"Holy shit, you've got to be kidding me."
Matt sheepishly grinned. "I think I really lost it."
It took almost everything in me to not scream out loud. He was such an idiot!
"We were just holding it a few minutes ago, Evans!" I shrieked. "How the hell did you lose your plane ticket?"
He threw his hands up, exhaustion evident in his face. "I don't know, okay? I didn't sleep much last night, and I'm tired, and I forget easily when I'm tired, and I don't know!"
I sighed and glared at him. "I can't just leave you here, can I? Natty, Oscar and my parents might kill me."
His shoulders sagged and he started to ask random people if they found a plane ticket to Avila, the small faraway city where Minerva Academy is at.
I almost felt a bit of sympathy for him, since Natty asked him to bring so much things for himself, and his dad even told him to bring some of my things, since I too had so much of them. I'd retrieve them from him, but the bags in my hands are killing me as well. He was dragging the bags around with him, as he asked people about his ticket, receiving incredulous looks from them.
What the hell was he doing last night that made him this forgetful and tired?
I was starting to lose hope really fast. I tried in vain to ask people about the ticket too, until finally I groaned and grabbed Matt's hand, pulling him from the lady he was talking to.
"That's it. I'm calling Natty," I said firmly.
Some of the color in his face left him. "No."
"What do you mean no? I am calling them," I said.
"Come on, Haleson!" he said, exasperated. "I can't have them lose their trust in me. If I can't keep my own ticket safe, how would they trust me to keep you safe?"
I pursed my lips at him. Yesterday, his and my parents gave us a full hour talk on what'll happen in M.A. They also kind of forced Matt to sort of bodyguard me.
"You don't have to do it, you know," I told him. "I can take care of myself. And I thought you didn't even want to go to M.A, much less cared if your parents trusted you."
Matt stared at me. "I actually agreed with them, that M.A. would be good for me," he said. "And I need them to trust me enough to let me go when college comes around."
So Matt was planning to move out probably, when we graduate. I understood him, wanting to keep his parents trusting him, but we were out of options. What were we supposed to do, walk to Avila?
"I'm sorry, Matt." I was sincere. "But we're out of choices."
Matt groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose as I dialled Natty's number in my phone.
I was glaring at him as he was gently tugging on my jean jacket, trying to stop me. I put my phone to my ear.
"You're so stupid, you know," I whispered to him.
He pouted and kept pulling at my jacket.
"Um, hello?"
"Hello, Natty?" I asked, and Matt looked at me in confusion. I then looked at my phone.
Wait... It was still contacting Natty.
I flinched as a pale hand randomly appeared in front of me.
"Hey." I looked up at the girl who spoke. She was a redhead, had quite huge eyes, and looked about Matt's and my age.
"My name's Lynn," she said, holding a hand out to me and shaking the other at Matt.
In the hand she was waving at Matt, she was clutching a folded up paper. I shook her hand and studied her. She had a huge green trolly behind her, sunglasses resting on top of her head. She wore a fancy navy blue blazer over a baby pink blouse. The blazer had some sort of pin in the upper left part, gold and gleaming, showing an owl perched on a branch between a swirling pair of laurel leaves.
"I overheard you guys talking," she said, then waved the arm with the paper in it.
A grin began appearing on Matt's face. I narrowed my eyes at the paper and turned the phone call off.
I began, "Is that..."
"I assume you," she looked at Matt, "are Matthew Ian Evans, departing for Avila?"
"Yeah!" Matt sighed in relief. He reached for the paper in Lynn's hand, but she swiftly moved it farther from him.
Lynn narrowed her eyes at Matt. "You know, if you are to survive Minerva Academy, you need to be more responsible than that."
Matt's face fell. "Oh," he said. "You go there." His eyes lingered on the pin on her blazer.
"Yes, I do." She glared at him. "And I hope you won't be a problem in the Academy." She returned Matt's ticket to him and I smiled sheepishly. Well, her hopes were already crushed.
"Wait, how did you know we're going to Minerva Academy?" I asked.
Lynn shrugged. "I guessed. Not a lot of people go to Avila unless it's some sort of important business meeting, holiday party or they're transferring or going back to M.A. You both seem too young for business meetings and summer's about to end." She shouldered her bag, looking ready to leave.
She nodded at me. "Hope you know how to keep him contained."
I nearly laughed at that. She regarded him like an animal.
Matt snapped out of his curious state and glared at her. "Hey, now-"
I slapped my hand over his mouth. I thought it'd be wise to not cross this girl. She seemed like one of those girls who had the calm kind of anger but managed to scare the hell out of you.
Keeping her eyes narrowed at Matt, she spoke softly, "See you both at the Academy."
"Bye and thank you!" I managed to put a huge grin on my face. Damn, she's scary.
Matt pulled my hands away from his face and when she was far enough called, "Goodbye, sunshine!"
I rolled my eyes at him, grabbed my bags from the floor and lined up for the check-up. "Come on, Evans, and try not to lose your ticket again."
*~*~*~*~*
Matt was munching loudly on his chips and slurping his drink in an exaggerated manner. He was yawning louder than any normal person and slumping down his chair a lot.
I groaned at him. He has been annoying me ever since I forced him to sit in the middle, and give up the window seat for me. All I wanted to do was sleep, but of course this asshole wouldn't let me because he's a childish little fu-
"You know, Avery," he said loudly, waking up the middle-aged man beside him.
I slapped his arm. "Idiot! Shut up!" I leaned forward to send an apologetic look at the man, but he returned it with a glare. He then continued on with his sleep.
I sighed. Damn Evans.
Matt snickered at me. He then took his phone out, went to his Gallery but turned his screen away from my eyes, smirking.
I rolled my eyes at him. "Everyone knows you keep porn in that thing, no need to hide anything."
He glared at me, but continued scrolling frantically, apparently looking for something. When he found it, he put his phone an inch before my face and pulled it back when I slapped him again. I didn't need to go crossed eyed. I already had these glasses to prove how broken my eyes are.
In his phone was a picture of some sort of poster type, with the words Minerva Academy written on it. In the background was a picture of several teens, with the same blazer as Lynn was wearing. They were all smiling wide, arms around each other.
"Now," Matt said, "what I find curious is seeing Lynn earlier, being like some regal diva and this picture. I don't know whether to believe the students there are posh, stuck-up and smart people or normal, hormonal and smart teens."
"I don't know which is worse," I muttered.
"All I'm saying is that I need to prepare myself, and you too," he said then locked his phone and put it in his pocket. "This thing is hella different from Felixbert, Haleson."
"I figured as much," I said sarcastically.
He ignored me. "I just hope this school doesn't suck."
Me too, Evans.
"It'd be horrible if it's filled with Luis clones."
At that, I raised my eyebrows at him. When did he start to hate Luis so much? And why?