The Quiet Girl (An International Story)

How It Is

January 2021

Virginia's POV:

I sat in my room and looked out the window. There was a knock on the door. I got up to answer it and saw Nahikari waiting in the hallway.

"What are you doing here?" I asked.

"Leila." She said. "Can I come in?" I opened the door wider and let her in. I closed the door and sat on my bed, looking at her. "We need to talk." She said.

"I know." I looked down at my hands. "First I want to say I'm sorry. I shouldn't have snapped at you last time. You were just trying to be a good friend." 

"Yeah. I was just trying to be a good friend." She nodded. "Alex and I, we're friends." She said. "We're not together, we never were. When I was in American, she asked me out. But we never talked about dating."

"Why not?"

"Because she knows that I'm hung up on someone else." 

"I saw you kiss her." I looked at her. "When I,"

"I know." She said. "I heard you telling Jenni and Lola."

"If you like someone else, why did you kiss her?"

"I don't know." She shrugged. "The conversation we had during the Algarve. About your friend." I looked down. "How you agreed that she shouldn't go for it. I thought that you just weren't going to try anything and, I don't know. I wanted to move on from you because I thought I had no shot. Then Alex showed up and I just kissed her but it didn't mean anything. She's my friend."

"Before we move any further. You like me?" 

"And Virginia Torrecilla doesn't tell people she likes them."

"What does she do?" Carmen asked.

"Don't encourage this!"

"I'm curious." Carmen said. "What does she do?"

"She waits for the person to be like "I like you" and then she says, you alright I guess."

"I do. I really do like you."

"She says "Vir I've had a crush on you for a while now!" what do you say?"

"You're cute I guess." 

"You're going to die alone."

"That's great." I smiled and did finger guns.

"What are you doing?"

"I don't know. I didn't get this far in my head. In my head, you never even knocked on my door. I died alone in here like Mapi with 57 CATS!" 

"Vir." She laughed and grabbed my hands. "Calm down. Leila said you needed me, so I'm here."

"I don't need you." I said.

"Ok then." She dropped my hands. "I'll just be going then." She got up. I grabbed her hand and pulled her back.

"Wait." I looked at her. "Don't go."

"I won't."

March 2021

Nahikari's POV:

"So what's going on with you?"

"We talked in January. Had a nice weird moment. She hasn't talked to me since then. Now I'm packing for the Algarve. I'm confused!"

"You want to fly out there and beat some sense into her?"

"Alex." I sighed.

"Sorry. Habit."

"Why do all your friends talk about what a trouble maker you are?" I asked.

She sighed. "Because of high school. When I was a teenager I was pretty angry. My father kept me in check. He was my rock. Took me to the field, to the rink, wherever I needed to go. And he just stayed with me. If I wanted to talk, he listened. If I wanted to yell, he listened. He knew how to pull me out whenever I started to sink. When he died, I lost that. I had my sister but she couldn't get to me like he could. No one could. I didn't just lose my parents, my father, I lost my anchor. All the anger built up and I let it out on the wrong people and at the wrong times. I still played hockey but I was labeled as a dirty player." 

"What changed?"

Alexandra's POV:

"I had a dream one night. I was on the ice after my first game, my senior year of high school. I was in the middle of the rink and it was just me. I tried to get off the ice but I couldn't. The ice broke, I started to fall, deeper and deeper into the darkness. Something caught me. I looked and saw a hand, that hand belonged to my father. I could feel him. Actually feel him holding me. He told me that he'd always be there to keep me in check. To pull me up when I started to sink. Reach for me, I'm still there."

I looked down. "I know it's not the same thing. But whenever you need to talk, I'm here for you." Nahikari said. "You said it yourself. We met for a reason, Alex. We met each other when we both needed a friend."

After talking to Nahikari for a little while longer, I hung up and went to the gym. 

"You look sad."

I looked. "When you have a friend and you really care about them. You just want to be honest but, you don't want to tell them everything because it's not good."

"Alex, not everyone is going to be like the people here." He said. "Tell her. I know she'll stick around."

"How?" 

"From what you've told me, she doesn't seem like the person to run away." He smirked. "Also, I think you might be falling for this girl."

"I can't fall for her." I shook my head. "She likes Virginia. Virginia likes her. That's how it is."

"And what about you, Alex? When will you stop thinking that you deserve to be alone?"

"Never."

Love triangle incoming? Uh oh!

Who will Alex end up with if not Nahikari? Who do you want to see her with?