Trouble Maker's Lover

10 : Honor

"Party?" she asked Benji. The boy nodded.

"But, you know I can't sneak out at night!" Peony pouted her lips. Benji was flustered by her response. He leaned even closer.

"I'll promise you, just for a brief moment. Please?" Peony almost melted by his coaxed voice. But, at the same time, she felt reluctant. Her heavy heart denied the invitation and his proposal to sneak out in the middle of the night.

"But-"

"Never mind, if you can't, then I'll go alone," he looked down, hiding his frustration.

"Sorry, Ben..."

"It's fine..."

"I must be a bad girlfriend for you..." Peony murmured slowly and pinched her sweater's hem.

"Don't say that! You're my everything. The best girlfriend in the whole wide world. It's fine... We can party together during college. I can wait just for a little bit more," said Benji. He caressed her hand and looked Peony deep into her eyes.

"It's just..."

"Just?" Benji fixed his position, hovering Peony. The girl stuck between him and the locker door behind her.

"Ben... What's this?"

"Can't you reconsider it?"

"Reconsider?" Peony frowned. Benji looked down, straight to her pink lips. He always dreams about the lips. And when he did, he always end up tensed and soaked in lust.

Too bad that she kept pushing him away whenever he charged forward.

"I want to kiss you. So bad. Whenever I think about your lips, I miss you so much. Could you reconsider it?" asked Benji.

Peony bit her lips. Lately, Benji seems to breach the agreement they made when they first got together. The boy kept asking about skinship a lot. Unlike before, he became aggressive these days. And this is not the first time he demanded such a thing!

She rattled a bit inside. What happened last week made her skin shiver. Even if it's just a peck, and without her consent, she knew she did wrong. Thinking about how Benji will react if he finds out, she was jolting inside.

"You want it?" she slowly spoke up. The boy nodded while caressing her lips in sensual mode.

Might have just given him a chance!

Peony smiled and snaked her hands around Benji's neck. He beamed, understood the openness that she gave to him. He tilted his head, closing the gap between them.

"Ouch!" Benji yelped a bit. They got offended even before he reached her lips. Both look at the boy who gathered books that were scattered on the floor. One of the books knocked Benji's head a bit. That made him jump a bit just now.

"Sorry. I got slipped," said the boy. Peony quickly crouched down and helped the boy.

To be honest, she's relieved. Kissing Benji was a bad idea. She scolded herself for being careless.

What am I thinking? Aish, I should stop feeling guilty and used that as an excuse not to upstand my dignity!

The boy apologized once again before he left. Benji looked upset and his face got red all over. Peony sighed.

"Well, bad timing I guess," she said. Benji looked at her with a sharp gaze. He tried his best to control his emotion.

"Is it hurt?" she looked at his head. Her soft gestures cool down his vent-up heart a bit. He shook his head and smiled.

"It's okay. Just a scratch. Look, I need to go now. I'll catch up later okay?" he pinched her cheek a bit, making Peony giggle like a baby. She watched Benji until the boy disappeared from her sight.

"Close call?" Peony jumped a bit. She looked at the person next to her. Her face dropped when she saw the person, leaning against the locker door with his evil smirk.

"None of your business!" she grabbed her books from the locker before closing them. He stood in front of her, blocking the way.

"Thanked me later," he put his lips near her ears and whispered.

Peony was stunned a bit. Her soul feels like being swept into a slumber daze. Felt like standing between heaven and hell. It felt good and bad at the same time. Her brain bluffed her heart and soul.

Yu left her and smirked to History class. He looked at his side, the corner of his brow lifted a bit. Slowly moving closer to that boy who dropped the book just now. The boy put up his hand a bit, smirking while Yu shoved a hundred dollar note into his pocket.

Nice act for today!

***

Peony POV

"Ma..." I push the door slowly. That old wooden door can be considered the most antique piece in this house. Even the squeak sound that came from the door sounds old, too.

Here she is, pedaling the sewing machine. Her old fingers dance along with the fabric, delicate but stern.

Just like the owner.

"Ma... Um..."

"If you wanna go to the mall this weekend, the answer is no," her chime voice pierces my ears. That's her identity. Her chime voice can cause permanent hearing damage, especially when you're in deep trouble.

Even Poh, the old granny who is our neighbor just across the street agreed. She experienced so much supersonic vibration that came from our household.

"No! But..."

"But what?" my legs turn to jelly when I see Ma smacks her snipper on the table. She lifts her glasses a bit.

"My friend invited me to a party this weekend," I tell her, almost mute. Ma sighs heavily. She pulls the fabric from the sewing machine and take a sip of coffee from the side table.

"Amoi, did you forget the rules in this house?" she asks me with her stern voice. I squirm a bit, then slowly nods.

"No party with strangers,"

"Then why ask for permission?" I pout a bit.

"But, you said it's rude to decline an invitation," Ma sighs again. This time, she pinches her nose bridge.

"If it's from the family. Aiya, where did I do wrong in teaching you, hah?!"

She waves her hand, calling me so I can get closer to her. I come towards her and take a seat on the floor.

"Peony, it's not that Ma ignores your needs as teenagers. But, you need to understand. It's not easy to be a lady, especially in this kind of world. You need to take care of yourself better," Ma tells me, with such care and love.

"But, you told me to always think good..."

"Aiya, I'm a bad amma, I think!"

"Don't say that, Ma! You're a good amma, even if you always bossing us around..." Ma smacks my back with her hand. It stings, but I know she didn't mean to.

"Don't joke around, amoi! This is serious, okay? Dignity can't be bought even with money. Once you lose it, there's no way back for you. Your name and our family name will get tarnished. Don't let people look down on us," says Ma.

"All I want is to go to the party..."

"What brings good if you go, tell me? All fun, but what will happen the next day? Nothing! Especially this kind of party! You might get drugged or worst case gets raped! Don't try to coax me with a clean reputation or sort. I use to be young, and I know what is party, especially at your age," I look down, staring at the wooden floor.

"Peony, we care about your safety. We don't want you making a mistake that you can't turn back. It's too late by then. Listen to us. All we want is you to be safe until the time comes when you're mature enough to face the world," Ma caresses my hair slowly.

I look deep into her old eyes. Deep down inside, I understand her worry. But, my young soul started to rebel. Now I'm confused.

Should I just follow my heart?