The Academy 2

7

Nicola's POV

School was boring after such a fun trip. I'm not sure how Leon and Cher convinced me to help with the drama department, but here I am helping design the stage. Leon had seen a picture I absentmindedly drew in class and decided to recruit me to help paint the background.

I was able to recruit Taylor and Shawn to help out. Taylor actually loved painting while Shawn was bored and wanted something to occupy his time. We were currently painting a forest landscape since the play is Shrek. I'm not sure who Cher is playing, but I know Leon is Lord Farquad.

I giggled as I saw them practicing. Because Lord Farquad is a midget, Leon had to get on his knees to emulate his height. I chuckled when Leon would lose his center of balance and fall.

"How did we get roped into this again?" Shawn grumbled.

"Leon." Taylor and I both answered.

"Wait, is that Chico?" I pointed on the stage to see Chico dressed as one of the three blind mice. "Didn't know he was into theater."

"I think someone asked him to do it as a way to advertise the play. That way more students will watch it." Taylor explained. I totally forgot that the McAllisters and their boyfriends were hella popular.

"I think he's waving to you." Shawn said.

I looked up at the stage to see Chico energetically waving at me. He said something to his peers before jogging over to me. I now understand how he puts up with Gemma since he's equally as hyper.

"Hi!" His thick Brazilian accent rang out. "We never properly met before so HI!" He waved with a big smile. "I'm Francisco, but my friends call me Chico and I want to be friends, so call me Chico!" He laughed.

"Nicola, but my friends call me Nic or Col." I tried to shake his hand, but he pulled me into a hug and kissed my cheeks.

"We do not do the whole shake hand things where I from. We give biiiiiiiiig hugs and kiss cheeks!" I blushed when he pulled away. "Gem talks about you all the time, so I just had to introduce myself so that I could get to know you better. How else would we do the double date?!" We turned when we heard the director calling him back. "Must go. Big sad." He pouted. "But nice meeting you, gorgeous lady!" He gave me a tight squeeze and more kisses along my face before running off.

"Umm..." I looked to my friends who were dying of laughter. "Is he always that affectionate?" I sat down and tried to ignore the blush on my cheeks.

"Yep, but I'm surprised he didn't pick you up and spin you around." Taylor said.

"He's probably waiting for their next meeting." Shawn laughed.

"Nic!" We turned to see Chico yelling at me from the stage. "I have polo match tomorrow. Come see?" I nodded causing him to cheer. His broken English is quite cute.

"I have no idea what the hell polo is." I whispered to my friends. They both laughed at my confused face.

X

Taylor and Rosé accompanied me to the match since Justin and Shawn were at hockey practice. Rosé was explaining the basics of polo, but I was still slightly confused. I saw the guys walk alongside their horses. The green and white polo shirts looked really well on them. Chico's eyes were frantically scanning the crowd. His eyes briefly softened when connecting with mine, but it quickly went back to frantic.

"Where is my Gem?!" I heard him ask his teammate.

"CHICO!" He looked towards the high pitched voice and a smile broke out across his face. "Good luck!" She blew him air kisses. "Nic?" Her eyes widened in surprise.

Gemma led a group of her friends down to where we sat. She greeted my friends and took it upon herself to explain the rules. While the match was played, Gemma would explain the different calls made.

I also found out she was an equestrian. She and Chico met at the stables three years ago and hit it off right away. She described the experience as love at first sight and knew instantly she had found her soulmate. She also told me that Chico's father was a famous Argentinian polo player.

Gemma would clap every time Chico would score a point for our team. We talked some more about her sport. I found it weird how she got judged for how her outfit and the horse's posture were. I asked her how she managed to keep her horse from jumping the fence at her pasture (yep, they apparently have a private horse stable a few miles north). She laughed and said that Ace, her horse, was properly trained. Gemma did admit that he sometimes jumped the fence, but would jump back over.

She loved tending to her horse and preferred to be hands on rather than allow one of the stable hands to do it. She explained that was something Chico and her had in common. They liked to build the rapport with the horse and not just pass off the hard work to the helpers.

Whenever she spoke about her horse or Chico, her eyes would brighten. She literally had heart eyes whenever she would make eye contact with him. I'm not sure how he's able to focus and perform well during the match when his eyes are always searching for hers. They're disgustingly cute.

She asked me if I've ever gone riding. Gemma gasped when I shook my head no and promised to take me riding one day. She claimed it'd be so much fun.

Our team apparently won the match. I didn't understand the scoreboard or what the decimal points meant, but my peers were happy with how our team performed. Our team waved as they passed by us to return the horses to the stable.

Gemma escorted all of us to the stable where Chico was removing the saddle. She screamed his name at the top of her lungs. He turned around just in time to catch her and spin her around. He laughed as she peppered kisses across his face.

"We're gonna all go out to dinner once smelly over here showers." She pinched her nose causing him to laugh even louder. "Would you like to come along?"

Taylor, Rosé and I looked at each other and nodded. Gemma squealed, causing Chico to hug her even tighter. I was surprised my friends wanted to hang out with her. They supported my relationship and wanted me to be happy, but they were still apprehensive about the McAllisters. Well, they did say Gemma was the nicest and everyone loved her.

It didn't take long for Chico and his teammates to wash up. I thought we were going to a restaurant, not a country club. But then again, should I really be surprised when it comes to these rich kids? Gemma told me she'd cover my friends and I since she invited us out. We thanked her and ordered from the seafood menu.

Taylor, Rosé, and I laughed along with Gemma and her friends. I can see why they're friends with her since they all have a similar personality to Gemma. Her friends were extremely welcoming of me and didn't look down on my financial status. Whenever they'd say something I couldn't relate to, they'd try to find a different analogy for me. Her friends are so accommodating that even Rosé and Taylor were having a good time.

I feel like Gemma and Chico would be that couple that's always over each other. Like the super lovey dovey type lol