OIL & WATER | sean lew

2.

"water?"

"yes."

"cash?"

"yep."

"phone? charger?"

"yes, and yes."

"extra clothes?"

"yes, mom, yes."

"your heart still there?"

"no." the answer was quick, just like how much her heartbeat was going — it was a circus in there, and she wasn't overreacting. right? "definitely not."

"i find it hilarious how you suddenly get so..tangled up over a single class." mama cho chuckled. her eyes flickered to the traffic lights, waiting for the green to pop up. "the last time you were like this was..a decade and 4 years ago."

"that's like, my first dance class ever."

"yep. exactly." her mom laughed yet again, letting out a little 'ooh' when the light finally flashed green. "don't worry, las, you're gonna do good like always."

"what if i trip over my shoelace, and bleed to death infront of him, and i ruin his class, and then he'll forever hate me for dying in his class without consent?" alaska wasn't even kidding at the possibilty. she was a clumsy human being at its best. "it's—"

"it's fine. my goodness, honey, you really are a nervous wreck."

"bleeding to death infront of sean isn't okay, mom, what- do- you- mean."

mama cho gave her that motherly side eye, making the girl seal her lips shut and straightening in her seat. "you know what i mean, alaska cho."

alaska wasn't going to deny that either. her fingernails were already tiny — with her fingers being smaller than a butterfinger — but it'll become micro if she keeps on biting them out of a nervous habit. she's that anxious.

after such a long time of looking up to sean as her inspiration and motivation jn life, learning from him was one of her biggest goals.

from clips of him on instagram to personal experiences her friends had with him, he truly provides an amazing space wherein one can learn more about movement, emotion, artistry and life combined without any judgement or restriction. he makes it comfortable and free yet genuine and authentic, and his works progress to make such an impact.

within a span of an hour and thirty minutes, the amount of lessons and new boundaries broken you get will apparently just make you want to attend his class even more.

alaska can't wait to experience all of that — after waiting for the right moment and losing opportunities to meet him, she was beyond the realm of excited. but at the same time, there's something within her that's just making her jittery at all the negative possibilities.

she wasn't the most religious person, but she's thanking God for finally opening a chance for her to meet her number one inspiration — the one who inspired her to dance, to push harder, and to be herself in her expression.

but most of all, thank God for sean charles lew.

"alaska, we're here."

the girl looked outside, her eyes landing on the very doors of tmilly tv's space. "it's still early."

"wanna get jasmine boba down the street?" mama cho smiled, already putting the gears in reverse. she knew her daughter the most, of course, and she had a soft spot for boba.

"you already know."

-

there was approximately 30 minutes before his class starts, and here he was in boba guys with his bestfriends. it was tradition to hang out together before getting to class, and it was no different today.

bailey, kaycee and tahani were hunched over a phone, a playback of an infamous scene from friends making them giggle. julian and josh were just talking about a sick dance video they found, until they noticed that their asian friend was more distracted than anything else.

he was staring into space with blank eyes, his fingers fidgeting with the string of his black hoodie while his bottom lip was caught between his teeth. he seemed out of it — like there was something in his mind that was deeply bothering him.

"yo, sean," julian flicked a ball of tissue in his way, making the boy straighten up. "everything alright? class jitters?"

"y-"

"no, don't answer that. you never get class jitters," julian cut him off, flicking off another ball. he caught the attention of the three girls, looking from their phones to sean. "spill."

it wasn't that big of a deal, yet sean contemplated even telling them about it. it was nothing big, dramatic or life-threatening. it was just something to ponder about after the changes he started to notice. he didn't want to bother them with something so little.

"it's jenna, isn't it?" it was kaycee who broke the short silence. she knew better than most, considering as she was sean's closest bestfriend next to jenna. "the corner of your lip twitched. what happened between you two?"

the boy sighed deeply. "its.. its nothing. it's just that- how do you say this? uh.. can i ask you guys something?"

a collective response of 'yes' resonated from the group, a look of curiousity and concern written all over their faces. surely they didn't break up, right? they weren't even together, officially, but they could be breaking up as friends. they had a hunch of what it was, but they could be friendship-breaking.

"did you notice any... changes — by changes, i mean as in change — with... jenna? it's nothing bad, it's just like — it seems different now."

before sean opened his mouth to ask the question, his friends already hit bingo with what was on his mind.

of course, they noticed how she changed in a snap. they wanted to ignore it as a sign of respect and understanding, especially bailey who spent the most time with her, but it was hard to dismiss.

especially when she really changed as a friend, too.

"y-yeah, jenna, yeah." it was bailey who responded, with a little bit of hesitance. but it still surprised sean.

the boy sighed for the nth time, the puff of air coming out short and frustrated. the change in atmosphere made him fidget. the chair started to feel more uncomfortable by the second.

"we-we were okay, but then she started to become more annoyed, more pissed off and— she might be having problems that i don't know of, but it's just.. so different but not in a good way." this time, the boy groaned, clenching his eyes shut in even more frustration. "i sound like such an asshole, but it's really just so hard to ignore."

his friends looked at each other knowingly. he hasn't said much, but they understood — they noticed it, too.

but sean wasn't about to have a heart-to-heart talk at this time of the day. the sun was still out, and it didn't seem right to talk about something so sentimental.

"can we talk about this later? mom's inviting you guys over anyway because she wanted you to try those... new cinnamon rolls she found on pinterest."

the bell by the frame of the door dinged, and it brought them back to the present. suddenly, they remembered they were still in boba guys and not sean's house when they saw people entering the quaint little boba place.

sean was too sucked in his thoughts for the second time to notice whoever it was that entered the café, but the rest of his friends shot the newcomers a friendly smile.

and alaska may have screamed on the inside when her eyes realized who was right infront of her, smiling and actually real.

but she may also have let out a tiny squeal when she noticed her favorite ravenhaired asian sitting a few feet away from her.

sean lew was broke out of his reverie, and looked up at the sudden sound, only to be met the wide eyes of a girl whose hands were shaking at the sight of him.

when he smiled at her, she almost lost it right then and there.

—
ty for your patience
ill proofread this later i promise
ily stay safe
-f