Heartless (English Version)

Chapter 2: Get Lost

I couldn't hold back my tears anymore. I stopped in the middle of the hallway, staring blankly into space. Why is it so hard for me to get even a scrap of attention? I heard Samantha's footsteps following me.

"You know, Jay, she doesn't deserve what you're doing for her," she said to me. I couldn't look at her because I didn't want her to see the tears in my eyes. As a man, I felt embarrassed to cry so easily.

She grabbed my arm and forced me to face her. I kept my head down, avoiding her gaze, but she gently lifted my face with her warm hand. She wiped my tears and smiled at me, the same smile she always gave me whenever I had a problem. I tried to smile back for her.

"There are other girls out there who deserve your love more," she said softly, holding my hand.

"Do you think I can find someone to replace Remie?"

"Not just a replacement, maybe someone even better than her," she replied, hugging me tightly. I'm lucky to have a best friend like her. Without her, I might not have made it through.

That evening, Samantha invited me to a fair near the school, probably to help me forget what happened earlier. We played various games there, like running lights and dart-throwing at balloons. We spent hours just enjoying the fair.

As we walked around, Samantha's eyes widened at the sight of a Viking ride. I tried to pull her away, but she kept staring at it.

"Don't tell me we're going to ride that, Sam?" I asked, looking at her as she smiled.

"Do you want to?" Her eyes were pleading with me to go along with her plan.

"Oh, no, no, no! You know my stomach can't handle rides like that," I protested, but she quickly dragged me, and the next thing I knew, she had bought tickets, and we were seated on the Viking ride, right at the end.

Oh, God, I'm going to die. I still want to have kids and get married, Samantha. I hope this ride is safe. I looked at her, and she seemed so excited while my heart was pounding with fear even before the ride started. I felt like I was going to throw up and have diarrhea at the same time.

A few moments later, I heard a faint hum. This is it, I'm going to die. The ride started with a gentle sway.

Is that it? That was weak... this ride is pointless.

Then came a strong swing. I clung tightly to Samantha's arm with one hand and the metal bar with the other, the only thing keeping us from falling.

Oh no, I thought this was a weak ride, why is it like this? The Viking swung powerfully, almost throwing me upwards. I felt the loss of gravity and just went along with the ride. Aaaaahhh, damn!! I couldn't even scream because of the fear, but there was something worse. Going down was even scarier. It felt like my soul was left hanging in the air.

I looked at Samantha, and she seemed to be enjoying herself while I was almost fainting from fear. It lasted for about five minutes, going up and down, but it felt like hours in that hellish ride.

When we finally got off, I was out of it. I was dazed and could only say, "Let's go home." My hair was a mess, and I walked slowly away from the Viking like a fool. Samantha followed me and looked at my face.

"Are you okay?" she asked me. I didn't look at her; instead, I continued walking like a zombie, still in a daze.

"Let's go home," I said weakly, something I had been repeating since earlier. I seemed out of it after that ride.

She slapped me hard, and I immediately snapped back to reality.

"Why did you do that?" I asked.

"You were out of it," she replied, grabbing my arm and pulling me along. "Come on, let's go home. You look like a zombie."

"You're really calling me a zombie? This is your fault. How was I supposed to know that ride was that intense?" I retorted. She just smiled at me, looking cute, and pulled me along as she ran.

But despite everything, I was still happy to have a best friend like her. Because of what she did, I forgot about Remie for five minutes. My friend has never had a boyfriend since birth. I don't know why, but she's a bit boyish.

I walked her home, and then I walked back to my place. It wasn't that far, which is why she often hangs out at my house. I needed to hurry because it was getting late, and I didn't want to be eaten by an aswang here.

Awooo!

I took a dark alleyway towards our house when someone called out to me and whistled.

I approached, and to my surprise, a punch almost knocked me down. Two guys behind me caught me and held my arms. Then came a strong kick to my stomach. I spat out blood and slowly looked up to see who did it.

"You're really a fool, aren't you?" I recognized that voice. Even though I couldn't see his face because of the streetlight behind him, I knew it was Brandon. He even brought his gang to ambush me here. What do they want from me? I didn't do anything wrong. "Do you think I don't know that you're the one giving letters to Remie?"

He grabbed my collar and brought his face close to my ear. I couldn't speak because of the pain he caused me.

"I'll say it again," he whispered. "STAY AWAY FROM REMIE!!"

I was almost deafened by his shout in my ear, and he punched me in the face again. I fell to the ground, and his two companions let go of me because of the force. Even if I wanted to fight back, I knew it was pointless, and I had no chance against him, especially since he had company.

Instead of being scared, my chest filled with anger at what he did. His two companions laughed. Brandon grabbed my arm again and pinned me against the alley wall, choking me.

"Remember this, if you go near Remie again." He pulled out a knife from his pocket. He pressed a button, and the blade popped out, pointing at my face. "I'll kill you."

After threatening me, he punched me again before he and his companions finally left. I was left there, bruised and bleeding because of what Brandon did to me. I writhed in pain. I went home with my body aching.

"Oh my, I told you not to walk me home, and now look what happened. Who beat you up?" Samantha scolded me while treating my bruises and wounds. I had already treated them last night, but she insisted.

"A-ah, well." From behind Samantha, I saw Brandon's group laughing and chatting. He even gave me a dirty look. I looked back at Samantha while she treated my wound. "It's nothing, don't worry about it."

She pressed the cotton harder on my face.

"Ouch!!" I screamed.

"Why won't you tell me? Huh? Alien!" she shouted at me.

"Maybe they were just some thugs hanging around, and I was just unlucky. I don't even know them," I said, avoiding her gaze.

"Is that true?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. I glanced back at where Brandon and his group were. He was still looking at me, chewing bubblegum.

"Y-yeah, of course," I replied to Samantha, and it seemed like she believed me.

"Alright, I'll believe you, alien," she said, continuing to treat my bruises and wounds.

"By the way, have you heard about the grand ball here? It's on the 18th, so we have two weeks." She smiled at me, trying to look cute, while I just stood there, dumbfounded, not understanding what she said.

"Huh?"

"Are you going to accompany me or not?!" she asked firmly, glaring at me. I had no choice and couldn't refuse because I knew what that look meant. "I need a date!"

"Ah, okay, sure," I replied. Honestly, I really wanted to go with Remie if I were to attend. But I had no choice. I'd look like a fool there without a partner.

"So, you need to heal those bruises and wounds so you don't look like a zombie," Sam said.

Yeah, I need to heal my wounds so I don't look ridiculous there. I already look bad enough, and the wounds on my face make it worse. Ugh, why did Brandon have to punch me? He could have just talked to me, right? Now I have these wounds.

Will I be able to go to the grand ball?

To be continued

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