This chapter is dedicated to every ghost reader of MITC, who is too scared to vote and comment... Enjoy✨

˗ˏˋ༻ʚ♡︎ɞ༺ˎˊ˗

I was filled with rage and despair as I marched out of the building into the fresh evening breeze. I strolled towards the pavement and sat down with a frown. Before I came out, I tried to get my emotions under control. I didn't want to think about Delphine or the mistake she was about to make.

I gazed at Kim's gift, which was wrapped in black nylon. I was not going back in there; that was a certainty. It was a pity Kim wouldn't get her gifts today. Not much of a pity knowing how she'd gotten more valuable things from our classmates.

I was pulled out of my thoughts when I heard the building's door open, compelling me to look in that way. Kim was putting on a yellow dress and standing in front of the locked door, looking at me confusedly. I sighed and looked ahead. Why did she need to come out?

"It's not like I care," I heard her say as she cleared her throat and hugged herself. "But the party is in there, not out here."

Scoffing, I sat upright. "That can hardly be classified as a party."

"It's a party!" She frowned deeply. "Everyone's having fun."

"You think?" My words probably hurt, but I didn't care.

"How would you know when you're out here and not in there?"

My stare shifted to hers, making her feel nervous. "Just go back to your party, Kim." Instead of leaving, Kim came over and sat with me. I was astonished, but controlled my expression before I could show it. "What are you doing?"

"Paying back so it won't seem like I owe you," she said, not meeting my gaze.

"By sitting here,"

"I'll go in soon," she remarked in a high-pitched voice before shaking her head. "Just wanted to make sure that you're—"

"I'm what?" I asked after she'd cut herself off.

Kim sighed and then stared at the floor. "I'd rather not say."

I looked at her quietly, as if she were an unknown species ready for experimentation. I wasn't sure why she chose to stay out here with me rather than attend her own party.

"Can I ask a question?"

"Do I have a choice?"

I glanced at Kim and noticed she was irritated by my remark.  "Why did you storm off like that?"

"Didn't know I attracted you that much,"

Kim blinked before becoming embarrassed. Despite my terrible mood, I couldn't help but smile.

"Why did you?" She questioned again. "Do you like Delphine that much?"

"What?"

"I mean," she sat up straight.  "You've never been civil to me until Delphine showed up, and that's probably because I'm her friend and you want to impress her or something—"

"Impress her?"

"Yes—"

"How did you come up with this?" That was a genuine question. I was not sure what had motivated her to have such ideas.

"Isn't it obvious?"

"You're so wrong?"

Kim blinked, a little frown crossing her face. She threw out a sigh and glanced forward. "It's obvious. You even got jealous of Krystian and stormed out—"

"For a completely different reason," I said, cutting her off. I wanted to divert her mind away from whatever odd delusional notions she was having. "You won't get it."

"So you didn't storm out because you like Delphine?"

"Not in the way you think," Kim pouted before linking her fingers.

"Can I ask a different question?"  I stared at her, refusing to speak.  "What's your deal with Krystian?"

"Kim—"

"I heard you both were best friends—"

"Kim!" I watched her flinch at my outburst. "I don't want to talk about it!"

"Why?" Although I had noticed her gulping bile down her throat, she persisted in asking. "Krystian is handsome, caring, intelligent, nice—"

"Don't forget a double face," I spat, my voice barely above a whisper. Kim's lips trembled, unsure whether to continue or stop.

"W-what—" I watched her hesitate before taking a deep breath. "What do you mean by that?"

"You really want to know?" I knew Kim wouldn't let it go. She offered a small nod, causing me to sigh. Telling one person why I despised Krystian wouldn't hurt.  Thinking about the past, I felt myself balling my fist in fury. "It all happened when we came in newly in the Jss1."

"Jss1? Like minions?" I gave Kim a glance that made her clear her throat. "Sorry, continue."

"Like I said, it all happened when we came in newly. . . ."

˗ˏˋ༻ʚFive Years Agoɞ༺ˎˊ˗

Walking with trembling legs, I paused to gaze at the massive structure in front of me. I had never been so near to such a large and magnificent building in my life.

Before taking the common entrance exam, I had no hope. I wasn't thinking about earning admission, let alone a scholarship. I wasn't sure what motivated me to take the examinations in the first place.  Perhaps it was due to my teacher at primary school, who persuaded my father about the school's scholarship program and to believe in my potential.

After deciding to go inside, I let out a little whine when someone bumped into me. Though I was mesmerised by the majestic building in front of me, I knew the crash was not my fault.

"Are you okay?" I stroked my arm before staring at the student who stood a head taller than me.  He looked my age, much darker and more confident, as he wondered if I was okay.

I stood upright with a high chin, attempting to project confidence rather than appear as a crybaby. "I didn't know you even hit me."

The student furrowed his brow before reaching out to me. "My name is Christian, but spelt with a Kry."

"Why?"

The student looked up to the sky with a contemplative look. "I don't know; it's in my birth certificate."

I stared at his extending hand, unsure what to do with it. Probably sensing my confusion, the student reached for my hand and clasped it with his. "What's your name?"

"Romeo," I responded.

"Like Shakespeare's Romeo?" I stared, confused. "He's a writer. Don't you know him?"

I shook my head. "Am I supposed to?"

The student laughed, then shrugged a little. "Maybe. I wouldn't have known him if it wasn't for my nanny. She keeps his books lying about. Are you new?"

"I just got admission,"

"Same," my eyes lighted as I realised we were both in JSS1.  "Come, we're scheduled to go to the auditorium for a small seminar. My mother had informed me after she had checked my student's portal."

"Auditorium?" He nodded. I could hardly keep track of what he was saying, with how fluent his English was. "I don't know there."

"That's why you have me," he said cheerfully, placing his hands on my shoulder. "Do you have friends?"

I shook my head. "I just got here."

"No worries," he murmured as we walked into the building together. I was entranced by the interior setting. Krystian prodded me to regain my attention. "I'll be your friend, then I'll introduce you to my best friends."

We found the auditorium by asking around. It housed the newly admitted JSS1 students.  Krystian seemed occupied as he searched around with furrowed brows. He soon found what he was looking for, as he tapped me on the shoulder.

"Come on, Romeo, those are my friends!" It took some effort to keep up with him because of how enthusiastic he was to meet his friends. Upon arrival, I was greeted by three new faces. I looked at Krystian, unsure what to do about his friends.

"Everyone, this is Romeo," Krystian introduced naturally.

"Hi, I'm Hymn—"

"Like the hymn book in churches," the girl in the centre interjected. She was the shortest person I had seen so far. She still had her baby fat, though it wasn't apparent. "I am Ore."

"My mother said that we should be nice to our friends, so don't make fun of Hymn's name." The other girl spoke next, glaring at Ore. I was curious if she was Nigerian because of how fair she was.

"Do you want to know my name?" she inquired. I wasn't sure why she wasn't introducing herself like the others, but I nodded nonetheless. "My name is Toyosi, the daughter of the great Yemisi."

I blinked. "Who is she?"

Both females' jaws slightly opened as the boy, who was a little shorter than me, enquired. "You don't know actress Yemi?" I remembered him introducing himself as a hymn book.

"I don't have television in my house." I expected them to laugh, as others did when I was in primary school, but they just looked at each other and shrugged it off.

"I'll take you to my house one day, and I'll introduce you to my mother," Toyosi offered.

"And whenever you want to watch the TV, you can come over to mine," Krystian suggested.

It felt like a dream. This was the first time someone had been courteous to me, even inviting me over to their house. Ore and Hymn were similarly nice, and none of them made me feel out of place.

Months passed and Krystian and I became inseparable. He spent more time with me than he did with his best friends, and his home became my second home.  We excelled in class and were frequently the favourites of our teachers.

I sat in my seat and concentrated on the classwork assigned to us by the English teacher when Krystian enquired. "Why haven't I been to your place before?"

"My house is not as beautiful as yours," I replied, not glancing up from my book.

"It doesn't matter if your home lacks stairs, a gate, assistance, or a nanny. I only want to know where you live, as your best buddy."

I stopped writing to look at Krystian. "Best buddy, as in best friend?" He simply nodded. "But I've never had a best friend before."

Krystian placed his hands on my shoulder. "Now you do."

Knowing how desperate I was to have a best friend, I invited him to my home after school. I had never truly had a friend before, so skipping so many steps and then having a best friend felt out of the ordinary. He never mentioned the size or unkemptness of the environment in comparison to his own. Instead, he sat in the living room's armchair, making himself at home.

"Where is your father?" he questioned as he couldn't hide his curiosity.

"He isn't back from work," I responded.

"How about your mother?" Krystian asked further.

I didn't know the entire situation, but I knew my mother was with someone else.  "My daddy said she got married to someone else."

"So you've got two fathers? Can a person have two fathers?" All of these questions were too much for me, so I kept quiet since I wasn't sure what the answers were.

Krystian, on the other hand, got up and approached a photo frame resting against the wall.  "Is that your sister?"

I nodded. When I looked at my sister, tears welled up in my eyes.  I couldn't contain the emotion, no matter how hard I tried.

"Mummy said to me that my sister's condition was terrible, and then she left the family to marry another man. My sister is at the hospital. She doesn't talk and doesn't come to the house.  We instead visit her every weekend."

Krystian remained quiet as I stated in a weak voice. He appeared to understand me perfectly, as he walked over to gently touch my back.

"Do you believe in miracles?" Krystian asked instead, and I shook my head. "Well, I do, and I know your sister would be healed."

I had expected my sister to be healed the next day, but nothing occurred. Despite that, I didn't hold it against Krystian because he never specified whether the miracles were sudden.

Weeks passed, and Krystian and I were almost attached at the hips.  Many people usually to joked that if they wanted to find me, then they should look for Krystian, to automatically find me.

Krystian was interested in joining the football team, although I was not. But, since he was my friend, I decided to give it a shot. I did not expect the coach to choose JSS1 students, but he did. His justification was that he saw potential in us even though all we did was run around the pitch without touching the ball. Krystian began to make new friends once we joined the team, and by the third term, he was already well-known among our teammates.

One day, the coach instructed everyone to run five laps to increase our stamina. Krystian had finished considerably ahead of me and had gone to the changing room to change out of his sportswear. When I was finished, I hastened to meet up with him and not keep him waiting. As I approached the door, I heard voices that made me freeze in place.

"His sister has cancer?" Someone had echoed in the room. "How are you still friends with him?"

"Forget about the cancer; it's funny how his mother left his dad." A deeper voice said, signifying that it was a senior talking. "He's really bad luck, Krystian. I'm surprised you are still friends with him."

"So true," another voice echoed. "Does he know you just feel sorry for him? Imagine his father leaving too and his sister dying."

"What if what his sister has is contagious? Stop feeling sorry for him and just cut him off before you die."

"I feel sorry for him. I'm only friends with him to remind him how wonderful my life is in comparison to his." Krystian's remarks rang in my thoughts, making me rethink our friendship.

I could feel my eyes hurting and tears streaming down my cheeks.  I'd never told anyone except Krystian about it, and he chose to tell our teammates. I felt hurt and betrayed to the point where I couldn't remain there for an additional second. I had to flee.

During the next period, Krystian walked over and placed his hands on my shoulder, as usual, but I ignored it. He was puzzled but brushed it off with a question. "Where were you? You just disappeared after the drill."

"Same way I want you to disappear out of my life!" My outburst shocked not only him but also our classmates. I didn't care, at least it sent him a message . . . a message on how I never wanted him to speak to me ever again.

˗ˏˋ༻ʚ♡︎ɞ༺ˎˊ˗

"K-Krystian did all that?"

"Of course, you'd support him," I didn't expect much from her.  She had a major crush on him, just like every other girl in our school, which was incredibly frustrating.

"N-no, I'm just . . ." Kim stated and then paused. "But why did he act like the conversation in the locker room never happened?"

"Because he's two-faced," I said, my frustration slowly building up. Delphine and everyone else were unprepared to confront the truth. "I'm not telling you this to look at me differently, but I'm just telling you to prove that my hatred towards him is valid."

Kim paused, her teeth drawing her lower lip into her mouth as she gazed intently at the dusty ground. "Why is it news to me if your sister's issue was revealed to the public as early as JSS1? Why isn't anyone talking about it?"

Her question struck me hard, but I responded with a shrug. "I suppose everyone had learned to mind their business."

˗ˏˋ༻ʚ♡︎ɞ༺ˎˊ˗

That's it for today's chapter. We saw a little bit of Romeo's back story and why he isn't a big fan of Krystian.

Do you think he has a solid reason to hate Krystian? Do you think Krystian was being a bad friend? Or do you think there's more to the story?

More updates coming soon✨