My Only Constant

Chapter 19

"Oh my word! Are you okay?" Chi-Chi asked as soon as I set foot in the room. She inspected me closely before speaking again. "What happened? Why did Ethan come running in here looking for your inhaler? What about your presentation?" She interrogated me.

"It's a long story. Everything's fine," I assured her.

"No, just tell me," She insisted. After some more nagging, she finally got me to tell her

"I had an asthma attack, and I had left my inhaler here. Luckily Ethan saw me and ran back to get it," I explained. "My presentation didn't happen, I'll just email the professor later," I said, collapsing onto my bed.

"Woah, you haven't had an attack in forever! Ethan really came to save you? It's like a romance show!" she teased.

"Seriously, can you be serious for once?" I asked, annoyed.

"Of course I can!" she defended herself. "Well, I've got to go. You should rest and call if anything happens!"

"Okay, bye," I said as I watched her walk out the door. I quickly drifted off into a deep slumber thinking about Ethan. Ethan Lee, my... hero. Ugh! Disgusting! Actually, how did he even know which room was mine? I must've mentioned it in my yapping session with him at lunch that day all those months ago. Whatever, all that mattered was that I was okay. I owed him big time.

"Hey Chi-Chi!" Skye said as she pulled Chi-Chi into a hug.

"Hi Skye," Chi-Chi replied. "Thanks for letting me interview you."

"Don't mention it. Should we go sit down somewhere?"

"Yes, let's get something to drink first," Chi-Chi said.

They stopped by the convenience store to get drinks before finding a table to sit at. Chi-Chi and Skye sat across from each other and Chi-Chi organised some papers in front of her.

"Before we start, I need to ask you something," Skye said.

"Ya?"

"What happened to that call-back you got for a movie a while ago? It's been forever and you haven't said anything yet, but you were so excited,," Skye spoke.

Chi-Chi let out a heavy sigh, her eyes becoming red and teary at the thought. "I was rejected. They chose some teenager. I didn't want to tell anyone because it made me so sad to think about."

"Oh... Chi-Chi. It's okay. Rejection is part of the job, remember? You've just gotta keep trying!" Skye comforted Chi-Chi. "It's just like soccer. You win some games and lose a lot more."

"Yeah..."

Chi-Chi wiped her eyes and cleared her throat.

"You ready?" Skye asked.

"Yes, first question," Chi-Chi began, "What inspired you to become a soccer player?"

"Ah... well, I just love playing. I'm passionate about it and it makes me feel good," Skye responded. "I enjoy being part of the team too."

"Oh okay, I see. Next question, why is six your number? What makes it unique?"

"Oh, I don't really know," Skye responded.

"It's okay, take your time," Chi-Chi encouraged.

Skye contemplated her answer for a while before responding. "I really have no idea, next question please," Skye said.

"What qualities do you think an athlete needs to have?" Chi-Chi read from her notes.

"I think that athletes need to be determined and focused. They can't let things like hate distract them and they need to put in a lot of effort to become good," Skye replied.

"Who is your role model and who is your favourite player?"

"My role model is Ronaldo and my favourite player... I would say Phil Foden!" Skye answered.

"I'll pretend I know who that is," Chi-Chi laughed. "A couple more questions."

"Okay," Skye said.

Skye and Chi-Chi continued their interview until they were approached by someone. Jake noticed them as he was walking from class and decided that it was the perfect time to ask the two something.

"Hey! Nice to see you guys here," Jake interrupted.

"Hey," they replied in sync.

"What are you two doing here?" Jake asked.

"I'm interviewing Skye for a project,' Chi-Chi answered.

"Ah, I see. Well, it's good I bumped into you guys now. I was meaning to text everyone later." he said.

"Why?" Skye asked.

"As the captain of the baseball team, I took it upon myself to plan a celebration for a good season," he began proudly.

"Oh, I heard you guys came second in the league!" Chi-Chi responded.

"Yeah! It's the best we've done in years! Anyway, I'm hosting a party at Jay's place to celebrate. Everyone's invited. You guys should come and invite all your other friends to. It'll be massive!" Jake said excitedly, a puppy-like grin on his face. He may have been the oldest of the boys but he certainly didn't seem like it. You could easily mistake him for the youngest. His youthful appearance and energetic nature certainly did not match his leadership skills.

"Okay, when is it?" Skye asked. "I still have practice most days."

"Don't worry, it's this Saturday. It's the only time I could get the entire team to come anyway. Even that grump Ethan is coming, and he never comes to these things!" Jake replied.

"Sounds good," Skye responded.

"Yeah, we'll come and tell the others," Chi-Chi added.

"Okay, perfect! I've got to go now; I have errands to run! See you later!" Jake said before sprinting off again.

"I never noticed how Australian he sounds," Chi-Chi said. "I knew he was an international transfer but wow!"

"Yeah, or how busy he is," Skye said, staring at Jake vanishing from her sight.

"Anyway, stop getting distracted! You have work to do. What's the next question?" Skye reminded Chi-Chi.

"I don't wanna anymore!" Chi-Chi whined.