Kora
I checked my wrist watch, and then my phone for the umpteenth time. Where was she? It had been over twenty minutes since Grace had asked me to hurry to hall fifteen, in the south-east wing of the central building. We had an emergency class we only knew about that morning. She had promised to be waiting for me right outside the hallway, but I wasn't seeing her anywhere, and the worst part was, she wasn't taking her calls either.
Now I was stuck right in front of the hall, without knowing if it was okay to just walk in. The last thing I needed was the attention of anyone, the moment I walked in. It'd have been way better to go with someone. Grace for example. I looked around hoping I wasn't the only late comer around. I was. There was not a single soul in sight.
I couldn't believe I had spent the whole morning sleeping, and had forgotten about my classes. Who would have blamed me, when I had spent the entire night before, crying? I could feel my eyes were swollen. I also remember telling Grace not to bother waking me up for any of our classes, but since this one was going to end with a test, there was no way I was going to sit it out.
Okay, that was it. Grace or not, I was done waiting out there. For all I knew, Grace could have probably grown tired of waiting, and gone in herself, considering the fact that she wasn't picking her calls. I took a deep breath, all I had to do was walk into the classroom, as fast and silent as I could, and sit behind the class, and when no one was watching, when the time was right, I could easily blend in.
I must have looked so horrible. I didn't even get the chance to look myself in the mirror before I rushed out of my room. I could feel my belly rumble again. I was hungry too.
I slowly held on to the door knob, and then opened it as silently as I could, I took a step inside, puffing air into my cheeks. I closed the door slowly right after me, and turned to walk in.
There was a sound coming from the center of the room, more like music. It sounded like someone was playing the violin. I looked around the hall. It was completely empty. No students, no lecturer. It was just me and him. I didn't think I was in the right room at all.
I squinted my eyes, so I could have a better look at whoever it was. I held my breath when I saw his face clearly. It was him. The guy from before, Jeremiah. He was playing a song I had heard before. It was a song from the movie, Titanic, My heart would go on. It was one of my favorite songs, and he was playing it so beautifully.
I had never heard a violin version of that song being played excellently well before. It made me take further steps into the room. Steps I had not expected, or known I was even taking. I was so caught up in the moment, and the smile on my face, it was really bright. Somehow, my mood was lightening up. I didn't feel so sad and empty anymore. For the first few seconds, it was like I was completely lost in the moment, and he was too, seeing that he hadn't even noticed he had company.
The way his fingers moved around the strings, and his jaws settled halfway on the wooden object, his arm movements and facial expressions, they were everything, and so I stood there. Not bothering to move, satisfied with the fact that my legs had succeeded in becoming numb, and my mind could care less about the class I was actually supposed to be in. I could feel my jaw drop, almost to the point where I was drooling. I had never met someone play any musical instrument so good before. I was so lost in my thoughts, so engrossed in the sight in front of me, and the music that flowed through my ears, that I hadn't realize it had stopped. He had dropped the violin after his final stroke, and raised his head to look at me.
I froze.
It was only then I had come to my senses, and realized that he had known I was there all along. I could see his eyes staring into mine, and the frown on his face worsening. The sun was shinning right on his face, and he was glittering right with it. He looked like a complete angel with his dyed really light brown hair that complemented his really brown eyes, and that was it, the moment my legs had begun to function again, but when it finally did, it had chosen to completely embarrass me, and throw me off balance, by causing me to miss a step in an attempt to cringe backward.
You should have seen the way I twisted my ankle, and rolled all the way to the ground, from the stairs, till I was right in the middle of the room. I fell on my face, and I could have sworn I was right in front of him, because I could feel his presence above me, and his scent, good lord. I bit hard on my lip, freezing on the ground, not even bothering to get myself up. I kept my eyes shut, not bothering to lift my face up, because I was dying of embarrassment.
I was about to die.
About to die of the biggest embarrassment of my life. I quickly turned my hands over to my back bum to make sure my skirt hadn't decided to expose everything under it too. I didn't want him seeing me in my underwear, again.
Scoff!
That was him. Did he just scoff at me? I scoffed right back, raising my head slowly from the ground. His suede shoes were right in front of me. Almost pointed towards my eyes, and I started to trace the rest of his legs with my eyes. I had completely fallen in front of him.
Well done, kora. You had finally succeeded in making a complete fool out of yourself.
I bit on my lip harder again, trying to place my head back on the ground, to save myself any extra embarrassment.
"What are you doing?"
I froze yet again at the sound of his voice. Was he talking to me? I raised my head, and then looked around the room. There was no one else there, it had to be me. He was definitely talking to me. You're such a fool, Kora. I turned back to him, and then tried as hard as I could to get off the ground. I could feel my ankle snap as I tried to sit myself up. I had strained it. I winced in pain, and tried to reach for it.
That was also another thing I had forgotten about myself, I was really really delicate. Mum used to tell me that when I was younger, she never really let me play because she was scared I was going to snap my own neck and die if I turned it carelessly during hide and seek. That was how delicate I was. One small thing, one fall, and I could break a lot of bones. Thank God it was just an ankle this time.
Ouch.
I held on tight to my ankle as I managed to sit up. It was hurting. Not as much as I made it look. I agree, I was exaggerating the pain I was feeling, but that was because that was the only way to get myself not to talk or look at him, or explain why I was where I was.
"I know you're faking it."
I held my breath and then rolled my eyes. Did he really have to know everything? I didn't move. I didn't want to. I kept my gaze on my ankle. That was when I saw him hit the floor beside me twice with his stick, to get my attention. Now I couldn't ignore him. I raised my head to his, slowly letting go of my ankle.
"I-" I stammered. "Don't vex." I told him. "I honestly wasn't stalking you, or following you. I was actually looking for the rest of my class. I was told they were supposed to be here and so when I got here, it was just you- I-saw."
The way I broke my last words, I was running out of words and explanations. Not like I owed him any. Why was he staring at me like that? Did he not believe me?
"I'm not lying." I waved my hands in front of him, in a weird attempt to convince him. "I was really not stalking you."
"What are you?" He asked.
"Huh?" What was I? Did he mean who was I? Who I was?
I watched him open his mouth to speak, and then let out a loud scoff. He dropped his violin, and then got up from his stool quickly. I watched him turn to the window, so he could face the sun directly, his white sleeveless t-shirt brightening too. There was a tattoo on his arm, a tattoo I could have sworn I had seen before, a tattoo of two thick horizontal lines right up his arms, two inches apart from each other, just like how it was on bar codes. I couldn't stop staring at it, but I had to when he turned to face me.
"Are you in love with me?"
"Ehn!" I almost bit my tongue, the way I yelled out loud without thinking.
"I've been watching you make a fool out of yourself every time, in a failed and really uncomfortable attempt to get my attention. I get that all the time, so I know when someone is desperately asking for my attention."
Such guts.
I couldn't believe my ears. I didn't know if I should have felt insulted by that. Love him? I didn't even know him. I licked my upper teeth. Thinking hard for the right words to say.
"It's okay to admit it." He continued. "Say it so I could tell you that I'm getting really tired of you being in my way, and ask you to stop, politely." He squatted right in front of me. I could feel my face redden. I had never seen him up close this way before. I wanted to move back, to create space, to give him all the space, but my ankle... "You need to stop." He told me. "I honestly don't like clingy and disorganized people."
I could feel his breath on my face. It smelt like mint. Then he pushed his face closer to mine. I pushed my face back. Just what was he trying to do? He pushed himself yet closer still, and I hiccuped.
God, not again. What was wrong with me? I watched him freeze, and then furrow his brows at me. I hiccuped again, and then rolled my eyes, placing a hand over my mouth to stop me from constantly embarrassing myself. I was failing at this, at restoring my reputation.
Another scoff yet again, right before he picked up something from behind me. It was his violin stick he had dropped beside me, after I fell earlier. It was what he was trying to reach for before, it was why he was leaned so closely to me, to reach for it. What on earth was I thinking?
I watched him stand up quickly, and then turn to his stool. He picked up his jacket from it.
"You should know." He turned back to me, placing his jacket in his arms. "This is Old money's auditorium, not a classroom. You shouldn't get caught being in places you're not allowed to."
He exhaled, and then picked up his violin.
"I really hope we don't bump into each other, ever again." He walked away from me, and at that moment, I had noticed how easy it was to breathe again. I could feel a rush of air into my lungs. I placed a hand on my chest and took deep breaths, and then another set, and then another.
It was him. I knew who he was. I was finally beginning to see it. The resemblance, the tattoo, It was the same person. I held on to my chest, trying so hard to stop it from beating so fast, like it was trying to pull itself out of my chest.
It was the Jeremiah I knew.
My Jeremiah.