Chapter 5: Avoiding Clyden

Maia

I was woken up by my blaring alarm clock, and I could already feel that this was going to be a long day. I crankily got out of bed and did my shower routine slower than usual. I still needed to go to school since I didn’t want my parents to worry, especially my dad.

I put on some plain clothes and simple make-up and went downstairs to eat my breakfast. My parents were already sitting at the table, so I tried to put up a fake smile while making my way over to them.

“Good morning, mom,” I greeted while kissing her on the cheek.

“Morning, dad,” I bowed to him, which he only greeted back with a nod.

My father and I have always never been that close. He would always be busy with work ever since I was young, and I would rarely see him at home. He also never attended any of my milestones, so I guess it's only natural that our feelings became distant from each other.

He’s also very conscious of our family image, so he reprimands me every time our family name is dragged into public affairs. That’s why I didn’t want my mother telling my dad about the incident yesterday. I honestly don’t know what he’s going to do if he finds out that his daughter got embarrassed in front of the entire student body.

I sat down and grabbed some of the toast, and ate quickly. I don’t want them to find anything suspicious, so it’s for the best if I get out of the house as soon as possible.

“I’m done,” I said while pushing my plate away from me.

“Already? Then do you need anything for school? Money? Food?” My mom asked.

“No, mom. My allowance is still plenty. Bye, mom!”

I was about to move out of the kitchen, but my dad’s voice anchored me in place.

“Are you not going to say goodbye to your father?” His deep voice resounded in the kitchen.

I turned back around and placed my arms in front of my body. “Goodbye, father. Have a nice day.”

He nodded his head and got back to typing on his laptop.

I let out a sigh of relief and swiftly made my way out of the door. Ben was already waiting for me inside the car, so I went inside and instructed him to drive.

“Are you feeling better now?” He asked, concern laced in his voice.

“Well, today’s definitely better than yesterday, but I can’t say for sure yet. There’s this unsettling feeling in my heart that tells me that a problem’s going to arise.”

“Give yourself some time, then. Some people would think that running away from your problems isn’t a respectable choice, but I think that running away from your problems for a little while will bring out better outcomes. It’ll give you some time to think and relax!” He said, making me smile.

“You know what? You’re right! If I can’t solve the problem right now, then I’d just avoid it. Thanks, Uncle Ben!” I said while getting out of the car. “See you later!”

So, running away from my problems, huh? I guess it’s for the best. Clyden probably doesn’t want to see me, so I’ll make it so he doesn’t.

I finally arrived at the school grounds, and just as expected, some people were pointing towards me and laughing. I already prepared myself yesterday night with their various reactions, but seeing it first-hand is another experience.

“What the hell are you laughing for, fucktards? Is it your ugly faces? ‘Cause, there’s nothing funny in the morning except for your morning glory and dried drool!” Camille stood beside me and scolded those who were pointing fingers. Their smiles dropped, and walked away swiftly when they heard Camille reprimanding them.

Camille placed her arm around my neck and greeted me, “Good morning, my pretty best friend! Have you recovered from your broken heart yet?”

I rolled my eyes, “Good morning to you too. And no. No one gets over a broken heart that easily. I just wish that I would.”

She now removed her arms from me and faced me, “So, what are you planning to do?”

“There’s only one thing that I can do right now, and that is to run away whenever I see him.”

She laughed, “And how are you planning to do that? Did you contact Harry Potter and ask him to let you borrow his invisible cloak?”

She joked, but I couldn’t laugh. I saw Clyden parking his bike in the bike stand, which we were only a few meters away from.

“Clyden!” I heard someone shout from behind us, so I crouched down on the ground and hid behind Camille’s legs. Clyden turned to us and greeted the person who called him. I sighed in relief when they walked past us and didn’t notice a thing.

I stood back up when they were no longer at sight and threw Camille a wink. “No, I couldn’t reach Harry Potter this morning, but what I could do is use you as my own personal wall.”

She let out a breath and gave me an exasperated look. “Oh, he definitely did not notice a person who was crouching weirdly on my legs!”

“That’s right. I’m so good at hiding that he didn’t even notice!”

“I was being sarcastic, you know?”

I shook my head, “No, you were being serious. I said so. You can’t argue back anymore.”

The bell rang, so I dragged her to our first-class before she could even respond. However, I halted my steps when I realized that Clyden was in this class.

“What? What now?” Camille asked.

“Clyden’s in this class! I can’t use you as my personal wall for the whole duration of the class,” I shook her shoulders.

She broke free from my grasp and groaned. “Just ignore him! Just act like he isn’t there or that he doesn’t even exist. You can do this, okay? I’m already impressed by your resolve to avoid Clyden at all costs, so this will be an easy task for you! Come on. We’re going to be late.”

She was now the one dragging me to the classroom as I tried to calm myself down. There was still one minute before the second warning bell, so we arrived in the classroom on time. However, since we came just before class started, almost every one of our classmates was already there.

The moment I entered the classroom, they all broke out into whispers. I looked around the classroom and made eye contact with Clyden. However, I broke our session pretty quickly since I was afraid that I’d fall once again if I stared at him for too long.

I followed Camille to our seat and sat down without speaking with anyone. I brought my school materials out, but I could sense that my classmates were still looking at me. I looked up and confirmed my suspicions.

I gave them a “what?” expression, and it appears that they were all shocked.

I was confused as to what was happening, but the moment Marco spoke, everything became clear. “Woah! You don’t have anything for Clyden today? And you’re not even greeting him a good morning?” He clapped his hands and teased Clyden. “Damn, man! You just lost one.”

Some of my classmates laughed, but Clyden spoke.

“Shut up, the professor’s here.”

We all turned back to the board just as our professor came in. I straightened my back and resisted the urge to turn back.

That’s right. I would always buy breakfast for Clyden, and I would always make an effort to greet him in the morning. I honestly feel a little bit bad, because what if he hasn’t eaten yet? However, I kept my resolve and let myself just focus on the class.

“Hey, you okay?” Camille asked beside me.

I nodded my head and continued taking notes. “I’m fine. I just want this class to be over.”

“Me too, man. Me too.”