The next day, Loyal escorted me to school himself. He held my hand through the halls and announced our relationship to anyone who bothered to notice. There were a lot. I couldn't blame them. It wasn't everyday the school legend acquired a girlfriend. Butterflies filled my stomach at the reminder. I was the human lie detector's girlfriend. It was such a strange feeling. I didn't know what to make of it or what to say if people questioned me about it. My initial meeting with Loyal was far from romantic. Regardless, this was the first time I felt like I was in a relationship worth fighting for, a relationship where I didn't have to pretend to be weak to cushion my boyfriend's ego. Loyal had seen all my edges and he still wanted me by his side. It was comforting and I wanted to treasure the feeling.
The first person to cut our path in was Hino Matsunaga. He was still wearing an arm sling but the cuts on his face were almost all gone. I hadn't seen him since Khaleel brought Carter down from the school rooftop. "Aren't you two precious," Hino said, folding his arms. "So, who was it? Who asked who?"
I avoided eye contact.
"I asked her," Loyal said, offended by the implication that he would need me to make the first move. "Was there any doubt?"
"Usually, no," Hino shrugged. "But Arisa here isn't your run-of-the-mill female."
"Excuse you," I snapped. "There is nothing wrong with being a 'run-of-the-mill' female."
"Point made," Hino smiled at Loyal.
Loyal couldn't help but smile back.
I rolled my eyes and looked past Hino at another face who was gawking at us in the distance. My heart nearly stopped beating. It was Tomasia. I quickly snatched my hand away and took two steps to Loyal's left. He looked confused, evidently unaware of the fact that his sister was walking over. I wasn't afraid of the student body president. I could take her in a fight. I could easily handle her when it came to brute strength but she wasn't the aggressive type. Her arsenal was different than mine, it utilized status and information. A lot of which I was currently lacking.
"Are you out of your mind?" Tomasia said, pushing past Hino and glaring daggers at her brother. "After what she exposed? After what she jeopardized? You're actually considering dating her?"
Loyal blinked solemnly, getting the other students in the hallway to stop and eavesdrop. "I'm done considering," he said, reclaiming my hand and pulling me back to his side. "She's mine."
"What is she?" Tomasia looked indignant. "Your Helen of Troy?"
Hino reclaimed his spot and tapped Tomasia's shoulder. "Hi there," he said sweetly. "I think you need to give Loyal a little bit more credit. He's not some lovesick puppy—"
Tomasia stepped up and moved past her brother, refusing to engage with anyone else. It was a bold move on her part but I wasn't surprised by it. From the moment I met her, I could tell she was a private person. Tomasia wasn't one to hang her laundry out in the open, and if she had a problem with someone, she wasn't one to let an outside opinion influence her decision on the matter.
"It's a rough road ahead for you two," Hino commented. Did he know what was going on? Did Loyal tell him his acceptance letter was compromised? Did Hino know I was responsible for said compromise?
"Thanks for speaking up," I said to Hino. "But I don't think my relationship with Loyal is the only reason she's upset."
"What do you mean?" Loyal asked.
"The last time I spoke to her, I got the feeling that Tomasia was threatening to have me expelled from Jackheights."
Loyal's eyes widened. "What exactly did she say?"
"That I should enjoy my time here for as long as I could," I replied. "That you and Khaleel might be angry with one another now, but things would go back to the way they were soon, and I shouldn't expect to be here when it happened."
Hino kissed his teeth. "That is a bit presumptuous. Khaleel holds some pretty nasty grudges."
"You don't need to worry about my sister," Loyal said to me. "I'm going to make sure your experience at Jackheights not only improves but that you get to graduate with everyone else."
I couldn't help but laugh a little. "Why does that worry me more than what Tomasia said?"
Hino raised his hand. "It worries me too!"
Loyal glared at his friend. "Good to have you back, Matsunaga," he said.
Hino beamed. "Great to be back, Wilson."