Don't Fall in Love! (English Version)

CHAPTER 12

ㅡ Are you okay? ㅡ Erix asked. I still held the door and looked into his eyes curiously.

ㅡYes... I guess.ㅡI curled my lips to the side, thoughtfully.

ㅡI came to get you. Her mother asked me to take care of you while he was in the hospitalㅡ she put her hands inside the pockets of the dark blue sweatshirt she was wearing.

ㅡ Er... No need to bother, I... ㅡ He interrupted me.

ㅡYou're not a bother to me, Faye.

That made my heart vibrate inside my chest. Without questioning anything further, I got ready, grabbed my backpack and followed Erix to her car.

...

ㅡNext month will be our camp. I'll be passing along a list and if you go, put your names in.ㅡ Mrs. Miller handed a blank sheet of paper to the first person in the row and started talking to the science teacher.

ㅡ Will you go? ㅡ Diana she whispered. Today she was sitting next to me.

At the same time the sheet reached me. I looked at Diana and then at the sheet.
I took a pen and wrote my name. I needed to enjoy my last year at school. If I don't go, I may regret it in the future.

Diana did a little celebratory dance, which made me laugh. That was very weird.

When they finished signing their names on the sheet, Mrs. Miller left the room and Miss. Stuart continued teaching his class.

                   Narrated by Erix

Seeing Faye laughing made me feel weird. Somehow, it seemed like every time she smiled, everything lit up. When she cried, it brought me anguish and I just wanted to wrap her in a hug and protect her from all the evil in the world.

She seemed to notice that I was staring at her, so she quickly looked at me and smiled. I shifted in the chair, feeling uncomfortable in my chest.

When I saw her for the first time in a long time, I realized that that little girl who had a charming sparkle in her eyes was no longer there.

And I knew why.

ㅡShall we go to the mall later? To buy some things for the camp.ㅡI heard Diana ask. Faye nodded and they both went back to copying what the teacher wrote on the board.

...

It was recess time, and as always I went to the place where I always sat.

ㅡHi, Erix!ㅡZara's thin voice sounded next to me, making me frown automatically. I looked the other way and saw Faye eating an apple and talking to Diana and Chris. It was great to see that she was in good company and not isolated in a corner. ㅡWhy are you smiling? Are you happy with my presence?

No.

I didn't even realize when I was smiling. Maybe looking at Faye left me without control of what I was doing.

Faye looked back at me and dropped the smile she had on her lips when she saw that Zara was next to me. She said something to the two accompanying her and the three of them left my sight.

Damn it!

ㅡWhere are you looking?ㅡ Zara asked, but I got up, completely ignoring her, and left the cafeteria.

                 Narrated by Faye

ㅡDo you like Erix, Faye?ㅡ Diana looked at me and smiled sideways.

ㅡWhat? ㅡ I opened my eyes wide and made exaggerated movements with my hand in front of my body. ㅡOf course not! Why are you asking this all of a sudden?

ㅡAh, you seemed uncomfortable when you saw Zara near him... ㅡShe threw the words into the air.

ㅡYou would make a beautiful couple. ㅡ Chris decided to give his opinion.

I turned to them both and sighed.

ㅡ I can't like anyone, to tell you the truth.ㅡ I vented.

ㅡWhy?ㅡThey asked, in unison.

ㅡ Because I'll probably have to go somewhere else soon. I don't want to get attached to anyone.

ㅡLookㅡDiana hugged me by the shoulder and we started walking againㅡ, you'll be eighteen this year, right?

ㅡYes.

ㅡ So! ㅡ She took her arm off my shoulder and turned to me ㅡ You can now make your own choices. You might as well stay here and go to college right here.

I was thoughtful. She was right. But it wasn't that easy.

When I returned home, everything was silent, as always. It was almost seven o'clock at night. As I had gone with Diana to the mall after class, it took us a long time to leave. I threw my backpack on the bed and went to take a shower. I wore black sweatpants and a white blouse, which had a big print on the back.

I heard my cell phone ring on the desk. It was Erix.

ㅡHello?

No answer. I only heard hurried breathing.

ㅡErix?ㅡA sound of something falling scared me.ㅡErix, what's going on??

ㅡFaye...ㅡ His voice was shaky and it was almost impossible to hear. I started to get worried.

ㅡ Are you home? ㅡ I asked, as I put on my sneakers.

ㅡY-yesㅡ It was almost a whisper.

I ran out of the house to Erix's house. When I touched the handle, I realized the door wasn't locked, so I opened it. I found it strange that everything was dark.

ㅡErix?ㅡI turned on the flashlight on my cell phone and started looking for him. Until I found him.

And there was Erix, sitting on the floor, curled up and despair was written in his eyes.
I walked in long strides towards him and knelt down in front of him.

ㅡ Erix... ㅡ I touched his shoulder. ㅡ What happened?

He didn't say anything, much less look me in the eye. It was as if he had seen something scary a few minutes ago.

ㅡ Erix, what's going on?ㅡ No response.

Then I wrapped him in a hug and touched his hair. Erix collapsed. It was the first time I saw him like that. Erix Zhang cried and sobbed as if he was pouring out all her pain through tears. It looked like he had been keeping it for a long time.

I broke the hug when I felt he was calming down. I looked into his eyes and wiped his tears with my thumbs. When I went to take my left hand away from his face, Erix held it firmly and looked into my eyes.

ㅡStay with me.

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