Metanoia: A Change of Heart

Chapter XXVII ~ Thonia

I was grounded. One of the supposedly-good things about being grounded was that you could have much time resting.

But not when you just knew your ex-boyfriend was dating your friend. It would be the opposite of best—worst. The grounds gave me a lot of time thinking about it and I hate it.

I locked myself in my room and listened to the Mayday Parade album Josh gave me. I had bought the songs online in my phone before but hearing them in the Album itself made it all different. More alive. More real. More touchy. I was torturing myself with their songs. Oh, so broken songs. I wondered why I even liked this band, I mean; it tortured my feelings so bad.

Above the song, I still heard the knock on my door. It opened before I even said to come in. "Thones," Jude peeked. "Asaila is outside. Jack needed help."

"What?!" I reached the remote of the music player and turned it off. I might have heard him wrong, I just told Asaila not to come here because I was grounded. Huh, she was really unstoppable.

Jude fully opened the door and repeated what he said. He smiled and made no move to let me go out. "But we can wait a few more minutes, if you want."

I grinned at his playful plan to make Jack stay longer with Asaila. "Jack will totally kill me after he killed you."

He laughed and shrugged. "Well, not if he died first because of your friend."

"Don't be so mean, brother. The girl simply adores you." I stood and wore my slippers. We went to the living room where they were.

"Hi, Thonia!" Asaila said. She was wearing another black-and-white polka dot Asaila-dress that reached above her knee and a cardigan.

I looked at her and sent the eye-glare that meant: What are you doing here? I told you, you can't come. But sent me a wide smile that I interpreted as: I am already here. No choice but be with me. I sighed.

"Until three only, okay?" Jude whispered to me. "I will carry her out forcefully. You're still grounded." I giggled because I imagined the scene. I bet Asaila would love the plan even so.

They left us and we went to my room. Asaila closed the door and dived on my bed before I even sat on my bean bag. "You look fresh, Thonia." Asaila chuckled over my pillows.

"Thanks," I said for her sarcasm. "Why are you here?"

She lay on her back and placed her hands on her stomach. She sang the first lines of a famous song about stars while she gazed at my ceiling covered with glow-in-the-dark heavenly bodies from the sun to the planets to the Stars.

"Give me a break!" I sighed in desperation. She loved singing, but she got off-tune sometimes, well, most of the times.

"Just because you have a good voice doesn't mean I can't sing." She sat on the edge of my bed and acted fake hurt.

"I didn't say you can't." I said and her expression seemed to smiled, and then I added, "Just not in my room."

She sneered at me. "I hate you, Thonia."

"Thank you. The feeling is mutual." I folded my arms and acted tough. We played a short staring-game but as usual, I won.

"Why do you have to be so mean?" she threw her doll shoes on the ground near me and lay again.

"Why are you here, sweetie?" I smiled this time.

"Can't I be here?" she said and stared at my ceiling again. "Can you share your brothers?"

"I told you I am grounded." I sat beside her. "How are you and Art?"

"We're fine," she said but I doubted it. If they truly were, she would be hysterical describing their love for each other. "But that's not what I am here for."