I want to thank you

"I'm feeling... It's just, weird!"

He taps on her head with the pen another time to make her quit spacing out, "No need to act like a child here as well," He says, "I need money that's why I'm working. Are you going to order something?"

"What a coincidence", Mumbles Lina on her own while looking at the menu, "Why is it so hard to choose what to order?"

Romeo makes the usual sigh after hearing what she just said, "This is such a drag... You said you can't handle spices, right?"

-Lina: "Yeah, I can't!"

He left, just like that. He left those two without taking Lina's order and that made the girl feel kind of left out. Without a doubt, it's irritating for her to a decent level. She takes her phone and starts biting it.

"Lily, what's up with you all of a sudden?", Asks Maria after taking the phone before she breaks it to pieces.

"That stupid brainstorm", Adds Lina, "He's pissing me off! Why is he so mean??? Cold nerd!"

"Cold ha, so that's bugging you too.", Says Maria after leaning her head a bit down.

-Lina: "Huh? What do you mean?"

"Never mind!", She says so while raising her hands with the palms facing the sky. Both of them keep chatting for a while, strengthening their bond even more, until Romeo gets back and fills up their table.

"Your Dango and green tea Maria," He says after putting both of them in front of Maria, "As for you. I hope our tastes aren't that off, to be honest. Here."

He puts a plate in front of Lina as well, even though he didn't give her a chance to order something. Our girl gives little sniffs, and it appears that she's enjoying the scent of this dish.

"Romi isn't this your... You know", Says Maria while pointing at the plate.

"Seafood Macaroni", He says, "It's my favorite dish if you add the spices for sure. Enjoy your meal, I'm still here if you need anything."

"Oh by the way Lina", Adds the boy before taking leave," It's on me, consider it a welcoming gift I guess?"

-Maria: "Hey, I was the one who was going to take the bill you know! I want to get her something as well."

-Romeo: "Then get her a drink. See ya."

Lina starts eating up her meal, even though that sensation is still dancing over her chest. "He gave me his favorite food", That's what she kept thinking about while enjoying the food.

"Oy, Lily", Maria claps her fingers on Lina's face," What's gotten into you all of a sudden?", She says so with an awkward giggle tagging along

"Umm, Maria", Says Lina after putting down the spoon, "Don't you think that Romeo is being a bit too gentle, with me?"

"With, you?", Maria starts laughing a little then she gets back to talking, "Actually, Romi is 'gentle' with everyone you know."

After hearing that, it felt like Lina made an expression of disappointment and Maria did notice it right away. "What's up with that face of hers", starts Maria thinking right away. It didn't take Maria that long to switch from a resting face to that smirky expression while looking at her friend. That actually made Lina get a bit off.

"What's up with that look on your face?", She asks right away.

"Never mind!", Says Maria in quite a melodic way, "Go on Lily. Finish your food before it gets cold!"

Romeo can finally get back and get some rest, that's when the other two decide to head back home as well. Alex shows up in there with his bike for sure. Both he and Maria share a quick glimpse at each other then they avoid eye contact right away. It appears that Romeo called his friend a while ago to give him a ride. As for Maria and Lina, they'll take a short walk before getting back home. Our Lina notices the awkwardness hosting the atmosphere and that long unwanted silence. She looks at her friend's face and realizes that she's looking a bit down as well.

"Maria, are you alright?", Asks Lina gently, "It felt like you got a little upset after seeing Alex, be honest."

"Why bringing up that four-eyes all of a sudden, geez.", Says Maria after getting to feel even more upset.

"You just said four eyes", Gasps Lina right away," Did Alex hurt you somehow?"

"What are you talking about", Maria did get surprised a lot by what Lina said just now, "Alex would never do such a thing you know."

Curiosity starts eating her up even more. Lina takes some steps ahead of her friend then stops right in front of her, "I'm not letting you go home until you spell it out."

Without leaving a comment, Maria keeps looking at that childish girl then tries to keep walking. Lina now starts clinging on her arms and annoying her even more, "Please tell me I want to know! What happened between you and your boy????"

"He pisses me off sometimes", She finally decides to spill the beans, "He keeps taking care of those two wheels as if it's a freaking baby you know! And whenever we go on a date, He'll always give me a ride. I'm not against it that's for sure, but I want to take a walk with him sometimes, we can pass more time together like that after all. And I want to feel like he's thinking about me for once, not about that red thingy. Great, I get genuinely disturbed just thinking about it, I'd destroy that bike if I have the chance you know."

And the girl keeps mumbling for a while to her new friend, while Lina keeps looking at her in a smirky way, without adding a word or interrupting Maria. It didn't take that long for Maria to notice that she was talking a bit too much. That awkward silence isn't really enjoyable for sure, and without forgetting the way Lina keeps staring at her as well, "Say something already!"

-Lina: "Owww, you do like the boy. That's so sweet."

"W-Where did this come from?", Asks Maria after getting all red.

"Look at you getting jealous of a bike", She starts boking Maria's cheeks," You're as red as a tomato right now you know!"

"What? No, I'm not!", Exclaims Maria after holding Lina's hand to prevent her from touching her face. After taking a decent dozen of teasing, Lina decides to try comforting Maria for now, "You know something, Alex is deeply in love with you you know?"

-Maria: "Really? Is it obvious??"

"Look at her getting all excited", Says Lina after switching back to the teasing personality." Maria, who can't stop getting embarrassed more and quite an adorable blush, starts invading that gorgeous face of her and joins the show as well.

"But no seriously," Adds Lina after deciding to try and act like a grown-up for once," Boys are easy to understand if you ask me. (except for Romeo that is) Once they are into something, they can't stop mentioning it in front of their girl you know. It's because he values you that much, that he keeps talking about his beloved bike Maria."

"You think so?", Asks Maria after showing those teeth with a pretty smile.

"Of course I do", Says Lina while patting over her friend's back," Someone who frees his time to talk to you instead of talking to you in his free time, that's actually Alex, your Alex. Even though your houses are a bit far, he leaves earlier just for you and to have more time with you, instead of enjoying as much rest as possible. Oh, and try not to get mad at him for nothing ok? Try to control yourself a bit, I need to blame you for acting like this, to be honest!"

It appears that the last line made Maria realize that she might be acting a bit selfish, but Lina notices that it bothered her right away. So, she faces her friend with a lovely look and says, "That's a jewel you've got Maria, take care of your boy tomato girl, okay?"

"I'm not a tomato okay?", Adds Maria after taking some steps forward.

This time, it wasn't a blush of embarrassment, her cheeks switches to that bright red to show how thankful she is for hearing those words. As she slowly starts getting back to a joyful spirit, Lina jumps to her friend's back after noticing that, and starts hugging her warmly.

"Why are you running away from me?", She adds after joining the laughter, "Teasing is so fun you know!"

As those two were talking about that topic, it appears that Alex and Romeo shared the same conversation as well. Alex, who doesn't seem to get it that much, puts his hand on his head while closing his eyes, then says, "So you're telling me that My Maria is jealous, of a bike?"

"Not the bike you sucker", Adds Romeo after hitting Alex on the head, "She's jealous of the way you treat it. And you're making her feel like that's the only thing that you think about."

"Well, I didn't mean to", The boy feels a little guilty after hearing that, "I just keep bringing it up into our conversations because I like it that's all."

-Romeo: "I know you didn't mean to make her feel like that yeah. But still, you need to try and make her feel that way. Like taking walks with her instead of giving her a ride for example."

"Umm, Romi? I've got a question.", Says Alex after getting a piece of mind from his friend, "How do you comprehend this stuff, in your state that is? You didn't have a relationship in your entire life!"

Romeo starts picking his ear while looking at his friend, with that helpless look for sure," I don't know", He says, "I think you're just too naïve that you can't get this kind of stuff if you ask me."

"Alright, he switches back to being a meanie in no time", That's what was Alex thinking about after getting irritated by those words, "That's Romi for you!"

Silence dominates the scene for a while until Romeo interrupts it and says, "Alex, I'm thinking about getting a second job."

"Getting a what??", Alex simply can't hide how much that line shocked him," What are you talking about Romi? You won't have enough time for yourself if you do so!!!"

-Romeo: "It's not like I'm really thinking about having some time for myself, to be honest."

It appears like Alex knows the reason behind this sudden statement of Romeo. And yet, he's still hesitant about asking him if what he's thinking about is the real deal or not. "Should I ask him or not?", He starts thinking right away, "Should I act like it's nothing or... Whatever I'll go for it!"

-Alex: "How's mother Leila doing? Is she getting better?"

"So you saw through it didn't you", Says Romeo before giving out a sigh," Her hand can't stop shaking these days. We're really running out of time."

"The shaking is getting even more intense", Gasps Alex right away, "And how much money do you still need to cover?"

"We need another 100k $", Says Romeo," In the past two years I was only able to cover 50k."

"And mother Leila has only about a year and a half before it's impossible for her to recover", Putting his hand under his jaw, Alex keeps bursting his thoughts to try and find a way to help Romeo, "Romi, I can ask Leo about it and he can lend you..."

"Don't even think about it.", Interrupts Romeo without giving it a thought, "It's not my money, I didn't work for it. I'm not getting a penny from you guys, understood?"

Alex stops the bike for a while then turns his head a little to the left, while opening the helmet, so can get a glimpse, "But do you want her life to keep on getting drained little by little while you're watching and doing nothing?", Even his tone was a bit shaky while saying that line, "Romi, I'm not doing this to help you, okay? Let us help her at least, why are you so stubborn??"

Not a single word came out of Romeo's mouth, that awkward silence kept hosting the show and none of those two dared to interrupt it until the engine of the bike gets back to the show and Alex finally drops his friend at his place. Just before opening the door, Alex stops the engine again and leans on his bike. Since Romeo noticed the absence of the sound, he turns around and finds Alex wearing quite the face. His eyes look a bit powerless and less shiny, a pale face and his lips keep trembling a little. Romeo gets closer to his friend, then he raises his hand and starts squishing his face until Alex starts giggling a little.

"I'm okay", Says Romeo after starting to get closer to his house," Mother is okay as well. Because we've got you worrying about us, bestie. So we'll try our best and we'll eventually avoid making you worry."

As he slowly notices that his friend is switching back to a warm expression, Romeo doesn't hesitate to charge him up with even more positive energy. So he keeps the speech going and adds

"You were there for me since childhood, right? I'm feeling blessed since you are my best friend for such a long period. So thank you for sticking around me, even though it's annoying."

"Oh come on don't say it like that!", Alex puts his hand behind his head and starts blushing a bit," I'm sticking around you because I want to, and I want to help because I need to, it's not out of pity or anything you know!"

"Now good night", Says Romeo after opening the door, "And apologize to Maria tomorrow, four eyes."

"There really was no need to say that, right?" And he just takes his bike and leaves, after getting to see Romeo's annoying side and getting a bit irritated by it.

"I'm home", Says Romeo after closing the door. No one responded, he goes to Leila's room and finds her sleeping peacefully, so he checks if she's well covered or not, then closes the door after saying "Good night mother". He goes to the kitchen now and brings back a launch box from his bag. The coffee shop is generous enough to give Romeo dinner when he works late so he doesn't have to tire himself more by making his own food at night. The boy eats up then washes the dishes and prepares the ingredients for tomorrow's breakfast. After taking a refreshing shower, Romeo goes to his room and takes his phone, to find Lina sending him a message.

"Oy meanie! If you need money or anything I can lend you some, my parents won't mind it at all. You already know how rich I am, right?"

"So another one is starting to worry about me as well.", Thinks Romeo while leaving the girl on read, "I'm afraid that I can't accept such an offer from her as well. If I'll be taking money from anyone Alex should be the first one to lend me."

He lays down on his bed and puts his arm over his eyes, "Man, I wish that I can keep up and get that money ready so that mother can get the needed operation", Says Romeo as he slowly opens his eyes and takes his phone, "I'm crazy enough to contract the devil, just to see her move properly."

"it isn't the right time to be daydreaming Romeo. Try getting some rest this night, it's for your own good.", Then he takes his blanket and falls asleep. As for Lina, since Romeo left her with a blank answer, she gets pissed off, throws her phone like the last time, and starts mumbling, "What the hell is wrong with this nerd??? I want to help you even though I don't even know what's bothering you!"

"Why am I even concerned about that brainstorm? I'll just forget about it and go to sleep!"

As for tomorrow, after the end of the morning session. Romeo goes off on his own and heads to the cafeteria, leaving the rest of the group still in the class.

"I'll go look for the nerdy dude for now", Says Lina packing up her bag, "I'll see you there guys!"

"Yeah try looking after your dude Lina", Says Alphonse the moment she closed the door," OUCH!! What was that for", Says Alphonse after getting hit by Adam on his head.

"Avoid making fun of something that you're not certain of will ya?", Says Adam, sounding just like an adult by those words," Anyways, I and Nadine will be joining some of that elite class for lunch today, wanna join us?"

"No it's okay", Says Alphonse, "I'll be ditching class this afternoon so I won't be eating here."

When those two left the classroom, Maria stands up right away and starts chasing them, "Prez, Nana, wait for...", She didn't finish her line and Alex holds her hand, preventing her to go further like that! Maria turns her head to find her boyfriend a little upset with his eyes facing the floor. That's why, instinctively, she raises her free hand toward him, showing him how worried she's now after seeing that look on his face, then she says, "Alex, is everything alright? Why are you looking so down?"

"Umm, are you still mad at me? About yesterday?", Says the boy with a low voice while still looking down.

"Mad at you? Why should I be?", She answers as she slowly starts holding his hand in exchange, "Of course, I'm not! That's not the problem now, what's up with that look on your face!"

-Alex: "I don't know, I just don't want you to think that you're not important to me that's all! Come on let's go"

And just like that, he keeps on holding onto her hand and starts hustling a little. Maria, since she doesn't get what's in his head, asks him right away, "Where are we going?"

"Duh", Adds Alex sarcastically, "We're skipping class. We only have an English session and I'm supposed to visit the library today. But I'll ask Lily to do that for me!"

"But we're not even taking the right path Alex!", She adds after noticing that they are getting out from the main gate, and not going to the parking where the bike is located.

-Alex: "What do you mean? We're taking a walk, does that sound good?"

-Maria: No I'm talking about the...

He pulls her over to him and they start walking side by side, "The bike?", Says Alex, "Romi will bring it home for me. Quit asking questions already!"

She turns to look at him and finds his face gaining such a bright expression, She starts holding his hand tighter and starts enjoying this moment. And then, with that miraculous paintbrush, our artist draws quite an unusual blush on her cheeks and makes her more charmy with that smile of appreciation tagging along, "Yeah, let's go!", She says to her boyfriend while they are sharing the same energy, "It's on you today, right?"

As they are enjoying this moment, both of them are sharing the same thoughts for now.

"Romi, Lily, I want to thank you ^^"