:sky:
"Sky! Sky! Hey!"
It's Jeno again.
I was this close to getting out of school without much interaction, but this is what I get for leaving through the front door instead of the back.
I look like crap, I feel like crap, I probably smell like crap, do I want to talk to people right now?
Especially my fake boyfriend and his friends?!
I could pretend I didn't hear them.
The sound of multiple footsteps neared me, so that plan flew out the window.
I cover my face as I turn to them. One, because it's embarrassing to look like this in front of these attractive, popular guys. And two, they smell like they did some weed or something...
As always.
"Hey, Sky." Donghyuck smiles sweetly at me. "How are you doing?"
"Eh..."
"What are you doing after school?" Jeno asks with his index fingers pointed towards me. "Do you have anything planned?"
I sigh and looked down. "I'm going to do my homework and work on a few projects when I get home."
"Do you always have homework to do?" Jaemin laughs. "Even on weekends?"
"Teachers can do that?!" Donghyuck screams in fear and grabs Jaemin's shirt. "Homework on weekends?! JAEMIN, TELL ME IT ISN'T TRUE!"
"Yeah..." Jaemin calmly removes his hand from his now wrinkled shirt. "If you weren't always skipping class, you would know. F**king idiot."
"Look who's talking, Mr. I DON'T NEED SCIENCE, SCIENCE NEEDS ME!"
I laugh under my breath.
That was kinda funny.
"Can't you skip a day and hang with us?" Jeno brings me back on subject and ignores his unusual friends. "It'll be fun, Sky."
"I-I can't..."
"Come on, it's Friday! You'll have the whole weekend to do your school stuff." Jaemin attempts to convince me, but I don't budge.
"I'm sorry. My mom will literally kill me if I ditch a study day to just hang out with friends." I answer with a hint of despair.
Jeno looks at his friends for a second, before going back to me. "Is there a problem, Sky?"
"W-What problem?"
"You don't seem alright." Donghyuck points to my covered face. "You also keep covering your face."
"Do you have pimples?" Jaemin asks.
"I just have a really, really, really....really strict mother." I force a chuckle. "When I say she'll kill me if I skip a day of homework, I'm not exaggerating."
They all raised their eyebrows in surprise.
"Is that why..." Donghyuck motions towards my body.
"Dude, you can't just call her out like that." Jaemin smacks his hand away.
"No! I'm just asking if her mom's the reason why she looks really tired or whatever."
Should I just tell them?
They won't stop bothering me if I don't, huh?
"She, uh....s-she got a phone call from the school saying that I was late to a few of my classes." My eyes travel to the ground, then to the sky. "As a punishment, she locked me out of the house and won't let me back in until tonight." I turn to Jeno. "I left the clothes under my bed, so that's why I wasn't able to wear it today."
There was a stinging silence and the boys were just exchanging shocked glances with each other.
Hm, maybe not a good idea to share that.
"I-I gotta go. If I want to be able to enter the house at least, I should have all my assignments done...maybe..."
I turn my heel and fast walked away, feeling some regret and huge embarrassment.
<•>
Ugh, why did I say all that? Why did I have to go into detail for one thing?
They probably didn't even care and yet I still felt the need to give such an answer!?
Now they're probably thinking about how poor of a life I have. They're probably thinking "wow, I don't want to associate myself with that girl".
They couldn't even respond! How would they even respond?! Why did I open my mouth at all?!
I hate my "mother". I hate how poorly she treats me. I hate how much she hates me.
The way she impacts my life so negatively makes me want to just leave and never come back.
<•>
"In 'To All Colleges that Rejected Me,' Weiss chastises college acceptance committees with biting sarcastic remarks to criticize the unrealistic standards placed in high school seniors hoping to get into college."
I painfully type my rhetorical analysis essay with constant pauses. I kept having to swat mosquitos away from my limbs or from my laptop screen.
It's hard enough writing an essay on the concrete ground of my backyard patio and now nature wants to keep giving me bloodsucking bugs too?!
If they're trying to suck the life out of me, they should go suck someone else. There's barely any life left in me.
It's getting dark out and my mother has not even checked up on me yet. She hasn't even peeked out the window to see if I'm ok or anything.
Not that I expect it, but still....
So far, I've completed all my assignments for the weekend except for my English essay, but it's not due until next week.
I don't even want to do it. Right now, all I want is a shower, new clothes, food, and maybe a bed if I'm wishing for everything.
I'm sick of doing homework. I actually am! There I said it! Sue me!
Since I'm thinking about things I want, WHATEVER, I want to leave this life and start a new one far away from this monster who is unfortunately my mother.
If I had a penny for EVERY TIME I-
"Pst."
My body jumps.
What was that?
"Pst. Hey, Sky."
"Wh-Who is that?" I sit up and held my laptop close to my chest.
"Over here."
I turn around and hiding behind a corner of my house....was Jeno?
"What the-What in the world? Jeno? What? How-Where did you-How did you-What are you doing?" I stand up and stared at him in shock.
"I can answer all your questions later." He whispers and motions me over. "Come over here."
"What?"
"I know you want to leave."
"Are you-Are you trying to kidnap me?"
"If I was trying to kidnap you, would I be this nice? Just come with me, Sky."
I look at my backpack, then at the house.
"Sky, just come with me. It's ok."
My gaze stayed on him.
I want to go.
I want to leave.
But when I come back...I'm going to face mad hell.
And leave with Jeno?
"I-I'm going to get in huge trouble with my mother if I go, Jeno." I kneel down and stuffed my laptop into my backpack. "You are right, though. I do want to leave."
"Then leave."
I stop and looked back at him.
He drops his arms and sighs. "I'm not going to do anything weird to you, Sky. It'll be ok. I'm really, really not that bad a guy."
I stand up, swinging my backpack over my shoulders. "What if my mom comes back and sees that I'm not here?"
"Will she?"
"....she might not check until tomorrow afternoon when she gets home from work..."
"Ok, then. No problem. I'll have you back by then." He holds out a hand. "Come with me."
<•>
:sky:
"Where's Donghyuck and Jaemin?" I ask as I sit down on his couch, placing my backpack besides my feet.
"Donghyuck, Jaemin, and I hung out earlier today, but Donghyuck went back home because he got a little drunk." Jeno shuts the fridge and chuckles. "And Jaemin is out with his other friends. Renjun is probably at the library again, I don't know."
"Oh, I didn't-"
"But you wanted to know." He interrupts with a pressed smile.
I turn away and blushed.
I always want to know where Renjun is. And I'm thankful that he's not here because I still look like an absolute mess.
"Yeah, I don't have anything except snacks in my kitchen." Jeno closes his cabinets and leans against the counter. "How about we go out and find a place to eat?"
"It's so late out, though."
"Late?" He snorts. "You call this late?"
"My mother usually doesn't let me out once it gets dark. Unless it has something to do with school."
"Psh. I really can't relate. Whatever. You're my girl now and you're hungry, so I should feed you more than snacks."
Pretend dating, but ok.
He said food.
"Ok...I haven't ate since lunch, so-"
"Lunch?!" His eyes widen. "Jesus Christ, does your mom not feed you too?!"
I shrugged, becoming embarrassed. "I haven't been inside the house yet. I also...don't have money to go out and eat."
Geez, I'm so embarrassed.
"Well," He slams his hands on the counter and crosses around it. "Let's go feast then!"
"Out? In public?" I visibly panicked.
He bursts out in short laughter. "Duh. Do you want to go shower?"
"Yes..."
"I wasn't going to let you go out looking like that anyway. If I'm going to be seen with you in public, we BOTH have to look hot and snatched."
I fake a smile.
This guy...
*
"U-Um...Jeno. You said you'll leave the clothes in the bathroom. Where are they?" I asked through the closed bathroom door.
I spin my head around, trying to find any article of clothing I could possibly wear, but nothing was in sight.
Here I am, standing in Jeno's bathroom with only a towel on.
This kinda sucks right now.
"And why are my clothes not here? Did you take them?"
"I have them right here!"
His voice sounded closer than I thought, causing me to back away from the door with a gasp.
"Jeno?"
"Another thing I like about 'black'.....is the mail." His tone turned mischievous in a second.
"What?"
"Blackmail. Geez, you are so dense."
I have no clothes and I'm in a bathroom that belongs to someone I barely know. Of course I'm not thinking straight.
"Are you mad, Sky?"
"What?"
"If you get mad at me, just yell. It'll help!"
"What are you saying?"
"This is a good way for two people to become closer. Put one person in an uncomfortable position that only the other person can help."
"Jeno," I quietly whined. "Can I please have some clothes?"
"Not a problem. Would you like something that'll look real hot on you?"
I glare at the door. "Does it have to be?"
"Yes, but you have to do something for me first."
This guy!
"What?" I slightly hissed.
"Hm...how about you promise to let me make some changes to you?"
"Changes? What do you mean?"
"Remember, we're dating. Yet, we are the most different people ever. We have to make it more believable, so our goals can be reached faster."
Why is he speaking as if our plan is like a school project?
I cross my arms and stared at the ground.
Would Renjun be into the bad girl Sky?
He did like the outfit Donghyuck put me in the other day...
"Fine." I agree with a loud sigh. "I promise I'll let you make some changes. Not any scary changes, though."
"Great! Now open the door."
I unlock the door and opened it just about an inch, so he wouldn't be able to peek inside.
"Seriously, how am I going to give you the clothes if you don't open the door?"
"You can still fit it in. I just don't want you to...see me." I grip my towel. "Can you please give me the clothes?"
Jeno's hand struggled through the small crack. He drops something black on the floor in front of me and I slam the door shut.
"Hey! You almost took off my finger!"
"Sorry!"
Not.
<•>
I exit the bathroom as quietly as I could, hissing when the cool air hits my exposed arms and legs.
This cannot be the only thing he expects me to wear.
Just some black shirt that barely reaches my knees? Why did I expect more from Jeno?
Speaking of the devil, he barges into the room out of nowhere and startles me.
"Good! You're done!"
"You really expect me to wear this outside?" I motion towards my legs.
"I think it looks good."
"Can I have a jacket? I don't want to return home with no legs."
"Why didn't you say that in the first place?" He turns to his closet. "I'm not that rude to only make you wear that when it's winter season."
I lightly smile.
Thank goodness.
He throws me a black padded coat and a black beanie.
"I'm guessing you like black." I awkwardly chuckled as I immediately put them on. "Favorite color?"
"No, my favorite color is pink and white." He states with annoying sarcasm. "I actually really enjoy the pastels."
I glare at him.
"Put it on, then put on your shoes. We should hurry before my favorite restaurant closes."
<•>
I stare at the menu in shock.
This amount of money for a single dish?
"Jeno..." I whisper. "Jeno..."
"If you want me to hear you, don't cover your mouth with the menu." He says and snatches the menu from my hands. "I'll order for you. I get a 50% off discount and free drinks. Cool, right?"
"You get a discount?"
"I come here almost every day ever since I moved out alone. It'd be weird if I didn't get some sort of special treatment." He snickers and continues to flip through the menu. "So what do you want? Pad Thai, Tom Yum Goong, Som Tum, Khao Pad?"
"Do you ever eat at your own house?" I ask, completely ignoring his question.
He drops the menu and shrugs. "When I'm not eating here, I'm probably at home eating ordered food."
I furrow my brows. "Do you ever cook for yourself?"
He shakes his head and goes back to the menu. "Never learned how to. Don't really want to either."
I lean back against my seat in totally confusion, but held back from asking more questions.
I'm just confused as to how he can afford eating out so much.
My mother and I only ate out twice this year and every time, we barely get anything because it was so expensive.
We stopped after awhile and she told me that I shouldn't get special treatment anyway unless I truly deserve it.
It bothers me....does she want me to win the Nobel Prize just so I deserve to get a taste of what real food is and not just eat leftovers from her work?!
"I'm just going to order for you since you're not answering me." Jeno says and closes the menu. "You're getting Yam Nua and I'm gonna get Pad Thai."
"Is that good?"
"Of course it's good."
"There's my favorite customer! Back again already?"
I turn to my left and see a waiter walking towards us with a notepad and pen in his hands.
Jeno laughs gently and high fives the waiter's hand. "You work this late, man?"
I watched them, puzzled.
"I'm getting my hours earned." He turns to me and smiles. "Who's this little lady?"
"This is Sky." Jeno motions towards me. "Sky, meet Johnny."
"Hi." I shyly waved to him.
He's huge.
"Well, nice to see you both here. Would you like to order now?"
*
"So, did you like it?" Jeno leans on the table and drops his spoon on his empty bowl. "Tell me you liked it."
I wipe my mouth with a napkin and nodded. "That was actually really good."
"What did I tell you, this place is amazing." He looks behind him and waves Johnny over.
"W-We're leaving already?" I whisper to him.
"Hey, Johnny. Sky and I are going to head off now. Thanks for the meal. Here." Jeno casually hands him a couple of bills to his friend. "Keep the change."
"Why are you acting so cool?" Johnny chuckles. "Is it because you have a girl here?"
I cover a laugh.
"Shut up, Johnny." Jeno mumbles and stands up. "Come on, Sky, let's go."