Intramurals Series: Marriage Booth 1: FRIENEMIES

Con't 2

“Tanya!” 

Cheri waved at her friend when she spotted Tanya walking all alone.  “Where are you going… and why are you still dressed like that?”  Tanya sighed heavily.

“I’ve been looking for you guys.  Mike married me to Eric, and our friends were supposed to pay for our divorce.”

“Oh.  I went home right away after the cheer dance… Oh my God!”  Ever so dramatic, Cheri spun around and shook Tanya’s shoulders.  “Did you just say you married Eric?!  Aaaaah… why did I have to miss that!”

“It’s only a charity game, Cher.  There’s nothing to be excited about it.”

“But… of course I’m excited about it.  I know you have a crush on him for the longest time.”

“Yeah, and where did it get me?  Besides, Gladys divorced us after she saw us together in the restroom.”

“What!  What were you doing in there?  Necking?”

“Yeah, right.”  Tanya rolled her eyes.  “As if that would happen.”

“Did you talk?”

“Sure.  He apologized, actually.”  Cheri was giddy with joy, dancing on the street as they headed for home.  “I had mixed feelings for him today.  At first, I wanted to wring Mike’s neck for pairing me with him.  But after he apologized, I was kind of relieved. He made me do something I’ve never done in a long time.”

“Tell me!  Tell me!”

“We ate a big lunch in the canteen… with chocolate cake for dessert.”

“Really?  Isn’t that great?  He made you eat!”

“I thought it was going to be horrible but the moment I tasted flavors, I was in heaven.”

“That’s a point for Eric.  We wanted you to gain more weight, Tan.  You don’t look so healthy, you know.”

“Oh, stop.  I’ve worked so hard to lose weight.”  Cheri grabbed her friend’s thin arm gently.

“Not like this, Tan.  Your friends are all worried about you.  Your Mom keeps asking me if you eat in school at all.  This is not healthy living, Tan.”

“You sound like my mother.”

“Because we’re both right and we love you.”

“Jeez, am I supposed to cry now?”  They smiled at each other.

“Go home, Tanya.  I bet you’re dead tire now.  See you tomorrow.”

“Thanks.”

Intramurals went on for another four days with Tanya clearly staying out of Eric’s radar.  She knew he won the gold for Table Tennis and someone told her he was asking for her whereabouts.

Better keep a low profile as always that hurt myself in the process…

On Saturday, Culmination was held inside the gym, announcing the over-all winners.  In the evening, a huge bonfire was made in the middle of the school grounds and everyone was there, including a reluctant Tanya, who was only coerced by her friends.

“Why are you hiding from him?”  Cheri blurted out as they approached the bonfire area. The crowd was getting thicker and non-alcoholic drinks were being served.

“I am not,” Tanya denied.  “I just don’t want to waste my time explaining to Gladys why Eric is talking to me.”

“Well, she’s still a little pissed off.”  Cheri laughed out loud.  Her laughter was so infectious that Tanya found herself laughing with her friend.

“Someone’s in a good mood tonight,” a voice behind them abruptly silenced the girls.  Tanya secretly sucked in air when Eric and his friend Jamie stepped out of the crowd to join them.  “Hi, Tanya,” his gaze was somewhat accusing.  “I kept missing you the last few days, and your friends sure know how to make you invisible.”

“I am always invisible,” was all she said.

“Are you avoiding me?”

“What makes you say that?”  Tanya’s voice remained calm, but deep inside, she was ready to bolt.  She could not explain the turmoil in her feelings as far as Eric Ismael was concerned.  He was just the same guy, wasn’t he?  The one who bullied her into dieting?  No.  Something was different now.  She could feel his sincerity.  Her long-kept and almost forgotten young love for this guy was suddenly surfacing, and if she could not suppress it, she’s going to start falling for him again, like before.  Heaven knows, she didn’t want to go back to being such a pathetic fool.

“We had a good time when we were married, right?”  He kept taunting her.

“Hey, did you forget? Your girlfriend divorced us.”  Eric scowled at the reminder.

“She’s not…”

“Right on the mark, Tan-tan girl,” Gladys’ cheery voice interrupted the foursome, immediately anchoring her arm with Eric’s when she got closer to them.  “I’ve been looking for you, Eric.  I told you to wait for me at the entrance.  Come on, let’s get some drinks.”  She completely ignored the rest of them, spiriting Eric away.

“Uh, she really gets on my nerves,” Jamie muttered aloud.

“Well, he courted her, remember?”  Cheri reminded her friends.  “Let’s get some drinks too, before there’s none left.”

“Uhm, have you seen Mayan?”  Jamie’s query made the girls looked at him with surprise.  He blushed.

“Did you say, Mayan?”  Tanya could not believe her ears.  Mary-ann Torres would only allow her close friends to call her by her nickname.  To the rest, she’s Mary-ann.  A sudden interest sprang from Tanya’s mind as she looked at Jamie Chua more closely.  His blush crept to his neck.

“Oh yeah,” Cheri said cheerfully, “You and Mayan got married too!”