Chapter V

Amidst the busy atmosphere in the restaurant, the noise of the people inside, and the traffic outside, everything went still. Like the calm before a storm, everything went quiet for me, as if time froze. There stood in plain sight was a red-haired girl with sugar-colored eyes.

I instinctively stood up and waved at her. She looked at me, a moment full of confusion, and then bowed her head. I walked up to her, as casually as I could. She pointed to the counter as if saying, "I still haven't made my order yet".

I felt my phone vibrate inside my pocket as I took it out to look; there was a message from Barry saying, “Deal is off. Looks like you've managed to take a person who would be willing to take the sessions with you. What a shame though, I didn't see this coming and wasn't able to ask Winter to be my partner.”

How is he able to type that fast?! That doesn't matter, as Joe was finished with her order. I walked over to the counter and took her tray. She pointed to the table behind our group and I escorted her there.

As we walked along to my group, I stopped and introduced her. "This is uh, this is Joe." I spoke. That was all I know. What the crud? How am I supposed to introduce someone I barely know the name?

She let me place the tray on the table before smiling to everyone. "Hi," she greeted them. "The name's Jonah Makoto, an Arts Major."

I looked at Barry and I could see his jaw drop a little. He then smiled at me and gave me the thumbs up as if saying, “well played, mate”.

I stuck my tongue out. Don't get any weird ideas. We just met purely by coincidence. I heard Gail’s voice, "Whew, whew. I bet Winter isn't liking this very much. She doesn't like sharing her prey."

I felt a chill run down my spine as the temperature inside the store must've dropped at least to -1 degrees Fahrenheit. I quickly looked around everyone the table and saw that Winter was . . . well, she was bringing winter. I could've sworn I saw her shoulders covered in ice. But there was a split second when she looked at Barry, and her cold demeanor broke.

Barry didn’t notice and reflexively stood up and almost made his way for the door. But I grabbed him by the collar and made him sit again. He laughed awkwardly and I cleared my throat.

"As I was saying," I started. "This is Jonah Makoto, and we have already agreed to work together for the sake of my Finals."

I felt a soft thud on my left leg. Joe was probably kicking me. I looked at her with a smile. She was puffing her cheeks –I guess she does that whenever something displeases her. She looked adorable, by the way.

"Isn't that right, Joe?" I asked her sweetly, pushing her to a corner where she has to say yes. But to my surprise, she said . . .

"I don't remember talking to you about that at all . . ."

The twins, Winter, and Barry tried their best to stop laughing and ended up with loud snorts. I took in a deep breath to relax myself. I should play this one off just fine.

"Oh come on." I said. "We talked about this remember, that afternoon I delivered your purse. I had to go to the trouble of going to the Arts building, after all. So you said you could at least make it up to me."

She looked up, faking the thought process in her head. She then clapped her hands together then started pulling me out of the store. From there on, I could hear *whew whew*'s and *ooh*'s from the people around the table. I took a look behind me and saw Barry in tears as if he just watched his son take off to another place.

We were under a tree at the parking lot outside the store, lit by streetlamps. The moon stared down at me as if vindicating me for a crime I am yet to commit. With her honey-amber eyes, she stares at me intently. She pulled me in; I thought it was a kiss. But she just held my face close to hers.

"We need to talk", she says in meek conviction . . .

I felt my knees shake as a timid hand held my face close to a face painted with firmness and peace. I tried to smile and managed to pull off an awkward, ear-to-ear grin.

"Calm down." I said. "Let's be rational here."

"What is that partnership thing you guys were talking about?" It looked like she wasn't going to let me slide off. "And why was I dragged into it?"

"I, uh, umm . . ."

"Start explaining." she said as she pulled me in closer.

The scent of her cologne, the smell of her hair, and the modest blush she got from dragging me out of the store. Everything came into focus all at once that I almost got dizzy. The sound of her voice captivated me, but the sane part in the back of my head says I need to get away from her.

"I am not interested in you . . .Ted. Not in that way." She said it so bluntly, I felt a stab in my gut. In that instant, I was snapped back to reality.

I smiled at her and said, "No one said you're interested in anyone. I just said that you should help me out in my Finals requirement. You owe me at least that much."

She narrowed her eyes, still full of doubts as to what my intentions may be. But moments later, she nods her head and says, "Okay, but only for a week okay; an hour or two every day for the next week."

I raised an eyebrow and said, "Awesome. That should be cool."

As we headed back to the store, she turns to me and said, "I apologize for making things weird. I think you should explain to your girlfriend about all this."

"Oh, you mean the sporty looking blonde with the long legs. She's Barry's girl, not mine. I don't have anyone as of the moment, or any moment for that matter."

She just walked along . . .I don't know if she was even listening. Under the dim light of the streetlights nearby, she walks on, her back towards me. With her white hood over her head, she seemed like an apparition appearing amidst a hailstorm.

I snapped back into reality as I realized I was no longer walking and that she was already inside. I caught up with her a few moments later. Everyone had their eyes on us for a moment before Barry came up to me and asked, "Everything alright in paradise with little miss red-head?"

I gave him a sly thumb up to signal that everything is under control. He replied with a grin of his own and we continued silently with our meals. The mixer ended right then and there; that is to say, it was a disaster. That ought to teach Barry to never hook me up in his bizarre ideas for human social contact ever again. The funny ideas he has every now and then are nothing more than a pain in the arse for me.

I headed back to my apartment. Barry decided to walk with me as his house wasn't all that far from there, or so he says. To be honest, I think he just wants to get the juice out of our conversation on the parking lot.

"So, what really happened back there?" he asked, just as I suspected.

"Nothing much." I said.

He looked at me with a blank smile. He's trying to read into me, I can tell. There are things about the people in my class. As much as they sound like morons, they can be quite perceptive of things when it counts the most. Barry is no exception.

"Let's say, theoretically," I started. "There is this female you see as a potential half. But she doesn't see you that way."

"Theoretically," he says. "It is a possibility she is just seeing how far you can go."

"There is nothing to gain from lying."

"Not everyone is so one-sidedly rational as you."

I let out a sigh and Barry gave me a knowing look. "You must really like that Jonah person, huh."

I shrugged my shoulders and said, "Maybe. Maybe not. Either way, the whole mixer thing was a failure."

"Yeah, thanks to you" he said with a snort.

“You know I didn’t really want to come, right?”

“I know. I am sorry.”

I looked at him with an awkward smirk. “Why the hell are you apologizing? That’s kinda creepy.”

“You really know just what to say, Mr. Sweet Talker.”

We were in front of my apartment before we realized it. He waved his hand farewell as he headed on to his house. I waited ‘til he was out of sight before I decided to come inside. In the stillness of the night came a chilling breeze and I felt my façade crack. It’s odd, but I couldn’t help but giggle at the thought. I was just rejected.