If We Love Again

Chapter 4

Nostalgia: Falling

I’ll lay down on your bed of coals, offer up my heart and soul. But in return, I want you to burn. Burn for me baby

–– Burn, Tina Arena

• • •

  

        "WOAH! YOU ACTUALLY remembered all the shit that happened!" Maxene gapes in disbelief.

        It’s midnight and here am I reminiscing about the past. The high school days were the most precious moments I had my whole life. I didn’t know I’m being sentimental here for three hours. Everything went by like a flashback.

        "How can I forget? Your bitchiness back then was really remarkable, you were still tough despite their outnumbering you."

        She cracks into a guffaw. "Thank you!" exclaims Maxene proudly as she flips her brown hair. "Now, let’s go to sleep. I’m tired."

        "Alright."

        I decide to sleep in the room that Maxene keeps for me. She didn’t want me to use the guest room so she decided to make one for me, and back then, I used to sleep here at her place a lot.

        I lie down in bed, staring at the ceiling. Everything that had happened before comes back to me, tonight is such an eventful night, I thought telling him the truth is easy but it isn’t. I still wasn’t ready for what I’m about to hear from him. What if he won’t be able to accept everything?

        I feel my eyelids getting droopy as sleep slowly drains me.

  

• • •

  

        IT’S BEEN ONE WEEK EVER SINCE I BECAME FRIENDS WITH MAXENE, for some reason, the five girls who beat her up offered an apology. Strange how prideful they were back when they were brawling, but now they’re pretty timid, they avoided crossing paths with Maxene and me.

        "Maxene, stop getting into fights, I am so tired of backing you up!" I griped.

        She crossed her arms and rolled her eyes. "Tch, I didn’t even tell you to back me up."

        Somehow, she managed to open up to me. It was strange how I coped up with her attitude, she’s kinda’ bitchy. Never in my whole life had I became friends with someone like her, most of my so-called "friends" were rich and well-mannered kids––dad’s business partners’ sons and daughters.

        The only one I liked so far was Devon Gale Leonhardt, I was one-year ahead of her though.

        And now I’m cutting classes again. Ever since she and Earl came into my life, I’ve encountered troubles and I finally learned how to cut classes-they taught me how to.

        Maxene was strong-headed, fierce, and blunt, but that’s what I liked about her. She’s not the best person you could ever meet, but she’s the best friend you could ever have.

        Meanwhile, Earl was more of the silent type. He rarely spoke, he was succinct and cold. I learned that he was the school’s resident bad boy, everyone in school feared him. He won a lot of gang fights despite not being a gangster. A lot of people were scared of him. But I wasn’t one of them, which was strange ‘cause I should be.