The Natural

Chapter 3

An hour has passed. I walked out of Uniqlo and was satisfied with the things that I bought. They were black sport pants, design-your-own white t-shirt, blue floral dress, pink pastel blouse, jeans, jackets and bra tops. I rarely bought these many clothes, but I needed them for this rare occasion. Andy is going to be there. It was with no surprise that we would meet every single day. We might even be partners. I needed to look nice for him. I wanted him to look at me like I was his girl. Like I was his delicate flower that needed to be loved and cared.

To think about it, these clothes weren't enough for me to use for three months. I went to H&M to search for more. I found a black Leather Riders Jacket. It made me look feisty, bold and tough like a Shadowhunter. Definitely buying that.

I kept walking, touching every clothes that attracted my eyes. Sliding your hand through different fabric textures sparked a weird satisfying vibe up to your body. It was very relaxing. I went to the section where they sold skirts and decided to buy three. Black assymmetric skirt. Pink Twill skirt. Patterned skirt, which I thought would go perfectly well with the white t-shirt that I just bought.

I grinned to myself. I head towards the counter to pay.

"Elle!" Someone called my name. I turned my head to where the sound came from. It was Raphel.

I looked at her to register that I was seeing her right. She was definitely the Raphel. "Hi, Raphel!" I said with enthusiasm in the edge of my voice. Even though I wasn't sure whether I was happy to see her. I met Raphel from the Art club that I joined. She was really talented and creative with a fine taste of fashion. But she had some downsides. She was super competitive, bossy, and emotional. Her mood changed a lot. She hated people who were getting in her way in achieving her dream. She judged people from their skills and looks. She wouldn't want to work with people who were either lack of skills or those who weren't cooperative with her. I was so glad that she was pleased with my artwork and ideas, and I rarely got any complaint from her.

"I see that you bought a lot," she said, eyeing my things that were on the counter.

"Yeah...I see that you do as well," I said. I took my wallet from my handbag, taking out my debit card.

The cashier swiped my card, then I signed my signature on the device. "Thank you so much for shopping at H&M," the cashier thanked me with a polite smile.

I smiled back. I turned my head to where Raphel was standing to say goodbye, but she wasn't there.

"I've just finished shopping. I'm ready to go to Berry Shavery. Where u at now?" I texted Andy.

"Just entered BS. I'll wait 4 u. We'll order together," Andy texted back.

"Sweet. I'll be there in 7 minutes. I walk slow," I replied. It was hard to wipe off my smile. It would only be the two of us. Eating shaved ice-cream like a real couple. We might even share a cup of ice-cream since they sold them big. I blushed. I felt the heat on my cheeks.

"LOL. Take ur time."

I sauntered, eyeing every products arranged on the store display and singing 'You Belong with me' song in my mind.

The bell jingled as I entered the Berry Shavery shop. I scanned the room to search for Andy. I still couldn't see him. I walked further into the room. At last, I spotted him. His back was to me so he didn't notice that I was there. But he wasn't alone. I saw a girl with brown hair, styled in a bun. She was wearing a denim dress with beautiful white embroidery. But her outfit was quite revealing. It was showing too much of her skin. She sat close to Andy. She was actually playing with Andy's hand and touching his arm, whispering something to his ear. No matter how much I didn't want to hate anybody, this girl was bothering me.

I approached to their table. "Hi Raphel! We meet again!" I said with a voice that was a bit too high and loud. Raphel looked at me in surprise. I faked smile, clenching my shopping bags.

"Owh...Hi! What are you doing here?" she asked simply, as if she was the one being invited first to eat together with Andy. Or maybe she was and I stupidly didn't know about this.

"I'm actually here to eat shaved ice cream with Andy," I explained, looking at Andy with my eyebrow raised in the hope that I got an explanation from him. I thought it was supposed to be the two of us chilling.

Andy didn't speak a word, watching us as if he was out of the picture. "I came across with Andy here and he insisted me to join him," she said with a shrug.

I nodded my head, and pretended that I accepted the fact that she was joining us, and the fact that her version of story was true. "Okay. If you guys are ready, why not we order some ice cream?" I faked my enthusiasm again. When would this act ever end?

I was at the front while the two of them were behind me. I felt like I was ordering this alone.

"Andy, is it okay if we can just share the ice cream together? I don't think I'll be able to finish them alone," she said, interlocking her fingers with Andy's. Their hands swung back and forth like a pendulum. I clenched my fist and biting my lips hard. My nostrils flared and my breathings became rapid. I took out my phone to distract myself.

I ordered Milky Strawberry Shavery's signature shaved ice cream, while they ordered Blue Moon shaved ice cream. I ate my ice cream quickly and got brain freeze. This was one true stress eating experience. A strange one though. I ate them and it instantly brought up a good emotion. Then, it dissipated and the pain kept coming, strongly reminding me what exactly was hurting me.

Raphel shifted her body closer to Andy. Andy's lips twitched with a smile. Why did it seem like I am third wheeling? They seemed totally lost in their world where I never existed in there.

I finished eating. I guess it was time for me to go. They never seemed to acknowledge me anyway. "Andy, can I ask you a favour?" she asked.

Andy nodded. "Sure. What is it?" he questioned back.

"Can you give me a ride home?" Raphel bit her lower lip, which made her lips looked distorted. Andy stared at them.

"Yeah. Sure...why not," Andy answered.

I couldn't stand this. I didn't feel like having a ride with them. "I think I should head home as well. There's a lot of things I needed to do."

I took my steps and went outside without hearing any goodbyes from them. I inhaled deeply, trying to hold back my tears. I walked normally away from the Berry Shavery Shop until I felt that I was out of their sight, then I dashed to the girls' toilet.

I locked myself into one of the cubicle and wept silently. My chest tightened; my heart was beating fast. I felt the lump forming in my throat; it was hard to swallow. My body's shaking with my uneven breathing. I held my body together to calm myself. I hit my chest that felt like it was being scraped by a sharp object.

My world was tilting. It made me dizzy. I rummaged for a packet of tissue in my handbag and wiped off my tears and my runny nose. I inhaled deeply, trying hard to keep myself together.

"Why am I over-reacting over this? Girl, keep it together. Be rational. There was nothing much going on between them. They didn't kiss or anything like that. They're not officially girlfriend and boyfriend yet," I said to myself with my hoarse voice. I inhaled deeply again, pushing the negative thoughts away and keeping them hidden in my mind.

I stayed in the cubicle for as long as I could until I was confident to go outside. I checked my eyes once again in my compact mirror. It was not red and bulgy anymore. I checked for my face to see whether I looked perfectly normal.

I unlocked the door, carrying all of my stuffs and went to wash my hands. Now I had to take a bus ride home and walk my way to my home.

Once I arrived home, I laid in my bed and dialed Lany's number. "Hey, girl!" Her voice was indistinct as if she was eating something while she spoke.

"Hey! Lany, can you give me a ride to Jessica's? I need to give her the stuffs I needed to donate."

"Yah, absolutely. I'll text once I've arrived at 'or place." Then she ended her call.

My mind suddenly wandered off about Andy and Raphel, and I hoped against hope of Andy's being my partner in the Rider's Camp. In that way, we would spent more time together, working as a team to win.