Please Break My Heart

Chapter 13

Being in a relationship with a famous varsity was tiring. How Ayanna wished she could stop hanging out with him.

Lake was anything but a bad company, Ayanna was sure of that. But she really was getting tired of having to hang out with him every time. Especially when he asked her to have a dinner with him on Tuesday evening. He said they would be eating with the varsities and that she could bring Lilia along. On the side note, she still had not introduced Lilia to Lake.

“When are you going to stop moping?” Lilia asked Ayanna who was seated on her bed, staring at her clothes. Lilia was already clad in a simple indigo shirt and a pair of jeans. Yet she still looked pretty. Between the two of them, Lilia had always been the prettier one despite being a total nerd. One would wonder why Ayanna was Lake’s girlfriend and not Lilia—and that bothered Ayanna.

Ayanna heaved a sigh. “I don’t know what to wear. They’re Lake’s friends and they have seen prettier girls. I would not want to be insulted. They all seem like someone who judges other people.”

“And you’re not?”

“Hey! That’s just rude.” Ayanna scowled.

“Look, Ayanna, don’t you feel bad for judging them? And look at Lake, he isn’t as bad as you thought he was, right?”

“Lake is still a player though. That won’t stop me from thinking that his friends are superficial.”

“Is Lake superficial?”

Ayanna clammed up. She did not think that Lake was superficial anymore. He was anything but shallow. He was nice, and wonderful, and understanding, and polite, and a real gentleman. And he loved dogs! That was the most important thing. So no, Lake was anything but superficial or shallow.

“Figures.” Lilia chuckled. “Go and get ready. We don’t want to leave a bad impression on Lake’s close friends now, do we?”

*****

If Ayanna could make a wish at the moment, she wished that she could leave a bad impression on Lake and his friends. At least that would be better than what had happened. Because Lake was coming straight out of training, Ayanna assured him that she and Lilia could take the jeepney which they did.

When they arrived, however, Ayanna was thrown teasing looks from Lake’s friends.

It turned out both Lake and Ayanna decided to wear a white polo shirt and a pair of jeans, making it seem like they had talked about it. The others then proceeded to tease that they were soulmates of some sort. Even Lilia was smiling in amusement while the quiet Zaire was smirking.

“When you don’t even talk about your outfits but fate just wants you two to be similar,” Ethan teased.

“I wish I have a girlfriend to wear a couple shirt with,” Kurt whistled.

“You would if you’re not a massive player,” Lucio teased Kurt, earning himself a hit from Kurt.

“We’re supposed to be teasing the couple, not me.” Kurt looked at Lucio in disbelief, betrayal was written all over his face.

Everyone laughed.

“Okay, okay, enough teasing,” Lake chimed in, pulling a chair out for both Ayanna and Lilia.

The two girls sat with Lilia thanking Lake. Lake simply nodded and sat down on his seat. Ayanna was seated in the middle of Lake and Lilia. Across Lake was Kurt and on the seat beside him, across Ayanna was Lucio. Then, Zaire occupied the seat across Lilia. Finally, Ethan was seated at the farthest right, in between Zaire and Lilia.

“What do you guys want to eat? It’s Lake’s treat!” Lucio declared.

Lake rolled his eyes. “I knew you’re going to say that,” he huffed. “Fine, order whatever you want. It’s on me. But please choose something that’s in a reasonable price or I’ll make you pay,” he warned his friends but the four other boys were already too busy choosing their foods. He sighed before turning to the laughing Ayanna and chuckling Lilia. “How about the two of you?”

“I’ll get a pesto pasta, please,” Lilia replied.

“You?” Lake asked Ayanna.

“I’ll get a pesto pasta as well,” Ayanna answered.

 “You don’t even like pesto,” Lilia scoffed. “You’re just imitating my order again, aren’t you?”

Ayanna rolled her eyes. “People can change their minds, you know?”

Lake laughed softly. “Not as often or as easy as you do.”

Ayanna turned to her boyfriend, glaring. “What do you mean by that?”

The latter simply shrugged, laughing. He pinched Ayanna’s nose. “You know what I mean. Anyway, would you rather have baked mac? Or spaghetti?”

“What are you going to have?”

“I’m going to have baked mac. If you’re going to copy my order, make sure you eat it.”

“Oh, I will.” Ayanna rolled her eyes. She was about to speak more when she noticed how everyone else seemed to be staring at them. She pinked in embarrassment. Everyone else had a knowing smile on their faces. Oh how Ayanna wished she could erase those smiles. “What?” she found herself blurting out.

Ethan shook his head, grinning. “Nothing, nothing. Don’t mind us and continue talking as if you’re the only two in the room. But don’t flirt too much, I’m allergic to ants.”

“Who on Earth is allergic to ants?” Lake asked before Ayanna could so the latter nodded her head in agreement. The couple were both finding the situation funny, fully ignoring how they were the ones being teased.

“Me.” Ethan pointed at himself. “And that’s beside the point.”

“I like how this couple just blatantly ignored the fact that they are being teased,” Lucio commented, chuckling.

“I think they’re just both slow,” Lilia chimed in that Ayanna had to stare at her in disbelief, feeling betrayed. “What? I’m just saying what I think.”

“And to think you’re my best friend,” Ayanna muttered under her breath but was still enough for everyone else to hear. That made everyone—with the exception of the chuckling Zaire—laugh.

“You know, I think Ayanna and Lilia are pretty cool,” Ethan stated. “I think we should officially let them on our group of friends.”

“Yeah and if Lake and I broke up?” Ayanna found herself saying before she could stop herself. Her eyes widened at her own words and she noticed how Lake seemed to have stiffened beside her. Lilia also gave her a look as if saying that what she said was uncalled for. However, Ayanna could not take back what she had already said.

Lake cleared her throat. “I don’t think that’s going to happen anytime soon,” he said, earning cheers from his friends.

“You go get your girl, Lake!” Ethan hollered, earning their table some looks from the people around them.

“Oh goodness, they’re so embarrassing.” Ayanna buried her face on her palms, making their friends laugh once again.

The dinner went on like that. It was filled with laughter and teasing. Even so, Ayanna had thoroughly enjoyed the company given by Lake’s friends and of course, her best friend and Lake himself. Suddenly, she did not think of them as someone as shallow as before. They were fun to be with.

They laughed at funny yet silly things, they were polite, and they tried not to make her and Lilia awkward.

Before she knew it, she was promising them that she would see them again.

Because they seemed like…normal people. A person just like herself.