Eleanor

After a wonderful night laughing along with my sisters, my body ached as I tried to wake. It was the first time in many years that I had missed the sunrise. No matter what, how tired I was, I could never miss the sunrise. Though I would agree to sleep for hours once I have said my hello to the morning breeze.

I faintly walked down the stairs guessing the distance between each step while practically separating my eyelids using my fingers. It wasn't blurred but it wasn't clear as well. "What's for breakfast?" I yawned.

"Caramel muffins," Mum replied humming the words. She looked extremely happy by the way her feet danced.

I tossed out the last few steps as I jumped from the railing of stairs and landed on the couch. "What's cooking mum?"

"Caramel muffins!" She repeated excitedly still singing.
Her golden hair covered half of her face, while her mesmeric curves moved in sync.

"What's that smell?" Miael stepped down the stairs rubbing her eyes. She had the most amazing hair of all us ladies. Creamish black, just like dad's.

"Mum's been baking caramel muffins." I sipped my tea, "she has been humming it since morning too."

Miael repeated my steps and tossed down the stairs the same way I did and landed on the couch, right above me.

"Ouch!" I squealed.

"Caramel muffins." Mum sang again ignoring us.

Miael stood up in shock and went to check on her. She waved her hand in front of her face and lifted up her chin, "Mum?"

"Caramel muffins," Mum replied smiling through all the corners of her lips.

Miael took a step back and picked up the phone dialing a number.

"What are you doing?" I raised an eyebrow.

"Dialing 911."

Mum gave us both a weird look before picking up the bowl and mixing the batter swiftly. "Caramel muffins!" She yelled before walking out of the kitchen.

"What is wrong with her?" I asked scratching my head.

Miael leaned onto the kitchen platform supporting her head with a hand as she frowned, "it seems to be one of her old tricks to annoy me. Don't you remember how she baked lemon cakes for me to carry along on my first day at grade school?"

I recalled the terrible day as the taste of those sweet and sour lemon cakes filled my mouth. I swear that was the day that changed the way all the students treated us. Our parents were a little too cuddly. Especially mum. She would dress up my sisters exactly like each other, although they were non-identical, she made sure people get confused between them. It was like she wanted them to be popular to the extent that when I join them, I would already be considered a celebrity.

Our parents were the most in-love couple I had ever seen until Dad began to focus more on his business and everything began to fall back. But I guess love is too strong in front of such materialistic happiness and that is why their relation survived.

I rested my chin on Miael's shoulder as we watched our mother dance out her happiness while continuously spinning the spoon in the batter. "How am I going to save myself?"

"Welcome to the tortured world," Miael said tapping on my head.

Mum stopped all of a sudden and swirled facing us, "I have got ears, just so you know. And these are not for you. Mimin's returning tomorrow. These are for her."

We both glared at each other while she began to sing and dance again. "And we thought we were important to her." I murmured sighing.

"I know." Miael sighed too. "It's going to be a massacre with all the three of us in the same house." She laughed her chirping little laughter that drives everyone crazy. I don't get it how can people not fall for her every time they see her.

"I need to get ready for school. Are you coming?" I asked folding my hair into a bun.

She paused and thought for a second playing with her almost dark curls, "I guess I still have to apologize to Martin Uncle." She sighed.

I took a few steps away from her and teased, "Martin Uncle or his son whom you call Martin uncle too?"

"Riri!" She yelled getting my references for the several phone calls she made Noah mistaking him for Martin Uncle. I ran away as she picked up a spatula to threaten me. I climbed up the stairs, she followed me until I ran inside the washroom and locked the door escaping.

"Guess you aren't this fast yet." I laughed turning on the shower.

Miael had already left by the time I came out. I got dressed up into an oversized hoodie, a pair of sneakers with denim shorts and oversized goggles to hide my face. I used a red cap to cover my face completely under its shade. After the blunder Miael had created at the cross ball game exposing my real name, my ranking in the hotlist had been upgraded.

I parked my car and entered the building hoping not to stumble into anyone. I walked straight across the corridor, focusing only on my footsteps avoiding every single person and making sure no one notices me. I could hear people talking and giggling. The voices fading out one after the other with every single step I took and finally when I was about to reach my classroom I got stumbled into the rock hard yet soft and enchanting back of Liam Martin. Someday I'm going to break my nose if he doesn't stop going to the gym!

"Don't tell me it's you again, Renaldi." He snapped turning around.

My nose now stuck to his chest, as the scent of the morning breeze coming from his body took over my senses, "Morning." I mumbled biting my lips in embarrassment.

He pushed my head a little back with his index finger creating a gap between us as I matched his gaze. His glittering eyes alarming me to step back before the unofficial paparazzi of the school gets their headline.

"Miss. Renaldi, you've got dark circles." He mumbled.

"What?" I asked widening my eyes.

He laughed removing my cap as he stole the clip that was holding my hair bun and went away waving my cap in the air. My hairs all fell down to my shoulders and slowly to my back making my face look a little more caramel. The lighter shades of blonde hair tossed over my eyes as I removed my goggles trying to understand how did he see through such a dark shade?

"There you're!" Lele jumped appearing from the thin walls of the school. This place was endangering all my privacy.

I pouted hugging her, "Where have you been? Do you know, how horrifying it is to roam around on my own after Miael exposed me?"

"Jeez, relax kiddo, it's going to be fine." She said tapping my back.

We headed for our class, on the way a few boys kept on trying to approach us, the hot girl with no brains and her friends also kept on trying to initiate a conversation. I wasn't trying to be mean but I hated the person who can't even get my name right.

Lele rushed towards her seat upon reaching the class as Miss. Smith, our homeroom mentor began to take attendance. "Take your seat." She said without raising her eyelids.

I simply followed her command and tiptoed towards my seat. "That's not supposed to be there," I told Liam pointing at his bag.

He picked it up and kept it aside. "Well I'm sorry, I didn't recognize you without your disguise." He placed my cap back on my head pressuring it.

I gritted my teeth, "It's too early in the morning, Riri. Too early." I told myself, controlling my anger.

I continued to ignore him and focus on the lecture.

"Psstt..."

"Psstttt..."

"Pssssttttt..." my ears alerted on hearing this noise repeatedly. I turned my head partially towards the left and leaned back in my seat.

Lele passed me a paper chit. I got back into my original position and opened it. Liam's face tilted a little too. The chit had the scent of Lavenders.

"Dear Junior Renaldi,
I can't believe you're so beautiful. Will you mind going on a date with me?" I read.

Wait? Why would Lele ask me something this weird? Last time I checked, she was straight. Liam snatched the paper from my hand and sneering into it began to laugh quietly. "So, you're into chicks!"

"Shut up Liam!" I snapped the chit back turning to Lele in complete confusion. I raised my eyebrows waving the paper chit to her under my table. She shrugged her shoulders and pointed to a guy sitting behind her. I looked behind her to find Ryan smiling sheepishly. He winked at me before returning his attention to the lecture.

"Ryan Bennette. Not bad." Liam laughed silently.

"Still better than the hot chick with no brains." I wrapped up the chit and threw it into Liam's bag. It was my dustbin since childhood and I had found it again.

He turned to look at the hot chick I just mentioned and waved at her. "She is Vanilla."

I turned to face her recalling Lele introduced her as Venicia, Patricia's cousin. "You don't remember her name, do you?" I laughed hiding my mouth.

He removed my hand from my mouth and lifted up my chin with his index finger, "I call her whatever I want to. I call all the girls whatever I want to and they don't mind. In fact, they think it's cute. So stop spreading rumors."

I fought his finger with my pen and freed my chin. "Do I take it as a confession of you actually not remembering any of their names?" I smirked.

"You!" He whined.

"If you both don't want detention, stop fighting now." The teacher ordered writing on the blackboard. She wasn't even paying attention, how did she know?

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