Love Mechanics

Chapter 13. The Nosy Nuisance.

[Vee Visia]

My life these days has gotten a lot better. Ever since that kid told me to stop loving Ploy, I've been trying to do so. When I'm with Mark, I feel good. Being with him makes me forget about the bad things. My friends also tell me that I'm cheerful and bright like my usual self. Of course, I'm able to do it. What Yoo said was true after all.

It's not just Ploy who wants to keep a distance; I would like it that way as well.

"So let's go invite Bar, too. Pond's already gone to pick Dan up, so let's meet up at Bar's dorm." Kla says after he hangs up the phone. 

Right now, I'm at Kla and Yeewa's dorm. We're gonna go out and party tonight since Dan is coming over for a visit. Dan has been friends with Bar and me since high school. He got into another university, so we visit each other now and then. He's gotten to know my university friends and has become close to them, too.

"Why would he wanna come?" I complain and don't make a move. Hey...aren't you all friends? Wouldn't he wanna come and hear about your life updates and stuff? Yeewa says, before walking over to grab her blazer to put on.

"You all love me so much," I say sarcastically.

Many times, they've used me as an excuse for drink gatherings. Many times, they've dragged me along to sit with them, although they didn't console me at all. But I feel a sense of comfort being around them. My friends do help alleviate my hurt, though honestly speaking, it's not as much compared to the one whom I'm thinking of right now. I haven't told him yet that I'd go to that area.

"Hey... we're friends, so no need for that tone of yours." Yeewa retorts. Her voice is just as sincere as my sarcastic response.

“But you've gotten better because of us, though, right? Look at how much brighter you've become!" Kla observes and reaches out to pinch my cheek, prompting me to slap his hand away and scowl at him.

"Like you'd know any better," I comment, sitting cross-legged.

"We wouldn't know any better than your own heart. C'mon, friends can only do so much to help you, hmmmm?" Yeewa teases and flashes me a devious smile.

"Whatcha know that we don't, pretty girl?" Kla turns to ask.

"Vee hasn't said anything. If you wanna know, ask him." The prettiest one replies and turns her head another way, ignoring Kla's stupid face that is full of curiosity.

"Vee..."

"Let's go see Bar," I suggest, and stand up to lead them out of the room. I hear Kla's groans and Yeewa's giggling behind me. I can only grin and laugh to myself at their nosiness.

I want to resign from being Bar's friend. This evening, once we moved our asses from Kla's room, we decided to meet up at Bar's dorm.

Dan and Pond were so ready to go out and get smashed drunk. But for heaven's sake! Once we arrived at Bar's room, that kid doctor opened the door, showing off his firm muscles and reddish body, which was so red that I couldn't help but blush red as well.  Seeing that dude's muscles, my mind inevitably wanders to the other kid's muscles.

We sit and discuss for a while, concluding that Bar won't join us because his beloved husband won't allow him to. I tease him quite a bit, but all he does is lean his reddish face into the doctor's chest. Bar isn't usually like this. Before, I didn't get how he was able to give in to Tossakan so easily, but now I'm beginning to understand him more.

"I was totally speechless, man. I couldn't even lift my glass. My hands got all wobbly and shit." Pond describes. After leaving Bar's dorm, we've now come to a pub and have been here for a while, discussing Bar.

"I felt so awkward the moment he climbed onto the dude's lap. My friend is really sucking up to him each passing day." Kla observes.

"Keep on teasing him, guys, so he's even more daring from now on," I suggest, as I flash a grin before clinking my glass with Dan's.

"So aren't you gonna update me about yourself and Bar?" Dan suggests with a cranky face.

"Nothing much on my part. As for Bar, ask him yourself later." I reply tersely.

"Sure, man...so a heartbroken dude can still be this annoying?"

"Do you think your friend will be heartbroken for so long? He might be having someone to help remedy his heart, so he's fine with what his ex has done."

"Be quiet and eat up, Yeewa," I say as I push the drinking glass to Yeewa. She doesn't reply to anything, but makes an innocent face and lifts the glass to drink.

"Whaddaya mean...?"

"Hey, handsome, what's going on...?" Kla and Pond ask as they look towards me. I try to play it cool. To be honest, I'd like to tell them about it, but I don't know if that guy would appreciate it. Also, I've been dumb and unclear with Mark. So I'd rather leave it to my friends to speculate and find out for themselves. It's more fun that way, too.

"He ain't tellin'. You guys aren't important enough." Yeewa says and frowns.

"Or are you two..." Dan suggests and points towards Yeewa and me. His eyes widen, while the other two look baffled.

"Lighting would strike."

"I date people looking at their personality too, not just their looks," I say nonchalantly.

"Ouch." Yeewa frowns at me before fiddling with her phone.

We carry on hanging out there until Nuea and Pan join in. Pin will also be arriving shortly. My matter is set aside and is instead replaced by Bar's story. Yeewa updates Pan scene by scene, which makes Pan furious because we didn't invite her earlier, so she missed out on the good stuff, like the doctor kid's firm and hot body.

"Come look at my body instead." I offer, unable to bear his sharp-pitched complaints.

"Ya serious, Vee?" He blinks at me repetitively.

"No. I just find you annoying." I say, as I shove his cute little face away from mine.

"Why so mean? Who are you saving it for? You have no wife anymore."

"There's someone who sees it."

"Who!?"

"That's my business," I say and raise my brows to mess with them. They frown at me but say nothing, as they know that I won't tell them anything if I insist not to.

"You're always like this. You never let us in on the juicy bits first. Even with Ploy, we wouldn't have known about it had it not been for Dew, right?" Pan says as she grimaces at me.

"If it weren't for Dew, I wouldn't have known about Ploy and that senior dude. We'd probably still be lovey-dovey as before." I say calmly, not letting it affect me anymore.

Truth be told, these things are still on my mind. I can't say that I've completely forgotten about it. But if one were to ask me whether I'm still hurt by it, I can immediately answer that I'm not. It's not because I'm fed up or indifferent with my friend's talking, but because of a certain someone coming in to replace this matter...frankly speaking, I'm thinking of Mark more than Ploy.

"That's not true. From what I've heard, there's gotta come a day when you guys break up. Cause you're..."

"I'm what?" I calmly ask Yeewa back, while she falls silent and looks at the friends who are awaiting her reply.

"Whatever...why are y'all staring at me like that. It's even more pressure than when I competed for the Prom Queen. It's just a slip of the tongue. Just think I didn't say anything." 

The group's pretty one waves her hands back and forth. Her round eyes glance at me a bit, so I squint at her. She gives an innocent smile in return. I really want to lift the bucket of ice and splash it on her face.

"I'm sure something is going on between the two of you," Kla says as he points at Yeewa and me.

"Tell me!" Dan says and looks at me. His sharp eyes glare at me intently, as if he really wants to know the answer, though I merely shrug my shoulders in reply.

"It's nothing," I answer tersely, while they frown.

"Bastard!" I smile and accept their compliment, raise my glass to sip the drink, and listen as they carry on talking.

Dan talks about his life at the other university, saying how they also have to study hard, and how different his social life is. Among other things, his life seems more rushed. We continue to exchange thoughts and stories, returning to the gossipy topic of Bar and the medical student, before talking about me once again. I listen to them, nod in acknowledgement, and go along with them, while some of my friends leave for the dance floor.

"Don't you wanna go dance?" Dan turns to ask me.

"I don't like it." I'm not the type who enjoys dancing. Drinking is drinking, so I want the atmosphere of chilling out.

"You're gonna enjoy it." Look at Yeewa, who smiles back at me.

Her pretty eyes are looking towards a group of dancers who are going wild, and she leans over to whisper to me softly. "Look there." She nods in that direction, and I see my handsome friend, Nuea, dancing with another kid I know well. This kid is considered good-looking and is swaying his body in sync with the music beat, matching Nuea.

"So what?" I reply to Yeewa softly.

"How tight-lipped you are. I know what you're thinking, handsome." She says, and lifts my chin to twist it back and forth.

"What do you know?" I ask her calmly, not swiping her hand away, but pressuring her with my eyes.

"About your boy." She answers teasingly.

"How'd you know?"

"So you admit it?" She raises her pencilled eyebrows at me.

"Well, you said...that you knew." I make a bewildered face at her. Don't tell me I've fallen for her deceptive tricks!

"Haha, I was just speculating, but now I'm certain." She flashes a devious smile before letting go of my chin and lifting her glass to take a sip.

"Bastard!" I rebuke her softly, but she merely shrugs her shoulders indifferently. Since when did she come to hide under my bed?

"See!? Just admit that something is going on between the two of you." 

A familiar voice rings out above me. I look up and see Kla pointing at my face. Next to him is Nuea, and beside him is Mark. I look at the kid sternly, but he doesn't look at my eyes; his oval eyes merely glance a bit before veering away. Wait...isn't he the one who's dancing away just now? Why is he looking at me in a discontented manner?

"Hello," Mark says, before raising his hands to wai those seated at the table.

"Hello, my lovely junior line. C'mere...come sit next to your pretty senior line." Yeewa requests and pulls Mark's arm to sit beside her. It's not just next to her, though, as she pulls him in between herself and me. What a cunning gal...

"Why are you such a snitch? I was the one who took him away from his friends." Nuea says with a frown and goes to sit opposite Mark.

"Where are your friends? Why don't you invite them over here?" Yeewa leans in to ask Mark, who smiles back at his senior line before replying.

"There are a lot of them."

"Oh...aren't they Fuse and the gang?"

"No. James and the crew." My brows immediately flinch upon hearing the name of the lanky dude. We've encountered each other just a few times, but the kid's eyes that looked towards me were so piercing. I don't know whether Mark told them anything, but that boy James doesn't take a liking to me. I know from reading his Line chat in secret. Yep, these days they've got their private chat sessions going on.

"James, the hotshot from the Faculty of Business Administration. Oh my...bring him over here to sit next to me. The seat's still available." Pan says, flashing a smile at Mark, who smiles back in response before looking down at his phone. He's telling his friends where he is, or he's really going to invite them over. I don't understand why he has to report, though, as if James is his mother.

"Why didn't you tell me you were coming here?" Yeewa asks.

"Why does he have to tell you, though?" Nuea queries back.

Nuea. No need to make such an offended voice. He's my junior line. Yeewa turns to tell Nuea.

"My line too."

"What's with this line thingy?" I mumble softly, prompting the one in question to look towards me. "I'm more important, but you didn't even say a word to me," I say and look at him, before veering my eyes elsewhere.

"And you tell me your whereabouts?" He snaps back in an equally soft voice.

"It was unplanned." I contend.

"Hmph!" Hmph, all you want, as long as you don't get a sore throat.

"What are you two bickering about?" Yeewa leans behind Mark's back to ask me. The kid hears it too, as he flinches a bit and looks at me sternly.

"None of your business!" I deepen my voice and reply to her, prompting Yeewa to frown and carry on talking to her friends.

"Lookie there! Flirting again." Dan points at me.

"Who's flirting with whom?" Pin asks.

"Sir Vee and Madame Yeewa." Dan teases.

"You serious with her, hotshot?" Says You, who's seated beside Pin. I give him a wry look before lifting my glass for a sip.

"He's just playing with me," Yeewa suggests.

"Such a bastard you are." Nuea reprimands. 

I look at him calmly, ignoring my friend's jeering. I flinch a bit as I feel a kick on my knee. Upon looking down, I see the knee of the guy who's striking at mine, prompting me to smile.

"What?" I put my arm on the armrest behind his neck and ask him softly.

"Nothing." Nothing, but his leg doesn't budge. If you like ramming into me that much, how about we ram each other somewhere else? I can only think to myself, as I look at his face and think, what's up with this dude?

"So who'd you come with?" I continue asking him. I let go of the music, of the friend's chattering, and focus only on what he has to reply.

"James, Wind, and his group of friends."

"You mean Pit and his crew?" I turn and raise my brows after asking.

"You know him?"

"I think I've seen him on Facebook," I reply simply, and we end our talk.

Mark turns his attention to Nuea, who's vying for attention by opening a new bottle of whiskey while inviting Mark's friends over to the table.

"Just invite them over. We don't mind at all." Pin says.

"Yeah, the more the merrier. I've already invited Li and co." Kla says. Mark is reluctant before turning to look at me as if to seek my permission. I duly use my knee to ram into his, just as he did to me, prompting him to look down and fiddle with his phone.

Soon enough, Li joins the gathering, followed by 4-5 friends of Mark. They introduce themselves before taking a seat around the same table.

Alcohol helps make bonds more intimate. One of the kids looks at me frequently, till I sense it. I nudge the guy beside me and nod my head towards the kid, prompting Mark to flash a smile in response.

Don't you feel jealous over me...?

I roll my eyes in frustration when I see that the kid keeps on staring at me. When I lock eyes with him, he looks away. We go on like this until Mark gives me a nudge.

"If you don't wanna look at him, just look elsewhere." The raspy voice that is beginning to get tipsy babbles out.

"Well, I just feel weird, so I have to look in his direction anyway."

That's how I really feel. When someone looks at us, we can sense it. If we don't do anything about it, that person will keep on staring. I try to lock eyes with him to say Stop staring at me, but he doesn't dare look into my eyes. If I'm being biased, the dude likes me.

"Can't be helped." He says softly, prompting me to frown at him.

The tall guy beside me reaches across my face to take the whiskey bottle, but I grab a hold of it before he can pull it towards him.

"You're getting drunk," I say calmly and give him a stern look.

"I ain't drunk." He tugs it, but I don't let go. 

I've no idea that the table fell silent, but came to my senses when Yeewa tapped me on the shoulder and said, " That's too much, prompting me to frown, before letting the other guy have his way with the whiskey bottle. He proceeds to pour himself a drink without a care.

"The hell?"

"What?" I look up at Nuea, who's sitting on the opposite side. He looks at me and then at Mark, before pointing at me with a trembling finger.

"You...and my Mark." Your Mark?

I can only think in my mind as I look at Mark. All of my friends fall silent and look at me with anticipation. The same goes for Mark's friends.

"Ask him." Upon saying this, the guy beside me gives me a stern look. He's the reticent type, not really keen on providing lengthy explanations.

"The hell, man. Don't say it's what I think it is." Wind asks Mark, along with a pressuring look, no different from James, who's put down his glass and folded his arms.

"Well...nothing much. Does there seem to be something?" The first sentence was to his friends, while he addressed the latter sentence to the entire group with a smile. It's met with sighs of relief and groans of lament.

"Isn't it good that nothing's going on? Imagine how messy it'd be if that weren't the case." Pan utters.

"Yeah...good that Mark's still single," Nuea says as he smiles at Mark. The kid doesn't deny, and instead smiles from ear to ear in response.

Is he drunk or something? What makes him smile so merrily like that?

"How do you know he's single?" Pond asks.

"Yeah...are you single? Cause I totally ammm!" Li mentions and leans over towards Mark, prompting the fella to move away.

"Well..." I tap him with the tip of my shoe before he answers. He doesn't look towards me but flashes a smile. "There's someone whom I like."

"What? How's that so?" Tee complains.

"Who the hell is it? Why don't we know?" Wind inquires further.

"Bar?" Kla asks while raising his brows. I can only let out a sigh of discontent. Bar my ass. He's already a proper item with that doctor kid.

"No." Mark denies with a smile.

The dude lets my friends and his friends make wild guesses, though he and I don't say anything. Yeewa keeps her silence as well, merely smiling as she listens.

"Then it's gotta be me," Nuea says as he looks at Mark, who simply looks back and smiles in response.

"Are you serious?" Dan asks Nuea.

"That's what I've gotta ask him," Nuea says bashfully, while Mark lets out a soft chuckle from his throat.

"I didn't mean him, I meant you. Are you gonna seriously settle with someone from now on? It's...hard to imagine, Nuea." All the friends around the table laugh when they hear Dan. They start ganging up on Nuea, unearthing his past bad deeds.

"Hey now, not too much. The kid might get intimidated." Nuea protests.

"I'm already getting intimidated," Mark says with a smile, though I don't understand why he has to smile. I really want just to pull him in and kiss his lips in front of everyone. My friends keep egging on Nuea, and I'm about to lose my patience...

"What are you afraid of? Let's come have a heart-to-heart talk, then." Nuea suggests as he waves Mark towards him.

"My junior doesn't like such heart-to-heart talks. He prefers using his knees or feet to nudge the other person." Yeewa points out, confusing the others. But amidst their confusion, I feel heat panging up my face due to her words. The heat only increases when you see Mark's red ears. Yeewa is such a devil...

"The hell? So, who do you have eyes for, Mark? Do I stand any chance? I'm serious with you, Mark." I turn to see Nuea's pleading face and roll my eyes upwards. I turn back towards the kid beside me and feel even more upset with his answer.

"Well, it's not clear yet."

"So that means I still have hope?" I want to use my fingers to prick my friend's sweet eyes. So pleading is his look. What do you want from me, huh? Is this feeling known as aggression? If so, then I guess I'm being

aggressive.

"Mark..."

"Mark, come over here and talk to me." I got cut off by the kid James. I turn towards the guy who says his name at the same time as me, and look at Mark's face again.

"Let me talk to my friend first." He says to me softly, but I feel a numbness overcome my face. So I'm not the most important one for you?

I ask myself the question out of displeasure. I move my legs annoyingly, so that he can get out to talk to his dear friend who's so important to him.

"Playing the field," I say softly as he walks past. He stops and stares at me as if upset. But then what? When we lock eyes, he simply flashes a smile as if he didn't do anything wrong.

Argh! So damn frustratinggg!!