Be My Girlfriend

Chapter Two

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I've never had part time jobs before but somehow, since I stayed here in the city, I found the need to have two jobs at the same time to get enough pay for my rent and for my allowance. I'd have Thursday and Wednesday afternoons at the café and Fridays and Saturdays for the convenient store.

The cold, morning breeze blew chills at the back of my head and I had to pull my pullover closer to my shoulders to keep myself from shivering. Too bad my landlady confiscated my bike because my rent was due last week and she had to keep it for a while as an assurance that I'll pay her back. I will pay her back as soon as I get my paycheck from the coffee shop and the convenient store I'm working on.

-

I was surprised to be greeted with silence when I entered the room. Normally, I would always be ignored whenever I walk in and take my seat and only Yuka would wave up to me and call out a cheery good morning and I'd ask her if I could copy her math assignment.

But this time, it was absurdly quiet. Maybe because a blabbering Tamaki wasn't here yet, I couldn't tell.

I cleared my throat and made my way up to my seat, with a creepy feeling that every eye in the classroom was boring holes all over my body. When I settled my things on my desk, I turned to look at the crowd that gathered in front of me.

Narrowing my eyebrows in curiosity and suspicion, I fired to ask, "Is there something wrong with my face?"

Silence. No one even bothered to answer my question and went on with the staring. I shrugged them off and pushed my chair back. It would be better if I'd get away from them for a while. Maybe when I come back, they'd shut off. "Uhm, excuse me."

I almost reached the when I decided to turn head back to take another look. As soon as I snapped my head to their direction, different pairs of eyes were still set upon me, as if I was a prey that they would slaughter for food later on.

"Can you stop with the gawking," I snapped and stared back at them, deciding to win my side over a staring contest. Damn with them what is happening all of a sudden? "It's a little . . . awkward."

One strawberry-blonde stepped forward with her arms crossed, and one of her eyebrows disappearing dangerously behind her bangs that covered almost one-third of her face. "Are you dating Ootori-sama?"

I guess most people die because of sudden shock up to the point that they forget how to breathe. Perhaps I wasn't hearing right? Or maybe my senses were just playing games because I hadn't gotten much sleep last night.

"Excuse me?"

"We heard."

"Then, you hear wrong." It was rather defensive, might I add. "Who would spread such--?"

All of sudden, I was carelessly pushed forward as the door spread wide open and I bumped my head slightly against the nearest vase propped on a tall stand as it toppled slightly out of balance and I was just in time to catch it before it fell on the floor.

I turned to look at the perpetrator when I was suddenly greeted by Ootori's 'warm' smile that must have melted every girl's heart. If only they knew how much he was fooling the world with that smile.

"My, my, Rei-chan," he spoke, his voice cool and seemingly quite trying to be lovingly sweet.

"Ootori-san," the same strawberry-blonde spoke to him with a nicer voice. "Are the rumors true?"

I wouldn't care less with whatever they want to think or with whatever he wanted them to believe as I massaged the slight bump that formed noticeably on my forehead. If I could throw him off a cliff so I could live my life the way I used to, I'd do whatever it takes to do it.

All of a sudden, I was once again thrown out of balance as a pair of arms pulled me to in one sudden jerk and my forehead landed forcefully against his chest. A bevy of Ootori's rabid fangirls, which seemingly were not included on the strawberry-blonde's cronies and appeared out of the blue, squealed in excitement as he pulled me closer, crushing my face further than it already was. I could push him away and beat him up until I'm satisfied. But of course, I don't have enough guts and back-up people to that.

"Let me go!"

A clearing of throat came heard and silence ensued once again. I craned my head up to see who it was and Ootori's previous girlfriend raised her eyebrow up, almost to one inch.

I groaned and struggled to push him away but he held his grip and I had to curse under my breath to restrain from stomping on his feet. Another reason I'm keeping my cool is that if I snapped and my violent side took over, I might end up disappearing over the face of the earth.

"Ootori, let go!"

"Rei-chan, stop struggling."

What's with the sudden change of honorifics? And I wouldn't even struggle if he wasn't just trying to pull my head of in the first place.

"I see you've gotten over our break-up, Kyouya." It was Akiko who interrupted us both as I almost forgot that the whole class had their eyes on us. Can I have the permission to disappear over the face of the earth right now? Should I beg and prostrate myself before whoever would grant me the permission to do so? "I hope you're happy."

With a smirk and a raised eyebrow, she left me with my jaw hanging wide open and with Ootori loosening his grip on my head. Thank God.

-

I just finished taking my after-practice shower when Ootori showed his face up on the locker room and I jumped in surprise when he sneaked behind my back and tried to give me a heart attack. I'd probably die early because of this.

"What do you want?" I asked while folding my jeans and stuffing it back on my bag. I looked up to him as he scrutinized the whole room. "Besides, this is the girls' locker room. Do you want to get caught?"

He ignored my question

"Are you done?"

"Yes, I'm—"

He pulled and dragged me out of the locker room and pushed me inside the back seat of his limousine.

-

We arrived in front of a large building that I wasn't familiar with. I bet he's going to pull me inside and mutilate my precious body to death. I'd better run for it. Thank God for my sprinting skills.

"Ootori," I spoke as I tried to catch up with him. I don't even know why I followed him in the first place anyway. "Where are we going?"

We tackled a fight of stairs when he answered my question. "I'll have you made a custom-fit uniform for you. If you have to be my girlfriend, you shouldn't strut around the school with that pair of baggy clothes."

I could have appreciated the sentiment, if only he didn't insult my choice of clothes.

-

Our manager walked up to where we cleaned the table and smiled. Ootori dropped me to the coffee shop (thank him), after we finished with the dress-shop. The uniform fit perfectly well and it clung nicely on my body. I wasn't used to wearing skirts past my knees unlike junior high but I guess I'll get used to it. I've never worn a skirt outside of school and of work before anyway.

"Rei-chan," she chimed while occupying the seat beside the table I was cleaning.

"Hm?"

"I wonder who that guy is."

I cocked my head to one side to pick up the right words to describe what Ootori is to me without sounding harsh.

"Just someone I know, Megumi-san," I told her. She pouted childishly and blew a stray of her dyed hair out of her face.

"A re you sure he was just someone you know?" she queried further. "He was so nice to drive you up here. He even called you Rei-chan."

I tried not to scowl. "I don't really like him."

-

"Rei-chan?"

I arrived at my apartment door and I was just in time to put the key on when my landlady called out my name. "Nakajima-san?"

"I'm sorry to say but your rent's due tomorrow and you're two months late. I won't hold you bike much longer if you promise me you could pay in due time."

I pouted in dismay as my eyebrows became almost one. I have to pay two months of my rent and I have only saved up to a quarter of the total bill.

"I'm trying my best Nakajima-san," I grimaced while crossing my fingers behind my back. I guess I have to skip school tomorrow and find an easy-money job to work on if I don't want to get kicked out.

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