I just had my first break-up yesterday and now I completely get how it can ruin someone's mood for days. Maybe for years, if you truly loved the person. I saw it happen with my Mom, and I honestly see it happening to me now. I still stand by my decision, though. David and I are no good for each other. Even if we make each other happy, there will always be so many things in our way because of our shared past. Hopefully, we can both put it behind us.
I'm not sure how we can achieve that, though, when we go to the same school and have the same set of friends. Like now, Ari has summoned me to the Student Council Room for some unknown reason, and he surely is going to be there. Talk about an awkward situation. True. I could've easily said no. But Ari used the 'I just got out of the hospital' card so fast I didn't have time to blink. Apparently, they really needed help with preparations for the Winter formal.
"Dina! Hi. So glad you can make it." Ari calls out to me as I pe
"Are you sure you don't want me to confront those girls?" Britanny told me as we walked towards campus. I try not to laugh. From our chaotic sleepover last night, I've learned some pretty interesting things about Britanny. She's the leader of the bullies here in school and unleashes them towards her enemies on a regular basis. Which makes total sense considering her personality. Which also means I'm no longer her enemy. That's good to know, I guess."Yes, it's fine. I mean, I beat them up pretty well last time. They'd be stupid to try again." I tell her. "So this is really happening. We're now friends. You're not mad at me for breaking up with David?""Yes." she replies, "I mean, you guys are just gonna get back together anyways."I scoff at her. "We are not getting back together." She sounds so sure, I am taken aback."Oh, you totally are. Brit has a knack for these things." Olive whispers beside me."That's how I know you're the one, babe," Brita
I gape at David, shivering and frozen at the corner of our small balcony. He looks back at me sheepishly, "I wanted to see you. I thought you'd be here." he says, his teeth chattering so bad I wouldn't be surprised if they fall off. I give Boi an exasperated look and my uncle holds up his hands in surrender, "To be fair, when he came looking for you here, I didn't know you guys are broken up." "And he just conveniently forgot to mention it," I say, transferring my glare back to David. He does not look sorry at all, he just continues to tremble from the cold in front of me. "I'm going to give you guys space," Boi announces. "No, you're not leaving. This is your--" I say, trying to drag Boi back, but he leaves so quickly, shrugging away from my hold. I flip my hair back in annoyance. Great. "I hope you freeze to death," I tell David. I start to slam close the balcony door, but the guilt washes over me, so I stalk towards Boi's room. Grabbing his comforter, I go back out and toss it
"What? Dave, what the hell is going on?" Brad asks as the police escort David and me out of the classroom."You guys stay here," David says."But--" Ari starts to protest, but David gently pushes her back inside."Ari. We'll deal with this, okay? Stay inside.""You guys are not in trouble, are you?" Calvin asks from across the room."No. It's going to be okay, Calvin." I tell him, even though I don't believe my own words for a second. I meet David's eyes, knowing that he knows what I'm thinking. We follow the police to the principal's office silently, leaving our friends behind.***David's grandfather and my parents are in the office. My anxiety goes up a notch. What the hell is going on?"Haraboji?" David greets Gramps with an expression that mirrors mine. He grips my hand tighter."Arnold, Mom. What are you doing here?" I ask my parents."Dina, why didn't you tell us about Fernando being here?" Mom tells me. Fr
It's been two weeks since I've been with Black Dawn. The snow had fallen two days ago and now everyday is as cold as shit, I can feel the ice forming around my heart too. I miss everyone and I wish I can just talk to them even just for a minute. Surreptitiously, I look at my phone. I managed to swipe it last night from where Uncle Fern had hidden it and with my luck, it had run out of juice."He's not here yet, is he?" I ask the kid, the only person with me in this shithole of an apartment, enduring a stakeout that we're tasked to do."Not yet, Ma'am." the kid replies, spreading the takeout that he had just brought in on the table between us. He's a tall, lanky teen, who couldn't have been more than twelve or thirteen. I want to ask his name, but he was probably forbidden to tell me."How the fuck did you end up here?" I ask him instead, hoping at least to fill the silence between us."Sorry, I don't know what you mean." the kid replies, uneasy. I can tel
"You don't have anything to add, Ms. Matthews?"I sigh tiredly, "Nothing more. That's really all I know." I tell them.For the past hour, I have been wracking my brain about what Black Dawn has been up to for the past few weeks. I thought it was going to be okay at first, but it turned out to be harder than I thought. The things I've seen...the crimes I was forced to do...they weren't exactly things that I wanted to remember."Thank you for your cooperation." one of the officers says, "As for your being complicit to crimes committed by the gang during your time with them...we'll talk to our superiors about it. We understand the situation you were in. Hopefully, your confession is enough for them to reconsider.""Thank you, officer."The police start to leave, but I stop them."Wait. Um...there was a kid with us that day. He--" I swallow weakly, "He lost his life trying to stop Jon from shooting me. David said you found his body. Do we
I slam my plate on the table. All around me, the party's alive. People that I came to know and like nodding at me in acknowledgment. But I can't enjoy my own party, as I've just been wracking her brains figuring out why my parents wouldn't tell me about Dad escaping prison. They obviously still have trouble trusting me, and that hurst most of all. "Dina, I'm so sorry you had to find out like this. I'm sure your parents have a good reason for hiding it from you." David tells me, probably getting alarmed by my silently aggressive behavior. I open my mouth to reply, but I see Kier approach us. "Dina, can I talk to you for a second, please?" he asks me. "Now's not a good time, Kier," David says, frowning at his friend. "It's fine. Go ahead. What do you need?" I tell Kier. Kier says awkwardly, "That day before you suddenly disappeared, you said something about me having the key in front of me all along. What do you mean by that?" I blink at
"Hey, guys. What's up?"In interrupt David and Ari's moment, and the two break apart guiltily. I narrow my eyes at them."Dina." David says. He moved to kiss me on the cheek. I let him, but I do not offer him a smile as usual. He clears his throat at my coldness."What's going on? is there something wrong?""N-nothing." Ari responds with a smile, but it is forced and I swear I can see her wipe a tear from her eyes. My suspicion goes up a notch as she starts walking away from us, "Um...I better get back. I think I'm missing the good parts.""Oh, not really--" I try to stop her but she's already gone. I turn to David. "What are you doing here? I thought you also went out with the boys."Something is obviously worng. Horrible enough for David to not be able to hide it from his face.Damn it. Is he cheating on me with Ari? Is this what it is? Should I just ask him?"Y-yeah. It kinda ended in a disaster. So I thought I'd dropped by
I was told by some random Sophomore that the student council officers are helping the Drama Club with set preparations for their play. I don't know why exactly, but I don't care to know. I'm just here to look for David. I don't even know why I have to. It's kind of weird that he suddenly just disappeared out of my sight after hounding me the whole day. Whatever. I'll just get this over with.I step inside the theater then, where a flying tree branch almost hit me in the head."Get away from me!" Ari shouts at someone to my left, completely ignoring the fact that she almost just murdered me with a prop."You are so frustrating! Why won't you talk to me?" Sebastian answers. I sigh at their spat. Great. So they're even taking their weird fight her."I just don't want to, okay?" Ari yells, her face getting redder by the second. "Seb, just get away from me!"She disappears backstage and Sebastian followed. There is a pause and I hear a crash from the di
"I still don't get why you're leaving." Boi is leaning against the doorway, arms crossed. I barely look at him as I continue to pack up my things. Looking around, I feel a creeping sadness. I will miss this apartment. I can't count the times in which I sulked here, hidden away from the world. I look at the things I stashed in here over the years. "I'm really tempted to tell your Mom," Boi comments after I mee him with my silence. But I know he won't do such a thing. I had a long talk with him about my decision, and our agreement about keeping each other's secrets still stands. "Feel free to sell any of this stuff," I tell him, stretching. I finally finish packing. And now, on to the thing that I dread doing. I look at the pen and paper on the table. I plan on writing a letter to David. He had asked me once why I wouldn't write a letter to him. I told him it was because I didn't feel the need to. I wouldn't admit it to him, but as soon as I bought my first pho
As soon as Jon throws me to the ground, I hide behind a wall and shot at him, though he was also quick enough to hide.A shoot-out with Jon. I can't help but smirk. "Are you sure you want to do guns with me, Jon? You know I'm better at it than you.""Shut up, Dina.""I won't go easy on you this time either, you murderer," I tell him.Jon laughs, "Oh, you're such a softie, Dina. Don't tell me that was the first time you saw someone die in this line of work."It wasn't. I saw a lot of people die while she was with Black Dawn. But they were mostly adults, though, not a kid like that. Someone who had his whole life in front of him. There is no way I can forgive Jon for that."You're going to pay for what you did, Jon. All of you." I sneer.I can practically hear him scoff, even though he's several steps in front of me, "This innocent act is really getting on my nerves, Dina.""Oh, is it, now?" I reply, "I never claimed to be innoce
"No," I murmur in disbelief. Dad and David both look at me, their eyes heavy with concern as if I am the one bound and gagged in front of them. Their bodies are bloodied and scratched, and God only knows what they must have gone through in Black Dawn's hands. I spot the men behind Dad and David, there are about five of them, all wearing identical expressions of danger."Yes, Dina. We got them." Jon laughs maniacally."Jesus, Jonathan. Your laugh is not at all pleasant to the ears, is it?" Uncle Fern enters the room, shedding his jacket off and handing it to the boy beside him. He casually kicks my Dad's side and I let out a yell as my poor father doubles over in pain."You look well, Matthews. For a traitor who is about to bite the dust." Uncle Fern spits at my Dad."Let him go!" I shout."Which one, darling? Your Dad or your boyfriend?" Uncle Fern looks over at me, a sinister smile on his face."You won't get away with this." I threaten, my
I was told by some random Sophomore that the student council officers are helping the Drama Club with set preparations for their play. I don't know why exactly, but I don't care to know. I'm just here to look for David. I don't even know why I have to. It's kind of weird that he suddenly just disappeared out of my sight after hounding me the whole day. Whatever. I'll just get this over with.I step inside the theater then, where a flying tree branch almost hit me in the head."Get away from me!" Ari shouts at someone to my left, completely ignoring the fact that she almost just murdered me with a prop."You are so frustrating! Why won't you talk to me?" Sebastian answers. I sigh at their spat. Great. So they're even taking their weird fight her."I just don't want to, okay?" Ari yells, her face getting redder by the second. "Seb, just get away from me!"She disappears backstage and Sebastian followed. There is a pause and I hear a crash from the di
"Hey, guys. What's up?"In interrupt David and Ari's moment, and the two break apart guiltily. I narrow my eyes at them."Dina." David says. He moved to kiss me on the cheek. I let him, but I do not offer him a smile as usual. He clears his throat at my coldness."What's going on? is there something wrong?""N-nothing." Ari responds with a smile, but it is forced and I swear I can see her wipe a tear from her eyes. My suspicion goes up a notch as she starts walking away from us, "Um...I better get back. I think I'm missing the good parts.""Oh, not really--" I try to stop her but she's already gone. I turn to David. "What are you doing here? I thought you also went out with the boys."Something is obviously worng. Horrible enough for David to not be able to hide it from his face.Damn it. Is he cheating on me with Ari? Is this what it is? Should I just ask him?"Y-yeah. It kinda ended in a disaster. So I thought I'd dropped by
I slam my plate on the table. All around me, the party's alive. People that I came to know and like nodding at me in acknowledgment. But I can't enjoy my own party, as I've just been wracking her brains figuring out why my parents wouldn't tell me about Dad escaping prison. They obviously still have trouble trusting me, and that hurst most of all. "Dina, I'm so sorry you had to find out like this. I'm sure your parents have a good reason for hiding it from you." David tells me, probably getting alarmed by my silently aggressive behavior. I open my mouth to reply, but I see Kier approach us. "Dina, can I talk to you for a second, please?" he asks me. "Now's not a good time, Kier," David says, frowning at his friend. "It's fine. Go ahead. What do you need?" I tell Kier. Kier says awkwardly, "That day before you suddenly disappeared, you said something about me having the key in front of me all along. What do you mean by that?" I blink at
"You don't have anything to add, Ms. Matthews?"I sigh tiredly, "Nothing more. That's really all I know." I tell them.For the past hour, I have been wracking my brain about what Black Dawn has been up to for the past few weeks. I thought it was going to be okay at first, but it turned out to be harder than I thought. The things I've seen...the crimes I was forced to do...they weren't exactly things that I wanted to remember."Thank you for your cooperation." one of the officers says, "As for your being complicit to crimes committed by the gang during your time with them...we'll talk to our superiors about it. We understand the situation you were in. Hopefully, your confession is enough for them to reconsider.""Thank you, officer."The police start to leave, but I stop them."Wait. Um...there was a kid with us that day. He--" I swallow weakly, "He lost his life trying to stop Jon from shooting me. David said you found his body. Do we
It's been two weeks since I've been with Black Dawn. The snow had fallen two days ago and now everyday is as cold as shit, I can feel the ice forming around my heart too. I miss everyone and I wish I can just talk to them even just for a minute. Surreptitiously, I look at my phone. I managed to swipe it last night from where Uncle Fern had hidden it and with my luck, it had run out of juice."He's not here yet, is he?" I ask the kid, the only person with me in this shithole of an apartment, enduring a stakeout that we're tasked to do."Not yet, Ma'am." the kid replies, spreading the takeout that he had just brought in on the table between us. He's a tall, lanky teen, who couldn't have been more than twelve or thirteen. I want to ask his name, but he was probably forbidden to tell me."How the fuck did you end up here?" I ask him instead, hoping at least to fill the silence between us."Sorry, I don't know what you mean." the kid replies, uneasy. I can tel
"What? Dave, what the hell is going on?" Brad asks as the police escort David and me out of the classroom."You guys stay here," David says."But--" Ari starts to protest, but David gently pushes her back inside."Ari. We'll deal with this, okay? Stay inside.""You guys are not in trouble, are you?" Calvin asks from across the room."No. It's going to be okay, Calvin." I tell him, even though I don't believe my own words for a second. I meet David's eyes, knowing that he knows what I'm thinking. We follow the police to the principal's office silently, leaving our friends behind.***David's grandfather and my parents are in the office. My anxiety goes up a notch. What the hell is going on?"Haraboji?" David greets Gramps with an expression that mirrors mine. He grips my hand tighter."Arnold, Mom. What are you doing here?" I ask my parents."Dina, why didn't you tell us about Fernando being here?" Mom tells me. Fr