Alex's POV
Whatever it was, must've really affected this guy, he was not joking at all. It felt like a heat rising upwards my abdomen, reaching towards my head and ears. I bent down and splashed myself with cold water again, to calm myself down.
Mike and the other boy paused for a moment longer than a second. Mike blinked hard, dropping a casual laugh to perhaps lighten the atmosphere.
"Relax! I'm joking," he said, placing both his palms towards me and taking a step back.
As the cold water hit my eyes, nose and ears, it sent a counter reaction to my body, causing a drop in the intensity of emotions that had suddenly sprawled upon me. It was strange.
I looked at him, face still dripping with water, pooling near my collar. Both of them had a grin on their faces, showcasing their immature crowded teeth.
"I didn't know what happened," I went back to my low tone of voice.
"It's alright, as long as you get me the game CD!"
Mike said, wrapping me one of his arms and the boy in the other, making us face to face with each other. I looked away, as his pale face had turned paler, lips almost purple.
'Sorry about that before," I told him, smiling to whiff off the atmosphere.
"It's alright," he said, fixing his glasses.
"Oh, right, I don't know your name yet."
"It's Ronin," he said, as his shoulder dropped downwards like a rag doll.
"Come on guys!" Mike said, as he began to drag us out of the room, "don't leave me out!"
He tightened the grip and looked down, with Ronin and my head touching at this point like rams grinding horns.
As he dragged us through the lobby, I looked at the sky outside the windows. The dense clouds clearing led to a denser cover. It was hues of orange and purple mixed together like they were set on an artist's palette, messy but beautiful. But there was only one question running through my mind.
'What did he see that Max didn't wish to show?'
Upon reaching the gate of the school, he loosened his grip around us, letting us free.
"Ow!"
Both Ronin and me winced in pain holding our necks as they were set sideways.
But that freedom was short-lived, as he grabbed my neck again. He dragged me outside the school gate and looked back at Ronin, who was confused.
"I'll take him home, you leave!" He exclaimed.
"As for you," he said, pointing at me, "you'd promised we'd go home and study together."
Him as a tutor? Either my family has won a lottery or he's doing it for free. There can be no other option.
"Your tutoring fees must be expensive right?"
"Um... Not really," he said as he pulled me along, "just the game CD! I want it badly!"
'Maybe his parents are strict? Why couldn't he buy the game otherwise?'
The walk to my alley was very long but not the worst. The dusk sky had transitioned into a navy blue, exceptionally clear with stars sprinkled around. The moon was Illuminating the otherwise dark space, paired with a broken streetlight.
Much of the sides of the place were covered in garbage bags, which I thought a rich guy like him would repulse at, but instead he was hopping over them, like a playful child. I followed him but slipped a time or a two, with him blitzing just in time to help me back.
The ground plus one house was located at the corner of the alley, with a blinking cool light bulb at the entrance. There was a wall in front of my house, unlike others who had their neighbours facing them. The ceilings were low and windows grilled with rusted iron rods, and a rooftop that had a tarp canopy over it.
As I entered the house through the foyer, I was met with a scent of bitter almonds and curry, followed by a damp smell that lingered.
The house had mismatched carpets on the floor, spread around. The lights were dim with only two working out of the three and there were pressure cooker whistles going on in the background, mixed with the noise of the TV advertisements in the background.
There was a woman in the kitchen, probably my mom. She had a round face, petite body and small eyes, paired with fuller lips and hair that seemed a little greasy.
Dad was sitting on the couch, reading the newspaper. He was a taller but lean man, glasses on his high nose bridge and a overall saggy face contrasted by the proud eyes. He was wearing a white sleeveless vest and some sweatpants.
"We're back guys!" Mike exclaimed, gaining their attention.
Mom came out of the kitchen. Perhaps she stopped by to welcome me?
"How was your day, son?" She asked with a smile.
"It was good!" I smiled back, but her smile turning into a grin for a reason.
She went to Mike and strangely took his bag off his shoulders. Dad closed the newspaper and gave him a smile, his eyes shining like the stars in the night sky.
I felt a little dejected, I'm not going to lie.
I walked towards the room near the small dining table, and entered inside. Unlike the rest of the house, this room was better. It had warm lights from lamps spread across and some fake vines along the edge of the ceiling. A study table at the corner near the window, with the polish of its center being eroded, covered in shelves of books.
I noticed something interesting.
A brown wooden guitar near the single bed with scratches along its surface, its strings broken but fixed with threads and tape.
'Man, this Max guy is really resilient!'
As I was familiarising with Max's life and looking around at the room, Mike walked in, smiling and happy. I looked at him, my gaze sharpened.
His lips parted slightly.
Why are my parents showering him with love? Just because he's a topper he deserves love more than me?
With a throbbing pain rising at the front of my head, I winced at him, cupping my head in my hands, "I'm not feeling well right now, please leave so I can rest," I got on the bed and rested my back against the wall.
He didn't seem to have any words to say. He just stood there, staring at me as I put my head against the cold wall.
His lips suddenly broke into a soft smile, and he began to nod his head.
"What?" I asked, in a high tone of voice.
"Has the football hit affected your memory?" He said, walking closer towards me.
"What do you mean?"
He chuckled, "You think this is your house?"
"Of course it's mine, you're the perfect popular and rich prota-"
Wait.
He probably doesn't know we're in a story.
And tropes change in real life.
My eyes widened.
I jumped off the bed as fast as a grasshopper. My cheeks turned bright red as I contained myself, unable to make any eye contact with him.
This was his house!
He was not necessarily rich!
"I'm... sorry... for real this time," I muttered.
A scoff escaped his lips, that turned into a full-blown laughter. My chest tightened at each beat, leaving me with no choice but to hide my face with the bag and dash away from the place.
'Alex you fool!'