felt around to find his headphone wire, which had a mini remote to control the volume of his music. I wonder if he noticed. I hope I wasn't too distracting.

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OMG he actually asked her out on a date! Guess there's many sides to his personality

Also, what's your most/least favorite subject in school?

Mine was probably Chemistry cos I aced it without much effort. Least fav would be PE, because I can't run if my life depended on it >.<