It seemed as though Kiara had come to school the last couple of days with the weight of the world on her shoulders. Sure, she smiled and laughed when eyes were on her, but nobody saw the frowns and the exhausted sighs when she was alone. Her knuckles were now a funny shade of purple. Several of the teachers did question her and she shrugged it off as a 'pianist's hazard' with a charming smile and fluttering her lashes to her large doe like eyes. It seemed like she knew what she was doing as she redirected their attention to the class or another classmate.
Emre frowned, grinding his teeth as he silently watched Kiara trudge into school that morning. Her knuckles still a purple colour. He watched as she flexed her fingers and winced in pain at the action. What the hell kind of piano teacher bruises their students, he seethed, his hands fisted in his pockets. He continued watching Kiara, lost in her thoughts as she approached her locker. She'd had her hair messily braided to one side, draped on her left shoulder. Her glasses were perched on the edge of her nose as she walked without looking up. She'd worn her Chelsea boots, with tight dark washed denims, and oversized off-white sweater that reached the tops of her knees which surprisingly looked soft to the touch. Her cheeks and nose were flushed like she had stood out in the cold a bit too long.
He bit back a smile at her confusion as she checked and double checked if she had arrived at the correct locker as she adjusted the light grey backpack on her shoulders. She walked back and forth with a frown on her face, until she finally approached the flowers that were attached to the front of her locker with unsure steps.
He watched as the smile broke on her face as she picked up five long stemmed pale pink roses that were tied in twine. Her nimble fingers fiddled with the twine as she removed them from the locker bringing it to her nose. It seemed as though all the energy that she had lost over the past couple of days was recovered as she smelled the delicate fragrance of the flowers. Emre ruffled his hair, looking away as Kiara looked around the hallway no doubt trying to figure out who gave her the flowers as she pushed her glasses up her nose.
Their eyes locked as he looked up and, in that moment, he understood what it meant to have your heart skip a beat. It felt like his heart had skipped several beats as Kiara with her eyes alight with happiness, and smile curving her lips approached him with a spring in her step.
"Do you know who did this, Emre Ersoy?" she asked in a lilting, teasing tone. Her eyebrow arched as she tried to draw out an answer from him. Her eyes sparkling behind her glasses as she looked at him.
Emre smiled at the floor, avoiding her gaze. He shrugged his shoulders, trying not to give anything away. His eyes were drawn to her fingers that twiddled with the piece of twine that held the roses together. "Maybe you have a secret admirer," he teased her back.
"No, I don't want a secret admirer! Why does it have to be a secret? Is it embarrassing to be crushin' on me, the pianochick?" she pouted, making faces as she cradled the flowers close to her chest.
Taking a slow breath to calm himself, Emre looked at Kiara as she fussed over the roses. "You have any ideas who it could be?" he asked slowly, studying her reaction.
"Tsk...No," Kiara said, and continued coyly, "...but...I know who I want it to be from." Kiara bounced on the balls of her feet as she smiled brightly at Emre.
Emre smiled his full dimpled simple, as he looked away from Kiara. Shaking his head his eyes were drawn back to her hands. Abruptly Emre reached out to hold her hand while Kiara gasped and snatched it away in shock.
"I...sorry...I'm sorry," Emre said, his palm in a white knuckled fist by his side. "I just...I just needed to know if it hurts...your knuckles...they look...it looks messed up Kiara...," he ground out as he watched Kiara tense up in front of him.
"I'm fine, Emre. Really, I am. It's just the stress of playing Carnegie Hall is getting to me, and I guess with school ending and finals...and just so many things, it's affecting my playing. Mama is just trying to help, really," she looked at him, beseeching for him to understand and to drop it.
"You mean to say that your....," he looked into her eyes, searching for an answer to complete his sentence when she abruptly looked away. Emre nodded quietly, he couldn't understand what she meant; trying to help? How? By caning her knuckles? How would that help in any way? "You need to ice them down, bring down the swelling. Got it?"
"Yes, sir!" Kiara said with a mock salute, her eyes shining with gratitude that Emre didn't question her more.
The sudden slam of a locker made them realise that the hallway wasn't as empty as it was before, quickly filling up with students who were getting ready for their day.
"Hey Emre...thanks for this," Kiara said softly, as she lifted the flowers.
"I have no idea what you're talking about," Emre said smiling down at her.
"Uhuh...hey next time, tell this 'secret admirer' that I love peonies," she said cheekily, watching as Emre started backing away from her.
"They're not in season yet, Kiara," Emre blurted and he bit his lip, trying to control the smile on his lips. "Don't ask me how I know that."
"Would you have to kill me, if you told me?" she wiggled her eyebrows in an exaggerated response before bursting into giggles as she hugged the flowers closer to her chest.
He couldn't help but chuckle as he watched Kiara laugh, her head thrown back, her thick braid down her back, her hand lifted to cover her mouth, her skin flushed a soft pink.
Emre shook his head and hoisted his bag on his shoulder that he had left on the floor. "See you later, Kiara Moussa," he said tilting his head as he looked at her before he turned and left. As he walked away, he heard the click of a camera shutter and turned around to look for the sound.
He saw Kiara standing with her arm outstretched as she held the flowers in his direction, and her phone in the other hand. He shook his head as he tried to bite back the smile that continued to grow as he walked to class.
***
It didn't take even half a day for the picture to blow up on Instagram among their peers. And even after two days, Kiara still had girls coming up to her grabbing her arm and asking her with a tinge of jealousy, "Did Emre Ersoy really give you flowers?"
Kiara thought back to the photo that she had taken that morning, she had stretched out her arm as far as it could go while she held the pink roses, and had used the portrait mode to snap a picture of it with a blurry background. She had never imagined that anyone would have paid that close attention to her that they would study the photo and recognise Emre's backpack. It was after all blurry, at least to her. And even her caption didn't allude to it being him. She had hoped, and let's be honest; still hoped, that it was from him. But either way, it was nice to receive flowers. To be that girl, who gets surprise roses tied to her locker.
She slowly removed the hand or should she say claw, that was gripping her arm and shook her head. "No, Emre didn't get me flowers. He was in the way when I took the photo."
"Oh, then you really shouldn't post things like that, you know. It makes you seem so desperate," said the girl while shooting her a plastic smile, with the vulture like grip, Kiara thought to herself.
Kiara shot her a fake smile and nodded her head, as she continued walking to Mila's locker.
"So, how has this short stint of popularity been?" Mila asked mockingly, her hands busy removing books from her back before getting another set for her next classes.
"Exhausting. I mean, I knew he was popular. But I didn't realise how popular...especially with the girls," Kiara said quietly as she leaned her back against the lockers next to Mila, watching the other students walk by.
"Well, anyone with eyes can see that he is ridiculously good looking. Of course, he will have a fan following," Mila muttered as she struggled to shove her books into her brown leather satchel. "I mean there are Tumblr pages dedicated to the boys from this godforsaken school," Mila grumbled as she snapped her satchel shut and heaved a sigh of relief.
"I'm sorry, did I just hear you say something about dedicated Tumblr pages?," Kiara turned to face Mila with an incredulous expression on her face. "And how the hell do I not know about it?"
"Well, you've always been in your own little world. What with your piano practices and recitals. Somehow, that boy has dragged you out to join the rest of us. Welcome to hell!" Mila said with a flourish, her arms outstretched as she wiggled her fingers doing 'jazz hands'.
Kiara giggled, as she rolled her eyes. "Like seriously, why are we even friends? You need to show me this!" Kiara linked her arms with Mila as Mila rolled her eyes as they walked to History class together.
"You don't need these pages, you already have him," Mila whined, as she dragged her feet along.
"No, I do not already have him!" Kiara whisper shouted at Mila, gripping at her arm. "I mean, yes he was there when I got the flowers, but it could have been a coincidence. And yes, while I do wish it was from him, I don't know for sure if the flowers were actually from him," Kiara continued frantically her eyes searching the hallways for anyone who could overhear them.
"And hello, I thought you didn't like the idea of Emre and I together. Weren't you the one telling me that we don't fit together?" Kiara whispered forcefully, her grip tightening on Mila.
"I mean, I still don't like it," Mila mumbled but continued, "Urgh fiiiiiine, I'll send you the link later in class." Mila grumbled to herself as she dragging herself to class.
Kiara paused; "You know what, don't," she said suddenly. "Don't send me the links to the fanpages or whatever." Kiara brushed her hair away from her forehead, her face twisted in a deep frown.
"Why not?" Mila asked with a raised eyebrow. "What made you change your mind?"
"I just....I...," Kiara looked at her feet, as she put one foot in front of each other walking towards class. "I...am...intimidated...," she said slowly.
"By what?" Mila asked, her face scrunched up in disbelief.
"I think...by everything...he's ridiculously good looking...he's so talented with his music...he's also pretty smart if our discussion on how we are going to do our project is anything to go by...," Kiara trailed.
"By the way, how are you going to do the project?" Mila asked curious. She still hadn't been able to nail down a theme with her partner, Vin.
"We're trying to decide if we should do a factual historical event comparison, or something a bit more creative like comparing costumes and things....Mila, seriously...focus...," Kiara frowned at her best friend.
"Oh my God," Mila huffed, as they entered their classrooms and walked towards Kiara's seat. "Seriously, big fat whoop that he's good looking and talented-"
"And smart. Don't forget smart," Kiara interjected.
Rolling her eyes, Mila continued, "...And smart. So are you! You are beautiful, insanely talented, and smart too. Maybe not the best in school, but my God, you hear music in everything. How amazing is that? You are definitely too good for him!"
"Too good for whom?" Emre asked as he casually slid into his seat next to Kiara. He didn't notice the panicked looks Kiara was shooting an unimpressed Mila as he took out his notebook and pencil case before trying to stuff his skateboard into the bag.
"You know they have lockers for your junk," Mila said sardonically.
"I know, it's too far from my other class. I didn't want to be late," Emre answered Mila without expression, not bothering to look up at her.
Kiara cocked her head and studied the two people in front of her. Mila with her olive toned skin, the high cheekbones, the hazel eyes, the beautiful chestnut coloured hair. Always so confident in herself, that her everyday get up almost always ended up resembling an off the runway look. She was as beautiful as a butterfly, and as evasive as one too. She liked the attention that she received doesn't matter from whom, but that's as far as it would go. Even today, Mila had on a fitting wine coloured knit midi-dress and boots that laced up to her calf. Her hair went down her back in waves and the little mascara that she had on really made her eyes pop.
Emre on the other hand was in his usual get up of plaid shirt, some graphic t shirt underneath, his bleached jeans, and his red Vans. Even though most of his clothes were worn and baggy, it didn't for a second detract anything from his good looks. She studied them as Mila tried to bait Emre, but he continuously ignored her attempts. She realised with a start that she hadn't see him smile yet since he had sat down next to her.
"Emre Ersoy, stalk any secret admirers lately?" Kiara whispered once Mila had sat down at her seat at the back of the class once Ms. Monroe entered the room.
She bit the inside of her cheek harshly, silencing the squeal that was threatening to come out as Emre grinned his dimply grin at her. The first one she had seen on his face since this morning.
"You have a fascination with saying my full name, don't you?" he whispered back, scooting closer to her.
"It's a beautiful name," she shrugged. Her eyes focusing on the teacher in front of the class but her mind on the boy next to her. "It sounds a little bit like poetry," she admitted quietly, feeling a flush climb her face. She knew he was watching her, she could feel his gaze trying to tear through her skin and bones, desperate to read all her secret thoughts.
"Who were you and Mila talking about just now?" Emre asked her quietly, there was a darkness in his tone that made her turn her head to look at him. This time, it was Emre that sat still, his eyes bouncing from Ms. Monroe to the notebook that he had filled with random doodles in front of him.
Kiara cleared her throat nervously, "no one...she was just trying to give me a pep talk. That's all."
Kiara watched as Emre ruffled his hair while he nodded. His fingers moving in random patterns as he continued doodling while Ms. Monroe started walking around the tables talking to the other students about their projects.
Kiara picked up her pen and decided to add a little flair to Emre's doodles. She smiled as Emre shifted to make more space for her at the desk. After he awhile he completely stopped drawing, his eyes transfixed on Kiara's drawing. She had in the doodles that Emre made, added his band name and by using repeated patterns making it look like modern art.
"Here you go, your first ever fan art," Kiara said confidently with a huge smile. But that smile dropped in an instant as she remembered the fan pages Mila told her about.
"Well, maybe not first ever, but first fan art made by my," she tried to force a smile on her face.
"Maybe not the first-," Emre was cut off by Ms. Monroe clearing her throat as she looked down at both of them with a raised eyebrow.
"Well, Kiara...Emre...what have you two decided for your project," Ms. Monroe looked between the two, as she waited for either one of them to start talking.