December 9th. Saturday, 1:02 AM.
It was Maria's birthday, and she was still awake, lying in bed. When the clock hit midnight, Tanisha barged into her room to wish her a happy birthday. She gave Maria her birthday present, and the two talked for a while until Tanisha started yawning. After Tanisha left, Maria kept scrolling on her phone and responded to a few messages she got from some of her other friends. She didn't get any messages from her family, but she knew she wouldn't get anything from her family straight away because both her parents were busy, and her little brothers wouldn't stay up that late. She figured her phone would be filled with messages when she woke up in the morning, so she didn't mind.
Maria checked the time in the top right corner of her phone.
"It's past one".
Her body felt a surge of energy. The time meant one thing. It was the perfect time to go to the balcony.
Maria and Malakai's talks on the balcony became less frequent. The talks happened once every two weeks, twice if they were lucky. That was because Maria wasn't awake past one. She would normally conk out by eleven. The times she would make it to the balcony were random. Her body would randomly wake her up, and she'd checked the balcony to see if Malakai was there. There were a couple of times she would go to the balcony, and Malakai wasn't there. So it wasn't entirely her fault, but she knew Malakai's lousy sleep schedule. So even if he wasn't on the balcony at one, he was most likely still awake.
Maria got out of bed, quickly went to the door, and got her robe from the hanger. She covered herself in a flash to protect herself from the cold air. It was December, so it was uncomfortably chilly. Even though she had pyjamas, she needed another layer. Another reason why the talks became less frequent was the drop in temperature.
Maria opened the door and quietly tiptoed out of her room to the main area. There was no moonlight illuminating the room this time, but some light from outside was still guiding her to the balcony. As she got closer to the balcony, she hoped Malakai was there. After the results assembly, she hadn't seen him. Nor did he text in the group chat. Only a few messages were sent in the group chat after the assembly, but Malakai hadn't even read them. He went ghost. It was only the start of her birthday, but if she wanted one thing to complete it, it was to see Malakai.
Maria had one hand on the door handle but hesitated to open it.
"Will he remember it's my birthday?".
That thought sprung into her mind. They told each other their birthdays, but whether or not they remembered it was a different story. Maria remembered Malakai's. She didn't know if Malakai remembered hers, though.
"It doesn't matter if he doesn't remember. He's probably got a lot of other things on his mind".
She mentally prepared herself for that possibility by telling herself that. It wouldn't upset her if he forgot, but it would be nice if he remembered.
Maria turned the handle and walked onto the balcony. A cold breeze hit her first before she could look to her left. She withdrew her arms to her body and held herself. Once she found a position to keep her warm, she hopefully turned her head and….
He wasn't there.
Maria mentally prepared herself for Malakai not to remember her birthday, but she didn't mentally prepare herself if Malakai wasn't there. Her body suddenly felt heavy from disappointment. For some reason, she was sure she was going to see him.
"No balcony talk again".
Her eyes dropped to the floor in sadness, but became confused after seeing a small laminated black paper bag on the floor. She stepped closer to the paper bag, knelt down and cautiously picked it up. She looked inside and just about saw a small, black box at the bottom. The darkness was making it hard to see. She reached inside and pulled the little box out. It was a small, plain, black velvet box.
Maria put the paper bag down and inspected the box before slowly opening it. As soon as she opened it, something sparkled in her eyes. A shiny silver necklace was glistening to her. Despite the little light there was, it was still shining. The necklace had a plain and shiny chain, with the letter M as the centrepiece.
It was an M necklace.
Maria stared at the necklace for a few seconds, and an idea of what this was popped into her mind. She quickly crouched down to the paper bag and checked inside it one more time to ensure she hadn't missed anything. She dug her hand inside and felt a piece of paper. She picked up the piece of paper and pulled it out hastily. The side she was looking at was blank, so she turnt it over to see if there was a message written.
'I don't know what girls normally get on their birthday, so I guessed and got you this. Happy Birthday'.
Her idea was correct. It was a birthday present.
Words couldn't describe how happy Maria felt at that moment. It didn't say who this was from, but from the handwriting, Maria knew who it was. She'd seen Malakai's handwriting a couple of times, so she knew this was his. Even from the way it was worded, she could tell it was Malakai. She reread the note in her head and imagined Malakai saying it, replicating his accent, and she could perfectly imagine him saying that.
Maria joyfully jumped a few times on the spot and covered her mouth to stop herself from making any noise. She was a ball of pure happiness right now. Every time she thought she couldn't find a new level of happiness, she somehow managed to find it, or it would find her. A few hours ago, she felt a little down because of everything that happened in the challenge, but now she was experiencing one of the happiest moments of her life.
It was weird how life worked.
Maria needed that necklace on her now. She wasted no time. She delicately took the necklace out of the box to avoid ruining the box. She placed the box and the note on the floor and held the chains in both hands. She wrapped the necklace around her neck and efficiently clasped the necklace. The years of having and putting on a lot of jewellery paid off. She had a lot of different jewellery but didn't wear any as she didn't like the extra weight on her body. The only piece of jewellery she wore were small studded earrings, but that was going to change because this necklace was staying on her.
Maria instantly looked down and cupped the necklace in her hands. She couldn't stop smiling. It was dark with no stars in the sky, but Maria felt like she was holding one. She was shaking out of pure happiness. She didn't know something like this could make her this happy. She still had that tiny plastic spider Malakai gave her on Halloween, and she loved it despite it being a random thing he gave her spontaneously. That spider didn't have much meaning, BUT THIS had meaning. This present was specifically for her, and she loved it more than any other jewellery she owned. This was the cheapest piece of jewellery she'd ever received, but it was worth much more than any other jewellery she'd seen.
She loved it.
It was only one hour into her birthday, but this was turning out to be her best birthday ever.
6:38 PM.
Knock! Knock! Knock!
"Yo, Mally", William said, opening the door and entering his room. "Why are you still in bed!?".
He was going to say something else, but seeing inside his room changed his speech. Upon entering Malakai's room, he saw Malakai still in his pyjamas, under the covers, lying in his bed with his laptop open next to him, with snack packets scattered around his bed.
"Have you stayed in bed the whole day?".
"Nah", Malakai replied, shaking his head. "You've seen me leave my room to go to the toilet".
"I haven't", William said, knowing he was lying. "You have to get up anyway, dude. We're going to a party at eight".
"What party?" Malakai questioned, perking up from his lying position.
"Maria's birthday party".
Malakai flopped back down and closed his eyes. He bedrotted the whole day, and he didn't want to stop. The day was almost over. Why would he want to get out of bed now?
"You have to dress properly, too. You can't wear a tracksuit", William told him.
"Why!? Look how cold it is. Slapping on a tracksuit is my best option", Malakai replied, still lying down but flailing his arms.
"You don't need to wear a tracksuit. You've got other clothes that can keep you warm", William said, pointing to his wardrobe.
"What about a designer tracksuit?" Malakai hopefully asked.
"No! If the guys see you in a tracksuit, they're gonna be pissed. You can't look like a bum when all of us are going to pick good outfits".
"Bro, I said, a designer trackie (tracksuit). What bum wears a designer trackie?".
"Dude, you know how to dress, so pick a good outfit", William said, not bothering to answer his question, turning away. He left Malakai's room and closed the door behind him.
Malakai put the blanket over his face, covered himself and frustratedly let out,
"I can't be arrrsssseeedddd!!".
7:53 PM.
"There's hella people here already. Are we late?".
"Nah, it starts at eight. We came a few minutes early".
"Maria's not here yet, too".
David, Lucas, Ray and Benjamin entered the building where the party was being held. It was like a little club in the sense that there was ample open space at the centre with tables and chairs on the side, lounges and a DJ set at the end. There was also a bar where you could get drinks on one side, and on the other side, there was a mini arcade with a pool table and some machines. The place was filled with people already. Most faces were recognisable as they were first years, but some didn't ring a bell.
"Are you sure we aren't late? People are already partying", Lucas said, looking around and seeing drinks in hands.
"The party hasn't started. People are just… preparing", Ray replied, knowing this wasn't supposed to happen.
"Are half these people even invited?" Benjamin asked. "I swear that guy over there is a second-year".
Ray could see people he didn't know were invited, "Word about this party spread quickly", he replied, rubbing the back of his head.
"Hey guys, you finally made it".
The boys saw Delilah walking toward them, waving.
"Wait, where's Malakai and William?" Delilah asked, noticing they were both missing.
"They're outside talking to a second-year", David replied.
"Why? Did they annoy them?" Delilah's first thought was trouble.
"Nah. The second year knew them".
"Even William?" Delilah asked, surprised.
"Yeah, he called him by his name and acted like they were friends. I didn't know William knew any second-years, so it was kinda weird seeing that", David replied.
"William's got secret connections", Delilah joked.
They shared a little laugh and took in the noisy environment for a second.
"How is Malakai?" Delilah curiously asked, feeling it was the perfect time to ask. She hadn't spoken to him since the result assembly, so she didn't know how he was doing.
"He's fine. He was acting like he usually does when we were coming here", Benjamin replied.
"William told us he stayed in bed the whole day today", Ray added. "He would've stayed in bed until tomorrow if it wasn't for this party".
"No, I wouldn't", Malakai said behind them, with William beside him.
They all turned around to see Malakai and William.
"Hey, Delilah", William said.
"Hey, how are you two?".
"I'm good". "I'm calm (alright)".
"You took your bandages off", Delilah noticed.
"Obviously, I ain't gonna keep them on. You took yours off as well", Malakai pointed to her.
"But my scratch wasn't that deep. It'll be gone in a week or two", Delilah said, brushing over her scar with her finger. "But yours will scar for a few months".
"It is what it is", Malakai shrugged. "I doubt people will notice them. They only notice this one", he replied, pointing to his nose.
"How was the nurse's office? Did they find anything wrong with you?" Delilah asked.
"Nah. The nurse just told me to rest, and if anything happens with my breathing I should tell them", Malakai replied.
"At least there's nothing wrong with you", Delilah said, relieved it was nothing serious. "I'm surprised you're not wearing a tracksuit", she noticed his outfit.
"I got forced to wear something else", Malakai replied, fixing his puffer jacket.
He was wearing a white designer sweatshirt beneath a black puffer jacket with a fur hood, and black baggy cargo joggers with white trainers.
"You have so much designer. I don't know why you only wear tracksuits", Lucas said, liking Malakai's outfit.
"I can't wear my designer all the time", Malakai replied.
"You don't even wear them", Benjamin joined in.
"Bro, it's too cold right now. I'm waiting for when it gets warmer", Malakai replied. "Anyways, where's Maria?" he asked, looking around.
"She's not here yet", Delilah answered.
"I swear this is her party. Why isn't she here?"
"It's a surprise birthday party", Delilah slowly replied, thinking Malakai knew that.
"Surprise? Bro, it's her birthday. She's gonna know there's a party".
Delilah blankly looked at him. She didn't know if he was being serious. She's gotten used to his sarcasm and trolling, but there were times when she still couldn't tell.
"Mally, stop being an idiot", David told him, knowing where this was going.
"I'm speaking facts, no? She knows she's coming here. She can put two and two together. She's not dumb, bro".
"Mally, stop trolling", Ray said, not giving a reaction.
"I'm making sense, innit?" Malakai said, turning to William. "These lot are idiots".
"Hehe, I know, right?" William nervously replied.
"I didn't know this was a surprise birthday party", William thought. "Lucky I didn't send that message in the group chat".
At around five o'clock, William was going to ask when the party was starting, but he was going to ask in the group chat that had Maria, Tanisha and Delilah. Just before sending the message, Ray texted in their group chat without Maria, Tanisha and Delilah, letting them know when it was starting. So William could've spoilt the surprise party if Ray hadn't texted in time.
"Is everyone here for the party?" Malakai asked, sneaking glances at people around the packed venue.
"Yeah, we booked this place", Ray replied.
"You booked it!?" Malakai wildly reacted.
Some of the guys had the same expression as Malakai.
"Y-yeah. Me and Tanisha", Ray replied, surprised by the reaction.
Malakai looked at Ray with his mouth hanging.
"Bro, I could've got you a place like this for free", Malakai said. "There's a building the second-years use, and it has a space like this. You should've told me before you booked this".
"Other people chipped in, too. It wasn't just Ray and Tanisha. A lot of the girls in our class paid some credits, so it's not as expensive as you think", Delilah mentioned to show Malakai it wasn't that bad. "David and Benjamin paid some credits as well".
William, Malakai and Lucas turned to those two.
"You two knew?" Lucas asked.
"Why didn't you tell us?" William asked.
"All three of you are broke. Your credits are low", Benjamin replied, shrugging.
"We thought it would be better if we didn't mention it to you guys. We tried saving you some credits", David added.
"My credits ain't that bad", Malakai said.
"Me too", William said.
"Your credits are lower than mine", Malakai pettily boasted to William.
"I never said it was better than yours", William replied.
"I'm just letting you know, innit", Malakai smiled, trying to piss him off.
"Whatever", William rolled his eyes. "We can both agree that Lucas has the least credits", he said, pointing at Lucas, who was trying his best to stay out of the conversation.
"Shut up", Lucas replied before any of them could get another word in.
"It's your fault for going clubbing most days", William replied.
"I said shut up, man".
While those guys talked, Ray went closer to Malakai.
"Were you serious about getting a place like this for free?" he quietly asked Malakai.
"Yeah, the second-years have an abandoned building to themselves on the east side of campus. It's not abandoned, abandoned, but it's basically abandoned", Malakai replied. "There's a room with this layout, but smaller. I could've asked them, and they probably would've let us use it".
Ray's energy shifted. His shoulders slumped. It felt like his efforts were wasted.
"Oh".
He tried to look like he didn't care, but Malakai could tell he was upset.
"Shit, I shouldn't have told him".
"It's fine. It's about your intention, innit", Malakai said, putting an arm around his shoulder. "It's better this way cuz it shows you actually thought about it. When she knows you did this, she'll be happy".
Ray looked towards the floor, "She isn't going to know I was involved".
"Huh? Why?".
"I told Tanisha to tell her that it was the girl's idea. I don't want her to know it was my idea".
Malakai looked at him confused, "Bro, I'll tell her myself it was you".
"No, don't", Ray worriedly said, quickly looking at him in a panic because he knew he would do that.
"Why, though?" Malakai didn't understand his panic.
"I don't wanna look weird", Ray said, looking away. "I'm not that close to her yet, and I still get nervous around her".
"You've been trying, though. I've seen you two talk more often".
"Yeah, but it's never a long conversation", Ray disappointedly said.
Malakai looked at his friend and smiled. He could tell he liked her a lot.
"You'll be fine, man. You've already got Tanisha's approval", he told him, patting his chest.
"What do you mean?".
"You organised this with Tanisha, innit. If she let you do that, then she must approve of you. I doubt she would let any other guy do this", Malakai said, taking his arm away from Ray's shoulder.
Ray smiled after hearing that but then thought about what he said, "Wait, does that mean Tanisha knows I like Maria?".
"Heh, probably", Malakai smirked. "Bro, you make it so obvious sometimes".
"Damn", Ray said, embarrassed, putting his head down and his right hand on his hair to hide his face.
Everything went dark. The lights got cut off.
Screech!
"Everyone! Be quiet!"
"Who's that?" Malakai asked, unfamiliar with the voice on the microphone and trying to find where it was coming from.
"It's Rose".
Malakai found where the person with the mic was standing, "Oh yeah", he recognised the voice now after seeing the face.
"Maria is going to be here any second! Everyone be quiet! When she comes in, everyone say happy birthday!".
The voices dropped, and only whispers could be heard.
"Are we in a good place?" Malakai quietly asked Ray.
"Here should be fine. We're close to the door, so she'll see all of us".
"What are we going to do there?" Maria asked.
"We're going to have fun. It's your birthday", Tanisha replied. "It's going to be like a mini party".
"Who's going to be there?"
"The girls from our class. Our friends".
"Are they there already?"
"Yeah, so we need to hurry".
The two got closer to the building, and Maria couldn't help but be excited. The day had been chill for her as she'd been in her dorm all day. She had a video call with her family, talked to them for a while, and spent the day with Tanisha, and now she was going to see her friends. She did want to see Malakai, but she already got a present from him, so asking for more would be greedy. When she got that necklace, everything that came after was a bonus. She didn't need to ask for me. She was just enjoying her birthday.
They reached and entered the building and walked down a long, hollow corridor.
"Are you sure we're supposed to be here?" Maria asked, feeling wary. "It's too quiet. It sounds like no one is here".
Tanisha smiled, "They told me they're here, don't worry", she reassured her.
The corridor led to some dark double doors, and Maria felt more uneasy than before because of the lack of noise.
"Tan, I don't think this is the place. I can't hear anything on the other side", Maria said, pointing at the doors.
"We're here", Tanisha confidently said, standing behind her. "They're waiting for you", she said, putting her hands on both shoulders and easing her to the doors.
Maria sceptically placed her hands on the handle, and before she pushed the door open, she looked back at Tanisha. Tanisha had a big smile on her face, waiting for Maria to open the door.
Maria cautiously opened the door a little bit and peeked through the gap. All she could see was darkness. It was darkness, not pitch black. She could see something, but couldn't tell what. Out of curiosity, she pushed the door open fully.
POP! POP! POP!
BANG! BANG! BANG!
"WOOOO!"
"HAPPY BIRTHDAY!/HAPPY BIRTHDAY MARIA!".
Darkness turned to light. Maria was met with a brightly lit room with a bundle of people shouting happy birthday and cheering for her, with colourful confetti slowly raining down.
Maria's body took a second to take in everything that was happening. It was too much stimulation. She was speechless. She turned around to look at Tanisha with a hand covering her gaping mouth.
Tanisha stood next to her, gave her a hug, and quietly told her,
"Happy birthday".
Maria was about to cry. Her eyes were all teary. She stayed in the hug to compose herself and then let go. She couldn't thank anyone. Her mouth forgot how to say words. She looked in front of her and saw her friends. Most of her friends, not just the girls, but the guys, too. She looked beyond them and saw a sea of people. She couldn't believe that all of these people were here for her. She was so grateful. She didn't think her birthday could get any better, but she kept getting surprised.
Screeech!
"LETS GET THIS PARTY STARTED!!!"
11:37 PM.
The party was still going strong. Music was blaring, the lights kept flashing, and people were still dancing and drinking. It looked like the party was going to last another hour. They had the venue until 1 AM, so most people had to be out by then. It wasn't a strict deadline because the timing was so late. The downside to having a late time was they had to clean up most of the mess afterwards, which was going to be a nightmare.
Everyone was enjoying themselves, but Benjamin was sitting alone on a couch on his phone. He hadn't lost his friends because he could still see them from where he sat. He could join them if he wanted to, but he was tired. He had a basketball match earlier in the day and was feeling the effects. The academy had a load of clubs the students could join. David and Benjamin joined the basketball club. Despite them being first-years, they both already made it into the team. Today, they only played two quarters each, but it was an intense game, and they just about scraped a win thanks to their seniors. Benjamin wanted more playing time, but his performance wasn't good enough, so he reflected on that while alone.
"Hey, Ben".
Benjamin suddenly switched on after hearing a girl call him Ben. No girl called him Ben, so it was odd hearing that. He looked up to see who it was.
"Delilah?"
"Hey", she replied, slumping down next to him and resting her head back.
Benjamin had to look at her up and down. He was questioning whether this was Delilah. She was too relaxed right now.
"Are you good?".
"Yeah, I just needed to sit down", Delilah replied with a hand on her head.
"How much did you drink?" Benjamin asked. He saw her drinking a shot with a few of the guys earlier but didn't know if that was her first, second or tenth.
"Pfft, I don't know, but I know I didn't drink that much. I stopped myself when I realised I was talking too much".
"Talking too much?".
"Yeah, to random people", Delilah replied, taking her hand away from her head.
"Isn't that a good thing for you?".
"Normally, yes. Here, no", Delilah replied, lifting her head and looking at Benjamin. "I was having fun, and then I realised I was talking to two guys I didn't know, and they were closer than they were at the start of the conversation. I looked around and couldn't find anyone. That scared me, so I stopped drinking".
"Did that just happen now?" Benjamin asked as he hadn't seen Delilah for a while.
"Yep".
"Is this your first time drinking?" Benjamin asked, getting the vibe it was.
"Nope. I've only drunk once before, and I thought that was going to be my last time", Delilah replied, resting her head back again and closing her eyes. "Have you drunk anything?".
"Nah", Benjamin replied, looking at the people around. "I'm sober".
"Check you out", Delilah teasingly said. "Have you drunk before? You know you can drink if you want. Most people here aren't twenty-one, and they're drinking. This is irresponsible. We're all underage drinking. This is illegal".
Benjamin let her ramble on before answering. It looked like she was in her own world by the way her head was back, and her eyes were fixated on the ceiling.
"I've drank before".
"Ooouuu, where?"
"At a party in the summer in my hometown".
"Did you like it?" Delilah asked, looking at him with a side eye because she couldn't be bothered enough to lift her head.
"Not really", Benjamin replied, looking at an empty red cup on the table in front of him. "I would drink again, but only for special occasions".
"Is this not a special occasion?"
Benjamin lightly smiled, "Heh. I don't feel like it today".
Delilah lifted her head. "Where's Malakai? I haven't seen him this whole time", she said, turning her head in different directions.
"I don't know. He was with me, Ray and David at the start, playing pool and arcade games. He was still here when Maria cut her birthday cake, and then I remember he got a phone call, and his face lit up. Then he left", Benjamin replied. He looked at his phone and saw no new notifications. "I haven't seen him since".
"When was that?".
"I think nearly two hours ago".
"Two hours!? He's missed the whole party", Delilah replied, sitting up.
"I don't think he cares. When he got that phone call, that was the happiest I'd seen him all day", Benjamin said, looking over at his friends. "I'm sure he'd rather talk to his family than be around drunk people".
Delilah didn't reply but suddenly started giggling.
Benjamin looked over at her, "What's up?".
"I'm just remembering how Malakai got scared over the confetti cannon", Delilah said, giggling between words.
Benjamin smiled, thinking back to it, "Everyone got a little scared. Not just Malakai", he said, defending him.
"I know, but I didn't expect Malakai to react like that", Delilah said, covering her smile. "He was ducking his head like there was a shooting. Aww, bless him".
They both smiled and relaxed in their seats. Taking in the party atmosphere. It wasn't peaceful, but Benjamin found it relaxing. Being alone and remembering moments from this party.
"Hmmm. Malakai, Malakai, Malakai", Delilah randomly said. "I wanted to talk to him more today, but I got scared".
"Why were you scared?".
"I don't know what to say to him. I'm scared I might accidentally say the wrong thing and make things awkward".
"Are you still annoyed at the result?".
"A liiiiittle bit", Delilah replied, pinching her fingers to emphasise it.
"I mean, you don't have to talk about the challenge anymore. It's done", Benjamin shrugged.
"I know, but I still feel like Malakai's awkward around me because he thinks I'm pissed off at him".
"Are you not?"
"No..." Delilah said, but her face was saying something else. "Sigh. Yes. I'm annoyed at him", she admitted. "But I'm not that annoyed that he has to care. He doesn't have to feel bad for me. He can act normal around me. It's a girl thing, you wouldn't understand".
"I think you're overthinking. Next week, everything will be fine", Benjamin replied, not worrying. "I know we said Malakai was back to normal, but when I played pool with him, I could tell he was still feeling down".
"How is everything fine then?" Delilah asked. "We need to cheer him up".
"We don't need to. That phone call will sort everything out", Benjamin replied. "After today, he'll be happier than ever".
Benjamin didn't hear a response. He turned to look at Delilah and found her vacantly staring at him. Delilah saw his eyes.
"Oh, that's good news", Delilah said. She sat up and looked down at the floor to her feet. "This conversation kinda made me sad. I kinda want another drink", she said, shooting up from her seat.
Benjamin saw her wavily walking away.
"Hey, Delilah, wait!" Benjamin said, getting up and chasing after her.
It was silent outside. Despite the cold, it was tranquil for someone.
Malakai was sitting alone on a bench, snuggled in his puffer jacket, staring at the night sky. It was bland with no stars, and the moon hid behind clouds, but Malakai didn't care. He liked the view regardless. He'd seen this type of view millions of times in England. Barely any stars in the sky, and clouds covering everything. He planned to stay outside for as long as he could. He got no texts from his friends, so he didn't feel the need to go back. Plus, he didn't really want to go back. The time he was having by himself was precious. It was different from when he was in his room. It felt like he was the only person on earth. This was perfect. It was just what he needed.
"There you are!".
It was perfect. Malakai's moment got disturbed.
"Tch, Fuck sake man".
Malakai didn't even hear the voice clearly. He just heard a noise break his silence. He turned his head to see who it was.
"the fuck..." he quietly said after seeing who it was. "What are you doing?" he asked with his hands out in confusion.
"I wanted some fresh air, so I went for a walk. It was so stuffy there", Maria replied, strolling towards Malakai with her arms swinging.
Out of all the people Malakai expected, Maria wasn't one of them.
"Where's your coat?" Malakai asked, getting up and noticing her dress.
"I left it inside", Maria happily replied.
Maria wore a soft white knitted turtleneck dress with tights and black leather boots. She also had a long wool coat, which she wore to the party, but she wasn't wearing that right now.
"Why?" Malakai asked, seeing a happy Maria in front of him.
"I don't need it", Maria casually replied.
"What do you mean you don't need it?" Malakai asked, not understanding her as he could feel how cold it was even with his puffer jacket.
"I'm not cold. I don't feel anything", Maria replied, spreading her arms.
"Tch". Malakai shook his head, "You might not feel anything, but your body is", he replied. He took off his puffer jacket and held it to Maria. "Here, put it on".
Maria looked at the puffer jacket, "But I'm not co-".
"Put it on", Malakai firmly told her, putting the coat closer to her so she was basically holding it.
Maria slowly took the jacket and replied, "Okay".
Maria got the coat and put her right arm through the right sleeve, then her left arm through the left sleeve, and finally she playfully pulled the coat over her shoulders, causing the hood to flick onto her head.
"Hehe, it's a little big", she giggled, stretching her arms out fully with the hood blocking the top of her vision.
Malakai gave a little smile, seeing how she put the coat on and how only her fingers were present even after stretching her arms out. Maria couldn't see his smile, though, as the fur trim on the hood was blocking her view.
After feeling the warmth of the coat, Maria realised something.
"Wait a second. I'm wearing Malakai's coat", she thought. She took the hood off her head and looked at Malakai, who was checking his phone."I'm talking to Malakai. Was I talking to Malakai this whole time?".
Malakai put his phone away after seeing no new notifications. He thought he would have a few messages because he'd been gone for ages.
"How'd you get here?" Malakai asked.
"I walked", Maria honestly answered.
"By yourself?" Malakai asked, pointing at her.
"Yep. By myself", Maria honestly answered, pointing at herself.
Malakai was looking at her, confused. "This place is about five minutes from the building. Did someone ask you to look for me?".
"No", Maria slowly answered, doing her best to keep up with Malakai's speech.
"Where were you going then?".
"I don't know", Maria shrugged. "I just wanted to walk, and then I found you".
Malakai could hear the innocence in her voice. She genuinely went for a walk with no proper intentions or destination.
"Are you... argh", Malakai looked away and refrained from calling her stupid. "What happens if you didn't find me? You'd be walking alone in the cold without a coat, and no one would know where you are. You know how dangerous that is? You're off your head (not sober) right now as well".
Maria just about caught what he was saying,
"But it's fine... because I found you", she said, slowly reaching for his hand.
"Tch, forget it, man", Malakai moved before Maria could touch his hand.
Malakai retook a seat on the bench and returned to looking at the sky. Maria awkwardly stood there and watched Malakai. Her sober mind was trying to keep up with her drunk one, but it was barely holding on.
"Are you mad at me?" Maria asked, sounding upset.
Malakai looked at her and saw her expression. It was complete 180 of what it was a few seconds ago.
"Nah", he replied, looking away and shaking his head. "I'm just… chatting shit", he mumbled.
Maria missed the last part. After hearing he wasn't mad, she took a seat next to him and kept a reasonable gap.
"Did you like the party?" she asked, swinging her legs and gazing at Malakai.
"Yeah. It was a good party", Malakai replied, looking at the sky.
He kinda lied. He didn't hate the party. He enjoyed the time he had, but he would've rather stayed at home.
"I didn't see you the entire party. Where were you?".
"I wasn't near the bar or the main lounge. I was in the arcade area the whole time".
"You should've come to the main lounge. Everyone was there", Maria happily reminisced. "William and Lucas was there. Ray and David joined later on. All of us were drinking. It was so fun".
Malakai felt the cold breeze hit him much harder without his puffer jacket.
"Did you drink a lot?" Malakai asked, not looking at her.
"Yeaaah. I didn't want to, but everyone kept saying it was my birthday, and I should drink a lot because it's my first time", Maria replied. "Did you drink?".
"Nah, I don't drink".
"Really? You should. It's better than I thought".
"You're only nineteen, you know. You're still underage", Malakai said, slightly turning his head to look at her.
"But everyone was doing it", Maria replied, not seeing the issue. "Wait. Is that why you don't drink? Because you're only eighteen? You don't have to be scared".
"Scared!?" Malakai fully turned his head to her and pulled a face.
"Oh, I've got an idea. You can have a drink with me", Maria brightly said, moving closer to Malakai and leaning her face towards his. "Then you'll like it".
Malakai moved his face away from hers and shifted his body to the right.
"I'm not gonna drink. And I never will".
Maria felt that response. That cold tone and serious expression temporarily sobered her up. So far, this conversation has been bouncy for her. Everything was warm and fuzzy. It wasn't cold and dark. Through her eyes, this conversation was going smoother than it had been, but that response cut through and reached her sober mind. She suddenly started feeling the cold air even with Malakai's puffer jacket on.
Maria retracted to her original position,
"Do you hate people who drink?" she timidly asked in that upset tone again while looking at the floor.
"Tch. She's upset again", Malakai heard that tone again. He didn't even have to look at her expression to tell.
"My best friends drink. How can I hate people who drink?" Malakai replied, sliding down the seat a little. "I just don't like alcohol".
"Why?", Maria looked at him.
"I don't like what it does to people", Malakai replied, staring ahead, not looking at anything in particular.
"Oh".
There was an awkward pause after that because Maria didn't know what to say. Despite her being more talkative, that response stumped her. Her brain was trying to formulate a good enough response.
"Who am I, though, innit?" Malakai said. "If people wanna drink, they can drink. I don't care. I ain't gonna stop them. Who am I to tell they're wrong? I just don't understand why people think it's so fun. I mean, I know why people think it's fun, but I don't know. It can't be that fun that the after-effects are worth it. The hangovers, the headaches, vomiting, the pain. Even after all of that, people want more. I ain't looking down on people who drink cuz a lot of people drink. And I don't think I'm better than them cuz I don't drink. I just would rather people be sober... But that's boring, innit. Some people need alcohol to escape and have fun... I don't know what I want, man. I really don't like alcohol. But most people like it, so I gotta live with it. Maybe I'm boring, or there's something I don't understand. If that's the case, I ain't tryna ruin anyone's fun, so if people wanna get drunk, they can. If people wanna drink, they can. No one has to be worried about me, and I don't have to worry or judge them. Hmpf, Am I chatting shit? I'm repeating myself, so maybe I am. I'm going in circles".
Malakai was staring at the sky the whole time while he was talking. About fifteen seconds went by, and Malakai realised something. It was silent. He wasn't sitting by himself. There was someone next to him. It shouldn't be silent. He turned his head to look at Maria. She had her body turned to him and was staring intently into his eyes as soon as he made eye contact.
Malakai embarrassingly broke eye contact, looked away and scratched his head with his left hand so his left arm covered his face.
"Shit, why did I open up like that? I didn't need to say all of that. I'm still in that deep conversation mood from the call", Malakai thought with his body heating up from embarrassment. "What did I even say? Fuck. I started waffling. I don't even think I made sense. She was looking at me like I was making no sense".
Malakai moved his hand away from his head and exhaled. He sat up, leant forward and looked towards the floor.
"I wish that call lasted longer".
Maria was in a dream. When Malakai was talking, she didn't comprehend anything. She unwillingly zoned out due to the toxins. All she did was gaze at him while he spoke. She'd loved to know what he was talking about, but watching him speak was enough for her at that moment. None of what he said computed in her brain. Malakai didn't know that, though. He'd be glad if he knew that she didn't understand anything he said.
Maria continued to stare at him like a puppy when he got embarrassed and hid his face. She didn't understand what he was doing so she kept looking. However, when he moved his arm and leaned forward, Maria saw his face. After seeing his expression, something inside her controlled her. Her body moved on its own. She shifted closer to Malakai and wrapped both her arms around his body.
Malakai froze from the sudden contact.
"Why are you hugging me?".
"You looked sad. Whenever I see someone close to me sad, I hug them", Maria said, sticking to Malakai.
Malakai kept his hands to himself because he didn't really want to reciprocate the hug. Even if he had tried to hug her back, it would've been awkward because of the position.
"Someone close? She's drunk. She's too happy right now. She would've hugged anyone (any of her friends) if they were here. Heh, Ray should've been here".
Malakai let Maria hold onto him for a while, unsure what to do. He didn't know how long she was going to hug him for, but even so, he didn't want to push her off.
"She stinks of alcohol.... But I can't lie, this feels nice".
"Oh, I forgot to thank you!" Maria excitedly said, quickly unwinding her arms from Malakai and moving back.
"For what?" Malakai asked, awkwardly looking at her, a little startled by her sudden movement.
"This", Maria said, pulling back her turtleneck and reaching for her neck. "This necklace".
Malakai looked at the necklace. "You're wearing it?" he said, surprised inside.
"Of course. You got it for me. Why wouldn't I wear it?" Maria replied, resting the necklace on her hand.
"Don't you have a lot of other jewellery that's better than that?" Malakai asked, knowing she probably did.
"I don't think so", Maria looked down at the necklace. "This necklace is cute".
"It's not all that. It only was a couple of credits", Malakai said, seeing Maria smiling at the necklace.
"I don't care how much it cost. I really like it. It's an M for my name", she gratefully replied. Her face suddenly lit up. "An M... Your name starts with an M, too! You should get this necklace so we match!" she said, exhilarated.
Malakai smiled at her enthusiasm,
"I think you're too drunk. We wouldn't match".
Ping!
Malakai felt his pocket vibrate. He pulled out his phone and saw a notification on the lock screen. It was a message from Benjamin.
'Do u know where Maria is? She isn't here, and Tanisha is freaking out'.
Malakai quickly unlocked his phone and wrote a message back asap.
'She's with me. She went for a walk, and I found her when I was walking back'.
'We're coming back now. Tell Tanisha stop panicking. Maria's fine'.
He told a little white lie, but it was better than telling him that Maria had walked and found him by luck. After sending those two messages, Malakai got up,
"Aryt, we need to go back".
"Awwwww", Maria whined, leaning back on the bench. "I wanna stay here longer".
Malakai looked at Maria slumped on the bench. He had no idea how he was going to get her to move. He didn't want to carry her or help her walk back because he didn't want people to see Maria Rodriguez hanging off of him when they got back. He didn't want any rumours to start, and he couldn't be bothered to deal with them. Another reason was he had a feeling he would be doing a lot of carrying and lending a shoulder to his friends later on, so he wasn't really feeling it to do it now.
Malakai checked the time on his phone. It was 11:58 PM.
"It's still your birthday. Is there anything else you want?".
Maria leapt off the bench, "Really!? I can get another present!?".
Malakai smirked at how easy that was.
"Yeah, but you only have two minutes".
"Two minutes", Maria mumbled.
She froze on the spot to think of something, but her mind was blank. No present ideas were coming to mind. She didn't have anything she wanted in mind. She frantically looked at Malakai, who had one hand in his pocket and the other hand holding his phone. Seeing the phone gave her an idea.
"A picture!" Maria eagerly said, pointing at Malakai's phone. "I want a picture with you".
"A picture? Don't we have one together?" Malakai quietly said to himself.
Malakai thought about it and thought of a time they took pictures together. He remembered photos with both of them in it with other people, but not them two alone. Malakai rarely took pictures of himself. He only took videos and pictures of his friends in random and funny situations.
"Aryt, let's use your phone", Malakai nodded to her.
"Okay!" Maria excitedly replied.
Maria reached inside the coat pockets, felt nothing, and realised she was still wearing Malakai's puffer jacket. She reached for the sides of her dress, felt nothing and realised,
"My phone is in my bag...".
"Oh yeah, dresses don't have pockets", Malakai thought she would've had her phone on her.
"Go on. You can use mine", he said, holding his phone to her.
"Hm?" Maria looked at him, confused.
"You take it. I'm not good at taking pictures", Malakai said.
Maria smiled brightly and skipped to Malakai to get his phone. She took the phone and got the camera ready. She held out her arm and got the camera to the height she wanted, which was a little higher than she was. Maria checked herself in the camera to see if she looked good. While she did that, Malakai found a position next to Maria that looked good for the picture. After perfecting herself, Maria asked,
"Are you ready?"
"Yeah".
With that signal, Maria spammed the camera button.
After several taps, she scrolled through the photos, and a little giggle came out while looking at them. She handed Malakai his phone back.
"Send me all of them, okay!" Maria joyfully said, keeping the same smile throughout.
Malakai smiled, "Aryt".
Malakai got his phone and put it in his pocket.
"Let's go. Tanisha's probably gonna be mad at me. I can already tell".
"Don't worry. I'll defend you!" Maria confidently said, putting a hand on her chest.
Malakai just smirked at that unnecessary enthusiastic response.
They both started their journey back to the building. It was only a five-minute walk, but Maria wanted it to last. This was the first time in a long while they were walking alone side by side. Maria glanced to her left at Malakai. Malakai had his hands in his pockets and his eyes straight ahead. He looked lost in thought.
Maria slightly slowed her pace.
"Um, because it's my birthday, can I ask for one more thing?" Maria asked with her hands together and a shy look to the floor.
Malakai stopped and turnt to her.
"Your birthday ended a few minutes ago".
Is what he would've said if he wasn't curious. Instead, he said,
"Go on".
Maria looked up and smiled, happy that her request had been accepted.
"Can you teach me your dance move?".
"My dance move?" Malakai repeated, confused.
"That dance you taught Nada in the minigames and randomly do with your friends. I want you to teach me it".
The thought of his little dance move came into his head,
"My two step? I haven't done that in ages. Do I even remember how to do it?".
Malakai smiled lightly, "Aryt". He held out his right hand,
"Gimme your hand".
Maria stared at Malakai's hand for a couple of seconds and then looked back up at Malakai. She didn't remember seeing Malakai holding Nada's hand when he was teaching her, so she didn't expect this.
Why was he holding out his hand?
Maria slowly reached for Malakai's hand. Malakai patiently waited for Maria to put her hand on his, and when she did, Malakai held her fingers.
"Aryt, just copy me", Malakai said. He started moving and explaining while he did each step. "Hop and point your right foot outwards and then hop again, and instead of pointing your right foot out, point your left foot out and then keep repeating that".
"Okay".
They tried it together one time.
"Like this?" Maria asked, concentrating on her feet.
"Kinda", Malakai replied, watching her.
The two kept hopping together, trying to help Maria perfect it.
"Haha, what are you doing? You don't need to lift your leg that high", Malakai smiled.
"Hahahahahahaha!".
Malakai completely stopped moving. Frozen, he looked at Maria.
"She genuinely laughed. That was the first time I'd seen her laugh like that. Not a little shy giggle, but her real laugh".
Maria felt the stop in motion and turned her head to look at Malakai. Malakai was staring at her like she'd done something.
"What's wrong?... Did I do something?" Maria asked with a worried tone and expression.
Malakai got out of the moment.
"… Nah... You're doing great", he replied, looking into her eyes.
Maria felt the eye contact and smiled, "Hehe, thanks!".
Malakai's eyes widened after seeing her smile. He instantly recognised it. A smile he couldn't forget it.
"That's the same smile she did to me during the minigames… Damn".
"Come on, let's go", Maria happily said, lightly pulling his hand and hopping ahead while looking back at him.
Malakai saw her joyous expression and smirked, "Heh, aryt".
Before catching up to her, Malakai tilted his head down and smiled to the floor.
"Ray, you're one lucky guy".