Chapter 14: The Invitation

              “What are you thinking?” someone told me when I was still thinking about what happened to B2ST the night before. I was at school and waiting for the start of the classes.

                 “Do you know any gangster groups in our area?” I asked.

                 “Hey!” L said, “You know I won’t do gangster stuff.”

                 “I know, it’s just that…” and there I told him what happened last night.

                 “He wasn’t hurt?” L said. I nodded and he took his phone and started tapping onto it. “Then maybe he’s an important person for the gang,” he said, “But still I can’t be sure. Don’t worry, I’ll try searching more about gangs around our area, and I’ll just inform you once I found something.”

                 “Thanks,” I said. L then stood up and went to the door, but when he was about to get out of the room, he suddenly stopped. “Ah, by the way,” he said, “have you talked to your best friend?”

                 “Huh? No, I haven’t,” I said. “Do you think it’ll be okay for her to see me?”

                 “Of course, she missed you,” L said. He looked at me with his concerned eyes before continuing, “You’ve been friends for a very long time. I missed seeing you together these couple of days, so I’m sure she missed it more.”

                 He’s right, I had missed my friend so much already. “I’ll visit her later,” I said.

                 “Great,” L said, “Then I’ll see you around.” L went out of the classroom. Suddenly, groups of students ran past him. “Yah! Will you be careful?” L said, agitated.

                 “Oh! Sorry,” the student said, “the principal is about to make an announcement at the hall. Everybody is invited to come.”

                 L looked back at me and I took it as a signal for me to come. Like what the student said, a crowd of students gathered at the hall and the school principal was with the director on stage.

                 “What’s happening?” I asked one student.

                 “Don’t know,” the student said. I looked around and found Infinite on one side, L seriously looking at the principal and the director. “Hey, any idea what’s going on?” I asked L.

              “I’m not really sure, but I heard some rich old man visited earlier and had a meeting with the director of the school.”

                 “Attention everyone,” the principal said through the microphone which gained our attention. “Earlier today, we had a very important visitor. He came to inform us about the debut party of his grandchild studying in our school, and he also good heartedly invited all of our students and faculty to come and celebrate with them.”

                 The crowd started murmuring after that. “Who could that be?” I said.

              “Maybe somebody so rich, but then who could be so rich to invite almost a thousand people just for a debut party?” L said, his eyebrows knitted together. L and I weren’t close friends for a long time, but I could tell that something was really bothering him, and it wasn’t ordinary.

                 Luckily that afternoon our professor gave us an early dismissal, so I took the opportunity to visit my friend earlier than planned. Instead of getting off to the usual bus stop I would usually get off onto, I got off to the nearest bus stop from Gette’s house. I was planning to apologize and invite her to the party. The party wasn’t mine, but like what the principal and the school director said, everybody is invited.

                 As I approached the lawn Mrs. Domingo, Gette’s mom, quickly saw me and left the plants she was tending to greet me. Very beautiful lady, she used to be a music teacher but stopped when she gave birth to Gette. She continued teaching her daughter, only inside to confines of her house.

                 “It has been a long time,” she said, “Go in. Gette’s upstairs.” I did what I was instructed to do, but before I could even go upstairs, I stopped. I could hear a faint playing or instrument from where I was standing… is that a guitar? I listened carefully. The music playing was the same songs L and Jun-hyung played during their first duel. Could it be L? There were so many questions inside my head. Why would L be there? When did L and Gette became close? Still, I walked slowly. Maybe I wanted to see the picture myself.

                 I reached the front door of the room. I was ajar, so I carefully peeked in to take a look, but the sight surprised me even more.

              L wasn’t there. Not even Woo-hyun or anybody from the guitar department. It was Gette who was playing all along. She was sitting on her bed, her back was facing me, but I could see the guitar she was holding and the movement of her left hand.

                 “You play guitar,” I said. I intended it to be a question, but then I was so surprised that it came out differently. Gette turned and revealed her face drawn with a surprised expression.

                 “I… yes, I play guitar,” Gette placed her guitar on the bed and stood up.

                 “You didn’t tell me,” I said.

                 “I was about to when you were looking for a teacher, but you wanted someone from the guitar department,” Gette said after she took a few steps toward me, but I stepped back. I wasn’t even sure why. I nodded, and she didn’t come any closer.

                 “You were playing the songs for the duel,” I was looking at her blankly, seriously.

                 “Yes,” she said awkwardly.

                 “And you’re good, you could have…” I paused after a realization kicked in. “You could have beaten L if you dueled with him.”

                 Gette bit her lip and avoided my eyes. “Maybe,” she said.

                 “And you told me that you have no plans on taking him away from me?” I said. My pitch was already getting higher.

                 “I have no plans to take him away!” she said.

                 “But you have plans to duel with him?”

                 “I had!” Gette emphasized the word ‘had.’ She paused and I was sure she was trying to calm herself down. “I had planned to duel with him. But that was before… before you told me that you wanted to date him.”

                 “So the reason you didn’t duel with him is… me?” I said, but she didn’t speak. “You liked him?” Again, silence.

                 “Paboya!” I said which startled her. “You could have just told him!”

                 “I already did you pabo!” She yelled back at me. “And I was the first girl who confessed to him!” Then my mind went back to L words after the guitar duel.

                 “I told her that I would like to focus on my studies…I also told her to study well.”

                 “So it was you who confessed to him a year ago?” I said. She closed her eyes and nodded. “And surely you did study well.”

                  “I’m sorry,” Gette told me.

            “Sorry?” I said, “Come on, I’m the one who should say sorry. It shouldn’t be the other way around.” This time I smiled at her. Not the fake one. I can never be fake in front of her.

                 “But I must,” Gette said, “I have to! I kept you in the dark! I should have told you everything!” Suddenly I worried about her. She was becoming too emotional. “You already did,” I cooed her, but she said, “No!” that was my turn to be startled.

                 “What is it that you’re still… hiding?” I asked. Her tears were already cascading and I wanted to stop her but I thought that stopping her would just make her feel even terrible.

                 “There are so many things that happened after, even before that confession,” Gette was already bawling and I didn’t know what to do. “I want to tell you everything, but I don’t want to lose you! You’re my best friend!” Suddenly she stopped. I thought she was going to be okay, but I noticed the paleness of her lips and the trembling of her hands. And suddenly she fainted.

---o0o---

                 Gette lied on her bed, her mom was downstairs fixing some food for me and for Gette when she gained consciousness. Gette just got better from fever but all the emotion just brought her temperature up. She was looking better already, the color on her lips was back to its usual color.

                 Suddenly a phone went off. I took it from a drawer in her bedside table and looked at the caller ID. “Isn’t this his real name? Why is he calling Gette?” I muttered as soon as I saw the name. I pressed the answer button and listened to the caller.

                 “Thank goodness, Gette! It’s me. I know you probably hate me right now, but please, listen. Mae is probably on her way there. Please, I know you were hurt but I know you missed her, and surely she missed you too. I hate seeing you so sad, and I hate that I couldn’t do anything about it since you don’t want me to but please accept her back… as a friend.”

               The caller stopped and I remained silent. Then he continued, “I know you’re there, listening. I can hear your breathing. I know, it’s my fault but I want you to know… I’ll be loving you forever.”

                 That line made me lose hold of my control, “L?” I said.

                  “Huh? Wait… Mae? You’re there already?” L said, surprise was heard in his voice. “You heard… everything?” He said, but I didn’t reply right away.

                 “Visit her, she fainted and she’s unconscious right now,” I said before ending the call.