This ain't a diary, this is a - mirror?

Chapter 20: There was a Stranger at the Park and I Talked to Him

The three dogs sat at a restaurant, chatting over their meals and enjoying the pleasant atmosphere.

"That was fun," Elena said, smirking. "Especially since it's not my wallet that's paying. Oh, and that I'm dressing up my friends." She giggled. "It'd be great if you two... oh, I don't know, wore some of the stuff you bought... tomorrow?"

"Of course!" Zephyr exclaimed a little too quickly. "Definitely. Can't waste that money, you know?"

"I... guess so," Samantha replied. "Though, to be fair, I'm probably not leaving that dorm tomorrow without you directing how to dress."

Elena giggled. "True, true." She popped a fry into her mouth and chewed thoughtfully. "Hmm... so, what do you want to talk about?"

"You," Zephyr said quickly, before amending to his statement: "Uh, let's get to know each other a bit more. How about... Never Have I Ever?"

---

"Never Have I Ever... er, slapped someone." Elena said.

Samantha shrugged sheepishly and took a sip of her hot chocolate - their equivalent to 'taking a shot'. "More than once. The one I remember... one of the annoying, primary school kids. My parents weren't very happy."

"You slapped a child?" Zephyr gaped at her.

"Well, no - I mean, yes," Samantha said, "But I was the same age as them, too, so... I didn't know better, okay? I hated those kids."

"It's been a long night," Elena offered, "Should we head back now? We still have school tomorrow."

"Alright," Zephyr said with a sigh. "Ugh, school." He pulled out his wallet and put down some money on the table. "I'll pay for -"

"Nonsense," Elena snorted. "I can pay for myself." She pulled out her own wallet and put down her portion of the money on the table.

Samantha sighed and scavenged through her wallet. She pulled out some cash and put it down on the table as well. "That's enough, right?"

Elena and Zephyr both stared at the money, quickly doing calculations in their head.

"Yep!" They both said in unison, then they looked at each other and burst out laughing.

"Well," Samantha said, sweeping up the cash and the bill. "You two head out first, and I'll just... you know, use the money to pay..."

---

Samantha exited the restaurant and shook out her fur. "Well! That was fun," she remarked.

Elena nodded and began to trot in the direction of the school, with Zephyr by her side. Samantha quickly hurried to catch up. "Yeah, it was! We should do this more -"

"My wallet's had enough," Zephyr joked. "But yeah, hanging out was fun."

Samantha smiled and nodded. She slowed down and her ears pricked up as she caught a faint melody on the breeze.

"Hey, Sam? Why'd you slow down?" Elena asked, turning to face Samantha.

"Um..." Samantha quickly considered the situation. "You two go back first," she said quickly, "I have something to check out."

"Huh? The two of us?" Zephyr looked surprised. Samantha smirked as she felt a plan forming. "Yeah, just go back together. Keep him safe, alright?" She joked.

"Of course I will - wait, what do you mean, keep him safe?" Zephyr looked half amused and half mildly offended as Elena burst out laughing.

"Yeah, I will." Elena chuckled. "Well, see you back at the dorms. Don't take too long, okay?"

"Alright," Samantha said, nodding. "See you!"

She bounded away, following the faint melody on the breeze. As it got louder, she slowed - and felt her heart plummet. She frowned as she suddenly felt slightly... melancholy, for no apparent reason whatsoever.

Without knowing it, she wandered into the park, following the sound of the soulful melody. The park was empty - after all, it was pretty late - but she paid no heed to it. She slowed and stopped behind a lamppost, then peered around it and into the centre of the park.

A dark brown furred dog with blond hair was sitting on a bench, strumming a guitar and humming softly. He seemed to be engrossed in his music - his eyes were closed and he was nodding along to an invisible beat.

Before Samantha could awkwardly back away, his eyes shot open and he squinted into the darkness. The music stopped abruptly.

Samantha froze. His eyes locked with hers and he jumped visibly. "O-oh! I - I, u-um... well, y-you see..."

Samantha stepped out from behind the lamppost, unsure of what to do. "Uh, hi, i'm Samantha? And... that was... nice. The music. It was good."

She mentally slapped herself. Phrase your sentences correctly! You're sounding like an idiot, she chided herself. She took a deep breath and took a step closer. "You're a talented musician." She offered.

"U-uh... t-thanks?" He stuttered, looking around nervously. "Erm, are you f-from... Alpine High? You seem... familiar..."

"Yeah, I am. You?" Samantha asked, relaxing slightly.

"Y-yeah... I'm R-ryo Gryphon... S-sorry if I was bothering you." He placed the guitar in its case and closed it. "I-I'll just... uh, g-go now..."

"Wait!" Samantha blurted out. "U-uh..." She trailed off, trying to figure out what she had been planning to say. "I... uh... keep on making music? It's, uh, good?" She mentally slapped herself and decided to leave before she said anything else that would embarrass her. "Bye!"

She spun around and bounded away, flushing with embarrassment. When she was nearly back at school, she slowed down to a walk, breathing heavily. She placed her paws on her cheeks and was horrified to feel that they were still warm with embarrassment.

"Elena's going to question why you took so long, calm down, self..." She mumbled to herself. She padded up the stairs and took a deep breath before knocking on the door to her dorm.

"It's unlocked!" She heard Elena call. She opened it, stepped inside and closed it behind her, locking it as she went. She dumped her backpack and shopping bags on the floor and sat down heavily on her bed.

The sound of water hitting the floor stopped and the door opened a crack. "Hey, Sam, could you pass me my towel? I kinda left it outside..."

"Uh, sure." Samantha picked up the towel on Elena's chair and held it out to the door.

A paw reached out and took the towel with a muffled 'thanks'.

"You're welcome," Samantha replied. She padded to her drawer and pulled out her clothes and a towel. "Now, to wait for Elena to finish off," she said to herself, sighing as she thought back to the events of the night.