The mild temperature brought a warm hug, soothing Cade’s exhausted mind from overthinking. He could solve any math problem, deal with logic and unlock some deep vocabulary, but the greatest mind game he ever played was love. Though he had never been a player in that game, he was the supporting role. The player in question was Stan, and the biggest mystery he couldn’t decipher was why Stan liked Elsie. Cade scrutinized every angle, but he couldn’t find a single reason to grow fonder of her.
“Curtis Fleming?”
Cade lifted his face when the teacher called him.
“Do you have a partner?”
“What partner?”
“So you weren’t listening to me the whole time? Get out.”
Cade knelt outside the classroom with his hands up.
“What’s with this partner thing?” Cade asked the student beside him.
“To celebrate culture and arts, we are going to tour an art museum. We need to find a partner from the lower years.”
“Lower years? Why?”
“To promote diversity. The teacher will choose a partner for us. Then we will make a creative journal based on our trip. We will display the journals in the Art room on Foundation Day.”
“I see. I missed a lot.”
Four days later, the students gathered at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The teacher picked their partner randomly. Theo’s partner was Emberlynn, Stan was with Lily, and Cade’s partner was none other than Elsie. The two set an invisible boundary that only they could feel.
Cade looked at Stan and Lily as they entered the vast museum.
“They are the same year level. They shouldn’t be together,” Cade mumbled.
“The lower year has a lesser number of students. So the remaining juniors had to pair up. You should’ve listened to the instructions,” Elsie explained.
Cade bored a blank expression as she walked ahead of him. Now he was convinced that Elsie used sorcery to capture Stan’s heart, because there was no way he would fall for an impudent girl like her.
The ancient sculptures gathered in the left area, facing the enormous glass window overlooking the garden. Elsie trailed her fingers on the rough edges of the statue. It was a woman wearing silk that didn’t conceal her private parts.
“It looks so real,” Cade said.
“She’s so alive,” Elsie added.
“I envy her. She’s an object without life, yet she seems to breathe,” Cade said while observing the facial features of the statue.
“No matter how much she tries to fit in the society, it’s visible that she doesn’t belong there.”
The human-sized paintings hung on the white wall in the narrow corner. They were paintings of medieval women, and political people wearing sophisticated clothes which expressed their position in society.
A painting of a gorgeous woman in a black gown caught Cade’s attention. Her white skin was glowing. There was something in her black gown. The darkest shade he ever saw. He sensed danger and death, yet he couldn’t take his eyes off her. The beauty he could die for.
“She looks dull and lonely,” one student said while looking at the painting.
“She’s creepy, dude. You might get cursed if you look at her for too long,” another boy commented.
“That’s odd,” Cade muffled.
Elsie stood next to her. “What do you think of this woman?” he asked her.
“She’s enchanting.”
“Others said she looked wicked and frightening.”
“Beauty is subjective. Everyone doesn’t have the same taste. What’s attractive to you may not appeal to others.”
Cade inserted his hands in his pockets. “What a pity. If they could see her through my eyes, they’ll get jealous.” His smile vanished when a sudden realization came to him.
‘What if Stan likes her because he sees her beauty? The enchantment that only he can see?’ he thought and peered at her. “I want to see it too.”
“See what?”
Cade blinked when Elsie spoke. “T-the photos. Let’s take a photo for our journal.”
“Lily!” Elsie waved her hand to Lily who was coming in their direction. “Can you take a photo of us?”
“Sure!” Lily replied.
Cade and Elsie stood awkwardly beside the painting.
“Can you smile a bit? You don’t seem to enjoy the trip,” Lily said.
“This is my happy face,” Cade said.
“Make it fast, Lily,” Elsie added.
Stan walked towards them. “There you are, Lily.”
Elsie moved closer to Cade and held his arm. The camera shuttered and captured Cade’s surprised look and Elsie’s laugh at his comical expression.
Their one-day trip was remarkable enough to stay in Cade’s mind at night. It wasn’t so bad to have a genuine conversation with Elsie. They could get along if they excluded Stan in the background.
Cade shook his head. “No. Being her companion is just a requirement for me to study at Mchalmmond High School. It’s nothing serious.”
The next day, Cade stayed in the library to design their journal. It was a big notebook that must be done in pairs. All their ideas and reflections must be collected and put in there. As much as he wanted to do things on his own, he was already stuck with Elsie.
“I’ve been looking for you.” Cade didn’t look at her.
“Are you aware that we should do the journal together?”
“Yes,” Cade replied.
“Then why didn’t you call me?”
“I figured you can find your way to me.”
“You’re just lazy.” Elsie sat beside him. She got some printed materials in a Hollywood and broadway theme.
“That’s a lot of design. You’re so dedicated to your club,” Cade said.
“Well, it’s not a hobby. It’s my dream to be an actress.”
“So you like to entertain people.”
“So that’s how you see it. Entertaining people.”
“They act for others. They get paid for it. What else could it be?”
Elsie rubbed her fingers on the printed paper. “I want to live different lives.”
“My life is not something I wanted. If I were given a chance to choose how to live, I would be delighted. Actors can choose what role to play and what life to live. It’s fascinating.”
Elsie’s eyes were beaming with hope. She looked innocent and fragile. At that moment, he wanted to keep her in his pocket.
“If I were your friend, I would stop you from that dream,” Cade said.
“Why?”
“I wouldn’t want you to experience different pain. Your life alone is unbearable. How much more the suffering of other people?”
Elsie gazed at his face as if hearing something sensible from a mentally disturbed person.
“What are you looking at? Back to work.” He cleared his throat.
***
Extravagant booths clouded the field of Mchalmmond High School. There were jolly mascots roaming around, selling some balloons and sweets. They decorated the school with bright colors in celebration of foundation day. A band was performing on stage, playing a piece of rock music. The students suppressed the urge to go wild and maintained proper behavior as the faculty was watching their every move.
“Come on, girls. I have a plan,” Emberlynn said. She and her friends were wearing their cheer dance outfits.
“If this is about Elsie, you better stop. You saw how Stan reacted. He will not let this pass.”
“Don’t worry. This is not a prank. We are going to take part in the marriage booth.”
In the marriage, the students are allowed to set up two people without them knowing. They are forced to be there in any way possible. They may not refuse because the students paid for every request. If one of the bride and groom refused, they will pay the penalty of 100 dollars.
Elsie was enjoying a cotton candy when a group of girls dragged her.
“What’s going on?” she asked.
“You are getting married.”
“What? Who told you?”
“Someone set you up with Stan Carline.”
“What?”
The girls put on the veil on Elsie’s head and gave her a bundle of purple roses for the bridal bouquet. Elsie absentmindedly stood at the Altar.
The student dressed like a priest said, “I doubt Stan will come. He’s not into this thing. He avoids any form of publicity outside his duty.”
The audience waited for 30 minutes, but Stan didn’t show up. Emberlynn stared at her with pity. All Elsie could do was wait while being humiliated.
Stan was arranging some papers inside the SSC office. He had been receiving wedding requests and declined all of them.
“Another wedding request for you, Pres.”
“Please tell them I’m busy,” Stan replied.
“But it’s the foundation day. You should visit the booths and have fun.”
“I already checked the booth early in the morning.”
“If you say so. Elsie Lynch might be so ashamed right now. Strike two of being rejected.”
“What? What’s with Elsie?”
“Apparently, she’s your bride.”
The girls shrieked when a strong wind blew and destroyed a few booths and standees. It tore down some decorations and displays. They believed it was a bad omen for such an important occasion.
“I think the groom is not coming. Let’s stop this,” the priest said.
“Wait!”
Everyone turned their heads when a man walked down the aisle wearing a black tuxedo while holding a microphone. His loose necktie and messy hair showed that he came in a hurry.