Low-Class

"What happened to your face?" Cassie questioned the day her treat occurred. They were eating behind a kiosk so that the crowd wouldn't see them. She picked up a piece of French fries and chewed it inside her shiny light pink lips. Her brows furrowed, waiting for his answer.

Skye, who couldn't forget about the threat he received last night, didn't hear her question and only floated in anxiousness in his head. The food he was chewing even got stuck in his mouth. "Skye!" Cassie raised her voice to call his attention. Only then did Skye see her again. "What? This?" he uttered and touched the side of his lips. "Who beat you up? You seem so kind that nobody will be mad at you," Cassie said in disbelief.

“No… nobody. I accidentally fell when I was on my way home last night. You know, it's dark, and the road is so steep and slippery," Skye explained lies. After that, a car honked twice just beside them. Because of the spacious area around the kiosk, many cars passed by here whenever they would get a student home. In this case, it was Cassie. 

Cassie immediately recognized the sound of its honk and turned her head. The moment she confirmed it was her mother, Evelyn, she quickly picked up her backpack and settled everything. She even gave Skye an envelope and said in a hurry, "Thank you! Be safe, alright? Don't get into fights, or I'll slap you harder." She walked away from him with a smile, while Skye was left with no words after receiving the white envelope from her. He then opened it and found money worth half of the payment for his debt. His jaws almost dropped as he was both stunned and ecstatic. With bile bulky on his cheeks, he bid goodbye with a smile.

Evelyn completely saw how they were close to one another. As soon as Cassie closed the car door and sat beside her, she told the driver to go. On their way toward their house, Evelyn couldn't erase the thought in her mind. "Stay away from him, Cassie. Whoever he is, don't ever talk to him again," she said, recalling how Skye looked in his low-class aura. 

"What?" Cassie's intonation rose in shock. "Mom, he's a good guy, and he's only my friend. There's no reason for you to—"

“No! His kind doesn’t belong to someone like you. Why are you wasting your time with him? Ethan is far better than that poor little rat.” Insults came out of Evelyn’s mouth without a feeling of conscience. “That’s the reality, Cassie. Your Dad is gone, so I’m doing everything to build an abundant future for you.” Her voice lowered.

"So, this is all part of your plan? To involve Ethan and make me his queen? Are you insane?" Cassie's heartbeat was racing while she was enraged by her mother. Her ears turned red while she had darkened eyes. "I don't love him, Mom. I don't want to be a queen or a big shot in this school. Don't push me to things I didn't even decide in the first place!"

"You can't decide for yourself, Cassie! I know what's best for you if you'd only listen to me," Evelyn said in a cracked voice while authority still sounded from her. Cassie didn’t speak any words and crossed her arms before facing the window of the car. Until they got home, she ignored Evelyn while her heart was banging against her chest. “Why can’t she understand me?” she whispered and covered herself with a pillow. 

On the other hand, Skye was alone in his bedroom space, eating instant noodles with a soft drink bottle. Thinking of what happened earlier, he was grateful to meet Cassie. A line inadvertently formed a sweet smile on his lips as his cheeks burned red. The flashes of Cassie in his memory were retained until he memorized every detail about her. Tiny ears, brown eyes, curled bottom of the hair, and a slight mole under her nose. He could only wish to reach her someday when he had the same status as hers. 

A few weeks later, Skye worked part-time for every job he could find. He became a dishwasher, a janitor, and a bagger. Though it was only freelance, his study was severely affected. He kept on missing his subjects and asking for consideration from his professors. Cassie, his classmate in a major subject, noticed how he was left behind. “Don’t ever talk to him.” Her mother’s voice echoed in her head, but she didn’t listen to it and went upfront to Skye, who was in the middle of the shelves in the library, with closed eyes.

Cassie cleared her throat and sat to see his face. She noticed his attractive features, particularly his eyebrows. Some women didn't like him, but she found it his asset. "Are you sleeping?"

Shocked by her voice, Skye quivered a bit, and the papers in his hands broke out and dropped on the floor. His glasses weren't in the right place again while he was still confused. Cassie giggled and reached out with both hands to fix his glasses. She then arched her brows and flashed a nice smile at him. "Hi," she uttered.

Skye shook his head a bit and eventually fixed the papers and books scattered on the floor. "Have you been here all this time?" he asked, embarrassed as his cheek flushed. He couldn't even glance at her! 

“Do you need help?” Cassie asked the same way he asked her before. When Skye realized it, his hands stopped in a panic state. His eyes shifted to her slowly while he had a heavy heart. He scoffed and laughed quietly before sitting and leaning on the shelf again.

Cassie heard his deep breath and was worried. "That's… an intense breath," she said and leaned at the opposite shelf facing him. 

“You can’t help me, Cassie,” Skye said in a discouraged tone. He wouldn’t let her just give him the money he needed. He couldn’t use her, and he wouldn’t do something as terrible as that to her. Cassie was left clueless and bewildered.