SUCH IS LIFE

FARHAH

Izz placed his hand on the door handle, its surface cold and smooth. Just as he opened it, he heard hurried footsteps come toward him. It was Farhah! Izz waited as she closed the distance between them, earning a "What are you waiting for?!" from the cab driver.

Izz turned his head to the middle-aged man in the driver's seat, who was drumming the steering wheel impatiently. "Oh, sorry. Change of plans. Take me to..." Izz trailed off, not knowing where he should take Farhah on their first date. Speaking of Farhah, she finally arrived.

"Suggest me a place to eat. Quick!" Izz urged.

"Buje!" Farhah blurted out.

With a swift nod, Izz opened the door wide, and ushered Farhah in. "Come," he said gently. The cab driver shook his head in disapproval but decided not to press the matter further. He was getting paid after all.

The date went smoothly. Izz, trying to be a gentleman, or a fool, depending on who you're asking, paid for all the expenses. He barely had enough money for his food expenses, but he just thought it his duty to accommodate for Farhah. Unfortunately for Izz, Buje was a high-end restaurant that the students from Farhah's place would go to self-reward themselves.

At the end of it all, Izz had spent almost a week's worth of expenses, but in his mind, it was worth. He was taking a huge step forward in securing his relationship with Farhah.

In the middle of their dinner, Izz had the sudden urge to defecate, so he excused himself. After a relieving session, he returned to find Farhah on her phone, grinning from ear to ear. "What's the matter?" Izz asked.

Farhah just brushed it off like it was nothing, but Izz pressed on. "Just a classmate. He saw just now, and joked about it," she finally admitted.

"He?" Izz asked, his voice slightly raised. "Syamel," Farhah elaborated. She then continued to tell all about this character. How he had helped her in her studies, had given her life advice, and even taught her about the eateries in the area. Izz stayed silent the entire time. He couldn't believe what he was hearing! He had come all this way and spent so much on taxi fares just to hear her talk about someone he didn't even know!

He had opened and closed her door for her, pulled her chair for her, and even gave the green light for her to order whatever she wanted, regardless of how expensive. Farhah did order quite the delicacy, with ice cream to top it off. When the bill came, her total almost doubled that of Izz's. Despite all that, Syamel was the main topic of discussion. Not Izz who was right in front of her, but someone who wasn't even there.

When Izz dropped Farhah off, for whatever reason, a group of Farhah's friends were there at the gate. Farhah told Izz that the group probably had plans of their own, to which Izz raised his brow. Out of the blue, Farhah started to giggle. This turned into laughter. At first, Izz thought it adorable, but quickly took notice that she wasn't giggling at him, but for some other reason.

"It's just that Syamel. Always teasing me," she explained when asked, pointing towards a tall boy in a red and white checkered flannel. Izz stared at him for a few moments, memorizing his face. This boy looked like trouble. He was just some guy who popped out of nowhere, but his name would often make appearances in Izz and Farhah's subsequent conversations.

An hour later, Izz plopped himself onto his bed, exhausted. He checked his phone, specifically the group chat, to see over 200 unread messages. He was sure that a big chunk of that would be stickers, but it warmed his heart that the group was as close as ever. With Farhah to manage, he had sacrificed precious time for his friends. Thinking back, his friends did warn him several times that Farhah might not be the best for him since Izz was visibly tired from all the late-night calls and all the stressing out about the other guys.