Tuk, tuk, tuk...
The sound of the phone keypad could be heard softly amidst the din of the classroom, which hadn't yet started class. Dina looked down, her fingers nimbly typing something on her gray Nokia N70.
"… Din. DIN!"
Dina lifted her head slightly, reflexively. "Yes?"
Icha had already leaned forward, sitting while slamming the table. Her high-tied curly hair swayed in irritation.
"I've called you all this time… but you keep texting," she grumbled. "Who are you texting?"
"Alfa," Dina replied curly, her eyes returning to the phone screen.
"Alfa again?" Icha tilted her head, adopting a detective expression. "Is this the Alfa from before, or another Alfa?"
Dina just grinned, busted. "Mmm… different."
Icha slapped her forehead as if give up on her friend. "Oh my, Dina. How many Alfas do you want to collect? Every time someone called Alfa comes close, you text. How many Alfas have you had? Twenty? Thirty?"
Dina glared, defending herself. "Who collects Alfas? I only text Alfas that fit my criteria. Besides, my feeling says that... this Alfa is the Alfa I'm looking for."
"Your feeling? You were saying something like that the other day." Icha snorted. "See, since when was your feeling right?"
Dina could only sneer.
Icha let out a long sigh, her tone turning soft but still nagging. "I never forbade you from remembering the past, Din. But when it gets to this point, It feels a bit... obsessive, you know."
Here we go again...
Dina exhaled, then stared for a moment before turning off her cellphone screen. "I'm not obsessive, Cha. I just want to meet my little hero. I want to know what he's like now. Who knows, maybe this Alfa is really my Alpha."
Those memories always come back like movie clips: a bleeding knee, an orange sunset, someone carrying her home. Because of that, whenever there's an Alfa anywhere—a mutual friend, a friend of a friend, even a rumored acquaintance of an acquaintance—Dina almost always approaches.
"It's all the same," Icha said, not wanting to be outdone. Before Dina could reply, Icha pointed to the front of the class. "Hey, but why doesn't that Alfa count?"
Dina turned.
Ando.
Laughing in that annoying, pretentious way. His hair was a bit messy, but it suited his overconfident face. He was chatting with Aldi and Dudik—and making a scene, of course.
The guy's full name: Alfariando.
In theory: yes, he's also an Alfa.
In practice: Dina had already rejected him before the idea even came up.
"That one definitely isn't the Alfa I'm looking for," she said quickly. "My Alfa is cute and gentlemanly. But he…" Dina made a tired expression that reflected her long history of annoyance.
Icha shrugged. "I don't think so. I think he's cute. His attitude isn't that bad either."
Dina stared at Icha like she was staring at a chalkboard with scribbles. "Cha, he gets on my nerves every day. Just in case you forgot."
Icha was silent for two seconds. "Just with you."
Dina rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah, whatever. Okay, I'm going to continue texting," she concluded, returning her focus to her phone, leaving Icha to her own rant.
"I have a friend whose hobby is chasing after a name."
Dina ignored her, a small smile returned.
Who knows, maybe this Alfa is really my Alfa. And if not… well, that's it.
Searching is sometimes more fun than finding.