Lies and Pretense

Summer Before You

Prologue

    It was hot and I felt clammy but it was summer and I shouldn't have felt like it was a burden. After all, summer was the time of my life where I could no longer worry about certain things like quizzes, home works, thesis and whatever else you should worry about school. Though, the next school year was coming and I couldn't wait because who could if you're going to be a senior, right? It was going to be the last year and it was going to be worth it. Who knew? Maybe, I could get myself a new boy friend or something.

    I grabbed my towel as I kicked sands off my ipanema slippers. Ugh! Now, I have to endure these thorn-like sands under my feet. I thought as I made my way to a shake booth namely "Shake It Up". I rolled my eyes and muttered, "Corny." before a ball hit my head.

    I rolled on the sand as quick as I fell. Why did I agree to this again? I closed my eyes and rubbed my head before I shook my body to get rid of the piercing sand.

    "Looking so bored, aren't we, it?" I looked up as fast as the speed of light when I heard the irritating bitter voice of Ever. Evereene Loski was a conniving backstabber and spreader. She spreads almost everything, from rumors/fake rumors to her legs and one thing is for sure. I  thought. She is insecure of me though it is clear that she's already the most popular girl in school and not some student council elected president, top of the class, and editor-in-chief girl like me. "Tired of some exercise on the beach or just conscious that something might scratch your perfect face, it?" she called out again.

    I had nothing against Ever but since I transferred in BUST, short for Brell's Universtiy of Science and Technology, when I was still a sophomore, she had this grudge on me I would never understand. She called me 'it' because she basically thought my face was reconstructed by some dermatologists or doctors. Whenever I was around, she'd go rumbling about natural beauty or something and call me 'it' indicating I was alien for having a perfect face. Well, it wasn't my fault my parents decided to actually make babies and pray to God they'd be beautiful and handsome.

    I stood up and looked at her smugly. Selene Caroll Larsen would never leave without putting up a fight. "Does it disappoint you that you finally proved to everyone my face is not as fake as yours, EveR?" I smiled and turned to everyone. A lot of people gathered around us, most of them I recognized as students from BUST. This fight would be a hit on social media especially on VUST.com where students from BUST go to, to look for some hot news, mostly gossips. VUST? It stands for Victoria's University for Stalking and Talking. Who's Victoria? She might be the creator of the website though it was just like

facebook

, the difference was that this website was only for BUST students.

    I smiled sweetly at Ever whose pale face was becoming red as a rose. Her black hair highlighted with light brown was sticking to her olive skin. She was wearing a black bikini which wasn't covering much skin. I laughed with my right hand covering my mouth. I slowly bend my fingers into a fist except for my middle finger, kissed it and blew to her. The look on her face was so

funny

I could've have rolled on the sand again but it was best not to linger there.

    Finally, the crowd dispersed and I made my way to the 'Shake It Up' booth. "Mango shake, please." I called as I sat on a stool on the counter and placed a hundred peso bill on it. A guy was sitting beside me and to hell with that! I didn't care as of the moment but when he stood up and I felt his eyes on me, I looked at him and my eyes widened as I register who 'him' was.

Black messy hair.

Scary gaze.

Perfect jaw.

Full lips.

Abs.

Snob.

   

        It was Ian Edwards. He was the major hot snob of the school. No girl wanted to go near him and not just because he was totally scary and brooding but because he was hot but clearly a woman hater. He preferred guy friends which made me think he was gay sometimes. The only extra co-curricular he'd got was sports because there were no girls involved.

    I quickly turned my gaze somewhere else and started smelling my blonde hair. I could still feel his gaze on me but I didn't mind it. I checked my brown high lights but noticed it was getting frizzy. I slumped on the counter with my head over my right arm. It was getting hot and I was sweating more. My head throbbed and I breathed deeply but slowly. The scorching heat of the sun was getting on me. I felt a hand on my arm and I looked up surprised to see Ian looking at me intently as if he could read my mind. Did he know I thought he was hot? Would he punch me right now?

    He gestured to my shoulders. "You have a scrape. You should probably clean that." He said and went away just like that. I felt my brain swirl and my heart fluttered. Ian and his charms. I thought but I never took it seriously. The girl on the counter placed my order and I grabbed it, went back to my car, grabbed my jean jacket and started driving home.

To: Kels; Charles

       Sorry. I need to go home. Emergency.

Sent.

       It wasn't an emergency, really but it might as well have been since boredom was emergency for me. It was level z kind of emergency.

    I went inside the house feeling sticky and dirty. Sands were still clinging to my skin. I took my jean jacket off and walked to the kitchen wearing only my swimsuit which was a leopard print one piece with cut outs on both sides to emphasize my waist.

    "Gah!" I heard my big brother shout as I grabbed a grape juice box from the refrigerator. I faced him with a raised eyebrow. "Don't tell me the people in the beach get to see this!" he gestured at me and my body and shuddered. "I hope your future boy friend endures your ugly body in the future." He added and went away.

    I just shrugged it off because actually, I got used to my brother's teasing that I'd miss it when he's off to college after summer. I went to the living room and grabbed a book. Clockwork Princess. I never got tired reading this book again and again. I never got tired crying over the epilogue again and again. So, a minute after I started reading the epilogue, tears began to spill.

    I realized  the best thing about summer wasn't the sun or the day at the beach. It was the days I got, reading anything I wanted..