The Heart Of Hope: Guardian Of Hope

Chapter 1: The Talkative Friend

"What can you do with a friend who talks too much?" I thought, exasperated. Harold, my friend, had been chattering nonstop since we got back to my apartment. It was hard to tell if he was a guy or a girl, he was so dramatic.

"Reen, please! Help me sneak out tonight. I really need to see Cloud. He hasn't spoken to me for days, and I'm overthinking everything." Harold pleaded, practically begging on his knees.

He wanted to see Cloud, his boyfriend who clearly didn't love him. I mean, come on, his boyfriend sleeps at another girl's place, even sleeps on top of her!  Maybe that's Cloud?  They're both so flamboyant.

"Harold, how can I let you out? Your parents are furious with you. You came home drunk after your last outing, and your mom is still fuming. Besides, why are you overthinking? Cloud is always at some other girl's place, right? You won't catch him at his own place anyway. You'll waste money on the trip. You could have used that money to buy me something, at least you’d be helping me." I snapped, annoyed by his constant nagging since we got back from school.

"Mareen, please have mercy on me."

I ignored him and went to the kitchen to make a snack. My lunch at the canteen wasn't enough. Just a plate of rice and a chicken leg. It’s barely enough to keep me going until 7 p.m.  I opened the cabinet, looking for something to cook, but all I found was a can of sardines and a pack of instant noodles. I forgot to go grocery shopping. I’ll do it later, maybe after I finish cooking.

I got the pot and water ready.  After I finished cooking and setting the table, I called Harold to eat.

"Reen, what do you think about our event tomorrow?" Harold asked suddenly while we were eating. I swallowed my noodles before answering.

"I don’t know," I said briefly.

"You’re such a great conversationalist. Thanks for the helpful answer," he said sarcastically.

He almost slammed his fist on the table because of my answer.  What’s wrong with my answer? I really don’t know what the outcome of the acquaintance party will be. Am I a fortune teller? No, right? I’m too beautiful to be a fortune teller.

"I’m so excited for tomorrow! Do you have an outfit? What are you going to wear? Will you wear something revealing? OMG, I can’t wait!" He bombarded me with questions.  He wasn’t just excited, he was practically bouncing off the walls.

"I’ll probably wear pants and a crop top," I said.  It’s not like we need to dress up. It’s just a casual party to relax after midterms. We’re just student leaders organizing the event. We’ll be too busy to dress up anyway. We’re moving the event from the school to the city gym because we need more space.  It’s going to be a hassle moving everything.

Being a student leader is tiring sometimes. You never know if you should be happy or annoyed with the responsibility.  It’s fun at first, but it gets tiring after a while.  It’s not like being a student leader guarantees good grades because the instructors know you.  Some students at GCC judge people like me who have school affiliations. It’s frustrating to deal with that kind of misconception.  I’m just a regular student who wants to graduate.

"Aren’t you going to wear a dress?" he asked curiously.

"No, it’s hard to move around in a dress. We’ll be sitting on the floor all night," I said while scooping some food.  I grabbed my phone and checked Facebook for reels. It’s my only source of entertainment.

"I hope someone dances with me tomorrow.  I hope it’s my crush," he said, almost squealing.

I threw a few noodles at him. "You’re crazy! You were whining about seeing Cloud just now, and now you're flirting?" I laughed.