RE FALLING IN LOVE

Leone had just arrived at the party, after promising her best friend that she would make time to show up. She wasn't interested in showing up at this high school/college reunion party just to see the faces she wasn't acquainted with during those years of schooling.

But her best friend just had to force her to show up, and even the so-called best friend was absent. They were meant to arrive together two hours ago but Danielle White was late, having dropped an excuse that she had an important thing to do at her father's company.

Leone didn't care about that, her father's company could go up in flames and she wouldn't care. All she wanted was for Danielle to show up. If she had to go through this overbearing reunion, her best friend must be by her side.

Leone walked straight to the bar and motioned to the bartender to get her two shots of whiskey on the rocks. She was going to do her absolute best to avoid everyone here and leave when she feels she's spent enough time there.

Having swallowed what she was given, she faced the crowd of people she used to call her classmates from years ago. She wasn't that bad with faces, she recognized a lot of them from the hallways or the morning assembly each time she had to stand and face them.

It didn't mean she used to talk to them, she was just used to some faces she used to see regularly.

"Hey, Leone. Glad to see the woman that is on every front page can grace us with her presence."

She recognized this person as John, a dude that used to be on her basketball team then. They were nothing more than teammates and never really had conversations outside their tournament sessions.

Leone only nodded towards the man with her empty glass raised and tipped towards him and he laughed. There was no need to exchange words with him, she was going to be out of this place very soon.

"Hey, everyone!" John proceeded to yell, drawing everyone's attention to him and Leone, to the woman's distaste. "See who showed up tonight. It's Leone Martin!"

What Leone tried to avoid was already happening to her. Her classmates began to flock around her, questions were thrown left and right about why she didn't converse with them since graduation.

They had a reunion before this, but Leone had clearly expressed her desire not to attend. It was a surprise the snobbish woman changed her mind this time.

Leone was very repulsed by the crowd that was beginning to form around her. She just wanted her space and now she wished she turned her best friend's proposal down in the first place.

She was so used to saying no, why was it hard to say no when Danielle asked?

Murmurs about how she was always the hot topic on the news every week could be heard amongst them. Some even tried to use her success and popularity to their advantage by requesting assistance of all sorts.

"If you excuse me, I have to use the bathroom." Leone pulled away from the crowd and walked to wherever the restroom was. She needed her space badly and probably needed to wipe herself down from whatever they would have used to touch her.

After washing her hands, Leone decided to take her time in the bathroom and wait for the waiting crowd for her to find something better to do, like start their reunion party.

She picked her phone up and sent an angry text to Danielle. Leone was never going to do that shitty best friend of hers any favors for the next few months as a punishment for making her go through this tonight. Heck, she might even ghost her till the end of the year, if she wanted.

"I hate your stupid ass so much. Do not talk to me till the end of the year."

Leone cursed when she realized she didn't bring her cigarettes with her tonight to pass the time away in the bathroom. She didn't have games on her phone because she never had time to play with anyone.

Sighing in defeat, Leone finally stepped out of the restroom and was glad that everyone had gone back to doing whatever they did in groups. She stood in the dark, away from the lights, and watched as an old classmate hosted the reunion.

The woman that Leone recognized as Estella, an ex-girlfriend of one of her clique members, was laughing as she read from the card in her hand, as everyone cheered.

"Like come on guys! It's so refreshing to see you all again, even though we were all together last year. I remember how we all used to argue a lot, get into fights, especially those of you that were wanna-be bullies, and rat each other out." Estella walked around. "Even Leone showed up and excused herself, not a surprise, but have you guys seen Amy?"

Leone wasn't paying attention to whatever they were saying, her focus was on the second batch of drinks she had ordered as she stayed in the background so that no one would see her. But when that name was called, she paused in her actions and glanced back at the small stage Estella stood on.

Her eyes danced around the small crowd, trying to find that woman named Amy. She never thought of all places to bump into that person again, it was at the high school reunion she didn't plan on attending.

"I know a lot of you were in love with Amy back then because of her innocent looks and dimples as deep as the ocean, and most of you hated her because she was friends with the people you looked up to. But I'm going to show off that young teenager tonight." Estella came down from the stage and walked towards one of the tables that were clustered with many others. "Presenting my best friend, Amy Waters."

Everyone gave a hoot as Estella succeeded in pulling her best friend off her seat and the spotlight shone on them. Leone's eyes widened at the female, surprised at the glow-up compared to what she used to be.

Amy Waters was trying to free herself from her best friend but was unsuccessful. As she tried to go back to her seat, the women at her table didn't let her and the young woman laughed along with them.

She never kept in touch with Amy, despite what they used to be those years, and she wondered if Amy still remembered her. Not realizing when she stood up from the barstool she sat on, Leone left the darkness she was in and was visible to everyone.

And just at that moment, Amy looked up after bending to adjust her dress and her eyes saw a frame stand away from them. Her eyes widened upon recognition and the laugh on her face disappeared.

Their eyes locked and people could see that Amy's facial expression had changed. They followed her eyes and everyone gasped, surprised that Leone Martin was still at the reunion.

Most importantly, Leone Martin and Amy Waters were in the same room.

With Amy in her sight, the past that Leone had wanted to forget and act like that chapter never happened to review itself all over. After everything that they had gone through up till where they parted, she would always blame Amy Waters, because the woman should have just let her be instead of entering her life and causing her pain.

High school had just started once more, and Leone wasn't even excited one bit. It was going to be another three years of co-existing with these same people all over again and she was honestly tired.

Refusing help from the servant that came along with her, Leone walked into the dorms with her luggage and a basketball under her arm. She had a roommate that she could bear with, at least. It was her best friend and a member of her tiny clique at school.

They were the only reason why the school was bearable enough to attend. If not for them, Leone would have probably changed school in hopes to start afresh somewhere else where her surname or family influence won't put her in the spotlight again.

Opening the door, Leone saw the room was empty and realized that her best friend and roommate, Danielle White, hadn't checked in yet. Well, no one had checked in yet, Leone practically entered the school grounds that Sunday morning earlier than anyone.

It was just the teachers and staff that were loitering around, preparing whatever they needed to welcome students back to school for a new session. Most were pretty surprised when they saw Leone Martin on school grounds that early.

Sighing to herself, Leone walked to her corner of the room and dropped her ball and suitcase on the undressed bed. At least, she had some time to be alone and meditate on her own before the lousy girl she called her best friend returned.

Their room was large enough for two people, with a bedside table for both beds in between the single beds. Each closet that would belong to the occupants individually was against different walls, but close enough to the beds to distinguish who owned which.

They also had a little pantry for their snacks and junk food, the bathroom, and a toilet connected to their bedroom but there was no kitchen. For their feeding, there was a dining hall in the center of the open space which all the dormitory rooms surrounded.

This may not be how every room in the dormitory was, Leone couldn't tell, but she had only heard about it. The rooms she had gone to were pretty similar to hers and she wasn't that idle to check out every room in the hostels.

Leone proceeded to arrange her ironed school uniforms, sport-wears, and casual clothes into the empty closet and threw the sheets on the bed. The earlier she got done with these chores, the longer the time she would spend struggling to sleep. Maybe she would be lucky enough to succeed this time.

Placing the chessboard she owned and the basketball at the bottom of the closet, she proceeded to lay her bed and arrange her shoes under the bed within the space provided.

When Leone was satisfied with everything, she stripped off her clothes and jumped into the shower to clean herself. She had busted a sweat earlier from the tiny chore she did and needed to be refreshed if she was going to fall asleep.

But when she stepped out of the bathroom, Danielle was present in the room.

It seemed the female was waiting patiently for her, having heard the water running in the bathroom when she came in and the tidied part of the room that wasn't hers.

"You came quite early," Danielle smiled at her friend, who only rolled her eyes and used a towel to dry her short black hair before packing it, allowing the undercut to be seen. "It is only the mighty Leone Martin that shows up two hours before anyone else."

"You came late." Leone silenced her and walked to her bed, discarding her towel on the chair in the room.

"Late? This is just ten in the morning, Leone. This is the time required for students to check in."

"You came after me, so you are late."

Danielle laughed at her roommate and got off her bed to arrange the things she had brought. No words were exchanged anymore as Leone was already laying on her back with an arm slung over her eyes.

It had only been three years since Danielle first met Leone and they have been close for two. Leone was the kind of person to be unresponsive to people she wasn't close with. Not like she was loud with close friends, but you could see the difference.

Danielle didn't think that she would call this young female her best friend the first time she walked into this room in middle school. Leone was pretty closed off and refused to communicate each time Danielle remarked or tried to spark a conversation.

Leone kept to herself most time, always using earphones any chance she got just to avoid social interaction. To her, she didn't think there was any need to make friends with her roommate because she thought she wasn't going to be back here the next session. At one point, Danielle got fed up and confronted the young woman, telling her that they had to be acquainted if they were going to be together as roommates for three years.

Leone laughed then, and also ignored her request until her father brought her back again when she started a new grade. Then she decided to honor Danielle's request, also setting some ground rules about how the blonde was to behave around her.

But slowly, they became closer than just roommates and became best friends.

When Danielle was done with her little chore, Leone was seated upright against her bed frame, watching her roommate move about as she sorted her stuff.

"Gosh, did your father send his company's supply of soda with you again?" She noted, seeing the multiple packs of lemonade stacked against the wall.

Danielle's father was the founder of a big lemonade company in the state, Lemon Drop, which surprisingly, was always a shelf seller each time a new batch rolled out.

Leone didn't have to spend money on those things. The advantage of having the daughter and probably heir of the best-selling lemonade company as a roommate was having to get the drinks for free. For some reason, Danielle would tell her father to add extra for her best friend and roommate, and Leone wasn't complaining.

"Don't tell anyone, but my dad is launching a new flavor next week. He sent this as a sample for us and the rest of the gang." Danielle opened one pack and threw the bottle to Leone, which she caught successfully. "Taste it and tell me what you think."

Leone observed the packaging of the bottle. It seemed new, compared to how the designs used to be before, and she read 'strawberry and watermelon' on the body.

"It should be nice," She muttered and opened the bottle, placing it on her lips and taking a big gulp. The sweet taste met with her taste buds, and she shuddered in satisfaction.

Danielle chuckled at her best friend's reaction, "How is it?"

"Fucking love it." Leone proceeded to take more gulps until the contents were all in her stomach. "This was what I needed today."

"Luckily, there is more, just enough for us. And when it's done, we can still get more."

Leone wished she could be in bed till the day was over, but she had to assist the dorm warden of her building to check in students. She wasn't part of the student captains as she was just in grade 10, but she was influenceable enough for teachers and other staff to call on her for assistance most times.

Danielle decided to escort her friend and offer her any assistance. It was more like; you couldn't find one without the other. Everyone in Founding Fathers' High knew that.

Founding Fathers' High was a private school in New York that had both boarding and day facilities. Despite its lasting popularity for being one of the top schools for years, it accommodated students, both boys, and girls, of all social classes.

The boarding area, where the dormitories for students who wished to stay in the dorms were situated, had seven different blocks. Each block had a name attributed to each of the founding fathers; John A, Benjamin F, Alexander H, John J, Thomas J, James M, and George W, and each student, either a boarding student or a day student, was assigned to these houses.

Each block had two buildings assigned to both genders, so there were 14 buildings in total. It wasn't that congested as the land was large enough to contain all but the buildings weren't too high because there was a limit to the number of students the school was willing to take.

The blocks were aligned structurally well, and the dining hall was right in the middle of all the blocks where the students resided. If you wanted to be a boarding student, you had to apply early because of the limited space.

This wasn't an issue. More students loved coming from their respective houses so there was a higher ratio of day students to boarders.

As the two best friends walked out of their room in George W, Leone's face had become poker while Danielle had the cheerful smile she always wore. Walking down the corridor, every passing student moved out of the way on seeing the duo.

It might have been out of fear because Leone always had a frown on her face and people feared getting on her bad side. Even the reassuring smile that Danielle had couldn't calm their nervousness.

No one wanted to block Leone's path. It was said that once, a student walked too slowly in front of her, and she got pushed to the side by a slap to the head.

"As usual, everyone is staring at you," Danielle said in a low voice as the two stepped out of the block and trudged towards the gate that separated the boarding area from the main school ground.

"They are staring at us, not just me."

"Whatever. When would Damon, Luka, and Lois arrive? Those motherfuckers are always late in checking in." Danielle kicked at a stone on the ground and Leone shrugged.

They got to the gate and a male staff member called out to Leone. He was the dorm's master, and he was holding files containing the information of each boarding student that would be checked in this session.

"Glad you're here. Can you check in the students? I have some other duties to attend to for a while."

"It's no problem, Mr. Thompson. I have Danielle to assist me." Leone smiled curtly at the man, and he nodded before handing the files to her. She knew what to do, having assisted on one or two occasions when the student captain in charge of checking in students called in sick last session.

"Great! I will see you later." And Mr. Thompson hurried off in the other direction.

The line of students wasn't that long so it wasn't going to be too stressful for Leone and her friend. All they had to do was check the name of the student on the file with the ID presented to ensure that the right student was checking in.

They also had to check their belongings to make sure that there weren't any contrabands on them. Things like alcohol, cooking equipment, and drugs were not allowed. The school faced an issue when a student overdosed two sessions ago and since then, they have always tried to ensure that these things weren't on school grounds.

Leone and Danielle agreed on the divided work. Leone was going to be in charge of checking for these contraband items while Danielle would be in charge of cross-checking the names of the students.

Leone didn't mind going through the belongings of the opposite sex. She grew up in the company of boys and she was used to their nature. Besides, she was only doing this because Danielle didn't want to touch any male underwear.

The first student presented their belongings and offered their ID card to Danielle. Leone wasn't looking at any faces because she wasn't interested. She was focused on going through their suitcase for the illegal items and confiscating them.

This procedure went on for a while, and Leone was getting tired. It wasn't surprising as she was doing the most strenuous work while Danielle only had to look up names. Beads of sweat formed on her forehead and her frown got deeper.

Tired of going through the same routine, Leone stood up from her seat and barked at the students. She didn't care if they were a class or two ahead of her, her frustrations already got the best of her.

"Kindly endeavor to remove the contraband items from your belongings yourselves before it gets to your turn." She eyed the students on the line, "I won't hesitate to set fire to your things if I find something illegal when you get to me."

The students who were familiar with the sophomore knew Leone was bound to carry out her threat and they couldn't do anything since she was here on behalf of the dorm master and mostly because of her background and reputation,

Those that had contraband in their belongings began to fish out the illegal items. Murmurs began to rise to the air and the freshmen, who had the same, had to follow in the steps of their seniors and tossed their illegal items to the side.

To the freshmen, something about the female student who barked out orders was intimidating, and they didn't want their high school beginning to be filled with bad blood. Mr. Thompson arrived at the scene and watched as the students threw their contraband under Leone's command.

Leone believed her work was done and tapped Danielle's shoulder. "I am going back to the room. See you when it's time for dinner."

And she walked away, leaving her best friend to complete her duties and back to the peacefulness of her room.

It was Monday and classes were going to be in session.

It was a normal routine for the boarding students to wake up early, between the hours of 6:00 am to 6:30 am, so that they could all meet at the dining hall for breakfast, which started at 7:15 am.

The doors would be closed by 7:20 am, meaning any student that wished to eat had to be inside before the doors closed. This was to maintain discipline and orderliness in the school and to teach students that everything worked within a time limit. After breakfast was the morning assembly, which always started by 8:00 am and lasted forty-five to fifty minutes, depending on what the principal of the school had to address the students on.

This general assembly, however, only occurred on Mondays and Fridays. On the other days of the week, there were different meetings; Tuesdays being dorm/house assemblies, Wednesdays being free days, and Thursdays being mentoring assemblies.

Leone and Danielle walked into the dining hall, alongside other students, and they headed towards their table specifically reserved for them. Reserved as per, no other student dared to sit down with the famous five in fear of being an outcast and bullied heavily.

Their other three friends were already seated and chatting amongst themselves before one of them, Luka, looked up and yelled out Leone and Danielle's names, making the other two, and practically everyone else, glance at the approaching figures.

"I thought you were going to skip breakfast," Damon fist-bumped Leone before doing the same with Danielle. The five students at the table each had a chance to shake or hug each other before settling at the table big enough for ten students.

That was how it was meant to be. The number of students assigned to a table was ten each, but their table was an exception, mainly because the looks alone they would get from Leone because they weren't part of her clique would send them running.

"I didn't get to eat anything last night." Leone whispered, which was true. When she got back to the dorm, she fell asleep and didn't wake up in time for dinner. The only thing she had throughout yesterday was the lemonade they had in their room.

"Ah," Lois nodded just in time as the kitchen staff placed bread, jam, eggs, and a large jug containing tea in it on their table. The friends muttered their thanks and distributed the food amongst themselves before digging in.

Their table was silent, there was nothing to talk about. The session was just starting so there wasn't anything new or any gossip flying around the student body.

When they were done with their breakfast, the five friends walked together to the school grounds. It was easy to walk amidst the crowd of students who seemed to be going in the same direction because the students parted like the red sea each time they felt the presence of the five.

How couldn't they, when Lois and Luka were practically noisemakers as they walked with their friends?

Leone was immune to the public display the two cousins were up to, her face being void of any emotion. By the time they got to the classroom building, the friends parted ways; Leone and Danielle towards the commercial-class corridor, Damon and Luka towards the science-class corridor, and Lois towards the arts-class corridor.

It was believed that the students in senior high school of Founding Fathers of grades 10 to 12 should focus on the field of study they were interested in, hence the different corridors for each study.

Leone didn't know what she wanted to study; her father was keen on her studying either law or business and her mother wanted her to study medicine. Even though she ended up choosing the commercial corridor, which was a great joy to her father, she only did so because Danielle picked to study business.

She wanted to be comfortable and the idea of being in the same class with strangers without any familiar faces to rely on was a nightmare for the female.

Leone and Danielle placed their bags on the adjoined desks that were closer to the window, farther to the back of the class. They had both agreed that they would never sit at the front of the class, to avoid more attention and teachers always calling on them.

Other students began to file into the room and Leone recognized some from junior high. Other faces were relatively new to her but they weren't new students since they were interacting with other students.

Everyone was quick to pick their new seats with either their friends or where they were comfortable and the sound of chatters filled the air. There were enough desks for each and everyone, as the school management had calculated the number of students they assigned to each class.

Before resumption, as each student picked their course of study, the school counselor gave every student the class they would reside in. On that classroom block, there were four classes assigned to sciences, two assigned to commercial, and four assigned to arts.

Commercial corridors had the lowest population, because of the low desire of students wanting to pursue anything business-related.

The bell rang, notifying the students that it was time for morning assembly and once again, they all filed out of their classes and onto the large space meant for the assembly. Leone found Damon, Lois, and Luka amongst the crowd and they huddled close together as they watched the principal, Mrs. Jacobs, climb the administrative building before facing the students.

They had an assembly hall, but because it was currently under repair, they had to stand outside under the early morning sun.

The students all stood according to their class grades. Those in junior high were on the right of the principal's vision and the senior high students stood on the left. The senior students also arranged themselves according to the different corridors they were in, but not Leone and her friends.

The students had to crane their necks a little before they could see the woman in her forties. She wore glasses that balanced on the edge of her nose and was flanked by the two vice principals of the school: vice-principal for academics and vice-principal for administration and student affairs.

"Hello, students." Mrs. Jacobs smiled at the crowd below her, even though she was in the shade. "It's a pleasure to see you all once again for the start of a new session."

"Good morning, ma'am," They all chorused out, well some did. Not like she could single out a person for not mouthing their greetings to her.

As the reason for the meeting of the assembly began, the order went like this; the students sang the national anthem first and recited the school prayer before the principal graced them with announcements for the day.

"Over the break, our basketball team represented our fine establishment in the bi-annual regional tournaments." She had a big smile on her face, and everyone knew that the news she was about to give was a positive one. "As expected, Leone Martin and her team brought home the gold and a cheque of a hundred thousand dollars."

The crowd of students hooted and hollered, and the teachers nodded in satisfaction. Leone Martin was great in sports and practically everything she touched.

"Please congratulate the basketball team with a round of applause."

Leone, who was amongst her friends, was pushed forward with pats on her back from the people around her. Her teammates were already walking toward the building and she calmly followed behind them as they ascended the stairs.

The cheers were still ongoing as the team stood to the right of the principal in a single line. Mrs. Jacobs proceeded to call every one of them by name, as each teammate stepped forward, bowed their head for the woman to adorn their neck with the medal, and shake her hand, alongside the vice principals too.

When she finally called out Leone's name, the applause got louder, mostly from the people who had a little crush on Leone Martin, and the female collected her medal before facing the large crowd with the large cheque gifted to the school and waving it.

This was something she was used to. Despite standing and staring at the crowd, she never really looked at anyone's faces. Leone always liked to stare ahead so that she could avoid eyes or her paranoia would creep in.

She hated people having their attention on her, which was funny because she was always the center of attention. Either by doing sports or even with her last name, people were always going to have their eyes on her.

She finally stepped back and waited for the principal to give the rest of the announcements before they all sang the school anthem and finally dispersed to their different classes.

Her friends had waited behind to congratulate her as they all walked towards the classroom block together.

"See you guys during lunch?" Damon waved at his friends before pulling Luka along with him toward the science corridor. Leone could only nod, and Lois also bade them goodbye. It was just Danielle that was left with Leone and the duo walked toward their class so that they could prepare for the first period.

When they walked in, Leone could see someone in her seat and she froze in her steps. It was just the first day and someone was already crossing the line by not respecting her space and property.

"Yikes," Danielle could see Leone shoot daggers at the female on her seat and she lunged forward, leaving Leone by the door, to speak to the girl. Danielle could see that the girl was new because she didn't recognize the face from their junior high school days.

"Excuse me, but you are in our seat, hers specifically."

The girl looked up from the bag she was rummaging through and smiled apologetically at Danielle, "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't know it was taken."

"It is okay. You are new, right?"

"Yes! How did you know that?"

Danielle smiled at her, "Well, because you wouldn't have sat there if you knew Leone Martin and her addiction to personal space and private property, but you're good to go."

The female was confused as she stood up from the seat and she walked towards another empty seat that was towards the front of the class, but in the second row.

"You can stop glaring now," Danielle laughed at her best friend and sat in her seat, watching her best friend pull the medal from her neck and collapse onto her seat. Leone hoped that there wouldn't be any class for the first period. She badly wanted to close her eyes for a moment and rest her head on the table, avoiding the stares she got from her classmates.

Unfortunately, or partially, fortunately, a teacher entered and attracted the attention of most students to the man instead of the young woman at the back of the class.

"Let us bring out our Mathematics textbook. We will be looking at the first chapter for the next two hours."

---------------------------------------------------------

The five friends had met up for lunch at the pavilion. Leone wasn't in the mood to eat but that didn't stop Danielle from dragging the female along with her.

It was better than leaving Leone alone in the classroom. Danielle knew the students would flock around that desk with gifts and letters for her best friend and she didn't want Leone to hurt anyone's feelings on the first day of a new session.

Despite her efforts, it didn't stop a junior high student from approaching the five friends, with his eyes fixed on Leone. They could see what he was holding; a bottle of soda from Danielle's father's company and a plastic bag containing some doughnuts.

"L-leone," The young boy stuttered as Leone stared hard at him. "A senior asked me to give this to you and also tell you how amazing you are."

The friends could see how nervous the boy was, considering he was a junior high student, with his short-sleeved shirt, compared to theirs which was long-sleeved. All eyes in the pavilion were already on them and Leone was irritated.

"I don't take things that people buy for me." She told the boy in a rude voice and stood up to walk away from the group of people she was seated with.

Leone heard the murmurs, but she didn't care. The boy had it coming to him by approaching her in public. Not like she would acknowledge him even if he met her in private, but this was the dumbest thing he would even think about doing. Who even send someone to confess in their place?

Leone walked back to the class, waiting for the lunch break to be over so that the rest of the day could quickly pass by, and she would be on her bed once more. As she waited for the bell to signify lunch was over, she placed her earbuds in her ear to drown out the noise and rested her head on the table.