“Where did you go anyways?” I asked.
“I went to look for the flower” he casually answered.
“Did you find it?”
“Yes” he nodded.
“Really?!” I clapped my hands. “Did you get the clue, too?”
“Of course” he arrogantly smirked.
“What did it say?” I excitedly asked.
“It says-”
“Wait” I stopped him. “Don't read the riddle to me. Just tell me what we need to do”
“We need to go to the river” he said.
“The river?”
He grimaced. “Will you stop repeating what I say?”
o=o=o
“You do know how to swim, don't you?”
“Of course!” I said. “I'm the best in our class!”
He raised his brows at me.
“I'm kidding, okay? Gosh, can't you differentiate a joke from a real-?”
“You talk too much”
“So, what do we have to do?”
“We need to look for a black pearl”
“Black pearl?” I repeated. “Sorry, I can't help it okay?” I quickly said as he gave me a look.
“What are you doing?!” he exclaimed as I started taking my clothes off.
“Taking my clothes off, obviously. It'll be easier to swim without them. Don't worry, I'll leave my underwear on, okay?”
“Leave your shirt on!” she snapped. “You can take your pants but leave your shirt on”
“Why?”
“In case you forgot, there are other shadows around here, watching us” she hissed.
“So?” I asked, raising my brows. When his face turned darker, I started giggling. “Oh, you're just being protective, eh? I-” I stopped when he started marching towards me, picked up my shirt and put it back on me.
“Leave it!” he gritted.
“Fine” I pouted. I crossed my arms across my chest as I watched him take off his shirt and pants. How come he can take off his shirt while I can't? Aish! But my pout disappeared as I saw his scars. Everytime I see them, I always feel this pain in my chest.
“You go ahead first” he said.
“Coward” I mumbled and took a few steps back before launching to a sprint. But I stopped at the edge of the rock. “Take two” I said as I took a few more steps back and started running for a dive. But then, I stopped at the edge again. I heard him sigh and then I felt a finger on my back, pushing me forward. The next thing I know, I was already in the water.
“One point for me” I heard him chuckle.
“Why you. . . !” I stopped and coughed as he splashed some water to me.
“Two points!” he laughed.
Oh, so now he's being playful? “Ya! What's gotten into you? We're supposed to look for he pearl, remember?”
“You go ahead and look for it. I'll just stay here for a while”
I watched him swim around for a while, fuming. I shook my head after a while. I swam up to him and slapped his arm gently. He wants to play? Then, we'll play.
