Chapter 12

"Let me hold your hand too," Kendra said, grabbing her hand.

"Are you sick?" Suzy asked.

"Let's take you to the clinic," Pam suggested.

"Huh? No need. I'm not sick. I don't even feel bad," she replied.

"Come on…"

Pam suddenly pulled her by the hand, and the other two followed.

This is so annoying! Why did I have to be the one to witness their kissing?

As the four of them walked, Amaury suddenly appeared in front of them. She felt like her hands didn't just grow colder—they were trembling now too.

He stopped right in front of her, making her friends wonder. There was barely an inch between them. She squeezed her eyes shut when Amaury suddenly leaned in closer to her face—only to whisper something.

"What you saw stays between us. If you tell anyone, even your friends, you're dead," he murmured.

Coward. Why would I be scared of him? I'm tough. There's nothing to be afraid of.

She smirked at him. "You can't scare me. Why? Are you hiding your relationship? Remember, you have a nasty personality. Do you think I've already forgotten everything you said to me?"

She flashed him a mischievous grin.

"You've got guts, huh? But whatever, it was just a kiss. That's no big deal compared to who you really are," he shot back before walking away.

What a jerk.

As soon as Amaury left, her three friends huddled around her.

"What was that about? Looks like you're hiding something from us," Suzy said.

"It was nothing. He was just calling me out for something I did earlier. I accidentally bumped into him this morning, and he got mad," she made an excuse.

"Really? That's all? Are you sure it's not something else?" Pamela asked skeptically.

"Yeah. Maybe next time we see you, you'll already be his girlfriend," Kendra teased.

"That's never gonna happen!"

"You never know. And if it does happen, you'll be the luckiest girl in the world. Do you know why? Because besides being handsome and rich, he's also kind, smart, the top student in the entire campus, and great at sports," Pam gushed.

So he's got a good image in this school, huh? If only they knew how horrible he really is.

"Enough about that. I don't like him," she insisted.

"Whatever you say. But how are you feeling? Should we still go to the clinic?" Pam asked.

"I'm really fine. Don't worry about me. Let's just go to the rooftop, come on!" she urged them.

"Alright, let's go!" The four of them headed straight to the rooftop.

"The air here is so fresh!" Suzy exclaimed as she spun around. There were two benches there, so they sat down.

"Deanna, do you have a boyfriend?" Kendra asked.

"No, why?"

"Impossible! With your beauty?"

"I really don't," she insisted, but they still wouldn't believe her.

"You're this pretty, and you're saying you have no boyfriend?" Pam raised an eyebrow.

"I don't believe it either," Suzy chimed in.

"I bet you've had a lot of guys in your life," Pam added.

"Yeah, a lot of them… but they all just passed by," she joked. But it was true—she'd never had a boyfriend.

"No way," her friends said in disbelief.

"I'm serious. I've never had a boyfriend, and honestly, I think I'm still too young for that. I don't need one right now," she explained.

"You're different. You know, almost every student here dreams of having a boyfriend," Kendra remarked.

"Really? Why? Are they that eager?"

"Not really. It's more like puppy love—just for inspiration. It's not like they're getting married. They say it makes studying more exciting when you have a boyfriend," Pamela reasoned, trying to convince her that relationships weren't bad.

"Yeah, it's exciting when they're not fighting. But when they do, or when they have misunderstandings, don't you think their studies get affected?"

"Good point. Okay, you have a point. Just like Amaury and Claire. Even though they're not officially together, when that girl gets too hurt, she suddenly goes home," Suzy shared.

"Yeah, but maybe Amaury doesn't like her because she has a bad attitude," Pam added.

"They grew up together. Everyone talked about how Amaury used to like Claire when they were kids, and he even promised to marry her when they got older," Kendra said.

"Really?"

"Yeah. That girl even used to visit Amaury's mansion. There's a lot you don't know yet. If you stay here for a few more months, you'll find out everything," Kendra added.

"Claude and Amaury are brothers, the grandsons of the former chairman of this school, which is now run by his wife, Doña Estrella," Suzy explained.

"Where are their parents?"

This was her chance to learn more about the brothers' parents.

"All anyone knows is that they're dead," Suzy replied. Pamela continued the story.

"The brothers are also rivals over some deep issue. When we first started at this school, they got into a fistfight, but no one knew what they were fighting about. Even now, they still haven't reconciled."

I wonder why? I don't think they'll ever get along. Just by Amaury's attitude alone, it's obvious they'd fight. He doesn't care if he hurts other people's feelings. I'll never forget what he said to me.

"If they still haven't made up, then the reason must really be serious," she said.

"You? Tell us something about your life!"

She still didn't know what to say.

"That's all there is to it. I'm not really the type to share stories," she dodged the question.

That was the same answer she gave when they first asked her. It wasn't like she had much to say anyway.