Nicholas led me inside the diner. I didn’t know what I was expecting. The usual maybe. Stool chairs and a counter where they fry the burgers and the fries, checkboard design flooring, stainless steel tables and leather seats by the window, people still dressed in the clothes they wore the night before, much like myself. However, when I stepped inside the diner, I was pleasantly surprised.The smell of homemade muffins filled my nostrils. I was reminded of my mother’s kitchen when I was a child. An upbeat music was blasting through the speakers. The floor was rather made of shiny, dark brown wood. The wooden tables and wooden chairs were occupied by patrons within the range of forty-five to sixty. Lively abstract paintings adorned the walls and the ceiling had red, brown and white lamps.The man frying the burgers by the counter looked to be about sixty years old, and so were the cashier, waiters and waitresses. There were also little people working as waiters and waitresses.I was im

I knew it was the carrot-top kid again, who called me a pussy.I was aware that I was not in the right side of town and this was not my territory. But I felt my blood run up my head and I didn’t hesitate to turn around and walk back to the group of juveniles who had clearly underestimated me.“If I beat your ass, you’ll do my every bidding for a week, you understand?” I said crossly, darting my glance to the boy with red hair and pale, freckled face.He was shocked for a moment but then he smiled at me widely. “Sure. But be warned. Nicholas plays on my team and he’s pretty good. You, on the other hand… not sure your pretty fingers can even hold the ball for five seconds,” he shot back. He turned to the rest of the group, giving me no chance to smack his face.Good! I play better when I’m pissed off.Nicholas stood beside me. When I looked at him, he was shaking his head. “Now, you’re in big trouble,” he said.“Why is that?”“Because you’re playing against me and I don’t like to lose.”

I overslept the next day. I realized that the alarm in my phone didn’t sound off because I didn’t even have my phone with me. I tried looking for it in every corner of my room but it wasn’t there. Finally, I decided to check my car.To my surprise, the object of my disturbing dreams last night was standing by his car in front of my gate.My heart pounded in my chest.What the fuck? I have never felt this nervous in my life before.What the hell is wrong with me today?“Good morning,” Nicholas greeted chirpily.“What the heck are you doing here?” I asked, trying my best to look annoyed.He shrugged and handed me a familiar purple object. It was my phone.“You dropped it in my jeep,” he explained.I snatched the phone from him.“Whatever,” I murmured.I quickly got in my car and sped to school without a word.I could not remember what my dream was about. All I knew was that Nicholas Atkins had the starring role in it. Maybe it was a horror flick with a “Texas Chainsaw” theme where I sp

JD struggled to his feet. Nicholas shoved me behind his back, as if to protect me. He towered over me by a foot at least; I could barely see JD standing in front of him.“Fuck, I have auditions tomorrow!” JD cursed.“Wanna make it a mug shot then? Come on, let’s make you look good!” Nicholas provoked him.JD looked at Nicholas as though he was out of his mind. “What?! No! Are you fucking crazy?!”“I’m a little eccentric, yeah,” Nicholas said coolly. “Come on, I’ll give you two shiners. You’re auditioning for Kung-fu Panda the Musical, right?”JD looked at his hands to see the blood that came down from the bridge of his nose. “Fucking lunatics!” he cursed under his breath and then he motioned for his friends to get in the car. “Let’s go get this fixed!”They left without another word to us.Nicholas turned to me. I could see the concerned look on his face.“You okay?” he asked in a gentle tone.I raised a brow at him. I wasn’t sure what I would have done had JD and his friends retaliat

Obsessed?I was left there, staring at her back and the hem of her pink sundress flowing behind her. That was six years of friendship walking away from me. Six years of nothing.Six years of… what the fuck was I thinking?I realized that everybody in the corridor was now staring at me. But the embarrassment I felt was nothing compared to the sting of Jen’s words. It was nothing compared to the anger that was threatening to burst out of me.Shit! This is what I get after everything I did for her?Obsessed? Did Jen think I wanted more than friendship from her? Is that what everybody thinks?I turned around toward the exit. I could feel eyes following me. I could hear the buzzing sound as they started to gossip.Who the fuck cares?No matter what they say or do, they could not make this day any worse than it already was.When I parked in front of my house, I noticed a car parked across the street. There were two guys sitting inside. They looked at me for a brief moment and then they roll