"Arianne!", "Arianne!", "Arin!" Arianne barely left her room. She was more popular for being the most shy than being the Student of the Month every month. The more time she took to respond to a call or come out of her room or roll her eyes at a guy trying to hit on her or decide if she really needed a drink, the more popular she became.

And...she hated it!

Though she liked getting attention, she liked being the heart of the party, the attention she got seemed to matter nothing to her.

Whenever she walked by some student of her Biology classes, she knew they looked up and were talking about how 'a damsel in distress' she was. And, she knew she was not a damsel in distress. She was way smarter than any of them were or could ever be. Else, she could not have been the best both in theory and at the laboratory.

Arianne Keira Daveson was a final year Biology major student at the Washington State University, in Seattle. A few months to graduation, she barely cared what others thought of her anymore. She just dreamed of being one of those people known for their contributions in the field of Biology and was successfully tackling with her dream.

She was the best in her class and Mrs. Rodriguez, the H.O.D. had happily and willingly hung her picture on a wall at her lab, that stated that she was the Student of the Month, every month, until someone else took her position.

All she was bad at was drawing. Her diagrams, though scientific,  were never perfect. To improve, she had even joined the drawing classes at the University, but it went in vain and the professor drove her away.

Born and brought up till high school in Miami, California,  Arianne loved the sea. The sea was her life. She had grown with it. She had seen it evolve and grow and create and even destroy. She had seen its shades and it had seen hers. It was as if the sea was her best friend. In the mornings, they exercised together, all along the day, they worked on their daily chores and either sang or hummed light tunes in the leisurely evenings and at night, they rested together and recalled their day - sometimes crying, sometimes laughing, sometimes just staring at one another through a sliding glass door.

Arianne's parents had divorced when she was ten years old. Her father had always lived in San Francisco,  even when she was a little child. He and her mother always had tiny rows, nothing serious until it upsurged when Mr. Kendrick Smith lost his job, started a business that failed early and came back to Miami, deciding to depend on his wife Ms. Katelyn Daveson.

Katelyn, who was always an independent woman wanted her husband to work and constantly tried stimulating him into productive employment. Mockeries, insults, rows, swearings went on for a month until both decided to file a divorce and the marriage was over like a dream, barely leaving any memories at all.
Kendrick, though, loved his daughter with all his heart.

Even after he moved back to San Francisco after the divorce, he constantly kept contact with Katelyn about Arianne. The little girl had no idea what had happened. She found it normal that her Dad was away and she had to live with her Mamma and Granny. When she grew up a bit,  she learnt that, unlike the parents of most of her classmates,  her parents weren't husband and wife anymore.

Initially,  it was a shock to her, but, soon she recovered when she realized by herself that her parents had their own choices that could not be and should not be sacrificed for her.

The one aspect of her life, other than the sea that gave her respite was music. The priest of the local Catholic church on the beach once found an about thirteen year old girl sitting alone at the front row with her hands clasped and beautiful voice concentrated in singing an ancient Catholic hymn. As soon as her eyes opened as he sat by her, two teardrops slipped out from the shimmering bright eyes that contained the deep, large and black eyeballs.

"What's wrong,  my lovely child?" he had asked her with utter worry in his heavy voice.

The little girl, Arianne swiped away her tears and tried pretending it to be nothing at all. "Are you telling me that you want to lie in front of the same man whom you dedicated that beautiful hymn to?" he asked, directing towards Jesus, making her feel errant.

She confessed to him how sad it made her feel to see other little girls of her age being pampered and loved by both of their parents and compare her situation where she had to choose either of her parents when she wanted to go out and be loved. "When it's only Mamma, it's fine," she said, still weeping,  "but, when Dad's here, I'm asked to choose either of them when I'm allowed to go out. I want to tell them that I want to have both of them together."

"Then, do so."

Arianne stopped crying. "I don't want them unhappy. I know they don't want to be together and I don't want to force them to be just because I need them. I have both of them, I know. All I want is to have more time with each of them. I miss Dad."

The generous priest willed her to look up and at the idol of the crucified Jesus and told her, "He is your father.  And, He'll always be with you."

Arianne still seemed unconvinced. The little girl said, "but, He's everyone's father. I want a piece of Him just for me, exclusive for me." "He's beside everyone,  dear child," the priest said again, "He's a different father for every child. He holds different meanings in the lives of different people. Wait here, I'll get you something."

She waited as he went around the railings that barricaded between the seating rows and Jesus' idol and into an attached room. After a minute, he came back with a fat book in his hand and handed it to Arianne. "It's the Bible," she said,  opening it at the first page.

"Where did you learn that song from?" St. Gonzales asked her as she shuffled through the pages of the Bible. "My Granny sings that on our way back from Sunday church," she said, "I like the words." "Your Granny teaches you how to sing?" he asked again. "No," she replied, "nobody does."

"Won't you come again?" Arianne had asked when Father Lewis Gonzalez left her at her door. He put his hand on her head and said, "of course, whenever you need me."

The next morning, when she woke up and came out into the dining hall, the priest was back at her house. Mamma and Granny had served him tea and were talking to him. When they looked up to her arrival, Mamma informed her, "Father Lewis wants to volunteer to teach you music. Isn't that great?"

The following summer, alongside volunteering at the church library and assisting at the 'Mr. Tuck's Burger Truck', she learnt how to play the piano and improved her vocal skills with the help of St. Gonzales.

All along, the Bible kept her calm and composed and gave her the strength of mind required. Whenever she felt sad, had things to share with someone,  the new way she discovered to let out was by writing. Diary entries were common, and alongside, she wrote stories that became popular among people she knew but she never got popularity any more than that.
When she arrived at the age of sixteen, she had grown fully matured.

Unlike other beach girls of her age, she had grown bulky. But her bulk, instead of making her look dumb, added on to her grace. Her black thick hair fell till her matured breasts and, as she walked,  the curvature of her hips made boys and men turn heads and stare. One such boy was Ryan Hamilton,  two years ahead of her, who made girls run after him, wanting to lick his money and body.

Since he saw her at the school choir, he wanted her desperately. He asked her out at a party and, when she agreed to go, immediately tried taking her to a rest room to put his hands in. If she had not been smarter than she already was, Hamilton would have been let gone that day.  That was the day Arianne told herself she was not a damsel in distress.

Taking up science in high school, she discovered her affinity towards the natural secrets of the world. How the earth came, how atoms and molecules formed,  how a human body works,  how a baby is born, how a disease could be banished - all that and many more intrigued her more than what intrigued the other girls - boys to stalk.

Her SATs fetched her a nice amount of scholarship and a seat in the biology classes at the W.S.U.with her best friend David taking up Economics at the same college. Arianne could not remember a day David and she had not spent together. They were together since they were born. They had gone to the same montessori, same primary school, same middle school, same high school, worked at the same food truck, sat at the same point at the beach every time they went out. They were bonded for life. Neither could imagine a life without the other.

The first few days at the University were fine,  when people did not know her. The more people got to know her and her excellence at her subject, and the 'good girl' image and the Bible she always had, the more they found it difficult to adapt with her. She had always wondered how people had so much time and patience to discuss the happenings of other people's lives.
Unlike biology, the people from her minor subjects- chemistry,  english and psychology- were not so weird. People thought she was different,  true,  but they did not spend time on how different she really was. Why only biology students (especially the girls) then?

Being shy fetched her only a handful of classmates whom she could actually call mates. Besides David, Theresa from chemistry, Don and Sam from english, and Caroline from psychology were people she used to hang out with.

And, her co-curricular classes of music had been the best part of the University. The teacher there reminded her of Father Lewis and that's what she loved most. Her grip on English language was well appraised by the English professors and many of her articles got printed in the college magazine and the student newspaper.

After the massacred party with Ryan Hamilton,  Arianne had resolved not to attend any more parties. It's not that she didn't go at all. Initially, she went. And,  whenever she got a panic attack,  she thought it was mere. But,  they used to come back at every party and with more vigor, the attacks shook her. When it became unbearable, she decided not to attend parties anymore. David had told her that if she avoided her fright, it will overpower her all the more. She knew it was true,  but she never had the courge to stand up against it.

Theresa was a social butterfly,  whose main interest was in throwing parties and making people attend them. But, she never seemed to stand a chance with Arianne. "Oh, c'mon Arin," she used to say, "what are you gonna do alone when everyone is going?" But this time, she was damn serious.

She used to reply,  "I've a lot of work to do," holding up her pencil and chemistry notebook. "Like what?"

"Studying. I'll flunk at chemistry, Theresa, if I don't study. You've an inborn talent for Chem, but I don't."

"The last time, you stayed back for Biology and the one before that for your survey. And, there are so many other 'before'-s that I can't even talk about."

"So, don't."

"Arianne,  please let's go. It's just a small get-together. There will be a few people from my family,  not even my parents - just two or three cousins and some friends. Don, Sam, David all would be there. C'mon, you've got to go."

Besides sharing chemistry classes,  Theresa and Arianne also shared a room. They had been kept as roommates since they turned up at the University. So, the process of convincing was easier and longer when it came to Arianne. Theresa did not need to go to some place else to do it.

"What's wrong with you? This conversation has been going on for over three days. I don't know why I can't make you understand that I don't want to go to any party at all. Please, Ther, stop this."

The determined girl seemed to still not give up. "Please Arin, please. For my sake. Please do come this time. I'll never force you again."

"Why? What's so exciting about this time?"
"Nothing is. I just want you to come, please. Don't say no again. I'm tired of hearing that. Please!"

Arianne left her book beside her and crossed her arms across her chest. She looked at her friend for a while, trying to gauge the actual reason behind so much drama. "Okay," she finally said, "I'll go. But, this is the only time you win, you get it. I'm never going to go anywhere else." Theresa laughed and danced about for a while as she went back to her study.

Saturday evening, when the party was to be held, both girls dressed up quickly for the evening party. "You're wearing that?" Theresa asked, pointing at Arianne's simple pink colored long evening dress.

"Yes," she replied,  collecting her purse from the bed, "and, I don't want no objection. Not anymore,  now that I've consented to go to the party."

Outside the girls' sorority, David waited with his car to pick them up for the party, which was at Theresa's late grandmother's house. "Hey Arin," he greeted her, "you look great. It's after a long time that I saw you wearing something like this." "Yeah, I know," she smiled. "Thanks for finally coming to the party," he said, opening the car door for her.

David had always had a soft corner for Arianne. Growing up together, he had seen their relationship transform. Though, he didn't know if she did as well. He had seen themselves being partners in crime in childhood,  more like siblings till middle school, but after her parents' divorce, and when she grew up faster than he did, he found them coming closer than he thought they would ever be. He was more of a support for her, a shoulder to put her head on, a chest to cry in, a hand to hold, a lap to sleep and a heart to listen. He thought and always wanted them to be more than friends. She did too. But in a different way. She wanted him as a brother. He wanted to become her lover.

As they dropped at the bungalow,  it was booming with music and lights. Theresa had come in the morning to get everything ready.

She took the both of them inside and upstairs and they started adjusting themselves to the loud room. David took Arianne around and introduced her to some people from his Economics class whom she either already knew or knew just by face. She met all of them smiling but in her head, she knew the devils were soon to come.

She tried distracting herself by meeting people she knew and then, decided to take a drink. As she stood at the bar, her eyes wandered towards the rest rooms. Her mind took her back to the memories and she had to look away immediately to resist herself from screaming.

As she got the drink, she took the glass and went out into a balcony to let the fresh air drive her insecurities off.

"Arianne!", "Arianne!", "Arin!" She heard Theresa's voice closing the distance towards her and looked back. With her, she saw a guy - tall, sturdy, good-looking, with a slight stubble on his cheeks, probably a couple of years older to her - coming as well.

"I've been searching for you everywhere," Theresa said, taking her side, "what happened?  Are you fine?" "Yeah," she replied,  "why wouldn't I be?"
Her friend smiled politely and took the privilege of introducing the guy to her, "Arianne, this is my cousin."