Espías Secretas

Chapter 9- At a Standstill

The following chapter will be narrated from the Mendel's POV, directly following Kassi leaving for rehabilitation. @Kaykaykayles and I have decided we would like to add more sides to our story. Mendel Fuentes is an East sider who is currently in a secret relationship with Kassandra (Kassi) Valadez, Mia's roommate, who is currently in rehabilitation for an eating disorder. 

How did I not see? I touched that mouth so many times without realizing what it had been doing with the food it digested. I flashed back to the time I noticed her weight seemingly decreasing. 

"Hey princess," I whispered as I let her into my dorm. 

She tiptoed inside, her neon blue socks the only thing that would attract attention. Her outfit this morning was tight-fitting and very dull. 

She pulled me close and we kissed. I quietly shut the door, paying attention to Dante's steady snores. I didn't need to worry about Herminio because he was probably in Maximiliono's dorm. 

As we were hanging out in my bedroom, I felt her to be oddly much easier to be picked up, and she was a feather in my lap. 

"Are you alright?" I asked her. 

She looked up at me, confused. 

"What do you mean?" 

"You seem... different. Smaller. Tireder." 

Her face went cold and stiff. She huffed, and then remarked, "I don't notice anything different. You're just imagining things." 

"Please tell me what's wrong," I pleaded. 

"Nothing, Mendel. I came here to be happy not investigated," she dismissed. 

I sighed in defeat, and then I never brought it up again. 

 I shouldn't have trusted her. 

So what did I do that night? I cried my heart out until 5 am. Don't tell me that's un normal, I know you've done it too. I made sure to keep my sobs to a minimum to not wake my roommates, so don't worry about their sleep. 

I couldn't even do anything. I just watched her leave. 

I couldn't even do anything. The only person I could talk to was Mia. Mia! That girl barely even knew my name! 

Honestly, I should just have a guy talk with Nic. He would understand, right? Problem: I can't talk to him without being terribly judged. 

I decided a lot of things that night. The moment Kassi comes back, I was going to stop pretending. I have had enough with pretending to not know or like her. 

The next day I barely peeked at me reflection when getting ready. My light blonde hair could do whatever it wanted, and I threw on a plain red shirt.  

I left my room to see Herminio and Maximilliono making out on the couch. 

I sucked in a breath, trying to control my rage and surprise. Maximilliono was never here. It was always Herminio gone. I guess Nic kicked them out or something, which I guess made sense because he was pretty messed up about Kassi gone too. 

I immediately stormed out. I didn't need to see other successful couples. Besides, I craved being alone. 

Throughout the day I tried not to seem too disconnected from my small group of friends. Every day seemed the same as the rest, as I barely paid attention to anything besides when I heard Kassi's name. 

One day, about a few days after Kassi's depart, these loud sirens went off for a few seconds. Mrs. Castro went into an internal panic as all electronics went off and we were all ushered into the hallway to be safe from Souths, who were very near. 

For the first time in a while, I worried about me rather than her. 

Then, there were sounds of gunshots. I almost peed myself. In a panic, Mrs. DeMora ordered everyone to hide. 

I saw Nic and Mia go into their dorm, and other people go into their own. I tried to think of somewhere else to hide, thinking that if Souths were to get in they'd look in the dorms for people first. So, I ran into the cafeteria. 

I stopped for a split second, considering my next move. Then, I leaped over the counter where food was always served, looking for something I could fit in in the kitchen.  

There was a huge fridge, but I didn't want to freeze. Besides the fridge were partially cooked parts of a meal. It looked like old American pizza. Yuck. Frantically, I brushed passed counters with silverware, and decided to grab a knife. Just in case. Then, finally, I found a huge storage closet. Upon opening in, I found it packed with canned foods. However, there was a sliver of space big enough for me to fit in and sit, if I moved a few cans. It would look so packed with cans on shelves that no one would think that anyone could actually fit in it. 

I couldn't just throw cans out, because then Souths would know I was hiding there. So, I darted back and forth, moving about 20 cans to the back of the fridge. Then, panicked by every gunshot I heard, I pressed myself into the closet and pulled it closed. 

I sat there, behind a bunch of cans, for a long time. I hated waited at a standstill, and I was starting to become claustrophobic. 

I imagined Kassi here with me, and longed for her to be with me. I slightly regretted not just following all my friends into their dorm, but I felt safer here. 

Then I started to wonder. Did they serve us food from cans, because there were a lot, and there was a big variety of what was in them. 

The food didn't taste like it came from cans, but it would make sense and be easier if they served us canned food. 

Unless, was the canned food just served for emergencies, maybe for if we were on lockdown for long periods of time? Maybe if we needed to escape for some reason, we could just take canned food and the cooks wouldn't need to find more resources? 

Or maybe it was just for when the cooks were lazy or gone. 

I eventually fell asleep from boredom, praying I could leave this stupid closet soon.