The relationship between you

"Lia, wake up." I hear someone faintly knocking or rather pounding on my bedroom door, yelling my name. 

"Lia, oh god, what time did you sleep? And what's all this?" My eyes are still half closed, and the voice now sounds distinctly close, full of annoyance. Slowly, I start opening my eyes, looking out the window, only to realize that the moon has given way to the sun. 

"Don't you want to be on time for your first day of school?" Rex's voice snaps me out of my drowsy state, and I quickly jerk awake, tossing aside the thick fur blanket wrapped around me and scrambling out of bed. 

Oh god, I forgot. It's my first day of school, and here I am tangled up in a thick fur blanket. In haste, I throw off the furry mess that's wrapped around me and immediately get up from my slumber. 

Ugh, my body feels like it's been crushed since I slept directly on the furry carpet last night. Yes, my insomnia came back again, and as usual, I'd spent the night reading horror or thriller novels. You can tell from the scattered books with various titles strewn around the carpet. I rush to the bathroom, ignoring Rex's puzzled look. 

"How much time do I have, Rex?" I shout from the bathroom, starting to peel off the clothes I wore. 

"Thirty minutes, not a second more. I'll be waiting downstairs." Rex yells back. Okay, thirty minutes should be enough for me to get ready. 

I yawn several times during the journey to my new school, New York Haigh School (NYHS). 

"What time did you sleep last night, hm?" Rex's voice pulls me out of my drowsiness, and I turn to look at him with still very sleepy eyes. 

"I don't know, around two or three, maybe." I answer, making Rex click his tongue in annoyance. 

"What triggered your insomnia this time?" Rex asks curiously. He's my best cousin, and he knows everything about me, including my sleep issues. My insomnia usually flares up when I'm stressed, and I guess it's because I'm still not used to the transition between New York and Indonesia. The time difference is quite substantial. 

"I don't know, maybe I'm just not used to being here yet." I reply vaguely and look around again. Soon enough, our car arrives right in front of NYHS. I get out and put on my backpack, taking in the bustling sight of NYHS students. 

I turn around at the sound of a car door closing. 

"Why did you get out?" I ask, a bit perplexed, my eyebrows furrowing as I look at Rex. 

"Of course, to accompany you, why else?" he answers, walking over to me. 

"Come on, Rex, I can manage by myself. I'm not a little kid needing a guardian on the first day of school," I retort, disagreeing with Rex's idea. 

"Why not? I'm just making sure you can find your classroom. I'm sure you'd struggle." he replies. 

"Rex, I have this." I say a bit irritably, holding up a rolled-up piece of paper containing the NYHS map. 

"I doubt you can read a map, Lia." 

"But—" 

"No objections, now let's go in quickly." he says, pulling my hand which I've already surrendered and following his steps. But wait, Rex isn't leading me towards my classroom. Where is he going? Don't tell me he's the one who's lost now. 

"Rex, I think we're going the wrong way." 

"No, this is the right way." he replies without looking at me, focusing on reading the sign on the door we're passing. 

"But my class should be to the left, Rex." 

"We need to go to the counseling room first." 

Counseling? What for? I mean, why are we heading there again? Didn't we already go there to sort out my data yesterday? Rex and I went to that office too. 

"Why?" 

"To make sure of something." he answers and stops in front of the counseling room door. Slowly, he knocks on the door with his right hand, probably because his left hand is still holding mine, which has started to get sweaty. Feeling uncomfortable, I try to release his grip, but he tightens it. What's up with him? I'm not a kid who needs to be guided around. 

Shortly after, the door in front of us opens, revealing a beautiful woman with an elegant demeanor. Wait, who's this? As far as I remember, the person who was in the counseling room yesterday was a tall black man. 

"Hello." she greets with a charming smile. Well, the smile she's showing is directed at Rex, of course. For a few seconds, I'm caught staring at her lovely smile before shifting my gaze to Rex, who maintains a poker face. 

"Please come in." she invites us into the counseling room. Just before that, I catch her gaze shifting to our intertwined hands. 

Rex and I sit in front of the woman named Brenda, according to the nameplate on her desk. 

"So..." 

"She's Aurelya, the one I told you about," Rex interjects, causing Miss Brenda to turn her gaze directly towards me. It's a gaze that's hard to decipher, and even her friendly smile fades from her lips after Rex introduces me. I can only force a stiff smile, sensing an unfamiliar tension in the room. Well, there's an odd tension between them, and even Rex is speaking informally to Miss Brenda. Could it be because they're around the same age? I don't know. 

"Hi, Lia. Nice to meet you." she responds with friendliness, her smile returning. But why does she call me Lia? How does she know? Oh, it must be Rex who told her. I bet their relationship goes back long before this. 

"Aurel, call me Aurel." I correct her as politely as possible. I just don't want random people to call me by my nickname. Only close people like my family and a few friends in Indonesia can use that. Look, her smile disappears again, and this time she glances at Rex. For a moment, they lock eyes, and I'm wondering if I said something wrong. I clear my throat, trying to ease the somewhat tense atmosphere among the three of us, and that prompts them to break their eye contact. 

"Alright, Lia—uh, I mean Aurel. Welcome to NYHS. I assume you've got your class schedule and the extracurriculars you need to follow," she explains, trying to sound professional as the head of counseling at NYHS. 

"Yeah, I've received it, and thank you, Miss," I reply. 

"If you need anything or whatever it is, you can contact me here," she says, handing me her business card. I glance at it briefly and smile back at her. 

"Or if that number is hard to reach, you can ask Rex for my other number. That one is always active and only certain people know about it," she explains, causing me to smile awkwardly again. There's something going on between them, and every word she says makes me feel like I should understand something. Damn it, why did I get caught up in this? 

After spending a few minutes in the room that felt suffocating, we finally step out. I won't stay silent; I need to ask Rex something. I tug at Rex's arm and lead him into a hallway with lockers lining both sides. 

"So, tell me," I demand, folding my arms in front of my chest, waiting for an explanation. 

"What?" he asks with a puzzled expression. I feel like banging my head against the locker behind him. 

"Come on, Rex. I know you and Miss Brenda have some kind of history together." I ask impatiently, finally getting through to him. 

"She's my ex-girlfriend." Rex answers, which surprises me. Well, he is handsome, very handsome. So why did he let go of someone as beautiful as Miss Brenda? 

"And?" 

"Nothing. She's just my ex and now the head of counseling at your school. That's all." Rex replies nonchalantly, which doesn't satisfy me. 

"And you two still love each other?" I guess randomly, causing Rex to fall silent for a moment as if pondering my words. A few moments later, he exhales roughly and checks the time on his wrist. 

"You're late for your class, and I have to leave soon since my afternoon shift is about to start," he changes the topic, stepping closer and kissing the top of my head a bit longer before turning to leave. 

"I'm not satisfied with your answer, Rex. I'll ask you about this later when you're back from work." I shout, the echo of my voice resonating in the empty locker hallway. Rex just gives a thumbs-up without looking back and continues walking until he disappears behind a wall. 

Oh, shit. I forgot about my first class. I start to take off my backpack and pull out the NYHS map, double-checking the location of my first class. 

"I'm ready." I mutter, still staring at the map, observing the various symbols and signs on it. I need to find out where the library and swimming pool area are. 

My steps come to a halt as a loud thud reverberates right in front of me. Quickly, I move aside and hide among the lockers, peeking out curiously to see what's going on. My eyes widen as I witness someone brutally hitting another person who's already battered. And there are those contemptuous smirks on the faces of a few others behind him, just watching without any intention of helping. They're probably part of a gang. 

My eyes narrow, trying to sharpen my vision, which reveals something that surprises me. It's him—the wolf. Oh, God. Please don't tell me he's a student at NYHS. I hide again as his sharp gaze seems to be directed towards me. Hopefully, he won't see me and will never see me in NYHS. With so many students here, my chances of encountering him are slim, like 0.01 percent. Alright, Aurel, there's nothing to worry about. 

I tilt my head slightly, no longer spotting anyone there. Thank goodness.