Masquerader

Chapter 5

        One night when Cenne was with Zoe and Mary at the swing set, Cenne was sitting on its bridge, Zoe in the little hut joined by that bridge, they were discussing something when Cheio climbed up the stairs into the hut.  Zoe slid herself down and sat on the swing where Mary was. Cenne didn't get the chance to move. Her heart started beating faster and she, sitting cross-legged on the higher bridge and Cheio in front of her but lower. She looked him right in the eyes, his eyes were the prettiest she had ever seen. He started talking when Mary came behind Cenne, she didn't want to leave her alone with him but after a while, she went down. Cenne asked Cheio about Ben but he said he doesn't want to talk about him. He told him that he wants to return the money she gave to Jack. She said, "okay, return it."  He said, " I don't have money with me right now, I'll return it to you tomorrow." She agreed. They then talked some more. It was the first time Cenne had been with him and it was perfect. She loved it. He asked her to come down and sit beside him. She had never done that before so she wasn't really sure if to do it or not but he was insisting so she came down and sat in front of him. He asked her to sit right beside him. She said she is comfortable this way but he came towards her and sat beside her. She was happy but at the same time, worried. She was sitting so close to him. Not that close but it was close for her. He didn't touch her and maybe that's why she liked him so much. She always had a mindset due to which she believed that there wasn't a thing like love. And for the people that were in love, she saw them as the perfect and lively people but she never believed in her catching feelings for someone. She thought that people just use each other. It's all fake and a mere time pass. And she still thought that and all she wanted was to be friends with Cheio, like those cool group having both male and female friends that fought for each other and really were true and sincere friends. Except for she didn't realize she was actually catching feelings for her. Mary, Zoe, and Cenne went to the mall that night. On the way back, they had ice cream and saw Cheio and Jack crossing them. Cenne leaned her hand forward and showed them the ice cream which she thought was something really stupid to do but anyway when they got back in the park, there were some people on the swing set so they went to the far end of the park and sat there. Cheio came and sat with them while Jack was standing far behind. There were many more people in the park but nobody ( Cenne, Zoe, Mary, Cheio) seemed to care at that moment. Cheio asked Cenne for the ice cream, she was shocked for a moment but then she gave it to him and he ate it which shocked her more. Then as soon as the people left the swing set they went their and Cheio and Jack went outside the park.
      The next evening Jacey told Cenne that Cheio had given her chocolates and told her that the guy they saw on the bench and even texted Cenne, possessed bad intentions towards Jacey and Cenne. To sexually assault them. That's why Jack had asked so many times Cenne to come and meet her there at that time of the night as the park was under construction and there was no-one at night. Cenne was wondering if Jack was involved in all this then why did he ask her not to talk to him? When Jacey said that Cheio had stopped him from doing that. Cheio had threatened Jack that if anything happened to Jacey or Cenne because of him, he won't leave him like that he'll do really bad with him. So it was sorted.
            At night, she was in the same hut while Zoe and Mary were on the swings and Jack on the bench. Cenne had Mary's cellphone with her. She was doing something on it. Cheio wasn't there. Zoe went to her house to get a bottle of water when Cheio came and dropped some dollars in her lap. She was expecting him to come and sit with her but he just left the money and went somewhere. Mary came up and Cenne told her what happened. Cenne asked Mary to keep the money and as it was more than what she gave him she will return it the next day. They were then sitting and searching songs on her phone when some guys came and said, "What's going on here?"  They were both shocked and said, "What?" One of the guys asked the other to turn on the torch on his phone and he did and they were looking inside with it. There were only Cenne and Mary who then came down and were going outside the park when one guy said in a voice as he owned her, " Cenne, you just get home and I'll tell you." He was Maple's brother and he knew Lua. Cenne asked, " What will you tell me?" He said, " You'll see." Mary said to Cenne, " Let the dogs bark." He heard it and said something but they were far by then. They went into their street and were sitting on the edge of the road in front of Cenne's house when they saw those same boys coming towards Cenne's house. Cenne didn't have any idea what was going to happen. Three of them went to the front door.  And the other two were going to the other end of the road and when they were right in front of Cenne and Mary they said, " Baby's so dead."One of them stopped in half the way and the other one stopped somewhat before the doorsteps while Maple's brother went ahead and knocked on the door and Lua opened the door and they came by the road. He was telling Lua and Cenne was drowning in the ocean of her own sentimental thoughts. Lua didn't say anything to Cenne that night. The next day at noon, Cenne went to Mary's Aunt's house. They took lots of weird pictures. When she got home, Lua asked her to wear something good. They were going out of town to buy somethings. She was happy, she always gets happy whenever Lua takes her with him. He asked her to sit with him on the bus. When they got inside the bus, Lua's friends were there and he sat with them. They were going to the same place and also had to shop for themselves. But for an hour they separated for a while. It was Ramzan and all of the four were keeping their fast. After getting somethings they opened their fast at KFC. Then Lua's friends got lemonade which they shared with Lua and Cenne. After a while, Cenne and Lua got themselves chocolate shakes which they shared with the boys. Cenne was enjoying herself. She loved his brother so much.  They were getting late and were gonna miss their bus so they were running, all four of them. Lua's phone dropped and the cover opened and the batteries came out. A transgender came and started to ask for money. He was worried about missing the bus, his phone almost broke and the transgender kept on asking for money. Cenne with one of the guys had run ahead and when they looked back they both started laughing. When they came back, the bus dropped them at the entrance of the street where Jack and Cheio could see them as they were sitting right across the street. She got home, greeted her mother, and came back and met Mary and Zoe. They had not returned the money yet. The next day, the three girls went to the mall and on their way back they were gonna return the money. When they were going to the mall Cenne was talking to Cheio on Mary's cellphone and they were right behind them. On their way back they came, when they were gonna return the money, Cenne put her hands in her pockets to take out the money but she couldn't find any. She was so worried because it wasn't her money plus Cheio was right in front of her and he had to give her the money. Jack had asked Mary to buy him a gift as she was gonna go after a while so she got him bracelets. They had been following them the whole time because she had to return the money. She was really ashamed. When they were coming back home, the girls came from the street that Cheio lived in. Cenne was on a call with Cheio and He was with Jack coming down the street next to them, they could see each other. Cheio said to her, "You have really humiliated me and you always humiliate me." She was really hurt by this. She got angry. She lost the money accidentally not on purpose. She literally had a crying face. She said, "I always humiliate you?" He said, "Yes." She said, " Okay, from now on I won't because I won't be in contact with you anymore." And she ended the call. He called back. He called several times but she didn't pick it up. When they reached their street, Mary and Zoe went inside the house and Cenne was on the street, he called again. Cenne picked it up. He asked why was she mad at him and stuff. She was still hurt but had cool down. They talked and then Mary came down saying, " We found it!" Cenne got up from the footpath and said, "What did you find?" She showed her the money. Cenne remembered at that moment that she put the money in her pocket but maybe they didn't get in. She told Cheio about that and they returned the money the next day. He took back the money on the condition that Cheio will give her something else in return.