A Fake World's beauty

Damn!... I didn't expect so much work to be done before the next meeting. Damn that Ms Koto, I bet she set this up.

Crystal:"Yo bro! WAIT are you doing work? That's rare, are you going through some teenage crisis?"

Daniel:"Yes yes, a very sad one indeed. It's called being part of the school festival planning committee.''

Crystal:"Oh really? HAHAHA that's hilarious, you being on the school committee. Well at least you won't be slacking at home I guess."

Daniel:"Don't you have a lot of homework for a college student?"

Crystal:"You're right I do."

Siblings in real life are nothing like they are fiction aren't they? Not big bullies like most movies show nor are they super good friends just like normal friends who live together. Well no time to slack, gotta finish these reports before the tomorrows meeting. If I finish fast enough I'll get 4 hours of sleep. Yawning as he stared at the computer screen with a stack of papers next to him, Daniel couldn't help but wonder how Jasmine was handling her work.

Daniel:"Wonder whether she's still up, as executive committee planner she has way more things to settle, plus that fake girl Sai probably won't do any work, she'll probably do a half-assed job of it. Wait why am I thinking about her? Calm down Daniel, keep those thoughts under control."

???:"I don't like you that way."

Daniel: "That's right, that's what they all say. Nice girls are everywhere aren't they." Staring at the ground with dead eyes, Daniel reminded himself not to give up on the philosophy he had been invested in for so long.

Daniel: "Don't give in, or else you know what's going to happen."

"GET UP ALREADY!"

Rising from his bed slowly, Daniel ruffled his hair checking the clock

Daniel: "Crap! It's already this late! Shouldn't have stayed up till 2 rushing on some stupid reports." Rushing to dress up, Daniel hastily rushed out of the house and ran to school. (Thank goodness I stay a stone's throw away from school.) Panting as he arrived in front of the school gate, Daniel patted himself on the back for getting to school earlier than expected as he strolled into the school gate.

Beth: "Oh hi Daniel."

Turning around, Daniel saw a face he would never forget for the rest of his life.

Beth: "I'm sorry.... I don't like you that way."

Daniel:"Oh hi Beth, I didn't notice you there." Forcing those words out of my mouth, I felt like puking. Immediately turning around, I put my hands in my pocket and walked off without saying anything else. Beth looked shocked or rather pretending to be, she knows what's going on but her superficial self didn't allow her to act in a way she would befitting of her true self.

Sigh... alright, back to normal, what kind of man am I, getting so worked up about this kind of shit.

After school.

Daniel: "Ahh... School's finally over I can go home and..... oh wait, committee meetings I FORGOT!"

Michael: "Hahaha! Sucks to be you man."

Daniel: "Very funny don't you have after school club as well?"

Michael: "Yep but I actually enjoy going unlike someone, haha! Just messing with you try to see things more positively why not? You met anyone interesting?"

Daniel: "Not really."

Michael: "Well take your time, hopefully you'd finally get over Beth."

Daniel: "How many....."

Michael: "Alright alright I get it I'm gonna head off first see ya."

Daniel: "Yeah...."

Alright, time to perform my duties as a functional human being. Opening the door to the meeting room, Daniel instantly made out the cliques that were forming among the committee members, mostly out of people who knew each other.

"Alright take your seats!" Chris came in and silenced the whole room. Sitting down I noticed Jasmine as well and we both acknowledged each other's presence.

"Where's committee chairman Sai?" Chris asked. The whole room went silent. Sai's best friend Meg stood up and said: "She's down with the flu today and can't show up."

Lies, honestly such a joke, I just saw her alive and well and after school leaving with her boyfriend. I knew it she was never fit to be committee chairman. Daniel quietly lamented to himself.

Chris: "I see. Well then we have no choice I guess, executive committee planner Jasmine please take over today's meeting would you"

Jasmine: "Of course anyways let's start today's meeting....."

3 hours later

Daniel: "Man that was even worse than before for different reasons."

Jasmine: "Are you complaining about my emceeing skills?"

Daniel: "Woah! Where did you come from? I wasn't complaining about that, it's just extremely exhausting. You are one demanding person to work with. For once I'm glad that slacker Sai is chairman."

Jasmine: "Well your saviour from work is probably never going to come for another meeting for a while, so please do get used to my work style."

Daniel: "Geez you sound like a dictator."

Jasmine: "Anyways let's go home shall we?"

Daniel: "Eh? Oh yea sure''

Beth: ''Oh Daniel you're still here?''

Shit!

Daniel: "Hi Beth didn't expect to see you here....."

Beth: "Oh, who's this?''

Daniel: "Jasmine. She's the committee planner for the school festival. We just finished the meeting and were about to head home."

Beth: "Ohhh... Hey Jasmine, does Daniel say a lot of cringey things to you?"

Jasmine: "No, I don't see why he would?"

Again with this shit, this is why I hate interacting with her.

Beth: "I promise I won't bring this up to anyone and I'll keep it a secret. Let's keep being friends?"......

Daniel:"Bullshit."

"Did you say something?" Beth curiously asked

Daniel:"No? I didn't. Anyways it's getting pretty late I should be getting home see ya."

Jasmine: "Excuse me."

As I trudged home from school, Jasmine and I didn't say a word to each other until we arrived at the park.

Daniel: "I'm gonna be heading to the park for a while, you can go home first."

Jasmine: "Oh? Don't you remember I go to the park everyday as well?''

Daniel: "Oh yea sorry about that, this past week has been pretty stressful so I forgot all about that." I tried my best to force out a laugh.

" I see..." Jasmine's faced tensed up as if she was focusing on something.

Walking up the stairs and sitting down on his favourite spot, Daniel relaxed and let loose for the first time in a week.

Daniel: "Man, I forgot how relaxing this place could be. It's the best!"

Jasmine: "You really do get excited over the smallest things."

Daniel: "It's not small, this place helped me a lot during some bad times."

Jasmine: "I see..... Hey, I've been wanting to ask you about what you said back there."

Daniel: "Back there?"

Jasmine: "'Bullshit', why did you say that?"

Crap! Did I say it that loud? Dang it, what do I do now?

Daniel: "Err it was nothing really just me blabbering nonsense out."

Jasmine: "If I had to guess that was the girl who messed you up isn't it?"

Daniel: "What makes you think that?" I asked with the sternest face I could make.

Jasmine: "The way that you're looking so scared, yet trying to hide it is pretty obvious to me you know?"

Daniel: "What?" Looking down a this hands Daniel noticed that he was uncontrollably shaking.

Daniel: "I'm not scared...."

Jasmine: "Still denying it? You're one stubborn man you know?"

Daniel: "Sigh.. what do you want to know anyways? You're the one who doesn't wanna tell me your past so I see no reason to tell you mine."

Jasmine: "The walls around your heart are pretty high I see."

Daniel: "There you go again."

Jasmine: "Hey, why do you think people are always showing the most presentable sides of themselves?"

Daniel: "It's obvious, isn't it to get others to like them?" Daniel wondered why she would ask a question she obviously knew the answer to

Jasmine: "Then why do you think people show their true selves only to a select few?"

Daniel: "Because they trust them? Anyways what are you going on about?"

Jasmine: "I think it's important to show your true side to some people and not keep it all to yourself all the time, or eventually those walls you built around your heart are gonna collapse with no one to help you carry the weight."

Daniel was silent, staring at the ground wondering what he should do. He looked at Jasmine's eyes and his eyes lit up. This was the first time he saw genuine concern on her face, one that he couldn't just ignore no matter how hard he tried to push it away.

Don't do it Don't do it! Daniel's mind raced with different thoughts as he acted without thinking.

Daniel; "I have to go it's getting pretty late, he grabbed his bag and quickly rushed off with haste

Jasmine:"Wait...."

Daniel was running away from probably the first time someone had genuinely asked him a question with so much concern in their eyes, and here he was turning it away and running off, like a coward. He didn't look back and kept running. Opening the door to his room, he quickly rushed in and closed the door.

Leaning against the door, he stared at the ground. He had seen the hand of comfort extended towards him, and he desperately wanted to take it, but in the end he understood what would happen if he did.

She's just another nice girl, doing it would allow me to repeat the same mistake I made 2 years ago, never again. None of this real, people can never be this real to each other. It must be an act. Maybe she's trying to get something out of me for some reason. As time went by his thoughts continued to race with no sign of stopping, as every possible reason he could think of circled through his head.

Nice girls, you see them everywhere in school. The ones who look kind elegant and courteous but in reality it's just another mask, one to portray themselves as a good person while in reality they hide behind others back and cause others to turn against those they do not like.

With their influence and reputation as a nice girl, people would instantly rally behind them. But I know the truth, nice girls are nothing but a lie. Simply crafted by our male brain to feel loved and wanted by someone of the opposite gender. It's nothing but a deception and my eyes have been opened, but at what cost? I lost any right to enjoy my youth or the prime of my life. I'm such a hypocrite, criticizing those who enjoy their youths yet here I am, longing for the enjoyment of youth.

No. No. it's simply my brain messing with me. The adrenaline is the cause, I would never behave like this normally. Yeah I wouldn't. Smiling to himself Daniel looked at the ground with eyes of resolve and determination.

Daniel: "Damn.Nice girls, such a scary sub part of high school girls, almost makes me want to never leave my room, I should be careful next time."