MIDDLE SCHOOL YEARS

Chapter Two) Sun-kiss Orange

The second time I saw Mameha was by a complete coincidence.

At school, I'd been trying to ask around about her without making it obvious. I mean, it wasn't like I was interested in her - more like I wanted to know what had been going on. But of course, that's not what the rest of the losers in my class would think, especially after the show that Mameha had put on.

So when I asked the guys in my class, "You know that girl I was talking to sometime earlier this month, what was her name???" in my try-to-be-subtle way, they gave me this Fish-eye Look and ask, snickering, who I was talking about. I guess the best way would have been to ask about Hina Mameha, but at the time I was too self-conscious that it would lead to unnecessary questions about what was going on between us when I didn't know myself.

The whole week after that big show at school, the whole damn school had been treating me strangely. I think some of the guys outwardly hated me. The rest, they treated me like a dangerous criminal (okay, I do have quite a punch). But, it was the girls that treated me the funniest of all. Except for the few of them who were impressed with me punching out Ishiba, the girls had labeled me as a sort of 'Exhibit A' and seem to be monitoring my every move. Even some of the teachers would get nervous when I spoke to them or said something during class.

All that trouble over an incident that I couldn't even explain. All that weirdness over the mysterious Hina Mamhea. By the end of the week, I hated her very existence. I hated Mameha. It got so that when Bra told me that a new edition of the comic 'Love Hina' was out and I blew up at her.

But, contrary to all that hatred, I was almost relieved when I glimpsed Mameha shopping in a clothing store at the mall. I think, my anger was mostly because I had been crazy with curiosity about what had happened. So when I saw her, without thinking, I'd pushed into the store and called out, "MAMEHA!" glad that I would finally figure out what was going on. Her head snapped up and, when she saw me, her expression became a funny one. But that expression soon changed into a cordial smile as she ran over to where I was.

"Trunks Briefs!" She said my name so loud that the saleswoman snickered. I had a sinking feeling that calling out to her had been a stupid mistake and my wise hatred for this girl edged back.

"Do you like this skirt? I'm thinking about buying it." Mameha quipped, twirling around in front of me.

I looked, preparing myself to say something nasty.

I didn't have to try so hard. It was, in fact, a hideously ugly skirt. The color combination was horrible. I was going to tell her so when I became suddenly very aware of the fact that Mameha had a tiny waist. The skirt became tight at her hips, which seemed really wide because her waist was like a coffee cup saucer. The slope of her waist and hips surprised me so much that I stared at the skirt longer than necessary.

Embarrassing. I was checking out a bitch in an ugly skirt. Trying to explain my stupid behavior, I replied that I thought it was a very pretty skirt and the pattern was extremely unique and interesting. Great. I sounded like a geek. Unique and interesting???

Mameha nodded seriously. "Do you really think so, Trunks?"

I confirmed it with a firm nod then added, even more firmly, "I think you owe me an explanation."

"About what?" Mameha asked, innocently fluttering her long lashes. I snorted, disgusted and wishing that there wasn't this law implanted in my head about not hitting girls.

"Listen, I don't need any of your shit. I think it's only fair what I'm asking, don't you think? So don't try to get out of it."

Mameha seemed surprise at that. She stared at me, wide eyed (my voice did sound rather bitter), and finally answered, "I guess you are right. Just a second while I pay for my skirt."

I waited for her by the door and had a sinking feeling when the saleswoman asked, "Wrap or wear, doll?" and Mameha answered, "Wear, please." I didn't exactly want to be seen with anyone wearing that skirt - not in public anyway. That sounds really bad, but if you'd seen the skirt, you would sympathize. It was that ugly.

"Let's go, underwear boy!"

I blinked. Mameha sauntered over to where I was, wearing her usual haughty smile and surprisingly, a blood red silk dress that WAS actually okay. Before I could stop myself, I was asking, "What happened to the other skirt."

Mameha snorted. "You didn't think I'd buy it because YOU thought it was okay, did you? I only tried that thing on because I was just amazed at how those people could have come up with such a design and wondered if it'd fit as horribly too. Really, just because you are named after underwear doesn't mean the space between your ears has to be filled with cotton."

I glared at her. For a second, I was embarrassed, so embarrassed I blushed a color I never did before. Then, I was furious.

"Who was the one that was asking me for fashion advice in the first place?"

"I didn't know you wouldn't have any to give!"

I stopped at that. Trying to think, I mustered. "Why were you shopping alone, anyway? All your friends abandon you cuz of your bitchiness?"

"At least I have friends to abandon me. You, I bet, didn't even start out with any!"

I paused again, trying to think up something else. In the end, all I could blubber out was, like an idiot, "Isn't shopping for you like trying to decorate a... a... public bathroom?"

Mameha gave me the evil eye and I stopped blustering. Her evil eye, I had discovered, was more piercing than anyone else's. Or maybe it was because Mameha had different eyes; anything she did with them seemed abnormal - but, of course, I would soon learn not to expect the norm from Mameha.

Her eyes were almost twice as big as a normal person's so it could be filled with twice the amount of expression. She had such dark lashes and dark brows that her gaze had a higher degree of intensity and her lashes were so long and spiked up that it gave her a deer like look. Also, her eyes were also a certain kind of brown-black at first glance, you'd think it was black but when you looked into them a while longer, you'd realize that they were actually a rich dark brown. By that time, you would be seeing your reflection in it - looking as moody as she was. What was so deceiving was, if they hadn't been on her face, her eyes might have been sweet.

"What? Why are you staring at me like that?" Mameha seemed genuinely ticked this time. "Is something on my face? Do I have something in my teeth? Speak up, Cotton head."

"You have weird eyes." I blurted, honestly. Though, weird wasn't probably the best term to use. But, whenever Mameha was around, all that hating her got in the way of thinking. It was just this constant boiling in my chest that distracted me from everything I did.

Mameha, I saw, was really getting steamed. She wasn't even trying to hide it. I couldn't feel feeling satisfied that I was finally coming up with some useful comebacks, though not on purpose. Serves her royal bitchiness right.

After a moment, Mameha hissed, "Thank you. You light up my life too." With that, swinging her shopping bags in her arms, she pushed into a tropical beverage store.

When she did that, I kinda felt stood up and wondered why I had been following her in the first place. And then I remembered that she and I had been walking together because she was going to explain her chaotic behavior at school and, finally, finally, I would have an explanation. After another moment's thought, I followed her in.

Mameha was throwing her head back and laughing, her laughter attracting gazes from everyone in the shop. Well, no duh, she had a laugh like a freaking hyena. She was leaning on the booth and smiling at the counter boy who was earnestly explaining the colorful drinks and cocktails without seemingly being poisoned by Mameha's toxic personality.

"Then you can try the Sun-kiss Orange, on the house." The counter boy offered, seemingly amused by Mameha.

Mameha shook her head. "No, that's okay. Trunks Briefs (empathizing my name again) is going to pay for me."

The counter boy raised an eyebrow. "On a date?" Hello, do I look that stupid?

"Never." Mameha replied in a horrified voice. "No relation." Excuse me, it's me who should be insulted...

The counter boy grinned and I think he was relieved. "Ah."

"He's just itching to use his money on non-underwear products for once."

I glared at her. She was presenting me as a total hentai. But of course, I didn't have to go explaining myself to some stupid counter boy. Mameha, by that time, was climbing up to the second floor of the refreshment store and I was left to take care of the check. I was not going to pay for her drink, but the counter boy had already rung up the cashier before I even had a chance to explain and I was thirsty from all that stress anyway.

I never knew tropical drinks were so expensive. Especially Sun-kiss Orange, or whatever that shit was that Mameha ordered. The counter boy carried up both our drinks and I found myself sitting in a sunny, cheerful booth with a great view of all the activity that was going on downstairs in the mall and facing an unsmiling, unhappy Hina Mameha. For the first time in my life, I had a clear image of what Medusa must have looked like and worried that I'd turn to stone.