The Introvert and the player

Chapter 1

I still remember the first time I saw him.

It was a hot day, so obviously like any sane person I was taking shelter indoors. Not like I had other options.

I was in a boarding school. But not the usual all-girls schools. No. It was a mixed gender school. I had already spent three miserable years in this place. Just three more to go.

But in all honesty, it was starting to grow on me. I still remember when I cried each time the holiday ended and It was time to go back to school. Well to be fair, my mum always went full Godzilla at those periods. But now, I was always looking forward to school resuming. Oh how the times change.

Anyway, back to what I was saying.

Yes, the first time I saw him. I came to school early because who doesn't love school? I know, right? 'You're crazy Aria'. I was doing what any sane bored student does on resumption day. Stare at all the students coming in and critique them.

'that box is too big for her. Is she bringing her whole house?'

'that woman's outfit is too fancy. Come on! No need to rub your wealth in our face, it's Saturday! Dress more casual!...but really, she looks good.'

And then, there he was. Tagging along with a girl that was clearly his sister, their mother behind them. His skin was lighter than his sister's. And his nose was more narrow compared to hers, but everything else was the same. The same upturned eyes, round chins, thin upper lips but full lower lips, lanky builds.

It made the girl look unique. Like a cross between beautiful and handsome.

But for him, he was handsome. Plain And simple.

I would find out later that they were twins. Wow, who would have guessed.

I stared at him till he left for his own hostel. And kept thinking about him. It was surprising. I had crushes before but not like this. I wouldn't go so far to say love at first sight but, it was...something.

I didn't tell anyone about it. Not even my best friends. I felt embarrassed just thinking about it. I mean, I even dreamed of him!. Pure mortification.

Not surprisingly, he was a player. He had dated many of our classmates in just the short period he had been in the school. I know, it's clichẹ̀ and all that, but I can't help it. The heart wants what it wants, as the saying goes.

Funny enough, I became friends with his sister. And no, I didn't approach her intentionally. It just sort of happened. We clicked. She and I vibe on different levels.

And as you can imagine, this lead to several interactions with him. Great right? Nope. Not great at all.

You see I'm an introverted girl and I'm only comfortable around my friends. Well, not completely. But the point is, I had only spoken with him once in grade ten, when classes had just begun and we were all grouped together before we would be separated into three different classes based on our capabilities and what we wanted to study in university.

We talked about movies. And when it comes to movies or books, I could talk the whole day even if that person was a stranger to me.

So, yeah. After that we never spoke. We moved in different circles. He was an art student, and I was in the science class. There wasn't really a popular crowd in our school, but if there was, those were the group of people he moved with. His sister was our only connection.

And whenever he came to talk to her and I was there, I could barely look at his face. It was like there was this force pressing down on me when I tried. Have you ever felt like that? So not great at all.

Anyway, this silent crush went on for two years. Two whole freaking years! And I never told anyone. Not a soul until one day, a demon possessed me and I told his sister, who had become one of my best friends and my other two friends Laura and Cassie.

Oh by the way, his name was Micah. But everyone called him Mike. Stupid, I know. Who would trade Micah for Mike? Just saying. Micah sounds more exciting. Mike... Mike sounds plain. Meanwhile, his sister's name was Mia

As I was saying, a demon possessed me and after two years of silence, I told Mia, Laura and Cassie. Yeah, the worst decision of my life.

I had told them at the end of grade eleven in a moment of insanity. I had thought I would be okay. I mean we are friends, what's a little secret between friends, right? Wrong!

The disaster comes in senior year. And due to this, I still say to this day " the best kept secrets are those you tell no one."