'"Will you, Ho Jaesung, take Amara Ngam to be your lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, as long as you both shall live?"

"I do".

"Will you, Amara Ngam, take Ho Jaesung to be your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, as long as you both shall live?"

"Mm.. I do...", the N9NE members wipe their tears in the background.

"You may kiss the bride".

Jaesung leans in to kiss me but stops.

"Don't you have college today?"

"What?"'

I get up with a jerk.

"What time is it?!" I take the alarm clock from the bedside table.

"CRAP! IT'S 8:45!! I HAVE COLLEGE TODAY!!!" I throw the alarm clock on the ground and run to the bathroom.

I quickly brush my teeth, shower, dress up and style my hair. I grab my backpack and run down the stairs.

"Aree! The bus is here!!" My mom yells.

"Yes, mae! I'm leaving!"

"Wait, you didn't eat breakfast yet!" I grab a piece of bread from the plate and quickly tie my shoe laces.

"I'm already late, mae! Feed Strawberry for me!! Bye bye!!" I open the door and close it shut.

"Always the same. Why can't she be responsible for once?! I told her not to use her phone last night. Now look!"

The bus takes off without me.

"Dammit!" I run after it.

"WAIT!! STOP THE BUS!!

STOP THE BUS!!!" I scream at the top of my lungs as I run behind it.

A guy looks out the window to see an ugly duck run after the bus.

"Stop the bus. The duck's running behind us", at least that's what I heard him say.

The bus stops and I quickly get on.

"I'm.. sorry..., it won't.. happen again....", I say to the bus driver in between my breaths.

"I don't care. Just take a seat already", he says. I walk further into the bus and I see everyone staring at me.

'You've done it on the first day. Congrats, Aree', I slowly put the bread inside my mouth. I sit in a free seat and eat my bread silently.

"Did she really run behind the bus like that?" A girl whispers to her friend.

"Pfft- What a loser", she and her friend laugh to themselves.

'I can hear you, you know!

Geez..', I decide to look out the window for the rest of the trip.

What you've just witnessed is the sorry life of an ugly duck who wishes to unalive herself after today.

Hi! I'm Amara Ngam. I'm a Thai girl who's trying her best to live life the way she wants to.

How, you may ask? Well, I want to spend my life, laying on my bed as I listen to N9NE and read Jae fanfics.

I'm a hardcore fan, yes.

My very Thai mother thinks it's useless.

Like seriously?! I learned Korean by watching K-dramas and Japanese by watching Anime!! This should be considered a talent!

My very very Thai father always sides with her when it comes to this.

"Listen to your mother, Aree. Stop fangirling over Chinese boys and study hard" is what he always says.

Chinese? Chinese?? I bet the N9NE members would be super offended if they heard that. Aside from Haru, they're all Korean! They're just another flavour of Asian!! It's not that hard to remember!!

'Wait a damn minute..

MY LUGGAGE!! I FORGOT MY LUGGAGE!!'

"....dammit!" I curse under my breath as I nibble on the bread vigorously.

After a long trip of rethinking my life choices, I finally arrive at the college campus.

I quickly get off the bus and fast walk to the entrance.

"Where is everyone going?" I ask myself as I see everyone marching into the auditorium.

"Should I follow them?"

"Yeah, you should", I heard a random girl say as she walks past me.

"...I guess I should then", I press my lips and walk into the auditorium.

I look around.

"Damn, almost all the seats are taken", I look for free seats and spot one.

'Yes!'

Just when I was about to walk upto the chair,

"Oi! You, in the purple hoodie!!" A high pitched voice calls for me.

I look for the source of the voice and spot a guy in a blue vest.

"You looking for a seat?"

"Yeah, actually".

"I have one right here", he motions me to come sit next to him.

"Uh.. Thanks?" I sit.

"So, what's your major?"

"Medicine".

"Oh my god, same! Are you a freshman?"

"No, I'm a second year, actually. I studied at Alvin Starlight University last year.

"Oh? Why'd you change?"

"Oh, it's nothing. I didn't find it convenient".

"Ahh, I see", the guy nods.

I take a closer look at him as he stares at the stage.

Brown hair.. Green eyes.. Fair skin.. Freckles...

'He's actually kinda cute', I continue staring.

The Headmaster of the college gets on stage.

"Good morning, students of Aurora International Groups of University !"

"Oh god, not this again", the guy sighs and holds the side of his temple.

"Huh? What's that supposed to mean?"

"He says the same goddamn speech every year".

"How do you know? Are you a third year?"

"Third year? Nope. I'm a second year. It's just that he said the same speech last year and according to my cousin, he says the same speech every year".

"Seriously?"

"Yeah, it's true!"

I rest my back and listen to the speech in silence.

"Anyways, since we're the same major, we'll probably be put in the same class. Do you know which class you're in?"

"They said it was class 2-B".

"Nice! we're in the same class.

What's your name?"

"I'm Amara Ngam. You can call me Aree".

"Amara? That's a nice name.

I'm Pierre. Pierre Dubois".

"Pear?"

"Pierre! Pierre!! It's not that hard".

"Haha.. I'm sorry", I laugh awkwardly.

"So, where are you from?" He asks me.

"I'm from Thailand".

"Oh. I'm from France", he points to himself.

'He's French?! His American accent is so good though!'

"Really? Where exactly in France?"

"Paris, the city of love!"

"Nice! I like Paris!!"

"Great! Then, you'll like me too. I'm sure", he smiles. I laugh.

"Let's see, Dubois".

"Please, just call me Pierre", he says as he turns towards the stage.

"Let's do our best to make this year the best year. Once again, welcome to Aurora International Groups of University!" The Principal says and ends his speech.

The crowd claps as he walks down the stage. We clap even though we didn't listen to a single word he said.

Pierre gets up from his seat.

"Come on, let's go", he says and I follow him out of the auditorium. We walk down the hallways.

We walk past a bathroom.

'Bathroom! I should go put some makeup on', I think to myself as I stop walking.

"What's wrong?" Pierre asks me.

"Oh, nothing. I need to use the bathroom. I'll meet you in class", I say and turn my back to him.

"Do you even know the way?" I halt.

"I knew it.

It's on the second floor. You can ask for directions from there. See you in class!" He says as he walks away.

"Okay! I'll see you there!!" I shout back and walk into the bathroom.

'Oh my god! The bathroom's so pretty!!' I walk up to the mirror and take out my compact powder. After applying it, I take out my eye liner and start applying that too. Then, I comb my hair and style it more neatly.

'I should wear some perfume', I take out my pocket perfume and spray some on myself.

'Okay, Aree. This is your first day in college. You can do this..' I breath in and out slowly and start packing all the stuff in my bag.

I take my phone out and dial my mom.

"What do you want, Aree?"

"Mae...

I forgot my luggage", I tell her nervously. Mom goes silent. I hear her sigh after a few seconds.

"Ha.. I don't have the strength to fight with you today. I'll ask your dad to drop it off at your dorm after your classes are over".

"...oh. Thanks, mae".

"Mm.. Take care".

"Okay! Bye bye mae. Love you".

"Mm", mom hangs up.

I keep my phone in the pocket of my hoodie. Then, I fast walk out the bathroom and to the second floor. I see a blonde girl walking into her class.

"Excuse me! Um.. if you don't mind, can you tell me where class 2-B is?"

"Oh, no problem. If you walk that way, it's the second class to the right".

"Okay, thank you so much!" I say and fast walk to the class.

"No problem".

I reach the class and stand at the doorstep.

"Alright now, Mr. Roberts. Can you come up here?"

A guy in black walks towards the front of the class.

"Everyone, this year's class president will be Nathaniel Roberts. Any objections?"

The class stays silent.

"I'll take that as a no. I expect highly from you, Roberts", the professor says as he pins a batch on his chest.

"I'll do my best, professor", the guy says and walks away to his seat.

"Um.. Excuse me, sir...?"

"Yes, come in", I walk in.

"I'm uh, new to this class".

"Amara Ngam?"

"Yes, that's me..."

"You're late on your first day", the professor frowns.

"I know. I'm sorry, sir".

"Everyone, this is Amara Ngam. She's your new classmate. Introduce yourself", she says.

"Hello, everyone. My name is Amara Ngam. You can call me Aree. I'm a transfer student from Alvin Starlight University. Please take care of me", I say and bow to them.

"Go take a seat".

I look for a seat when I make eye contact with Pierre at the third row to the front.

He waves at me and mouths me to come take a seat next to him. I walk towards him and sit next to him.

"Psst! Jack!" He calls for the guy in front of him, the class president.

He looks back.

"What?" He whispers.

"This is the girl I told you about, Aree", he whispers back. He looks at me.

"Hi", he whispers to me. I wave back him.

"Class is about to start, so pay attention", he finally says and turns towards the board.

The class starts and it's super boring. Pierre starts yawning and decides to sleep and I can't really concentrate since I only had bread this morning.

The morning classes went by very slowly and it's finally lunch time now.

Pierre stretches his body after a long nap.

"When are you going to be responsible and pay attention in class?"

"Oh, Jack. Don't worry 'bout me. You know I can pass the exams even without listening to the professor's rambling".

"Ugh. Come, let's go get lunch".

"Yeah! I'm starving. Aree, come with us".

"Uh..." I look at them both awkwardly.

"...come", the guy says and walks towards the door. Pierre grabs my hand and we walk out the class behind him.

'H-He's holding my hand! What kind of kdrama is this?!'

We walk to another class.

"Class 2-A? What are we doing here?" I ask Pierre.

"Oh, we're going to get our friends and then we'll go to the cafeteria".

"Friends?"

"Yeah, we're a group of four".

"Vian", The class president calls out.

The students in the class go silent at once . I just stare at him in disbelief.

'He made the entire class silent, wow'.

Two girls look our way and walk towards us.

The girl on the right is super short and slim. She has her long black hair in a ponytail, and she has the same badge as the class pres. Looking closely, she also has a hearing aid on her right ear.

The girl on the left is taller compared to her. She's also blonde and chubby, which makes her look super cute. Coincidentally, she's also the girl I asked directions to before class!

"Hey, Niel. Let's go", The black haired girl says.

"Hm".

"You're the class president again? Nice\~", The blonde haired girl says to the him.

"Well, it's nothing new. Now, is it?" The black haired girl says.

"Hey, you're the girl from earlier! Hi!" She waves at me. Pierre is still holding my hand so I wave with the other.

We make our way towards the cafeteria.

I couldn't help but notice everyone staring at our direction. If I'm more accurate, they're staring at the class president.

"Is your friend famous or something?" I ask Pierre.

"Who, Niel?"

"Is that his name?"

"That's what we call him. His name is Nathaniel. Everyone in college knows him".

"Why's that?"

"To put it short, he stands up against all the bullies in our college. Many fear him for how scary he looks".

"You're making him sound like he's the hero in some movie of some sort", the blonde girl giggles.

"Eh, I tried".

"Wait, so you lied?"

"Lied? No. It was the truth", he smiles.

We walk to a table with 6 seats.

Everyone takes a seat.

'Should I sit....?' I think to myself.

"Aree, what are you doing? Sit down", Pierre gestures me to take a seat.

"Who's this seat for?"

"Oh, nobody. That's just an extra seat".

"Yeah, like yours", the girl with the black hair stares down at me.

'Ouch. She just called me an extra', I steal a glance at her and avoid eye contact.

'...what's with this atmosphere?' I ask myself mentally, as she continues to stare at me.

"So, you're a new student?" She asks me.

"Uh yeah. I'm new here".

"Uh huh. Where are you from?"

"I-I'm from Thailand.."

"Where did you study last year?"

"Uhm.. Alvin Starlight University", she frowns.

"That's actually a good college. Why did you come here?" She rests her back on her chair.

"For personal reasons", I avert my eyes.

'She's super scary! She's as scary as Nathaniel!'

"Hey, we're back!" The blonde girl says with three plates of food in her hands.

"Stop it, Vian. You're scaring the poor girl", Pierre says as he places a plate of food in front of me.

"Hmph! I was just asking!"

"Yeah yeah", he sits next to me with his plate and places 5 orange juice boxes on the table. I just stare at him.

'How in the world did he bring all this in his hands?'

"When did you leave?"

"When she was asking you all those questions. I'm super hungry. Can we eat now?"

"Uh, sure", I say and start eating.

"What's your name?" The blonde girl asks me.

"I'm Amara Ngam. Call me Aree".

"Nice. I'm Kailynn Lanier. Call me Lynn".

"Nice to meet you".

"I'm Vivian Thompson", the black haired girl says.

"But we like to call her Vian", Pierre says.

"That's because you're close to me", Vivian adds.

"She'll let you call her Vian soon enough, don't sweat it", Pierre tells me.

"...."

"Niel, introduce yourself", Vivian says.

"....Nathaniel Roberts. Nice to meet you".

"Nice to meet you too", I smile awkwardly.

The others start talking about their summer vacation and about this morning. I stay silent and eat my food.

'Ugh, I'm thirsty', I reach for a juice box.

'It's so far awayyyy', I get up when suddenly, I somehow trip over myself and fall face first on the table.

My right hand decides to betray me and ends up landing on the juice boxes.

Of course, one had to be open.

And of course, it had to be next to Nathaniel.

I end up squirting the entire juice box onto him. Nathaniel immediately gets up and brushes his clothes with his hand.

The cafeteria goes silent.

'....crap'.

"Aree! You okay?" Pierre checks up on me.

"Omg, Niel. You're drenched in orange juice", Lynn says.

I correct my posture and apologise to him.

"I-I'm so sorry, Nathaniel! I didn't mean to-", he gestures me to stop.

"Can't you be careful? Are you blind or something?" He asks me, doing his best to control his anger.

"I'm so sorry, I-"

"What? Are you gonna say that you didn't do it on purpose?"

"Niel, stop", Pierre tries to stop him.

"It's your first day here and you're already going around squirting juice on people? At this rate, you won't be able to survive even a week in this place".

"Niel", Vivian intervenes. Nathaniel glances at Vivian and then at me.

"......

Tch! So annoying.." he glares at me and leaves the cafeteria.

I just stand there like the idiot that I am.

"I am so sorry about him, Aree! He's always like that. Please don't take it to heart!!" Pierre apologises to me.

"Please sit down".

"Actually, I'm done.." I smile at Pierre and take my plate.

"Wait. Take this", he hands me a juice box. I glance at it and then at him.

"....no, thanks", I fast walk, throw the plate away and walk out the cafeteria.

I go back to class and sit in my seat. I take a glance at Nathaniel's seat as I rest my head on the table with a sigh.

"Ha....."

'WHAT IN THE WORLD WAS I THINKING?!?! HOW DID I EVEN MANAGE TO DO THAT?!? UGGGHHHHHH!!!!!

First, I miss the bus. Then, I forget my luggage. And now, THIS!

My wedding with Jaesung got interrupted, for THIS!?

(She's talking about the dream, of course.)

Worst first day ever!' I mentally scold myself and hit my head multiple times against the desk.

Pierre walks into the classroom with a few other students behind him.

"Oh my god, what are you doing?!" He runs up to me after seeing me bang my head against the table countless times. I stop and look at him.

"I'm rethinking my life choices. This is normal", I tell him as I stare at him.

"Don't beat yourself up for this. Just apologise to him when he comes. He'll accept it. I bet he'll apologise for insulting you too", he sits in his seat to my left.

"How would you know?"

"He's my friend. I know him.

Look, and here he comes now!" Pierre points to Nathaniel. He's changed into a sports jersey.

"Jack! Come here!!" Pierre yells for him. Nathaniel looks at him and then at me.

"...shit", I swear under my breath.

"He's coming this way! What do I do?!" I whisper yell at Pierre.

"Just talk to him", Pierre says calmly.

Nathaniel stands next to my desk. I stand up. He stares me down with his cold eyes.

"U-Um.. I'm sorry for what happened at the cafeteria earlier. I didn't mean to do that. I..

I tripped", I press my lips nervously.

".... I'm also sorry. I shouldn't have said that stuff to you. You didn't even do it on purpose..", he scratches his neck and looks away.

"Let's be good to each other here after, yeah?" Pierre gestures us to shake hands.

Nathaniel stretches his hand towards me. I look at him.

"Come on, Aree. Shake on it", Pierre says.

I slowly reach for his hand and shake it.

"There! Now, you're friends!!"

"Everyone, take your seats!" The professor comes in and we let go of each other's hands. We sit in our respective seats and wait for the class to start.

"Roberts, since when were you in the soccer team?"

"I got my clothes dirty, ma'am. So, I'm just borrowing this", Nathaniel answers.

"Alright", and the professor starts the class.

I somehow end up staring at Nathaniel for the rest of the class.

"Um.. Aree?"

"Yeah?"

"Does your forehead not hurt..?"

"Huh?"

"It looks.....bruised", I rub my forehead.

"Actually, it does hurt.

Ow.." I whine to myself as I rub my forehead.

"Anyways\~

Told you, he'd apologise. I know him like the back of my hand", Pierre smiles.

"I'm just glad I'm still alive", I sigh.

"Hey\~ He's a super sweet guy. Trust me. Once you get to know him, you'll stick to him like glue".

I look at Nathaniel again.

"We'll see about that".

-to be continued...

Amara Ngam

With Love, Your Idiot

I wake up at the sound of my alarm clock. I turn it off and stretch.

"Rose, get up", I try waking up Pierre.

"Mm... pancakes.."

"Rose, get up. We'll be late", no response.

I decide to get ready and wake him afterwards. I style my hair sideways and grab my watch.

"Pierre! Samuel already left. Get up now or you'll be late for class", I scold him as I wear my watch.

He continues sleeping.

'Oh my god..', I facepalm and go to the bathroom.

I come out with a small bucket of water.

'This will do the trick'.

I pour it on Pierre face. His eyes open wide like plates.

"OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD, THERE'S A FLOOD!! RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!!!!" Pierre starts screaming.

"Oh my god!" I punch his head so hard he falls backwards holding his head.

"Don't shout so early in the morning!"

"WHY DID YOU DO THAT?!?"

"Look at the damn time, you moron!" I say as I hand him my alarm clock.

"OH MY GOD, IT'S 8:30!!! WHY DIDN'T YOU WAKE ME UP SOONER?!?!"

'Bruh'.

Pierre runs into the bathroom.

"I'm leaving. Lock the door on the way out, kay?"

"OKAY, OKAY!" I hear him shout in the shower. I grab my bag and close the door behind me.

I walk out the dorm and wait for Vian outside the school building. 2 minutes later, I see her walking towards me.

"Ready for the first day as a second year student, Vian?"

"It's not like I have a choice", Vian replies.

"JACK!!! VIAN!!!!" We turn around to see Pierre run towards us.

'How in the world-?!'

"Good morning, Jack", Pierre says as he hugs my arm.

"....good morning, Rose".

"Good morning, Vian! How are you now?"

"I'm doing great, Pierre. I got lots of bed rest", Vian shows him a thumbs up.

"Quick question, did you even shower?" I ask Pierre.

"Of course I did, why?"

"How did you shower in 2 minutes..?"

"Obviously I showered fast".

"I thought you just changed clothes".

"Bleh! I don't like to smell like trash, okay?!

Sheesh".

"Pierre, Niel, let's go inside".

"Yeah! Come on!" We start walking.

"Do you want me to carry that for you?" I ask Vian, pointing at her bag.

"Niel, I can carry this myself", she flips her straight black hair as she walks into the building and we follow her.

We walk into the auditorium.

"Let's sit at the back, guys".

"Uh, no. I'm going to sit there", Vian says pointing to a seat 3 rows to the front and walks towards it.

"Pierre, I'm gonna go sit with Vian. Just in case.."

"Ugh, fine. I'll see you in class", Pierre lets go of my arm and sits in the back.

I go sit next to Vian.

"Vian? Pierre's all alone back there".

"He wants to sit at the back. I can't really do anything. Besides, he doesn't look lonely anymore".

"What?" I turn back to see Pierre chatting with some random brunette girl.

"...I was worried for nothing", I sit back straight.

"Yeah, yeah".

I look at the front, waiting for the assembly to start.

Halfway through the principal's speech, Vian nudges me by the shoulder.

"Niel".

"Hm?"

"Laura's sitting in front of us", she says pointing to a seat a few rows to the front.

I look to where she points and I spot her.

Laura.

I find myself staring at the back of her head. She's chatting with her high school friend, Ruby.

Feeling my stare, Ruby glances at me and then at Laura.

"Laura, Niels behind us", Laura turns around at once to meet my eyes.

'I can't stop staring at her..'

We stay like that for sometime.

'......'

"Niel", Vian calls for me. I finally break eye contact with Laura.

"Let's go to class", I look at her and then at Laura, who's already getting up from her seat and leaving the auditorium with Ruby.

"....yeah. Let's go".

We go to our classroom and our homeroom professor Mr. Grayson came in. "For students who are new here, I'm Prof. Grayson. You can call me Mr. Grayson.

Let's take attendance, shall we?

Abigail Carter".

"Present".

"Adam Smith".

"Present".

"Amara Ngam".

"...."

"Amara Ngam?"

"Uhm, she's running late, professor", Pierre says with his hand in the air.

"Seriously? On the first day?", Mr. Grayson gives us an annoyed look.

"Who's that?"

"Who? Amara? She's a girl I met at the auditorium. She's super nice".

"Is it that brunette you were talking with?"

"Oh, you saw?" Pierre laughs.

"Yeah, she's the one. I'll introduce you to her once she comes. You'll love her".

"We'll see".

Mr. Grayson calls me over after the attendance was taken.

"Alright now, Mr. Roberts. Can you come up here?"

I walk towards the front of the class.

"Everyone, this year's class president will be Nathaniel Roberts. Any objections?"

The class stays silent.

"I'll take that as a no. I expect highly from you, Roberts", Mr. Grayson says as he pins the batch on my chest.

"I'll do my best, professor", I say and walk away to my seat.

A few seconds later, a girl walks in. She claims to be that new girl, Amara Ngam. She sits with Pierre behind me. After morning classes, the three of us go to the cafeteria with Vian and Lynn.

We sit at the cafeteria. Vian asks about Amara and we start eating.

'I can't help but think about this morning.

.....

Laura....

Get out of my head, dammit'.

Out of nowhere, orange juice squirts on me. I jump from the chair in surprise and brush off the orange juice, as if it would just slide off.

"Aree! You okay?" Pierre asks her.

"Omg, Niel. You're drenched in orange juice", Lynn says.

I look up to meet Aree's nervous face.

"I-I'm so sorry, Nathaniel! I didn't mean to-", I gesture her to stop.

I don't know why but I have the urge to pour out all my built up anger at her. But, I try to control myself.

"What? Are you gonna say that you didn't do it on purpose?"

"Niel, stop", Pierre tries to stop me.

"It's your first day here and you're already going around squirting juice on people? At this rate, you won't be able to survive even a week in this place".

"Niel", Vian intervenes. I glance at Vian and then at her.

"......

Tch! So annoying.." I glare at Aree and leave the cafeteria.

I'm in boys' locker room with my roommate, Samuel Johnson. He agreed to lend me his jersey for the rest of the day.

"Sorry, I didn't know who else to ask".

"Oh, no! No problem at all. Don't sweat it".

"I'll return it after we go back to the dorms".

"Uh.. Alright, see you later", Samuel awkwardly walks away.

I walk out after changing my clothes. I look at the dirty shirt in my hand.

'....

Why did you say that to her, Niel? What's gotten into you? She didn't do it on purpose. She's innocent!

I probably hurt her feelings..', I recall the incident once again.

"I'll apologise later", I tell myself and walk towards my classroom.

I walk in to see Aree talking with Pierre.

"Look, and here he comes now!", Pierre says pointing at me.

"Jack! Come here!!" I look at him and then at Aree.

I walk over to them. Aree stands up from her seat.

"U-Um.. I'm sorry for what happened at the cafeteria earlier. I didn't mean to do that. I..

I tripped", she presses her lips nervously.

'Apologise, Niel'.

"....I'm also sorry. I shouldn't have said that stuff to you. You didn't even do it on purpose..", I scratch my neck and look away.

'Why do I feel so guilty..?'

"Let's be good to each other here after, yeah?" Pierre gestures us to shake hands.

I stretch my hand towards Aree and she looks at me.

"Come one, Aree. Shake on it", Pierre tells Aree.

She slowly reaches my hand and we shake hands.

"There! Now, you're friends!!"

"Everyone, take your seats!" Ms. Joe comes in and we let go of each other's hands. We then sat in our seats.

"Roberts, since when were you in the soccer team?"

'...um..'

"I got my clothes dirty, ma'am. So, I'm just borrowing this", I answer her.

"Alright", and Ms. Joe starts the class.

Before I know it, the classes are over. I pack up my stuff and wait for Pierre. Pierre drags Aree behind me. We go to Class 2-A and bring Vian and Lynn with us too. We then walk out the building.

Vian and Lynn walk away and I wait for Pierre.

"So, Aree, how are you going home?"

"Home? My dad's bringing my stuff any minute now. After that, I'm going to my dorm".

"Really?! You're in a dorm?! With whom??!"

"I don't know, I haven't met them yet. I'll let you know tomorrow in class".

"'Kay\~ See you tomorrow. Bye!" Pierre yells as I walk away.

"Bye bye!"

We go to our dorm, change clothes and and go to our tutor class with Samuel.

At tutor class, we meet Aree. Pierre asks her to sit with us. Samuel goes to sit with his friends, as usual.

Tutoring soon finishes and we're on our way to our dorm.

"Ahhhhh.... I'm soooo tiredddd", Pierre stretches and yawns.

"You're always tired when it comes to studying", I tell him. Pierre smiles cheekily.

"Eee\~ Can't help it\~".

"U-Um...are you guys waiting for me..?" Samuel comes towards us.

"Mm", I hum in response.

"S-Sorry.. I was talking with my friends..."

"Ey\~ Don't sweat it, Sammy! Let's go. Come, Jack", Pierre says as he hugs my arm.

After having dinner, we go to bed early. But, I'm still unable to sleep.

'.......

I can't stop thinking about her..

Why does she have to play with my feelings like this?...

Ugghhh, just sleep, Niel. What the hell is wrong with you?’ I scold myself and slowly drift to sleep.

The next day, I come to class early. Students fill up the empty seats with every minute that goes by.

"Niel?" Vian walks in.

"Oh, Vian. What are you doing here?"

"What? Am I not supposed to come here or something?" Vian sits beside me.

"...that's not what I meant".

"There's literally nobody at my class right now. I didn't want to be alone. So, I decided to come here".

"Oh, okay".

"So, we're having that language test soon".

"Mhm".

"I want you to help me study", I look at her in disbelief.

"What?" She asks me.

"You and I both know that you're capable of studying all by yourself".

"Yeah, but we can also hangout this way", Vian intertwines her hand with mine and continues talking. But, I can't help but feel like being stared at.

"We can hangout whenever we want, you know that right?"

"Oh, come on!"

"Fine, I'll help. Even though it's pointless".

"Thanks, dude".

"What's the time now?" She grabs my left wrist to read the time on my watch. Suddenly, she gets up.

"Shoot! It's almost 9. I should go. I'll come meet you after classes, 'kay?"

"Alright".

"Oh!" She hands me a lunch box.

"Mom asked me to give this to you".

"Lunch?"

"Yeah, sandwich. Just the way you like it".

"She didn't have to".

"It's not the first time she's making you lunch. Just take it", I take it from her hands.

"See you!"

"Mhm", I smile and wave at her as she walks out the class.

"JACK! I'M HERE!!" Pierre runs into the class and shouts like the idiot he normally is.

"...you don't have to shout, Rose. I'm right here", I cross my arms.

"Tch! I ran all the way here for you but you ask me to shut up. I don't think you love me anymore", Pierre fake cries.

"Wipe your fake tears and come sit", Pierre gives me a side eye and sits behind me.

"Um.. Jack?"

"What?"

"Why is Laura staring into your soul..?"

"..what?" I look at her from across the classroom.

And I shouldn't have done it.

Because Laura's staring at me like she wants to rip my heart out and feed it to the crocs. I slowly turn away.

"She looks like she wants to rip your heart out and feed it to the crocs".

"Rose, you just read my mind".

"Hehe".

I don't know why, but I look back at her again.

'She's still glaring at me...'

I gulp and look away.

'Oh, Jesus. Why? Just, why?'

"Jack?"

"Yeah?"

"Laura's coming this way".

"What?!" I whisper-shout at him.

Suddenly, I feel a hand hold my wrist tightly. I take a deep breath and look up to meet Laura's eyes.

"I need to talk to you", The class starts whispering. I glare at her.

"....what do you think you're doing, Laura?"

"I just want to talk to you", Laura tightens her grip and pulls me. She fast walks out the class with me behind her.

I let her pull me into the boys' locker room. She lets go of my wrist harshly, slams me against the lockers and pins me.

The boys who are in the room get startled and realised that it's their cue to leave. They run away, and it's just the two of us now.

"What do you want, Laura?"

"Are you doing this on purpose?"

"What are you talking about?"

" You know exactly what I'm talking about.

You know that I'm possessive over you and so, you're being close to Vivian to make me jealous".

"Have you finally lost your last brain cell, Laura? You know what Vian is to me and you can still talk like that?"

"Ha! I bet you guys fuck each other behind my back".

"Hold your tongue, Laura! One more bad word about Vian, and I'll seriously hurt you!"

"Me?! You'll hurt me?!? Am I nothing to you?! Why is she so much more important than me?!!"

"Because, unlike you, she gives me importance! You only care about your fake ass friends!!"

"Don't talk about them like that".

"Then, don't talk about my Vian like that".

"My Vian?! What am I then?! Am I not yours?!"

"Not with that attitude, you're not", Laura stops talking and stares into my eyes.

"Ha.. what happened to us, Niel?"

"It's your fault we're like this, Laura. You did this to us".

"I didn't mean to, though. Can't we go back to how it was before?"

'Yes'.

"No, not until you leave your friends".

"They're important to me".

"If they're more important than me, then you can forget about us".

"So, Vian can be more important than me, but my friends can't be more important than you?"

"I wouldn't even care if it weren't for their character, Laura. They're bad influence and I've told you countless times.

Just leave them and-"

"Why are you always bad mouthing them?! They're my friends!"

"......" I go silent.

"...it's useless talking to you", I shove her off and walk out the locker room. Laura grabs my wrist from behind and I look back at her.

I look into her pretty green eyes.

"Niel, I-"

"For Christ's, shut up. I don't want to hear another word from you", I shove her hand off and walk away to the classroom.

'......

This is normal now'.

-to be continued...

Nathaniel Roberts

With Love, Your Idiot

"SHIT! SHIT! SHIT! SHIT! SHIIITT!!"

I run through the hallways to my classroom.

"Why did I have to wake up late?!" I shout as I run.

So, my dad came yesterday to drop off my stuff at the dorm.

.

.

.

"Aree, I brought all the luggage in your room. Check if any of them are missing. If there is, I'll go get it".

"No, phaw. You brought everything".

"Alright. Take care of yourself".

"Okay, phaw".

"Eat and sleep properly. Study hard, okay? We're hard on you because we love you. You know that, right?"

"I know, phaw".

"Come home whenever you feel like it. Your mae and I will be waiting", he said and hugged me. I hugged him back.

"You and mae both, take care of yourself, okay? I'll call you everyday".

"Alright", my dad turned on the car.

"Bye, sweetie".

"Bye bye, phaw", I smiled and waved at him and he drove away in his car.

I took my luggage and went to the warden.

"Amara Ngam?"

"Yes".

"You're in Dorm 207. It's on the second floor. Your dorm mates are Maria Blaine and Kailynn Lanier".

'Lynn!'

She handed me my name plate to put on my dorm room door.

"Okay, thank you", I thanked her and walked away.

After I reached the dorm, I looked at the name plates below the room number.

"Maria Blaine. Kailynn Lanier. I know how Lynn is but, will this Maria person be a nice person?

Can't know until I find out for myself now, can I?" I knocked on the door.

The door opened and I saw a black girl.

"Are you Amara Ngam?"

"Uh, yes! Yes, I am".

"Please, come in", I walked in.

‘She’s so pretty!’

"I'm Maria Blaine. It's nice to meet you, Amara", she extends her hand towards me. I reach for her hand and shake it.

"Nice to meet you too. And please, call me Aree".

"That's your room", Maria pointed towards a door.

"We cleaned and decorated it a little for you", she smiled.

"You didn't have to do that but, thank you. I appreciate it", I smiled at her.

"You can freshen up and keep your stuff there. We have tutor class in half an hour".

"Oh, okay. Thanks, Maria", I opened the room door.

The windows were covered with baby pink curtains. The white walls had star lighting hung close to the ceiling. There was a desk and a chair opposite to the double sized bed.

'Oh my god, the room's super prettyyyy!!'

I looked at the empty walls.

"But\~

These walls would look absolutely gorgeous with the N9NE posters I packed", I said and glanced at one of my suitcases.

"I'll decorate this room after dinner", I left my stuff in the room and closed the door behind me.

I went to the sitting area and saw Maria and Lynn talking. Maria had told Lynn that I had arrived. So, the first thing she said when she laid her eyes on me was,

"Omg! Aree!!" She hugged me tightly.

"We're now dorm mates! I'm soooo excited\~"

"Yes, Lynn. Me too".

"When I told Lynn that you came, she was super excited and said that you guys were friends", Maria came up to us.

"Well, we just met today but, yeah", I said awkwardly.

"Who cares if we met just today? We're friends now. So, we have to get to know each other more", Lynn said, still hugging me.

"Of course".

"Let's go", Maria said and we went to our respective tutor classes.

I went inside the class and looked for a place to sit. Suddenly, I felt someone wrap their arms around me with force.

"Aree!" I looked through my shoulder and saw Pierre in a white t-shirt.

"Pierre! Hey.

Hi, Nathaniel", I waved at Nathaniel.

"Mm, hi".

"So\~ Did you go to your dorm? Who are your dorm mates? I'm soooo curious, tell me!!" Pierre said.

"Well\~ there are two girls".

"Uh huh\~"

"One of them are Lynn".

"Really?! So you're in the same dorm as Lynn?! That's convenient for you, isn't it?"

"It really is. You have no idea how relieved I was when I saw her name plate.

The other one is a girl named Maria Blaine".

"Oh, yeah. She told me at lunch".

"She's nice".

"Yeah. But, she used to be friends with that Emma Raine", Pierre scoffed.

"Emma? Who's that?"

"Sigh.. there are many group of bullies here at this varsity. Emma's gang is one of them.

The gang consists of five girls and Emma is their leader. They basically do anything she tells them to.

From what I know, Maria cut ties with her after she became a bully".

"Oh...

You seem to hate her".

"Yeah, I don't like her. She's a pain sometimes. But, from what I know, her four friends are innocent. They're just misguided by her.

I'll tell you more about her and her gang when we get the time".

"Mhm".

"By the way, Maria's in the Photography department".

"Oh, I see".

We saw the teacher coming in and so, we took our seats. The teacher started taking class and we took notes.

After the class, I waved at Pierre and Nathaniel and went back to the dorm.

Back at the dorm, we sat down and had our dinner. After dinner, I said goodnight to both Maria and Lynn and went to my room. I opened my luggage that was completely filled with K-pop merch.

"Trust me, room. You'll look absolutely gorgeous with all my posters".

.

.

.

I spent HOURS on decorating the room and arranging everything. I went to bed super late and because of that.. I....

I forgot to set my alarm.

That's why I'm running right now.

I bet you guys are laughing your ass off seeing my condition.

I reach the floor my class is on and stop to take a breather.

"OoH gOdd..", my voice breaks.

Just as I'm about to fast walk, I see Nathaniel walking out the boys' locker room furiously. To make it more confusing, I see a brown haired girl run behind him and grab his wrist. She's arguing with him and Nathaniel's shaking off her hand after giving her a reply. Nathaniel walks away.

'...what did I just witness..?'

The girl starts crying. I slowly walk towards her and place my hand on her shoulder. She turns towards me, startled.

"Um.. Are you okay?

That was Nathaniel just now, wasn't it? What's wrong?"

She shoves my hand off her shoulder harshly.

"That's none of your fucking business", she curses and quickly walks past me. I look back at her and see her wiping her tears.

"I asked because I was worried. No need to curse at my face.

Sheesh", I roll my eyes and jog to the class.

I walk in to see everyone in their own groups of friends, chatting, laughing, gossiping and teasing each other.

My eyes fall on the girl I saw earlier.

'She's in my class?!!' She glances at me once and averts her eyes quickly.

I go over to my seat and greet Pierre.

"Hey, Pierre!"

"Aree\~ You're here, finally!"

"Why? Were you lonely?" I laugh and sit next to him.

"Nope! I just felt awkward after what happened a few moments ago".

"What do you mean?"

"Eh, it's nothing. Forget it", I stare at him.

"Pierre".

"Hm?" He looks at me.

"I think I saw Nathaniel arguing with that girl", I tell him, pointing at her.

"Is there something going on between them?"

"Stop pointing", he says awkwardly as he holds the same hand that I'm pointing at her with.

"Why?"

"...

Now's not the time to talk about this. I'll tell you a little later.

I promise, 'kay?" Pierre says with a serious face.

'...

His serious face is really something'.

I look at his hand that's still holding mine.

"Pierre..

My hand", he immediately takes his hand off.

"Haha.. I'm sorry", he laughs awkwardly. I laugh back at him.

'He's back to normal'.

"But, why do you wanna know?"

"I'm just curious. That's all".

"Uh huh. I'll tell you when it's time, just like I promised".

"Alright, alright".

Nathaniel walks in and sits in his seat without glancing at that girl, not even once.

Me and Pierre look at each other. Pierre leans forward.

"Jack? You okay, man?" Nathaniel turns around to look at him and then at me.

"I'm fine", he says with his usual cold voice and sits straight.

'......'

Class starts. I can't help but think about what I saw.

'What's her relationship with Nathaniel..?

Why did he look so angry?

Why did she cry?'

"Ha.. dammit" I curse under my breath.

Morning classes go by and it's lunch time already.

"Aree. Let's go", Pierre smiles.

"...yeah, okay".

"I'll bring Vian and Lynn. You guys go to the cafeteria and get our food", Nathaniel says and leaves.

Pierre and I go to the cafeteria. I grab a plate and get the food. I suddenly remember something that happened yesterday.

"Pierre! Are you going to carry all the plates in your hands like yesterday??", I ask with sparkling eyes.

"Why?"

"Because it looks so cool!" Pierre laughs.

"Well, yeah. 'Cause you can't".

"Ouch", I say and turn around to walk away. Just when I'm about to reach our table, I bump into a blonde girl and I drop my food on her.

The plate falls to the floor and the students that saw the scene start to gossip. Pierre looks back at me.

"Here, put these on my table, will yah?" Pierre hands all four plates to a guy next to him.

"Uh-! Sure!" He says awkwardly.

I look up at her face.

ANBDBEJWMNKEKWBDBENWNWNE

SHE’S SO FRICKING GORGEOUS!! WHAT THE HELL?!?!!?

"What the-!" I come back to my senses.

"Oh my god! I am so sorry! I didn't mean to do that!! Here, let me help you!!" I say and take out a tissue and wipe the food on her chest.

At least that's what I was hoping to do. As I wipe the food, it just smears and makes her bright pink top look like vomit.

"Shit, I'm just making things worse".

"STOP IT!" She says and pushes me.

"WHO THE FUCK ARE YOU, HUH?! HOW DARE YOU MAKE MY DESIGNER TOP DIRTY?!"

"I-I didn't mean to- Damn, why am I stuttering?"

"HEY! LOOK AT ME!! NOT ONLY DID YOU DO THAT, YOU ALSO TOUCHED ME!!

DO I LOOK LIKE I'M A STREET RAT LIKE YOU??!"

"S-Street rat?"

'You callin' me a street rat, while you look like Regina George jumped out of  the Mean Girls?!'

(The girl be accidentally calling her hot oof-)

"YEAH! YEAH, YOU ARE. I BET YOU WOULD FOLLOW ANYONE AND DO ANYTHING IF THEY OFFER YOU MONEY, YOU FUCKING WHORE!"

"EMMA!!" Pierre shouts at her.

"Who do you think you're talking to?"

"I thought you clearly heard me. She's a who-".

"Emma.

She's my friend. I can't tolerate this".

"You think I give a fuck, Pierre? Just because you're friends with Nathaniel, it doesn't mean you're scary too.

You're just his sidekick".

"I'm a sidekick if I wanna be but, that's none of your damn business. You're disrespecting my friend here. Apologise to Aree, right now".

"Aree? That's your name? So dumb, just like you".

'Yeah? Well, you're the definition of dumb.

I wanna say that out loud but... I'm a coward. I can't say it...'.

I gulp.

"What? You're not going to say anything? So, you really are dumb!"

"Yeah, I'm dumb. At least I'm not a bitch", I blurt out.

"WHAT?! WHAT DID YOU CALL ME?!?" She slaps me so hard across the face, my eyes widen like plates. I stare at her, trying to process what just happened.

Before I know it, my tears fall nonstop.

"EMMA!" Pierre shouts.

"YOU'RE CROSSING YOUR LIMITS!!".

"Yeah, well. I can do more", she says as she grabs a bottle of water and pours the entire thing on my head.

I stare at the floor as I'm completely drenched.

"What have you done?!"

"What? I'm just showing her who's the boss here", she snickers.

I'm soaking wet. To make things worse, I'm wearing a white shirt today of all days. I try to cover myself as much as I can.

"I thought you were a whore. Why are you embarrassed, huh?"

Pierre immediately takes off his jacket and covers me. He then hugs me to reassure me.

Emma snickers.

"I can't believe this, Pierre. So, she's fucking you too?" Pierre takes his hands off me and walks upto her.

Then, he slaps her so hard, her cheek turns red. She holds her cheek and looks at him with a shocked face.

"If you don't want your tongue cut off, you better shut the fuck up", Pierre tells her off in a low but scary voice.

"Let's go, Aree", Pierre pulls me by the hand furiously. Nathaniel stands far away, taking in what just happened. We walk out the cafeteria and he takes me to the girls' locker room.

"Wait here, I'll go get you something to wear from my locker", he says and leaves.

I wait for him outside the room. A few minutes later,

"Here".

"Ha.... Thanks, Pierre-"

"Pierre?" I look at the direction of the voice.

It's a super tall, breathtakingly beautiful, blonde male.

'His deep blue eyes look absolutely stunning...' I stare at his glowing face.

"Um.. what?"

"Huh?"

"Why are you staring at my face?"

"...who are you?"

"You don't even know me?" He laughs.

'Even his laugh his stunning!' I decide to continue creeping him out by staring at his gorgeous face.

"Uh.. I saw what happened at the cafeteria", he rubs the back of his neck, awkwardly. I look away remembering the scene from earlier.

"I thought, maybe I could help you by at least giving you these..", he says, giving me a towel and a black T-shirt.

"No, wait! You don't have to do that!! My friend's gone to get me clothes. You don't have to-"

"Please, just take it".

"But, you don't have to-!"

"I felt a little guilty that I couldn't do anything back there. That's why, I'm doing this.

Just take it", I look at him and then at his hands. I reluctantly take them both.

"Thank you so much", I make a 90° bow to show my gratitude.

"Oh, don't bow! This is the least I can do", he flashes a smile at me.

"Take care!" He says and walks away. I stare at his walking figure.

'....

His hair looks soft'.

Sorry, guys. But, that's all I can think of right now.

(Simp.)

I walk into the girls' locker room and take off Pierre's jacket, then my wet T-shirt. I then dry off with the towel that guy gave me and then put on the oversized black T-shirt.

"What did I expect, that it'd fit me? He's a tall, beautiful guy! Of course, the shirt's loose", I say as I look at the collar that doesn't want to stay on my shoulder.

Just then, I hear a knock on the door.

"Aree? It's me", Pierre says from the other side of the door.

"Oh, I almost forgot about him", I say to myself and open the door.

"Here, I got you a fresh towel and-", he pauses after looking at me.

"Where did you get that from?"

"What?"

"The shirt you're wearing, and the towel in your hand".

"Oh, some guy came and gave them to me".

"Some guy came and gave them to you?"

"Yeah".

*"Some guy* gave you, his shirt and his probably dirty towel?"

"Yeah".

"Some guy gave you, his shirt and his probably dirty towel, and you took it?"

"Yeah", Pierre facepalms.

"Aree, you're not supposed to just take something from a guy you don't even know!"

"...oh".

"God".

"I couldn't help it! He was too beautiful!!"

Pierre just stares at me with the most concerned face ever.

"Oh, god. Did you get his name?"

"...."

"Oh my god, Aree!"

"I'm sorry!!"

Pierre and I walk down the hallways towards the cafeteria because, we still haven't eaten yet.

"Just eat. We're on our way to the cafeteria right now", Pierre hangs up.

"Was that Nathaniel?"

"Yeah, he said that the others are already there and asked when we're coming".

"Oh, I see", I say as I put my hands inside the pockets of the jacket I'm wearing.

"You seem to like the jacket a lot".

"Yeah, it looks cool! Can I wear it for the rest of the day, please??"

"Of course, you can", he laughs.

I see a familiar figure from afar.

"Oh! Pierre, that's the guy that gave me his shirt", I point at him.

"Where?"

"That tall guy with the beautiful blonde hair!"

"Oh, Louise?"

"His name is Louise?"

"Yeah, Louise Smith".

"He's the sports caption here. He's very good at sports. He can play almost anything. He's also the most handsome guy in college.

After me, of course", Pierre flipped his non existent long hair off his shoulder.

"Seriously?"

"Okay, I'll admit that he is pretty handsome. But, not as handsome as I.

He's also very popular. But, unlike many people, he doesn't let it get to him. He likes to help people like Jack does, minus the violent behaviour. Louise is seriously terrified of him".

"Really, now?"

"Yeah. He's as innocent as a baby", I look at Louise, who's joking around with his friends.

"But, I don't trust innocent looking people. They're the dirtiest", he adds. I decide to tease him.

"You look innocent".

".....Nice try but, I ain't falling for that".

We walk past Louise and his friends.

'.....he doesn't seem dirty to me.

I have a feeling I'm going to see him more often'.

-to be continued...

Emma Raine

With Love, Your Idiot