Alex
It was Valentine's Day today, and all the pink hearts decoration was already making me irritated even before the first lecture started. Not to forget, couples were seen making out and acting lovey dovey in each and every corner of the hallway.
At least the people watching the CCTV footage will get to see some steamy makeout sessions.
Yes, CCTV.
My dear Liberty High have now installed cameras at each and every corner of the school. Wherever I go, I could see a camera watching my moments. Except the bathrooms and changing rooms.
I wouldn't be surprised if they eventually did that too.
The only thing I don't understand is, why now?
It's been weeks since the vandalism on the administration doors, so the cameras getting installed now wasn't making much sense. And weren't the police enough?
After Zach and I got to school this morning, Tyler was already waiting for us inside the front doors.
"Hey, Ty!" Zach greeted, ruffling Tyler's hair. "How you been, my boy?"
Zach was, well, kind of tipsy.
Tyler gave me a worried glance first, but I wasn't paying attention to my friends now.
A camera had caught my eye.
"What the hell?" I whispered to no one in particular, as Zach and Tyler both turned to see what had me shocked.
"Ooh, cameras!" Zach exclaimed, then shot a middle finger to it.
Classic Zach.
"Um, yeah, the cameras," Tyler replied, as I noticed more cameras at the end of each hallways on my side. "They are like, everywhere."
"Yeah," I replied, worried about how this could be bad for anyone. "Bolan is hell bent on making our last school semester a living nightmare."
"As if our life isn't already." Zach said, then winked at both of us. "See ya!"
We both just stared at his retreating back, while he greeted random girls in the hallway.
"He would get caught now if he keeps getting intoxicated like this." Tyler said, turning towards me. "The cameras will notice his behaviour, and I'm sure Bolan would be watching."
"Let's see what happens." I replied. "I tried talking to him, but he is ruining his own life."
"I can see that." Tyler nodded. "Oh, by the way, I wanted to tell you that I have some plans after school, so you and Winston shouldn't wait for me. I already told him."
Now, it was Tyler who was acting weird. When he said he had plans, he just glanced around as if he thought someone might be listening. But everyone was either busy with their boyfriends/girlfriends, or just in a hurry to get to class.
"Uhm, okay." I nodded, thinking to myself if I should ask him about his plans or not.
"See you then." Tyler waved, and made his way probably to the yearbook room.
Each and every hallway was decorated with all the love shit, with banners about tomorrow's dance hanged too. They were calling the dance 'Love is Love', maybe it was school's poor attempt to support homosexuality.
I don't understand how people could believe something like love. It was a fiction, a fairytale people just created to get through life. A way of ignoring how life could be cruel to you.
I don't believe in soulmates and shit, because me finding someone after knowing my true self would be really difficult. They would probably run away and go to the police.
Making my life more fucked up.
"Hey, Alex."
Damn, it has to be him.
However I tried, there was no way I could get Winston out of my head. This past few weeks were good, we mostly hung out with Tyler whenever outside of school and studied Spanish together in the library.
He didn't have much friends here seeing he just hangs with me and Tyler mostly, and being honest I don't mind it either.
"Yeah, hi." I greeted him as we reached my locker and he leaned on the one besides me. He kept staring at me as I put my locker code in. "What? What is it?"
"You have your worried and thinking face on." Winston implied, which surprised me to think he knows what my face looks like when I'm worried. "What are you thinking about?"
Obviously I couldn't tell him about my thoughts on love, so I started talking about the other major issue.
"It's kinda messed up, like," I replied, opening my locker and gave him a questioning look. "They install the cameras the day before Valentine's Day? What is that about?"
"It's all performative, really." He replied, observing me with his warm but focused eyes. I just continued getting the books I needed today. "You can't tell the difference between true love and a really good couple selfie."
"Sure, you can. A selfie lasts forever."
"Ouch!" Winston joked, then looked at me with a meaningful look. "But, Alex, love is love."
I shaked my head at him.
"Who knows what love even is?"
Closing my locker, we made our way towards our respective classes. I had a history lesson to get through first.
"It's love." Winston stated, then pointed towards one of the many posters stuck to the wall. "It's on the poster."
I scoffed at his poor attempt of explaining love.
"I mean," I started saying. "We just waste so much time going through these motions of, like, romance, and Valentine's Day is a whole day that we're never gonna get back."
Instead, I could just sleep or pity my life for a whole day without any disturbance.
"What would you rather waste your time doing on Valentine's Day?"
I pondered over Winston's question for a second.
"Well," I replied. "I think Tyler mentioned that there is some slasher marathon at Crestmont tomorrow. Maybe we could all go?"
I wanted him to say yes because I would actually like to spend my day with him instead of going to a lame dance. Even if we will have Tyler with us and would just watch some crazy horror movies.
"I wish I could," Winston replied, with a neutral look on his face. "But I'm obligated to document dance-related lameness tomorrow night for yearbook."
Ofcourse, how can I forget he is in yearbook too? Maybe because whenever there's a school event, it's always Tyler to do this job.
"I could hang tonight, though." He stated next, as I didn't reply.
"I think that Tyler said he had plans, right?"
"Right."
I thought it was the end of the conversation, but the next thing he asked me got me struggling to think further.
"But, well, we could do something?" Winston asked, as he stopped walking. "You know, just, like, the two of us. I mean, unless you have plans too?"
Oh hell, no.
"Yeah." I quickly turned around to face him, then thought what I just said in excitement. "I mean, like, no."
I was excited would be an understatement.
"I mean, like, yeah, I would be... I'm cool with that." I managed to say, chuckling to myself.
"Okay, then." He gave me a smile which made my heart actually skipped a beat.
"Cool."
"Cool."
After our John Green moment in the hallway, we both went to our respective classes.
I'm pretty sure a smile was visible on my face for most of school day, even during the lectures because the teachers were giving me second glances. Key word, most.
Another surprising thing happened, Jessica came looking for me and found me on the outside bench during lunch.
"I need you to come with me to tomorrow's dance." She stated, sitting beside me and taking her packed lunch out.
Tyler and Winston were called in by Bolan, probably to see who was going to click pictures tomorrow. Tony, as always, was the dj for the party, as he told me earlier in Chemistry.
"I thought you will go with Justin." I said, because that was the only reason we broke up. "Didn't he asked you to dance yet? That's why you are asking me?"
"No, actually," She started, then stopped talking like she was thinking about something. Something sad. "Justin, he, he broke up with me. The day he got back from rehab."
Shit.
"Shit, sorry," I apologized sincerely. "I didn't knew."
I should've known. Jessica and Justin, whenever they are together there's too much PDA around. Everyone just knows they are together.
I'm really not paying attention to any of my friends.
"No, it's okay." She said, then remembered why she actually came here. "That's why I want you to take me to the dance."
"Nope, sorry, hard pass."
Even if I feel sorry for Jessica, I'm not going to another dance with her.
"What, even as friends?" She asked as if her life depended on it to go to tomorrow's dance.
"Who literally never speak until you need something." I stated, as she stared at me in disbelief.
"You're really calling me out today." Atleast, she knew it was true. "Look, you're the one who stopped talking to me."
I just shaked my head at her as she continued speaking.
"And we had, like, one week of Monet's after Thanksgiving, and then you just completely dropped me."
"I did not drop you. I just..." I replied, remembering the time when I just wanted to disappear. "I can't think about it too much, or I freak out."
Can you blame me? I needed time to think everything through. It was too soon after we had framed Monty for Bryce's murder. All my friends had did that, just for me.
"Look, I get that." She said, looking me in the eyes. "Of all people?"
"I know."
I truly knew she would, Zach too. Because those two, and me, we were the last people Bryce met that night.
But it was all me. I was the one to push Bryce into the water. No one can understand that.
Jessica was looking at me as if she was still waiting for me to say something, and I realised it was about the dance.
"I'm still not going to the dance with you." I said again, hoping she would just leave me alone.
"Even as friends?"
I didn't reply, just looked in the distance where some jocks were chatting loudly. I couldn't see Charlie anywhere with them, so maybe he didn't come today.
I have noticed Charlie hanging out with Estela more than once, and it worried me. She was Monty's sister, for god's sake.
"Do you already have a date?" Jessica suddenly asked, seeming shocked at the mere possibility.
"No, and thanks for seeming shocked at the possibility." I replied. "Why do you wanna go so bad, anyway?"
"Because..." She paused. "Because I'm the student body president, and I should be there."
"So go alone."
"And I shouldn't have to go alone." Jessica straightaway replied. "You know, what good is it to have our lives back if we can't, you know, live?"
I understand that far too well.
"Yeah." I nodded. "I hear you."
Life had given me a second chance, and what did I do with it? I took away someone else's life.
So much for a normal life.
We looked in the distance where the jocks were seated at, when more team players wearing the Liberty letterman jackets came through the doors.
"I have to conduct a workshop later to all the teams." Jessica informed, as we both saw Charlie coming out with Luke. "Knowing this people, there are going to be some comments passed."
"That's expected." I shrugged, because it has always been like that. "Atleast the team captain is a decent guy."
At that very moment Charlie saw us and waved at us. We both waved back too, and Diego Torres, a guy on the Basketball team glanced at us too.
Jessica started eating her food, and scrolling through her Instagram. But I noticed Diego staring at us for more than needed, then he turned around to face the team again.
Why does it feel like Diego's stare wasn't meaningless?
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So, is Diego up to something?
We all already know what he is planning for the dance :P
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