Chapter 9: (August 8)
Riley woke from her slumber due to the vigorous shaking of her shoulders. Opening her eyes in alarm, she was relieved to see it was only Daniela, looking down at her with a huge grin.
"Happy birthday, Riley!" the girl said excitedly, standing up so that Riley could move her bed sheets freely.
"Thank you," Riley replied, looking around the room. None of her other dorm mates were there, and all the bunk beds were neatly made. "But where is everyone?"
Daniela rolled her eyes and sighed. "They all wanted to go to the beach or something. But it's colder today; I don't know why anyone would go. They'll get bored eventually and come back in time for your party!" She emphasized the last word while doing a small, enthusiastic dance.
Riley swung her feet off the bed and moved to the dresser, throwing on an old sweater and leather jeans. Daniela stopped mid dance and stood gaping at the sweater.
"Oh no you don't. You're eighteen today! You are totally not dressing like a vagabundo."
Riley ignored what she assumed was an insult, and shook her hair in front of the mirror, trying to tame the brown locks with her fingers. Turning around, she saw that Daniela had an amused look in her eyes.
"I know that look… what are you planning?" Riley edged away from her slowly.
Daniela moved close enough to Riley to touch her hair. "I promise not to change your wardrobe if you let me do a little something with your hair…"
Riley, knowing there was no other way out of the situation, sighed in defeat and said, "Fine."
Daniela clapped in excitement and took Riley's hand, leading her to the bathroom down the hall.
/
"Psst; hey!" A voice called from across the dining room. None of the other House 4 boys were there, many of them having gone into town or down to the beach. Lito looked up from his breakfast of coffee and jam toast to see a boy slowly tip toeing his way to the table. Wiping his mouth with a napkin, Lito anxiously gestured to the kitchen, hoping to avoid an awkward encounter if one of the other students decided to come back early.
Lito and Hernando had met the first day of school, when Lito had been gazing in awe at the wonderful paintings and tapestries hanging on the wall. Hernando had walked over and introduced himself. They both spoke Spanish, and had learned they were from the same city. Hernando had spoken about the art, as he was well versed in it, and Lito had… well, he wasn't sure what had happened.
"Hey, are you okay?"
Lito glanced at the boy and lied. He'd always been good at that. "Yes, yes, I'm fine. What did you want to talk about?"
Hernando sighed and looked up at the ceiling, almost as if in prayer. It was a few seconds before he looked down again and asked, "What do you think about going to that birthday party tonight at House 1?"
"We can go, Hernando, but we have to go separately." Lito winced at how harsh the words sounded, not sure what he was implying. He'd told himself all these years that this wasn't possible. And in one week the boy had stepped in and changed all of that.
Hernando shrugged casually, and smiled. "No big deal. Maybe we'll see each other there and actually talk." Hernando turned and walked out of the kitchen, running his fingers through his hair.
/
It was a quarter till eight when Kala heard her cellphone buzzing from its place on the nightstand. Setting her hairbrush down, she stepped away from the mirror and reached over, unlocking the phone and putting the caller on speaker. "Hello, who is this?" she asked, trying to choose between a short white dress and a longer, blue skirt. The beautiful thing about the weekend was that she could wear whatever she wanted.
"Kala? Hello, this is Rajan."
Kala froze in front of the mirror, her eyes large in surprise. "Hello, Rajan. Did you have a question about the project?" she called to the phone, hoping he'd hear how busy she was by the tone of her voice.
Her hopes were crushed when he continued, "Well, I do have a question, but it was more of a proposition. Would you care to go to the party with me? You know, the one from that invitation."
Myra, who was sitting on her bed and "reading," looked up at Kala and gave her thumbs up, nodding enthusiastically. Everyone thought they would make the perfect couple.
Kala slipped on the dress and replied, "Sure, Rajan. Do you want to meet there, or…?"
"Well actually I'm already outside your House."
"Okay. I'll see you in five minutes." She hung up the phone quickly, hoping that he didn't, God forbid; ask her to marry him then and there. Turning to Myra, she pointed to the doorway.
"Yeah, hold on, I'm coming. I just need to finish this paragraph."
Myra dog leafed the page, and combed through her short, red hair. "I can't believe you didn't tell me it was your birthday until an hour ago."
The girls walked down the stairs and onto the porch, where Rajan was waiting in a polo shirt and slacks. He looked at Kala and his eyes lit up at the sight of her.
"There you are." He greeted Myra as well with a friendly hello in her direction, and together they walked towards House 1.
A bubbly girl opened the door for them. She was wearing a small black and white party hat, and her long brown hair was tied up in an elegant chignon.
"Hey guys. Come in, come in!" She gestured them inside, taking their jackets and throwing them on an armchair in the corner of the entrance hall. They walked into the living room, where loud music was playing, and dozens of people were dancing to the beat. Myra melted away into the crowd, moving towards the stage that was once again arranged for a party. Kala turned to the girl and asked, "Are you Riley?"
The girl laughed and fanned herself, her silver-polished nails gleaming in the darkness of the House. "Of course not, I'm Daniela. I planned the party for Riley. I need to go find her, actually." She dashed up the stairs to the second floor, where some teenagers were laughing and waving down to everyone below them. Kala walked back to Rajan's side and they started swaying to the music together.
Meanwhile, Daniela walked up to Riley's room. Opening the door slowly, she saw Riley standing at an open window, wearing a simple black dress.
"Riley…come on. It looks fine! I promise. I wouldn't say so if it didn't. Trust me."
Riley turned and smiled slightly, tugging at her hair self-consciously. She took Daniela's outstretched hand, and together they walked out of the room and down the stairs. Riley paused to survey the exciting scene. "Thank you so much, Daniela. This is really great."
Daniela smiled and looked at the jewelry adorning her arms. "You're welcome, but no party is complete without a speech from the birthday girl! I planned it for near the end, ok? Around nine."
Daniela ignored the other girl's protests and waltzed down the remaining steps. Walking towards the dining room, she recognized a boy from her English class.
"Lito!" she yelled over the music, quickly moving to his side. "Oh my god, you just look awesome today! Do you like the party? I planned it all by myself."
Lito grimaced slightly when he heard the girl, but turned around and smiled charmingly. "Hi, Dani. I love the party, it's really great!" He clasped her hands in his, moving them up and down like a handshake.
"Do you want to dance? You seem so nervous," Daniela teased, taking his hand and pulling him back to the vast living room.
Lito put on the best expression of enthusiasm he could conjure, and allowed himself to be brought back to the action of the party.
Kala, on the opposite side of the room, suddenly felt very uncomfortable and nervous. She pulled at her dress, and Rajan stopped dancing.
"What's wrong?" he asked her, looking puzzled at the flush on her face.
"I'm okay. The room is just very hot. Maybe I should go outside for a little bit."
"It's a quarter till nine. If you want, we can wish a happy birthday to the girl and leave. Are you sure you're alright?"
Kala waved off his worry. "I'll be fine." She left him and moved to the back door, sliding it open and stepping out into the refreshing night air.
Rajan moved towards Myra, who was standing near the center of the crowd. She looked up at him in confusion. "Where's Kala?" she asked, gazing around the room.
"She just stepped outside. She seems to have something on her mind."
"Oh, yeah that's probably it," Myra tilted her head and noted. "That girl's been acting strange all night."
/
Wolfgang and Kala met for the first time after being reborn at the party. He'd seen her walk from the house to the back garden, overlooking the rolling hills and the twilit sky.
Following her, Wolfgang took in just how breathtakingly beautiful she was to look at. How could a dream hurt so much? Those were Sun's thoughts flowing through his, just as the others flowed through him. He paused a few feet away from her, not sure if he should speak. She turned, and caught her breath at the sight of the boy dressed all in black. As the connection took place, she could see herself through him, feel his emotions. Kala sat suddenly on the bench, looking down at her hands. Wolfgang walked closer, until they were just arm's length away from one another. He saw her close her eyes, and then open them slowly. She stood up and they watched each other, as they had done so often in the infirmary.
"Happy birthday," she murmured.
"The same to you," he replied. There was some intense emotion there, in his eyes. However, his voice revealed nothing. He lifted his hand to tuck a strand of her hair, but the sound of the door sliding open startled them both. Kala quickly moved away from him, looking down at the ground guiltily. Rajan stepped onto the back porch, oblivious to what had just transpired, and waved towards her.
"Kala, are you coming? The party is almost over."
Kala glanced one more time at Wolfgang, and then quickly moved towards the House.
Wolfgang dropped his outstretched hand to his side, and stood frozen in the same spot. Looking up at the stars, he cursed the gleaming objects for all of the bad luck in his life.
A/N: Still no announcement about Sense8 season 2. I really can't wait, but, in the meantime, here is another chapter of Sense Teens. Chapter 10 is going to be even more exciting! Happy Reading, and have an awesome day!
~C.o.D.