Chapter 9. Stay Away Part II. (I)

After the bell rang, Loy returned to the classroom.

Loy and Lin's gazes met. From the apprehensive look in Lin's -"She knows." stated the other voice inside Loy confidently.

Chill ran down Loy's spine.

For a moment, he felt like his heart had stopped.

Looking down at the floor, he walked over to his desk dejected.

He laid down on it with his head in his hands. Unbeknownst to him, Lin continued to look at him when he looked down.

"What is this feeling?" she asked herself as she looked at Loy.

She didn't know what she was feeling, but she knew it was powerful, and that it hadn't been there a moment ago. She watched Loy intently for a clue but couldn't decipher what was going on.

Soon, the class was over.

Before she could even bat an eyelid, Dot walked up to her blushing.

"I don't usually do that… it's usually the girls who come up to me... you'll see why... we'll have a practical Energia class soon… I'm the best in the whole school…" he mumbled with shyness as his cheeks turned red. Lin wondered how a man could glorify himself but be embarrassed at the same time. "In any case, it's pretty clear to me what you think of me... you're a girl like the rest of them... but I still have to ask, don't I? I mean… So... do you want to go out with me?" Dot got tangled and somehow, eventually managed to get to the point.

Being distracted with Dot, Lin suddenly realized as she looked around her that Loy had managed to escape once again from the classroom.

"I'm sorry... maybe another time..." she said unconcentrated, doubtfully if she even heard Dot's offer.

"I have some things I have to sort out first…" she said quickly as she left the classroom.

Dot felt his heart fast-beating as she left the area leaving him standing.

"I did it!" he exclaimed excitedly when he is dripping with sweat. "She wants me!" he declared with pride and a puffed chest. "Just another time." he stated as he leaned against the wall happily. "Of course, it was obvious to me that she would be interested. She can easily see who's the real man here. All the other students are still kids." Dot patted himself on the back as he walked out of the classroom like a peacock spreading its feathers. His gang ran hurriedly right after him.

"What's up with Dot?" Baj asked Toa with full cheeks, focused as usual on his meal. "He hasn't been acting like he always does lately.” he wondered as they walked behind him.

"Did you just notice?" Toa asked frustrated by his slow uptake. "How come you didn't see it until now? He's in love." he stated with a smile.

"In love? With whom? With himself?" Baj asked.

"In love?! What are you talking about?!" Dot fumed as he smacked Toa on his head. "I'm not in love!".

"Ahh!!" Toa screamed in pain. "Okay! Okay! You're not in love! Whatever you say!" He apologized protecting himself with his hands. "Ay..." whined Toa rubbing his head as Dot growled angrily at him.

"And you, you chubby cow! If you weren't as dumb as a brick, I'd believe you were really trying to make fun of me!" shouted Dot. "Huh?" Baj asked confused as he chewed on his cheese sandwich.

"I swear to you. Sometimes I wonder if his big pig chomps block out any background noise while he eats." Dot muttered angrily towards Toa. "Huh?" Baj asked again, holding another cheese sandwich in his other hand, before even finishing his first one. Dot rolled his eyes in despair. "How did I end up stuck with these two idiots?" he asked himself.

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Loy sat on the school roof, looking up at the sky. His palm blocked the sun's rays.

"They told her. I could see it in her eyes. Her look has changed. She looks at me now the way everyone else looks at me. It's the same look. It's always the same look...". He closed his eyes in agony.

"But.." he added as he opened them. "At least I had a day with her. For a moment, I felt like I was somewhere else. Disconnected from my past. Disconnected from everything that people think of me. Even if all we did was fool around and laugh with each other. For a moment, even if partially, I felt like I was a little closer to who I wanted to be. Closer to being free.".

Almost blinded by the sun's rays. Suddenly, he saw it again. Humanoid figure. A black silhouette, jumping forward him with its hand outstretched, trying to grab something. It was close to him as if they are about to clash with each other at any second. The moment he tried to look at it, the vision disappeared.

"What was that?!" he asked himself hastily as he straightened up in shock. "It happened again…".

He tried to concentrate.

"Every once in a while, I see it. The same image in my head. That figure. As if someone planted it there. But, as soon as I try to concentrate on it, it disappears... The more I try to concentrate, the faster it disappears. As if it's trying to run away from me. So fast, it feels like a figment of my imagination. Yet, at the same time, feels tangible, like it's here with me, just a touch away. And every time I see it… that feeling comes up… that same strong feeling…".

He shook his head and looked forward at the horizon. Taking a long deep breath, he closed his eyes. The pain on his face was evident, although after all those years he had become good at hiding it.

"Hey…", a voice was heard behind him at the entrance to the rooftop.