CHAPTER 34

Shayne Ward: Breathless

~If your enemies stopped hating; then you ain't progressing~

~Mina

SERAPHINA'S POV

My eyes darted back and forth between the arguing duo seconds away from ripping each other's throats. It's been a day after the fatal incident and thank God, I was alive and kicking. Except some people couldn't think the same.

"Listen, Asher, I'm not denying that it's an accident but what I'm telling you, is that the nail wasn't in the boat prior to our boarding." Maya reasoned.

"You're ridiculous, Maya." Severina scoffed.

"Delusional is the word." Asher sniggered.

"Hold onto your assumptions and I'll do the same with mine but everyone knows the boat floor was clearer than a  transparent glass. Unless the nail magically teleported from the seventh hell."

Stolen glances were exchanged after Maya's remark, and an aura of suspense blanketed the atmosphere.

"That hippo would've crushed you if not fo...

"Um, how do you feel now Phina?" Enrique cut into Miskha's statement.

"Okay. " I croaked, clearing my throat.

"What happened?" I asked no one in particular. I looked down and noticed I was in fresh clothes.

"I changed you." Severina filled into my troubling thoughts.

"You got pierced by a nail, tripped and fell into the water." Miskha revoked in a bored tone, as though it was the most ordinary thing on earth.

"Is she aw..thank God." Aisha rushed to my side and started feeling my face. I smiled and held her hands in mine.

"I'm so sorry. I never intended for the trip to end this way." Her eyes pooled.

"What are exactly are you sorry for? it was an accident, okay, and it'll mean the world to me if this issue is dropped." I addressed the last part to everyone.

"Well, the good part is our flight takes off at three pm tomorrow. " Enrique declared.

"I don't want to leave." Miskha feigned sadness, wiping away imaginary tears.

"You could always stay." Bia scoffed.

"Careful with me, Latina." Miskha kicked Bia's shin given that they were next to each other.

The door opened and a tray appeared, shortly followed by Khadija, dressed in a black chiffon dress. Looking elegant as always.

"Hi." She greeted with her award-winning smile, positioning the tray at the centre.

"Hey, gorgeous. " Nathan winked, making the young girl blush.

"Your lunch." She ducked her head and rushed out, Nathan following closely behind.

"Boys will always be boys. Young, dumb and broke." Severina sighed.

"And girls will always be girls. Young, hot and bold." Ace whispered, staring at Severina dead in the eye. Ace was doing great trying to show Severina his intentions without coming off clingy. Severina, however, maintained her neutrality.  Either she's oblivious to Ace's advances or was very good at pretending.

"What the." Lalia gasped. My head snapped in the direction she was staring and saw Miskha hungrily biting into a huge chicken leg.

"Continue flirting. We'll meet halfway, don't worry. There are five more legs to go." She stated through a mouthful of rice. We didn't need to be warned twice before joining her at the coffee table.

"Okay, I'm embarrassed. This is barbaric, I swear." Leila snickered, licking her hands. The once-full plate was now emptier than Madeline's brain.

"Soph, you okay?" Aisha inquired.

"Yeah." She nodded, but her pale face begged to differ.

"You sure?" Ahmed pressed.

"Yeah, I'm jus..."

Sophia couldn't continue as she covered her mouth and leapt, running in the direction of the spare washroom.

"I knew something was up with her from the beginning," Caleb started.

"Let's just pray she gets better." Enrique dismissed.

I was lost in my thoughts, disturbed by Sophia's health. Guilt started eating me up, as I couldn't help but blame her condition on us. From a peculiar prospect, the roots of this scandal could be traceable to Sophia herself. Yet, I couldn't shake this sickening feeling of remorse in my gut.

Enrique and I eventually left the living room to the beachside. We reached the shore in five, considering it's merely a walking distance between our residence and the beach.

"You look disturbed."

"I am disturbed." I breathed, adjusting in his lap while enjoying the ocean breeze.

"Is it about Sophia?" Enrique asked, but I only gave him a duh look

"I think you should talk to her or something. "

"Or something huh." I mocked, bumping his shoulder.

"Look, I'm not one particularly interested in girls shit, but I think Y'all should call on a meeting or whatever crap girls do and talk this shit out."

I exhaled and pinched the bridge of my nose, all the time contemplating  Enrique's suggestion. I could always ask Severina to call on a meeting, but the outcome gave me second thoughts. We were on foreign soil, and Miskha will continue being Miskha. Loud and rebellious.

"Speaking of Sophia, isn't she the one seated over there." Enrique pointed to a small figure a few metres away with their head caged in between their knee caps. I slightly angled my head, trying to get a clear view of their face but to no avail, although I already knew it's a female, judging from the long, wind-blown hair.

"I'll be right back." I got up, only for Enrique to pulled me down.

"Are you crazy?"

"What?"

"It could be a ghost for all I know. " He snapped. I covered my mouth, swallowing the laughter threatening to burst out. Was Enrique scared?

"Look, I'm not scared or anything." He defended.

"Who mentioned scared?"

"Take care." He grumbled and left, but not before giving me a hard spank on my glutes.

"F you!" I cursed after him, startling some passerby's but I couldn't care less.

I took steady steps towards the mysterious girl sitting in the sand until we were only a blinking distance away. I muttered a silent prayer, about to tap her on the shoulder at the same time doubts invaded my head, anxiety following next. I immediately retrieved my hand and turned to leave but for a familiar voice halting me.

"That's creepy you know." Sophia chuckled. My cheeks flamed and I nervously twirl a loose strand around my index finger, drowning in embarrassment.

"You can sit unless you've steel legs that I don't know of." She lightly joked. Not having an alternative to deal with my flushed state, I sat on the space next to her, taking in the tranquillity of nature.

"It's peaceful out here." Seriously Seraphina. Is that the best you could come up with? I've known Sophia for three years. Why was I being awkward and dorky?

"Yeah, it is." She puffed out air and rubbed her hands together.

"This beach reminds me of Copacabana." She smiled, leaning back on her hands.

Sensing my confusion, she threw her head back and laugh.

"It's one of the greatest beaches in Rio de Janeiro."

I'm not an adventurer so don't hate. I never paid attention to Sophia's Brazilian heritage, as she's American born. Although she spent all her life in Brazil, and only moved back here purposely for academics.

"I sometimes forget you're a part of the Latina crew." I chuckled, tucking a lost strand behind my ear. Being this close to her, the dark circles lining her eyes became more prominent now, indicating tiredness and insomnia. I wonder what was eating her up.

"When he newly arrived in Brazil, he didn't know anyone." She smiled. Him who?

"Wh...

"Shhh, just listen." She interrupted with a raised finger.

"A ten-year-old rich American boy aspiring to become the next Lebron James." She chuckled, staring into space.

"He was my next-door neighbour but communication was impossible as he couldn't speak Portuguese and neither could I speak English."

I listened keenly, not for once interrupting.

"He used to call me Freckles and after knowing the meaning, I started calling him Minhoca, meaning worm in Portuguese. Girl, he was so mad."

The way her face lit up while talking about this mysterious guy shows that he made an important mark on her.

"From then on, it was constant fights over everything and nothing. Although, not in the most appropriate of ways, our parents clicked well. Ironic how they got acquainted through us, and yet we were both proud to sort our differences and do the same.

This beef continued until we were fifteen and high school freshmen, there it got worse. From endless pranks to petty fights, we were tagged the most nuisance in school. When my parents received numerous complaints from the principal, they decided they've heard enough and grounded me for three months straight. No electronic gadgets and parties. I was so stressed and out of fury, vandalized half of the furniture in my room. It wasn't until after my mini outburst did I took in paper balls occupying my floor. One look was all it took to trace their source.

He leaned casually against his window shield, staring straight into my soul, shirtless might I add. I gotta admit, I was blown away for a second 'cause I mean, it's not every day that girls wake up to their next-door hot as fuck, shirtless. That night he came to my room and unlike my assumption that it was going to be the typical argue-fight routine, things took one hell of a plot twist, and we ended up kissing. It was awkward for a moment but then it couldn't be undone and I figured what better way is there to end a stressful night than a full-blown makeout session.

The following days in school, we ignored each other and pretended that night never existed. Life went on. At some point, I realised being far away from him fluctuated my attraction. He became the playboy in school, changing girls on a daily basis. I was so riled and heartbroken because the only guy I ever loved doesn't seem to give two shits about me. I wanted to get over him but the harder I tried, the deeper I fell. Having enough stress, I eventually swallowed my pride and confronted him, which obviously didn't end well. We made out again and that marked the second time since the beginning of high school.

We were pretty comfortable with each other after this one, and before you know it, he asked me to be his girlfriend. Like the lovesick puppy that I was, I accepted without wasting a breath. Our relationship was like no other. Everyone envied us. Most girls wanted to have my position and it's the reverse for guys. We dated until sophomore year and just when I thought life's all sunshine and rainbows, he vanished in thin air.

I stopped hearing from him for days, tried his phone but the damned voicemail always came through.

I didn't stress it because I thought maybe he was occupied with school work, given that his parents were strict with academics. Weeks and still the same thing, then worry settled in. I asked everyone I thought had some sort of connection with him, but the results were merely reflections of one another. Nobody knew about his whereabouts. I tried my luck and went to his house but had I known that decision would've given me the shock of my life, I would've just stayed home forever.

He had moved back home two weeks ago. I didn't know how to feel. It was as if my emotional tap was barred. I hopelessly tried his number again, and instead of the usual voicemail, this time there wasn't even a slight ringing. He was truly gone.

I ditched school for days, not the best thing to do during an emotional breakdown marathon, but I was just seeking an escape route from reality.

Eventually, I learnt to accept the painful truth until I graduated and moved here. Again, another heart-crushing surprise after I met my long lost best friend. Miskha and I had been best friends since elementary days but she left for home after a year or two of schooling since she was American, and only attended school in Brazil to avoid idling at home while her parents were on business transactions. Although not frequently, we still kept in touch. I stayed with Miskha upon my initial arrival in America, and that night, I nearly had a heart attack when the boyfriend she's always talking about during our Skype calls showed up to welcome 'his girlfriend's ' best friend.  Ladies and gentlemen, meet Ahmed Boillat, my boyfriend of four years back, now ex. "

On instinct, I almost gasped, but forced my lips closed, patiently waiting for Sophia to land. She sniffed and closed her eyes for a moment, drawing in deep breaths.

"It's hard to decode my feelings that instance. Unless you're in my shoes, then you can relate. I still maintained my cool and reminded myself that Miskha was innocent in this issue and had nothing to do with it. Ahmed played oblivious Tom cruise and treated me like a complete stranger. With my bruised ego, I went with the flow and gave him the silent treatment. That brought us to the present day." She ended, wiping her tired eyes.

My heart broke for Sophia. No one deserves such cruelty. I took her hand and rub gentle circles on it.

"And that night, I don't know what happened, but everything came crashing down on me. My emotions overpowered me and with Ahmed being so close, I couldn't control myself. " She sobbed.

"Soph, yo...

"Who was I fooling? I wasn't over Ahmed. I could never get over him. Somehow, I wanted to own up to my mistakes when Miskha confronted me that day at the table, but I'd a change of heart. I suddenly felt this bolt of anger towards her. It's selfish, but I couldn't help but blame her for taking Ahmed from me."

Sophia was full-on sobbing now. Her shoulders shook violently and I scooted closer, engulfing her in a hug.

"It's okay."

"It hurts so bad...I...I.. can...

"Shhhh, it's okay. You're okay." I soothed.

"I'm sorry for everything. I never intended to hurt anyone of you. I was just strained by past memories to an uncontrollable extent." She pulled away. Her eyes were swollen and puffy, making them appear sulkier.

"You don't have to worry about my pathetic ass anymore. It's only a matter of months now."

This statement confused me.

"I don't u...

"Soon, you'll soon." She smiled sadly, before returning her head on my shoulder.

I have a strange feeling and it isn't exactly the good kind.

I just hope my assumptions get proven wrong.

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Hit the C-section with them thoughts.

Xoxo,

Mina.