LOVE SICK : The Chaotic Lives of Blue Shorts Guys

CHAPTER 35 : WE'RE THE SAME

Friday arrives, it is the last day of the weekday so I am rushing to get my homework done (by copying off Keng) with Om (who is copying off Palm). We’re so focused that we’re hardly paying attention to what’s going on around us. We have so many assignments to catch up on so we got to the school at 7 am (I called and woke up Keng too) in order to finish this English homework that we have. This summary assignment is terribly difficult and I haven’t exactly been focusing on my studies in the past week. I scoff at my own situation since I did this to myself.

“Shit, Palm. I think you wrote this sentence wrong. Can you show me what Keng wrote?” Om complains as he flips the pages back and forth. Then he looks through Keng’s notebook, which is next to me, for a moment before my phone rings.

“Hail to our host! Wishing you lots of silvers. Wishing you lots of golds. Hail to our host!”

Changing up the ringtone is a hobby of mine (because I have so much free time). Om glances at me while his hand is still copying the homework.

“Way to make your iPhone lame by using that ringtone” Fuck off, I like it.

I shrug at him, not paying any attention to his mockery. I check to see who is calling me. Oh, I better mute this.

“Your mom’s calling, I bet.” My friend knows my situation too well. I don’t need to give him an answer since he already knows.

“You better answer that right now or I’ll be forced to deal with your shit.” Om yells at me, but my phone has already gone silent. A breath later, a different ringtone can be heard.

“Quit braggingggg, quit braggingggg, quit braggingggg.”

You called me out on my ringtone, but that one is making it seem like your LG Secret is dirt cheap too!

Om glares at me when his phone starts to ring. He shoves it at me without checking to see who is calling. “You take it. It’s your mom. I’m not your secretary.”

“Oh, come on. I’ll just mute it then.” I say as I look for the button to ignore the call (how do you use this thing?) but then Om gives me a stern look.

“Just answer the phone. It’s your girlfriend. And I got a rule where if a chick calls then it has to be answered. So no, you are not breaking my rule.” You son of a gun, are you seriously using your stupid ass rule to force me to take that call?! I put on a sour expression as I stare at the LG screen which says “Noh’s Mom” on it. Well, aren’t you clever?

Fine, I’ll answer.

“Yes, Yuri?” I decide to take her call even though I really need to finish up with my assignments before school starts. I listen to Yuri’s perky and bubbly tone of voice and I can’t help but wonder if there’s anything that could ever make her feel stressed.

“Are you free this evening?” I knew it. I let out a silent chuckle.

“This evening? I don’t have any plans.” I pretty much make the assumption that Om will stay and take care of the club. I nearly lose my balance when Om smacks me in the head.

Yuri continues to speak. “Let’s go somewhere together. I wanna look for To-san’s birthday present. Can you help me choose?” Well, there’s the reason I should go with her. (Yuri calls her father ‘To-san’ since he is Japanese.) I know that if I let her pick a present all by herself, there’s a very high chance that To-san will end up getting a Hello Kitty paperweight for his birthday.

“Sure, where should we go?”

“Let’s meet up at Siam after school, Noh. I’ll just walk around there and wait for you.” She tells me before she hangs up. I return the phone to Om and he whistles at me as a tease.