32

"I'm not kidding when I say I circled my tears that had fallen down onto my paper with a red pen." Iris grumbled dramatically, "They need to see what they did to me-- to us. No person should ever go through such a thing."

She's going on about the Olympiad that we had just finished, and she's right.

It was hectic, even for me.

Some questions we had to translate into Spanish, some questions were general knowledge of Europe, mostly Spain, and at some stage we had a writing piece.

Daniela, next to me, as we walk to the cab, sighed softly under her breath.

She caught my attention as I look to her with concern in my eyes, but soon faded into amusement.

"Does she ever just keep quiet?" Daniela asked me.

I smile mockingly, "Well professor, I have to take her side with this one. It sucked ass."

We reached the car and Daniela held the backseat door open for us.

"See," Iris said, "Even Vic agrees! And she's supposed to be the smart one."

I climb into the cab after Iris, and Daniela shut the door behind us.

"I'm not smart. I'm bilingual."

"Same difference" She testified, "People who understands more than one language are smart."

Daniela entered the front passenger seat, slamming the door shut and buckling her seatbelt.

Meanwhile our driver, an old, friendly man, adjusted the front mirror.

He looked through it towards us with sparkling blue eyes, intrigued in our conversation.

"I'm fluent in English, Greek, Portuguese and Spanish." The guy smiled, "Does that make me smart?"

Iris grabbed Daniela's headrest as she leans over, causing professor to groan.

"No, sir, that makes you quadrilingual. And probably have been spending too much time on Duolingo."

He clears his throat, shifting in the seat and started the car.

I grabbed Iris' shirt and drag her back.

She tilts her head at me with wide eyes. One could practically see all the energy radiating through her veins.

I give her a death stare.

"What?" She mumbles, "Wha' I do?"

Daniela looked at the driver, "Hotel, Steve."

And he nodded.

Iris frowned and leaned over professor's shoulder again.

"Hold up, we ain't going back to the hotel so soon?"

"If I feel your breath against my neck one more time, I'll make you go back in the plane to New York." Daniela gritted her teeth.

Iris held her hands up, surrendering and leaned back. She huffed, folding her arms across her chest and turned to look out the window.

I hesitated to talk, but decided against it.

Everyone finally calmed down, so I didn't want to ruin the peace and quiet on this ride.

Plus, Daniela needs it.

She's been dealing with the two of us since the flight.

Now, I'm not the jealous type.

But Iris has been getting in professor's hair.

I want to be in professor's hair.

I want her to scold me, not her.

Not like I care...

I let go of a sigh, staring out into the city until my eyes widen.

"Stop! Stop!" I said excitedly, grabbing Steve's headrest this time.

And as if he just got the fright of his life, he braked and caused all of us to jolt forward from recoil.

Professor turned her head back at me with a deadly, annoyed glare, "What? What is it?"

"The tomato festival!" I smiled, pointing at the window, gesturing outside.

Iris gasps and leans towards me and looks out my side of the window.

She turned back to Daniela, and we both put on a puppy-dog eyes show.

"Can we go?" We both beg, "Please?"

"And get our clothes covered and all... sticky in tomato juice? No."

Iris and I give each other a silent glare and nodded.

She knows that we're going there one way or the other.

She also knows I have a plan and need to work with me.

"Okay." I mumbled.

Before Steve could drive off again, I open the door and speed off.

I didn't look back, but I knew Iris was running behind me with her evil laughs and giggles.

I could hear Daniela yelling our names.

We ran in between the red, tomato- chunk-covered walls of the buildings.

There were crates of tomatoes against the walls and randomly on the floor.

It was like this part of the village was painted red.

The deeper we went, the more the people and screams got.

Everyone had some type of tomato in their hands.

Iris and I stopped running as we just saw tomatoes flying back and forth.

"Ready?" I asked with a smile.

"You don't even got to ask me twice." She smirked.

With that being said, we ran. We don't know where, but we just ran.

And in seconds, we lost each other through the crowd as tomatoes flew everywhere.

I was hit in the face a couple times from just running down the slim paths in between the buildings.

When I came to the center, that's where I spot Iris.

She was having the time of her life.

Finally throwing people with something, like she always dreamed of, but with tomatoes.

She looked bad herself, like she just fought in WW2. But it wasn't long until I also looked like I fought it a war.

People threw me and I threw them.

A little chubby boy ran up to me with a wide smile and threw a tomato at me.

It splatted all over my shirt, and now I successfully was drenched.

My entire clothes were full tomato intestines

I chuckle at the boy, wanting to get revenge as I kneel down and pick up a tomato.

When I got back up, my smile fades. Through the mess of people, stood Daniela in the crowd.

Looks like the people got to her too.

She looks good all messy like that.

Suddenly, her eyes fell upon me and realization washed over her.

Realizing she caught me.

My eyes widen and in an instant I speed off the opposite direction.

I was clutching onto the tomato for dear life, bringing it along with me as I run through a pathway through the buildings that's actually clean.

There was no people around these parts, so she wouldn't have a reason to search for me here.

I rush around the corner and magically she stood right in front me.

In a split second she grabbed my waist and pushed me back against the wall.

My eyes grew bigger each second and a shot of adrenaline shot through my veins.

My cheeks turned a faint color of crimson, matching with the tomato in my hand.

She snatches the tomato out of my hand and forced it in between my teeth.

But I didn't bite down.

I'm not the biggest fan of tomatoes.

How ironic.

"Are you out of your goddam mind?" She growled, her eyes staring into mine deeply.

"You scared the shit out of me. What if you got lost, huh? What would I tell your dad? We're in another country, Victoria. You stay with me." Her fingers dig lightly into my waist through my shirt.

Her intense gaze made me feel like a small mouse. Like she was looking down to her food.

"And now look at you..." She said, looking me up and down, "You're a mess."

I raise an eyebrow, looking her up and down too.

"Yeah, and look at me too." She sighed.

Her hands reach up to my face. I thought she was about to cup or hold my cheeks before she grabbed the tomato and took it out my mouth.

I smile cheekily, "You look like you've been having fun too."

"Fun? No, this is not fun. It's not fun running after children."

My eyebrows furrow down. "Children?"

"Yes." She said, "You're acting like a child."

Before she could move away, I grabbed the tomato and smashed it all over her face.

She took a sharp gasp in, hands rising to stop me.

A smirk formed on my lips as I look at her.

Bits and pieces of the tomato remained on her skin, and she huffed out angrily.

She wiped it away from her eyes and stared me down.

I place my hand on my hips. "Maybe you should also let go a little bit and pretend you're a kid again. So that you can actually enjoy life a little."

I give a teasing wink before running away.

"Victoria, I swear-" I heard her say before I was too far to hear anything more.

The second I came around the corner I got hit against the head with a tomato and quickly threw the guy back who hit me.

I should probably hunt Iris down, but then a lady bump into me.

It was in fact Iris, but she was completely drenched in red, chunky sauce.

I called her back and she turned to me with wide eyes, but softened as her eyes met mine.

She reached out to my shoulders with her red hands, causing tomato prints left behind.

"They're coming, Vic." She said, speaking fast, "You... you got to help me. Please, hide me."

I chuckle, "Who?"

Iris' eyes widen again as she looked over my shoulder. "Oh no." She muttered and backed up, "They found me!"

She sped off through the crowd, somehow dodging the tomatoes getting launched everywhere.

A group of young kids rushed pass me with buckets full tomato sauce, giggling and running after Iris.

Amused, I smile.

That was until I was hit in the back with a tomato.

I groaned, turning around and my eyes start searching the crowd for the culprit.

Though mostly everyone was throwing tomatoes at each other, minding their own business before those green eyes met mine.

Daniela was leaning against the nearest building's wall with her foot kicked back up.

She had a smirk on her face and an extra tomato in her hand, throwing it up and down.

I rushed to a basket full with tomatoes and took a few.

Daniela's eyes flush with regret before she boosted herself off the wall and took cover behind the people also throwing tomatoes.

Every split second I got a view of her, I threw, but missed.

She reached down and grabbed a bunch of tomatoes, throwing it back at me.

I got her a few times and she got me a few times.

I pat around my body, searching for ammo, but I was out, and lost her in the crowd.

It was like everyone surrounded me as I try to find her again, but she was nowhere to be seen.

Until there was a voice from behind me.

"You lose."

I turn around with a surprised yelp.

Her hair was messy and even dyed red with all the tomato juices.

She stepped closer and just like that, her body was hovering over mine.

I felt so small as she looked down at me.

My breathing hitch in my throat as her fingers grazed my bottom lip to remove a tiny piece of tomato from my chin.

The tension in the air forced me to speak.

"I'm glad you came to your senses and let lose a little." I tease, but yet my voice was soft.

Her hand lingered on my chin before it cupped my cheek that caused a tint of red to spread over my face.

Shyly I looked down to my feet as her thumb drew patterns on my skin.

She said softly, "Yeah well, a wise woman told me to be a little more fun."

"And you listened to her." I chuckle.

The tiniest of smiles spread across her face. "She's smart."

I smile back, "Is that all she is?"

"Well, she can be a brat sometimes, and annoying. Not to mention stubborn and never listens. But, other than that... she's... she's pretty great."

My heart melted as I heard what she said.

I saw her eyes flicker down to my lips which made my heart skip a beat, and me to mimic her gaze.

A shiver went down my spine and I forces myself to stop staring at her lips.

My eyes met hers.

"We should get Iris." I whisper softly.

She pulled her hand back and cleared her throat.

Daniela nodded, "Last time I saw her, she was hiding between the buildings from a group of children."

"She's probably still there then."