Kismet | ENGLOT

Chapter 3

Charlotte's POV:

It was a typical afternoon with me sipping on my juicebox while reading a book about greek mythology. I usually sit alone in the corner near the window. It's where I take refuge in a place full of youthful craziness and judgemental bullies. Not that I care about what they say about me, I just didn't want to mingle with people who lack depth in personality. People might think that I am weird just because I don't drink, party, and dress in style. I usually just wear the same sweater, baggy shirt, or my pink floral dress that my mom bought me when I was 15. Dressing up to impress people is not my thing. Marima is the only person I can get along with. She is the only person who doesn't care about being judged by others just because she is friends with me.

"Char, what is she doing here?" Marima said in a low voice as she sat next to me. I looked up to her, "Huh? Who?" confused and annoyed at the same time. She pointed into one of the shelves behind me. I turned and saw Engfa. She was wearing airpods, one hand on her crutches while the other trying to shove the books into one of the shelves. She was struggling yet she still looked amazingly cool. I shrugged and looked back to Marima "Beats me, this is my first time seeing her here since we started school". "Maybe it's part of her punishment? I heard the principal gave her an ultimatum" she said while secretly glancing at Engfa, making sure she wasn't hearing our conversation. "To be honest, I don't care why she's here as long as she's not here to make trouble" I said to Marima nonchalantly.

Marima suddenly sat straight and I saw her eyes widen. I looked at the direction she was looking and saw Engfa's friends entering the library. Heidi looked at us with smug face while Tina, Pichy, and Nessa gave a fake smile before approaching Engfa behind us. "Woah! Can't believe you're really here doing library stuff!" Heidi teased Engfa. "I think you look hot handling those books" Engfa looked unamused by Pichy's remark, instead she punched Heidi's arm saying "As if I have a choice". "Well if you just listened to me during the party and made a run for it instead of trying to save Snack then you won't be here today" Nessa said laughing. "Hey! Stop it. What matters is she's okay. We should visit her soon too" I heard Engfa say, her voice serious, which surprised me.

Did I sense guilt and regret? No, I don't think Engfa is the type of person who cares about other people's well-being. Maybe she was just saying it to make her look good. "Fine, I'll go with you. Let me know when you want to visit her. I'll drive you there grandma" Nessa said with a laugh while pointing at Engfa's injured leg. Engfa just rolled her eyes, clearly not amused with Nessa..

Minutes passed and they were still chatting non-stop, I was trying to ignore them and concentrate on my reading. Marima was reading too, or atleast pretending to while eavesdropping.

Their continuous blabber took a toll on me "Can't you guys see that people in here are actually trying to read?" I snapped looking at their group. They were all staring at me for a few seconds before Heidi huffed in disbelief and said "Are you talking to us? Can't you see we're busy?" her voice was loud enough to gain other people's attention. "Ohhhh" bunch of them said in unison, as if trying to humiliate me but they failed. "Busy doing what? Looking for your brain?" I snapped back. "Oww now that's a comeback" Nessa said teasing Heidi whose face flushed red. She gave me a death stare and was about to walk to me when Engfa grabbed her hand. "Hey, let it go. We shouldn't make a scene here. Besides she's got a point, we are indeed inside the library". Heidi stopped on her tracks but still looked at me like she was about to claw my eyes out. "Watch out Austin, you might not be lucky next time" she said, her voice threatening.

They finally decided to go, Engfa walking behind them. As she passed by me, she made sure her friends were out of earshot then turned to me and said "Don't mind Heidi, she's just being a pain sometimes". A small smile escaped from her lips, as if reassuring me to not bother with Heidi's attitude. I just nodded and tried to look at the book I was reading, not knowing how to react. When she knew I was not gonna respond, she left following her friends.

"What was that about? Engfa Waraha talking to you?" Marima said, eyes wide. I pretended not to hear her. I myself was shocked that she talked and smiled at me. The way she gave me her attention sent a tingling feeling that I have never felt before. Was it irritation, anxiety, or something else entirely? "Well this is gonna be exciting, now that we know she's gonna be at the library twice a week means you will see her very often. We'll see if she talks to you again" Marima said with excitement and teasing in her voice. I raised my shoulders, not looking up from the book I was reading. Thinking to myself, yes Marima, we'll see what happens.

Author's Note:

I have several chapters sitting on my drafts. Will just try to polish then upload asap..