[Saturday night]

The household was practically insane on weekends. There was screaming in front of the television while people played play station, drunk karaoke, loud gossip between family members, complaining from the kids, you name it.

Kris sat on the edge of the bed and sighed. He slipped on his headphones and turned it up to full blast, to tune out all the loud chaos going on outside. He personally liked rap music – it made him feel alive. It sent waves of excitement through him, making him feel energized. He loved the flow of rap, the hardcore beats and the rhythmic words.

“Selected VIP wouldn’t it be mind-blowing awesome

Now we’re on a rock rock rocket

Just gotta keep your seatbelt fastened”

Kris unconsciously rapped along to the song, doing little hand movements while he was at it. He shut his eyes and it was like he was the only one in the world. All of his troubled was drowned out by the music blasting through his ears. There wasn’t any Eric, no Natalie and no Trey. Just him and his music.

He felt a sudden shift of weight on his mattress, right beside him. He whipped around to see Natalie grinning to ear.

Kris yelped and jumped, slipping off the edge of the bed and landing on the floor with an “oompf!” He mentally face palmed himself as he saw Natalie’s feet from under the bed. He slowly peeked over the edge of the mattress, only to catch Natalie clutching her stomach, nearly crying from laughing too hard. All the while Kris felt like he was going to have a heart attack.  

“Aish,” Kris glared at her as he yanked off his headphones. He stood up and returned to his spot on the bed, boring holes into her. “Why are you here?”

Natalie stifled a giggle, avoiding all eye contact with him. “Hey, you’re pretty good at rapping.” She ignored his question, breaking out into a full smile. He felt tempted to just nudge her…off the bed.

“Why are you here?” he asked again, sighing. She stopped laughing and squinted her eyes at him, right before she shoved his shoulder. Huh, he was just going to do the same to her. His eyes widened slightly at their same train of thought before he returned to his poker face.

“I’m here ‘cause I need your help,” she confessed.

Kris arched his eyebrows, perplexed. “With…what?” he asked slowly.

Fifteen minutes later, they were out the door and down the street, walking to God-knows-where in the middle of the night together. Kris shivered, pulling up his hood as the breeze hit him. Beside him, Natalie hummed lightly, radiating happiness and joy. Kris watched her bounce in front of him. She was way too happy, in contrast to him. Just add another thing to why they were so different. He eyed her clothing; a beige beanie, a red flannel and black jeans. It must’ve been less than what he was wearing; and he was freezing.

“So do you rap often?” Natalie broke the silence that filled the night’s air. Kris’s eyes widened at the sudden question and he silently cursed. Seeing no response, she went on. “I meant it when I said you rapped pretty good. Do you like rap?”

Kris nodded slightly, sensing that she’d get the answer from him one way or another. She saw his nod from the light illuminating from a streetlamp. She smiled. “Rap for me.” Kris choked on his spit and turned towards her in disbelief. She continued to smile though, as Kris stared at her in disbelief. He regained his composure and looked away.

“No.”

“Aish,” Natalie glared at him. She sulked for a bit before she lit up. “Oh! We’re here!” She announced.

Kris turned, looking around at their surroundings. They were on a tiny bridge, over a river stream, and they were mostly surrounded by grass. The city lights from afar were reflecting onto the water, making the place not so dark, but it was still relatively dark, since there were no nearby lights.

“Why are- “

Natalie hushed him, placing a finger on her lips. He stared at her, confused. What could she have possibly needed help with here? She pulled out a digital camera from her bag. Kris stared at her like she was crazy – it was way too dark for a picture. She leaned against the railing, looking out towards the river.

He was just about to question her again, just when she snapped a picture. Kris slowly followed her gaze, curious of what the hell she was taking a picture of.

Fireflies.

Freaking fireflies.

One by one, more was revealed, illuminating the night sky with their bright lights. Kris watched them fly around in awe. It was the first time he had seen fireflies, well, he saw them on the television before, on the laptop, pictures – whatever. But this was the first time he’d seen them seen them.

“KrisKrisKris,” Natalie jumped, hitting his arm repeatedly to gain his attention quicker. “If I win the upcoming photography contest, you have to rap for me comprendo?” she smiled brightly, almost as bright as the fireflies around them. Hell, she could almost just give fireflies a run for their money just by how she lit up when something excited her.

He blinked at her, taken a little a back. The fireflies flew around them, appearing as little flying balls of light. He took note of how the lights showed her features perfectly. Her light brown eyes twinkled, the light landing softly on her milky skin, and her bright smile to top it off. She looked at Kris was so much anticipation, it was like a puppy waiting for her treat. He couldn’t help but to stiffly nod in agreement.

Natalie giggled and held out her hand. “It’s a deal then.”

Kris grabbed her hand without hesitation and shook it. It was completely different from their first meeting, when he just avoided her outstretched hand. “Deal.”

Wednesday! – September 26^th, 2008

“DO. NOT. TOUCH. MY. PUDDING – PLEASE!” Natalie shrieked, throwing in the last part as Kris still advanced his hands towards her beloved pudding. She glared at him, resulting him to stop for a second. Someone glaring at Kris? Whom was in one of the most terrified gangs in China? Seriously, she was getting way too comfortable with him. Kris shrugged, his body language screaming “I-really-don’t-care” just before he snatched a cup of pudding from her tray.

“HEY! YOU – KRIS!” Natalie punched his shoulder. Kris actually felt a twinge of pain – girl can pack a punch. He could see why Charlie avoided her getting physical.

“You ate four other cups of pudding in the middle of class,” Kris retaliated. Natalie opened for a comeback, but no sound came out. “Yeah, I saw you.” He teased. He stood up as she lunged for her pudding, towering over her.

“ WAIT HEY THAT’S REALLY NOT FAIR,” Natalie whined as she stood up as well, on her toes, reaching for her pudding. He just held the cup over his head.

The two were eating lunch outside, since Natalie declared it too hot to be in one room filled with hungry, pushy students that gave off way too much body heat as she worded it. They were on a grassy field, by a tree that had a big shade. Plus, she added, it was a nice day.

Kris laughed while seeing her try really hard for her pudding. He held it up even higher, making it almost impossible to reach it with his height.

Watching the scene from afar, specifically the parking lot, Daniel clenched his fist, his knuckles turning white; Jealousy seething through him.

He told himself that he was over Natalie, told himself that he was done. But right now, he knew it well enough that he was anything but done with her. He envied Kris. He saw the way she smiled at him, and he wanted to see her look at him the same way she looks at Kris – with genuine kindness. He longed for that smile on her face. His heart felt like it was shattered into pieces as he watched his first love being associated with another guy. He hated himself for sounding like a spoiled child.

“Well well well,” A female voice erupted beside him. The tone was so sweet and sugary that Daniel nearly gagged. He whipped around to face an Asian blonde.

Abigail.

He had seen her around, probably had one or two classes with her. He’d never really spoken to her, since she really seemed like the uptight type – and really, he couldn’t stand those. He had heard one or two things about her though; that she was the principal’s daughter, and was practically the perfect student; perfect grades, attendance, had a social status, and had nearly everyone falling at her feet. She smiled, sending shivers down Daniel’s spine, something was awfully wrong.

“You still like Natalie, don’t you?” She asked. Daniel nearly choked. This was the first time they had spoken and she hit the bullseye like they’ve known each other for years.

“No,” he blurted, a little too fast to be believable. Abigail smirked.

“Oh sweetie, don’t lie. I know,” she winked at the last part. Daniel cringed at the pet name, he hated those.

He scoffed and turned away - Unfortunately to face Natalie. She was laughing whole heartedly about something while Kris was watching her, neutral.

“You can’t really deny your feelings, Daniel.” She said softly.

He sighed, still watching the duo. It was painful, but he just couldn’t tear his eyes away. It was like he had to watch this. “What do you want?”

“Easy. Your cooperation.”

Daniel snapped his head around to meet Abigail. She leaned against a car, folding her arms across her chest. “For what?”

“For getting Natalie away from Kris, to split them apart.”

Daniel blinked, thinking about this. “What do I have anything to do with this? I’m not involved,” He questioned, though the topic caught his interest. She rolled her eyes.

“You want Natalie. I want Kris. And we both want them the hell away from each other.”

“Who said I wanted Natalie?” He asked. Abigail rolled her eyes again, pushing herself off the car.

“Please, it’s obvious. Just look at the way you fawn over her, how every time she interacts with Kris, pain is written all over your face. You want her away from Kris as much as I do.” She leaned in closer, whispering into his ear. “And while we’re at it, you’ll end up with her instead.”

Daniel looked away, turning to watch the two again. It pained him and he wanted it to desperately stop. Abigail’s deal seemed a little too good to be true. But he couldn’t deny that it was exactly what he wanted to do, exactly what he wanted to happen. He imagined himself in Kris’ place. Would she smile at him the same way she did for him? Will she treat him as at least a friend? Would he be able to be by her side once again? He sighed.

“What do I have to do?”

DOUBLE UPDATE AHAHAHAHA.