EP13

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[Alexus’ POV]

 

Hapburn has this kind of event called Winter Harmony Day where girls give chocolate to boys. Hapburn is almost like an independent city within a city! It has its own holidays and it follows the Japanese school year calendar. Only, our school years start at the end of August and end in June.

 

I was told to come down the lobby since a lot of girls were said to be waiting to give chocolates. They’re probably just my classmates from high school, including Bellona.

 

I was in a fuss with them when I got down. I had to carry all these boxes.

 

“Happy Harmony Day!” Bellona handed me a large box. “I made those last night. It was tiring yet worth the effort!” she says.

 

“Thanks, you didn’t have to go that far.” I told her as I accepted her gift.

 

“See you.” She looked really happy. After some chatter they left. I was about to go back when a girl blocked my way up stairs.

 

“You, Bambino. Tell me, are you a first year?” She asks.

 

“What? Yeah, I am.” I stuttered.

 

“We need to talk about something important.” She said. She had an air that made her seem snobbish. She was wearing a dress in shocking pink and plain heels. I followed her to the common room.

 

I put the boxes onto the coffee table. We sat on the couch with considerable distance.

 

“Would you mind it if I eat one of your chocolates?” she asks.

 

My mind lit up. “Of course, help yourself to as many as you like.” I told her. I couldn’t eat everything anyway.

 

“Do you know someone named Arianne Keets?” she asks.

 

“Huh?!” I was quite surprised. “I... uh, she’s my friend.”

 

“Ah!!! Is that for real?” she has a strange accent. Then she muttered in something I can’t understand.

 

She popped a chocolate into . “Does she live here?” she asks.

 

“Yeah, she’s also an engineering student.”

 

“What major?!” she asked so suddenly.

 

“Umm, Electronics.” I answered. What is she so hyped up for? Is she Arin’s friend or something?

 

“I see... no wonder...” and she started muttering in her strange language again.

 

Who is this?

 

She then changed the topic and talked to me about random things while we ate the chocolate. We exchanged names and talked about school. Just then Arin arrived.

 

When I introduced them to each other her face lit up and she started getting chummy towards Arin. She even nicknamed her, Bambi.

 

After that, we talked so much about a lot of things that Demetra would bring up. My jaw was starting to hurt when she left to go back to the city proper.

 

When she left, Arin and I talked for a bit.

 

To my surprised, though. She gave me a box of chocolates.

 

“Wow, thanks! They look really expensive.” I told her. The box was delicately designed and the chocolates inside look really promising.

 

“Of course it is. Dani, Chiaki and I made that.” She said.

 

What did she say?

 

“You made this?” I ask her.

 

“Yeah, we did. They haven’t given you theirs yet? We just made the base chocolate together, but we customized it ourselves. Dani made hers with marshmallows and some Nips. Chiaki added some grape juice to her recipe and topped it with nuts and raisins.”

 

“And you put strawberries and.. uh, what are these white things?” I opened the box and held one of them to take a closer look.

 

“Macadamia nuts.” She answered. “I didn’t pulverize them. I just crushed them a little bit.”

 

I suddenly remembered one of our crash courses before the first final exam. I wasn’t particular with food. I only hate oily stuff. I’m not familiar with sweets, but I do like custard and pudding. One time, just to out of boredom, I told her I didn’t like Macadamia nuts. In fact, I haven’t even tried it. Another fact, it was only that time when I first heard of it. When she talked about it, I thought, ‘what is macadamia?’ but didn’t bother asking. I like to listen to her talk. She knows a lot of things I still don’t know about, especially when it’s food. “Fine, I’ll try them.” I told her.

 

So, I took a bite and had my first taste of Macadamia nuts.

 

“Well?” she looked at me impatiently.

 

I chewed. The base chocolate went so well with the strawberries. They contrasted each other, bitter sweet and sour, just like life itself. Of course, with a little twist—macadamia nuts.

                                              

“Ma, ma.” I finally told her

 

“It’s just so-so? Hah. Hyo and the others really liked it though. I guess you ate—“

 

“Oishi.” I told her. It’s true. So I said it again.

 

“Oishi.”

 

She suddenly started staring at me again. Just like how she was staring at me back at the cafe in Davao. I suddenly felt nervous and uncomfortable. I focused on savouring the chocolates she gave me.

 

“Out of all the chocolates I sampled on this day, this was the best.” I told her.

 

“Honto?” she says. “Are you just saying that because you’re trying to make me make more of those?” she asks.

 

“Yah, I am.” I told her. “Make me more.”

 

We looked into each others’ eyes, trying to tease each other. Then she laughed. When she laughs, her eyes somewhat closes into two arcs on her face; her smile showed her perfectly-lined teeth. Overall, she looked realy pretty when she laughs like that.

 

“What?” She asks. “Do I have something on my face?”

 

Before I could say anything, Hyo’s voice rang in the room as he made his entrance.

 

“Wah! You got a lot of chocolate!” he says as he sat next to me. “Hey, that’s Arin’s chocolate! I got one too, it was great!”

 

“Really?” Arin put in. “I’m glad you liked it!”

 

Hyo put several boxes onto the table.”I got tons, too.”

 

Now that Hyo mentioned it, I suddenly felt pissed off. I don’t even know why I’m getting worked up about Arin’s homemade chocolate. I stuffed the rest inside my mouth and chewed and swallowed and stuffed another.

 

“Woah, slow down.” Hyo says. “Do you really like it that much?”

 

I didn’t say anything. I just wanted to finish it.

 

“He reminds me of my sister though. She stuffs herself with sweets everytime she goes through the moving-on stage after a break up. Sometimes she does that on her period too.” Arin says.

 

“Haah? But that’s what girls do.” Hyo says.

 

“Do I look like a girl to you?” I snap at him.

 

“What’s wrong with you?” Hyo asks.

 

“I like it a lot. It’s so delicious.” I got up. “Make me more next time. Oh, I love the macadamia nuts you put in it.”

 

“Ah, do you want some?” Arin offered me a bottle of blueberry milk. “I already drank from it, though. Drink up, you’ll choke.Don’t get too picky though, I don’t carry any viruses.”

 

When she said that she already drank from it, a weird thought crossed my mind like a passing wind. I was so startled by it. How could I think of something weird at a time like this!

 

I got so worked up, I accidentally made a bad timing with swallowing. And so I choked.

 

“Eh?!” Arin got up and started to pat me at the back. “Careful! Here drink this.”

 

She tried to offer me her drink. My mouth is too full of chocolate, I couldn’t get it even if I wanted to. I wanted to throw up! If I did it though, it’d be rude.

 

I tried my best to swallow it. It wasn’t gross, it was delicious. It’s just that, my mouth was bursting with it.

 

I brought this huge problem upon myself. What am I doing?

 

The two were making a fuss.

 

After some time I managed to swallow all of it. I grabbed the bottle she was holding and chugged down the contents.

 

That was an... indirect kiss? She said she drank out of it too...

 

Why am I thinking about girly stuff?!

 

“Hah...”

 

“What’s gotten into you all of a sudden?” Hyo scolded me.

 

“It was really good I just wanted to stuff everything in my mouth.” I told him.

 

“Come to think of it, I did the same thing...” Hyo muttered.

 

“Huh?” Arin and I both looked at him. He suddenly spaced out for a few seconds. Then he snapped back.

 

“What?” He looked at us in confusion.

 

“I wonder...” Arin looked at him suspiciously.

 

“What?” He turned to Arin and sounded a little defensive.

 

“What? I was just thinking.” She said. “Why do you look defensive.”

 

“I’m not! It’s not what you think!”

 

“I wasn’t even thinking about anything.” She said. “What were you thinking then?”

 

It occurred to me she was trying to . I suddenly get the picture she’s drawing inside her head. I couldn’t help but laugh.

 

“Why are you laughing?” Hyo asked me.

 

“Oh, nothing. I just felt like laughing. I choked a while ago, I deserve deep breaths right?” I told him.

 

“Then you should be taking a deep breath instead of laughing!” He suddenly stands. “Ah, you two are driving me crazy!” He picked up his boxes. “I was going to share these with you guys, but I change my mind.”

 

As he was walking out of the common room, I told him, “No thanks, I ate too much already.”

 

“Me too! Hahahaha!” Arin laughed.

 

“Hah!” Hyo stomped his way up the stairs.

 

Arin was laughing. “Man, he got flustered! I knew it!”

 

“You too?” And we both laughed again.

 

We were both thinking of the same thing. Hyo probably liked Dani’s homemade chocolate so much and slipped his tongue in front of us by absentmindedly admitting it.

 

We stayed there like that, then the others arrived. Dani was lively today. I wonder who else he gave chocolates to?

 

Chiaki and Jaden went somewhere on a date, though.

 

“The girls really made great chocolate today! I feel pressured for Spring Harmony Day!” Colin and Dani entered the common room.

 

“All thanks to Arin’s recipe! It was fun!” Dani says. “Woah, you got all these from girls?” She asked me.

 

“Yeah.” I told them. I sat back down on the couch. Arin did the same.

 

“Aww, you didn’t even leave a bite!” she pouted.

 

“I didn’t even get some.” Arin said.

 

“Hah. You solo-ed everything! Trai—“

 

“Colin!” We were surprised by the high-pitched voice that suddenly filled the common room.

 

Demetra was standing by the entrance, holding a box.

 

“D-DEMI?!” Colin was so surprised.

 

“Coliiiiin!” Demetra ran towards Colin and threw her arms around him. “I missed you!!”

 

And she started spouting weird words again. Why do I have so many foreigner friends? Arin’s already a headache with all her Japanese! And there’s Demetra with whatever it’s called.

 

“I see, Demi-chan’s French.” I heard Arin mutter.

 

“Hah?! You can understand French?!” I ask her. She’s full of surprises.

 

“A little.” She told me.

 

I have such strange friends.

 

Demetra was talking non-stop while Colin tried to calm her down so she could take a seat.

 

“Who is she?”Dani whispered to me and Arin.

 

“She’s Evelyn’s sister.” Arin said.

 

“The frustrated fashionista?” Dani asks.

 

“What? She’s a what?” What did they just call her?

 

“Her sister calls her a frustrated fashionista.” Dani says. “But she doesn’t seem that way.”

 

“You too? I thought so too. I think she’s just eccentric.” Arin says.

 

I wonder what’s going on between Demitra and Colin...

 

[SNIP]