Chapter 1 - Best Of Friends

“Ben, wake up!” I heard my sister, Charm, from the side of my bed. “You need to prepare for school; it’s your first day in college. Come on! Get up!”

I opened my eyes, still sleepy. I looked sat on my bed and looked at her. “What are you doing here?” I asked my sister as she put another hair pin on her hair. “I mean, what are you doing in my room?”

“Mum asked me to wake you up,” Charm answered. “And I’m on a hurry because Carlo’s going to pick me early so Dad won’t see him.” Carlo is my sister’s boyfriend. Dad talks too much sometimes to people that he forgets the time, my sister is just avoiding Dad to see Carlo because we’re certain that Dad will talk to him until 7:00, 30 minutes before the first bell rings. And we need to drive 45 minutes to get to school on time.

I stood from my bed and went to the veranda of my room. The sun hasn’t risen yet, and it’s still foggy outside. The digital clock beside my bed said its only 4:30 a.m. “It’s too early, are you expecting him to pick you up at 5:00?”

“No,” she said. “I expect him to pick me up at 5:30. Dad wakes up at six remember?”

“Yeah,” I said.

“Now, fix your bed, Benedict!” She calls me Benedict whenever she orders me or talks to me like she’s my mother. Mum and Dad does too when they talk to me about serious things.

“Yes, Mum,” I said sarcastically. She looked at me with her left eyebrow raised, it means “shut-up and do as I say or I’ll crack your nuts.”

I went downstairs and greeted Mum good morning. I sat on the table and took bacon and eggs. Mum poured a cup of coffee for me and returned to the kitchen. “Do you know where to go later? Do you want me to ask your sister to accompany you to your classroom first before she goes to hers?”

“No Mum, I’m fine! I know where what to do and where to go,” my Mum babies me too much when it comes to these stuffs. “I always eat lunch there with her when I was in High School, remember?”

“Yeah, I’m just making sure that you won’t lose your way,” Mum said. “Did you pack your books?”

“I won’t need those today Mum,” I said as I stuff my mouth with Bacon. My Mum would always look at the clock every five minutes, as if it would make the time run faster. She’s more excited for me to go to college than me.

After I ate my breakfast, I went to the living room and played music and I did my stretching. I heard a car pulled at our driveway. I looked at the window, the sun was rising and the grasses on our lawn and leaves of Mum’s plants was glittering with dews, Carlo went out of his car and walk towards our front doorsteps. He knocked and I shouted, “Sis, your boyfriend’s here.”

She came down the stairs, half running, and said “Don’t say ‘you’re boyfriend.’ Call him by his name. If he heard you he’ll be upset and think you don’t like him.”

I looked at my Mum and she looked at me with her Don’t-do-that-again look. My sister opened the door and let him in. She greeted my Mum and nodded at me and threw and bag of Trolie’s. He’s trying to bribe me with these like I’m a kid. We’ll, even if I’m sixteen, I can’t deny that they’re my favourite. “Thanks dude,” I said.

My sister looked at me with her Remember-What-I-Told-You look. She told me never to call him dude, she doesn’t want me calling anyone dude or bro or something. She said it’s how bystanders call each other, well, I still use those words.

After a few more look at the mirror, Charm and Carlo left and I went to my room and prepared for school. I took a quick shower; the heater’s broke so I have to take a bath with cold water. After that soul freezing shower, I dried myself and put on a simple t-shirt, jeans and sweater and my old ragged shoes. I have a new one, but I don’t want to use it. Wearing new stuffs on the first day of classes are grade school stuff.

I took my new school I.D. and wore it, showing the name KYLE BENEDICT BELLEZA, and my picture. Man, I hate school I.D.s. I fixed my hair and went downstairs and took my allowance from my Dad who’s now reading newspaper and drinking coffee.

“Bye Mum, bye Dad!” I said as I went outside. They shouted something, maybe a reminder about school again, so I just shouted, “I know! Bye!”

I don’t have a car, now, how am I supposed to get to school you may ask? With my bicycle of course! I put on my safety gears and pedalled my way to school. There are tons of students who do that here even if they’re in college, you know. Some people would just like give their legs some exercise, some would like to save the environment, and some, like me, can’t afford them. My Mum’s a teacher, my Dad’s a police. Yes, they can buy a car, but if they buy a car for me, then I would have to say goodbye to college for a year.

I have to pass by the woods near Mrs. Garcia’s, my grandmother’s best friend, to take the shortcut that will lead me directly to East College, home of the Soaring Phoenix. As I pedalled my way to the woods, several people we’re greeting me, smirking and waving their hands, they’re my Dad’s friend. Dad has tons of friends, he’s well known here in our town.

“Ben!” uh-oh! I turned to look around and see that it’s Paul, a small pig, or rather like boar, who bullies kids from our old school. He did the same to me, but he’s the one crying on the end. “Going to school now, aren’t you?”

“Yeah,” I said and sighed. “Now if you may please, I would like to go now before the first bell rings.” He opened his mouth to say something, but I’m not here to listen to what he’s about to say so I said “You can leave now and go to your Mummy and make yourself useful, douche bag.” And I resumed my pedalling.

The woods wasn’t scary, though it’s thick enough to hide a three story building inside and no one will see it unless they have the courage to venture the wilderness of the woods. But this place is utilised by people, especially at night if you know what I mean. I was walking down here when I was in high school and found a condom on the ground. I guess they want to do sex like how Adam and Eve did.

When I arrived at the school, it’s still 30 minutes before the first bell. I chained my bicycle on the parking area. I lock the chain with a coded padlock and, uhm, wait, what’s the password again—

WHAM!!!

Shoot! A bike fell behind me. It scared my bones out of me. I stood and made the bike stand again, leaving my bike fall to the ground. Oh shoot! I saw a name Amanda Piece on a tag attached at the bike’s top tube.

“Hey,” a voice said behind me. I turned and saw a girl, she’s about my height, 4’11”-5’, she has black hair that extends up to her deltoid, and her face... “Thanks for making my bike stand for me.”

“No-no, it’s okay!” I said quickly, my voice trembling. My heart is pounding abnormally on my chest; I can feel that my face is now filled with blood enough to make it red. Gee, this girl sure is beautiful.

She extend her hand towards me, clearly she wants a hand shake. “I’m Amanda Pierce.” I took her hand, it’s soft but thin. “I’m Benedict.” I said. “Kyle Benedict Belleza.”

She let my hand go and said, “Are you a freshmen student?” she asked.

“Yes,”

“What course are you enrolled at?”

“Nursing,”

“Oh great! Me too! We’ll I have Logic first today, I don’t know where to go.” I took her class schedule and compared our course code.

“We’re in the same class,” I said and I smiled at her.

We walk towards the building 1 where we’re going to have our Logic class. We talked on the way to the classroom; she’s from the school beside ours, our school’s mortal enemy. It was her parent’s choice that she took nursing, just like me.

We sat next to each other in the middle of the classroom. People we’re starting to crowd the room. this is a small town so I knew most of the people here. After few minutes, our instructor came in. She was a middle aged woman, a little fat with a long copper hair and she wears a pair of eye glasses and her teeth has braces. As she introduced herself, we jotted down her name and she said it’s just the first day of school so she won’t start to be formal. She just asked us to introduce ourselves, which I hate the most, and we just sat there listening to her stories, laughing most of the time.

“Hi,” the boy beside Amanda greeted. He’s bigger than me, but not the bully type, he looks friendly enough. “I’m Jeremy Centino. I’m new here.” He extended his arms to Amanda and to me after Amanda shook it.

“Jerome Centino? As in Hugo Centino’s son?” I asked after we introduced ourselves.

“Yes,” he said. “How did you know my Dad?”

“He’s my Dad’s friend. You moved beside our house a week ago,” I said. “You’re the owner of the new hardware store.”

We spent the rest of the day talking to each other. After our Theoretical Foundation of Nursing, and meeting our instructor, we all went home. We only have morning classes every Monday and Thursday. Amanda and I took our bikes while Jeremy took his pick-up.

“You two put your bikes on the trunk,” he said. “I’ll just drop you two home. Benedict, you’re living on our neighbourhood so...”

Amanda refused; she said she needs to go to the supermarket to buy something to cook. I said I’ll just take the shortcut. He insisted a little more and we refused a little more too.

“Maybe next time,” I said. “I need to go to the police station anyway. Dad took my laptop to the station to be fixed.”

And we went on our way. I took the shortcut, but instead of taking the straight path, I turned left and exited into the highway. It was the police station just across the street. I met with Dad on the parking area. He gave me my laptop and I put it inside my bag.

“How’s your day?” he asked.

“Fine,” I said. “You know Uncle Hugo’s son?”

“Jeremy? Yes, why?”

“Well, I have the same class with him,”

“Well that’s good. They’re new here so don’t let him feel out of place, okay?”

I looked at him and snorted. “He’s not a kid Dad. He can take care of himself.”

“Just do as I say,” he said. “Now go straight home. Don’t take detours.”

My Dad is in his mid 40s. If you see him, you’ll know what I will look like when I’ll turn 40. Our hairs are different though, and he’s darker than me. He wants me to be a police too when I was in grade school, but I said I don’t want to be, then when I was in High School, he said I should be a lawyer, I said no. Then when I took nursing because my sister and Mum said so, he said I can be a forensic nurse, I said no again.

I took the shortcut and went straight home just as what Dad said. As I enter our driveway, I saw Jeremy parking his car on their enormous courtyard, I mean, parking lot. I didn’t look at him and I just entered our house.

“I’m home,” I said loud enough for Mum to hear from the kitchen. I can smell that she’s cooking chicken. Charm and Carlo sat on the living room, talking while watching television. Maybe my sister invited Carlo for lunch here. “Hey sis, hey Carlo,” I greeted as I walk pass through them and climb the stairs to go to my room and drop my things.

I lay flat on my bed. I closed my eyes and saw Amanda... I opened them again, my heart pounding. What is this feeling? Am I... Am I... nah! This can’t be love at first sight. But what if it is?