Act 1

I feel the adrenaline coursing through every inch of my body. I take a deep breath and exhale with relief as I hold the bow in my hands and release the arrow, hitting the target. Once I realize I've achieved this feat, I feel a friendly tap on my shoulder from my friend Nicholas.

— You hit the target for the first time! I'm impressed! I can see you've improved a lot in our training sessions!

— Thanks, Nick, you're truly a good friend! I say, looking into his eyes.

— Look on the bright side, Jhon! You're not the weakling you used to be! He flexes his bicep, a vein visible on it.

— Thanks a lot, what can I say. And to think I wanted to hire a coach.

— Come on! With me, it's free, I'm your buddy! And he takes me into his arms, rubbing his fist firmly against my head.

— Hey, stop it! It hurts! I laugh as he continues.

— If it hurts, why can't you stop laughing? he continues to rub his fist on my head while playfully laughing. Okay, I'll let you go! You're lucky... this time! And he releases me while still laughing.

— So, when are you going to tell her? I ask him.

— What? What are you talking about? he blushes.

— You know, Lyna. Your eyes have been following her a lot lately.

— No, I can't tell her. She'll kill me if I do!

— It can't be that bad; maybe she likes you too!

— Slim chances, she doesn't like anyone. She wouldn't go for anyone, let alone me.

— You never know... after all, you are an attractive guy.

— Yeah, right, not anymore. I was stupid when I lied about being with multiple girls just for attention, now the whole school believes it. And as far as I know Lyna, I'm probably on her "not interested" list.

I feel somewhat sorry for the poor guy; he went through a lot and had to resort to lies, thinking it was the only solution at the time. I look deeply into his eyes and realize the pain he endures for the red-haired girl with amber eyes.

— I think... I think I'll wait a few more years before I tell her the truth.

— How many? I ask him. An eternity?

— It's an option. Anyway, I think we're done with training for today. See you in an hour at the café?

— Yes, why not? That sounds like a good idea!

— Good! he says, fist-bumping me. See you later! And he leaves, waving goodbye as he walks away.

I sit on a bench, a bit tired and worn out after so much physical exercise. I close my eyes and relax, leaning back on the bench.

— There you are! I've been looking for you everywhere! Everywhere! And where were you all this time?! a female voice is heard, sounding aggressive.

— What do you want, Lia? I ask tiredly, looking at the brunette girl with blue eyes like the ocean. I'm not in the mood for anything; please, leave me alone.

— I'm your best friend! I've known you since we were six. You're in the mood for me no matter what, be clear about that!

— Lia, just let me relax for five minutes, then we can talk.

— Fine, I'll let you relax for five minutes, don't say I'm mean! But I wanted to tell you something important.

— What did you want to tell me exactly?

— That you left your phone at home, and your mom sent me to find you, see where you are, if you're okay, if something happened, you know, stuff like that!

— I'm fine, nothing happened. I was at training with Nick, that's all.

— You look really tired. How long have you been training with him? she asks curiously.

— About six or seven months, why?

— I meant today, how long have you been training with him?

— Since six in the morning, I reply to Lia with a tired tone. Let me relax for a bit, then I close my eyes, exhausted after three long hours of training.

— Done! Five minutes are up! Are you ready to hear what happened to me?

— Sure, what happened? I ask her with closed eyes.

— Open your eyes; you can't hear me! Pay attention to me!

I have no idea how she made the connection between eyes and hearing, but you don't mess with her; she somehow gets what she wants, so I open my eyes and start listening to her stories as if I'm watching a Turkish soap opera. As I sit there pretending to listen while yawning, she doesn't notice that she's talking to herself, and another hour passes.

— And that's how it happened! she finishes talking. Any questions?

— No... I need to go to the café; Nick is waiting for me.

— I'm coming with you! Got it?

— Why? We're talking about guy stuff; you won't understand anything.

— Oh, come on... even if I don't understand anything? I'm coming with you! she tells me while I look into her eyes, noticing a hint of desperation.

— Are you okay? Do you need something?

— Oh no! I'm fine! I'm totally fine! she says, waving her hands in the air. Why would you think I'm not fine?

— I don't know; you seemed a bit agitated, maybe even desperate.

— Oh no! You think so! Come on, let's go to the café now! she changes the subject abruptly, pulling me by the hand.

As we walk on the sidewalk together, I can't help but notice the way she smiles, seeming very happy without any apparent reason. Her expression makes it look like she just won the lottery, even though she was talking about something bad that happened to her just five minutes ago.

In a way, it worries me; she hasn't been herself lately. She gets annoyed every five minutes, much more often than usual: she yells, screams, is aggressive, and then acts as if nothing happened.

I admit there are times when I don't want to listen to her because the way she complains about everything annoys me, and sometimes she makes everything seem like it's my fault. And honestly, this behavior really worries me considering it's not like her.

But maybe I'm too paranoid; maybe it's my fault, but my intuition tells me otherwise.