Blue Flower

Chapter 28

-Chester-

The next morning really brought the shock out of me.

A new bicycle was standing near my desk. Along with it was a bouquet of roses placed on top of my desk. A white card was wide open. I picked it up to read the encrypted black ink scribbled along the card.

Sorry.

This wasn’t my stalker for sure. I instantly jumped into conclusion that it was someone very dear to me. Not Andrew, but who could it be?

“Sorry.” someone said from some place behind me.

I turned and saw Naomi smiling at me. She came over and gave me a hug. “We’re sorry for letting you down. I wasn’t there for you when you needed me.”

We’re? Who were the other ones?

I hugged her back and watched some of my classmates come inside the classroom. They chorused in saying sorry to me as we all fell into a group hug. I had forgiven them, and now, all I had to do is find my stalker.

“Oh Hera!” Naomi snapped.

The hug was broken.

Every one of us looked at her, especially me. After that confession she made on the rooftop weeks ago, I didn’t have any guts to face her. I brought shame to her and broke her heart.

“Hey. “ she said.

My heart started to race in my chest. I didn’t have a clue on how she would react after knowing the scandal I had. I looked down on the ground, and I heard her steps come near me. She lifted up my face, making me stare straight through her eyes.

“It’s okay.” she smilingly said and hugged me tight. In that touch, I could feel how sincere she was. It eased the consecutive palpitations underneath me.

After we settled down on our seats, I asked Naomi. “Who gave me that new bicycle?”

She grinned. “It’s for you to know.”

-Hera-

“You okay?” Naomi asked as she sat beside me on a bench.

Obviously, I wasn’t. Knowing that Chester was gay put my pride down as a girl. I finally got to the terms why he didn’t take my confession of love. He loved my cousin, who didn’t love him back because the other one was really straight. All I could do is laugh at myself, of how dumb and silly one-sided love could be.

“Yeah.” I managed a smile. Though it hurt in such a bigger scale, I had no choice but to fully accept what his resolve was.

“No, you’re not.” she said matter-of-factly. I laid my eyes on her for a while, and then smiled for some unknown reason. I never thought she could decode my emotions that easily.

“I still love him. I really do, sis. I won’t think of giving him up.”

“You’re so foolish. Are you going to declare martyrdom just for unrequited love? Just go to hell, you bitch.”

I laughed at her. “You sound so evil.”

She laughed harder. “I know just how you feel. One-sided love sucks.” And it hurts. I thought.

“Yeah. I just have to deal with it.”

She gave me a cold, almost freezing soda to drink. I opened the can and took the liquid in. It soothed and quenched my thirsty throat and my wary heart as well. Now that we had known our reasons why we couldn’t love each other, I could say we were both even. I loved him, and he never reciprocated his feelings for me. He loved Andrew, and he never got the love he really wanted. Both of us got hurt, and it’s killing us.

But still, he would always be the scent of my first love.

-Chester-

I was heading home that afternoon, riding in my new bike, when two clean-cut, formally attired men came to me.

“Chester Sulkin, right?”

“Yeah.” I said, clutching the brake of my bike and slowly halting to a stop.

“Ms. Reese asked you to come into her house, as soon as possible. She needs to talk to you.” one of them said.

“About what?”

“Just ask her.”

I looked at my bike. “How about this?”

“We’ll take care of it.”

I hopped off my bike and led myself to the long, black limousine. As we all occupied the vehicle, it started to move forward, leaving the school grounds behind.

I opened the door of the limo, and as I got out of it, the chauffeur spoke to me. “Sir, do you mind me going with you? Ms. Reese is at her room.”

“No. I came here before. I can handle myself.” I said.

“Okay.”

I took my steps toward the huge door of the mansion. My heart pounded non-stop inside my chest, almost breaking my ribs apart. I squeezed my eyes shut, and opened it again. I was afraid to face her.

My hands were shaking as I ran my hand on the steel doorknob, and in the next second, I found myself swinging the door open.