Taming The Tomboy

HERMIA

It's just the third day of the week and even though I got no choice, I had to do my homework. It's the only thing I'm never allowed to fail at.

Sally and I got back not quite long and since her elder brother, Jonah is working a double shift at the dinner where he waits, she decided to stay over at my place till night. She was going for a birthday party which she'd been trying to convince me to accompany her to but I was refusing.

I knew she was also partly here to convince me to tag along.

She'd been trying to get her groove on accompanied with the black pink pop music from my soundbox since the past couple of minutes, while I was busy with my calculus assignments, before I got bored and turned the music off.

She could whine as much as she wanted but I turned a deaf ear to it. Unexpectedly, she turned me around and pulled me to the center of the room. I had little time to react before she turned up the music again and started to move me alongside herself.

Few minutes later, we both acknowledged we had two left feet but anyways laughed it off. I got tired at some point and just drifted off to my bed.

I huffed a sigh and slumped onto my bed sheets. Sally didn't look a tiny bit tired. She was still beaming with a smile, doing a fair job at breathing rhythmically while I was there acting like a horse deprived of water.

Sally was dressed casually in my comfortable oversized sweatpants and a graphic t-shirt I got myself privy to my mom's knowledge.

"What?" She nods in question at me. She must've seen the look on my face. I shook my head and turned my body around so I was laying on my belly.

I felt around for my phone and instantly, I went to the camera app. I turned around and without warning took a snap of Sally who was mouth agape and standing akimbo in her bum shorts and white striped black shirt uniform.

"Bitch!"

I scoffed when she charged and pounced on me. Despite throwing all her weight on me and trying to get the phone out of my clutch, my grip was strong.

"Ah, you have such strong muscles!" Sally whined when she failed in her attempt.

"Lol..." I said with a smirk and sat up immediately, throwing her off guard and to the other side of my bed.

"Hey!"

I didn't see her expression as my back was now turned to her so I was only expecting her to continue complaining about how much of a bully I am.

However, I heard her gasp and I had to turn my upper body around to see what she was up to.

"Did I tell you that Daniel asked me to be his date tonight? " She said in her usual princess-in-love tone and while on her fours, scampered closer.

"Yeah you did. " I replied with a bored expression. She did at lunch, earlier today. I raised my brows in question as to why she's going to repeat the story.

"And about the stuff that happened? Oh I might've forgotten to mention about his sister, Bella came up abruptly after he left and almost ruined it. You know what she said to me?"

That was when my interest was piqued. "What? "

"She told him I'm lgbt with you. I mean, gross! I mean—we're super close!"

I rolled my eyes and decided this topic shouldn't even be discussed. But then, it was so eerily quiet I had to turn back around.

"What?" I asked with a shrug and she squinted her eyes at me at that moment.

"LGBT!" She whisper-yelled, leaned in closer and sort of started to examine my face. I continued to give her the bored face until her eyes went down to my chest. My brows raised on their own accord and I reached my fingers out to her jaw to lift her focus from where she was looking.

"Oh my God, you like girls? Ah! That's why you don't get boyfriends!"

Instantly, my fingers got as far as they could away from her reach.

"Why'd you say that? You're nuts, Sally? "

For the next couple of seconds, she kept staring at me like a lost lamb. It was awkward.

"Oh, then." She finally sighed, "Get a freaking boyfriend, you know? It gets..."

I got her silence. She might be feeling kinda lonely. Most of the time, I don't even have anything to say when she whines about her love life and all... Most of the time, I even blame her for compromising for the guys.

"I hate being the only one to tell you stuff. It sulks, you know..." She explained shrugging all along. "You should—"

"I know. I can't just change who I am for any guy. " I reflexively cut since that had always been my ready made answer anytime we went that direction. "Dating anyone is a hassle..."

"Eh? Who's talking about changing? Okay, don't you ever have a crush on any guy? "

The question was sort of sudden and it took me a moment to reflect on it.

Haven't I?

"Are we really discussing this?" I blurted out of irritation.

Obviously not convinced, Sally leaned in, this time a little closer that I had to tilt my head back and shuffle backwards."Answer me first or I'd assume something else..."

"Ugh, you won't dare." I warned, knowing the extent of "crazy" my best friend could portray.

I had been raised in a dysfunctional family. My mom got pregnant at the age of seventeen and then had to move in with my relatively young father who couldn't even feed himself three times a day. Although, they were together for four years, they fell apart when he met a rich woman.

So, why should I, despite knowing all that, wish for a highschool love story like my mother's? I could see how well it ended of course.

"You're restricting yourself because of your mom's mistake." Without warning, Sally said it to my face.

After a space of seconds, I muttered."Not now. "

"Why not now, huh? I mean, you just need to get out of this whole tomboy attitude and you see, you'll seem more of a girl. "

Sally was beginning to annoy me so much all I wanted was to stay away from her.

"Enough! First— I don't care about being a girlish girl. And two— I don't need a boy in my life okay? "

"Then who's the guy I saw you talking to before I came? "

My breath left my lungs for a moment as I remembered Sally wasn't even there when I was conversing with that guy... Or she was? She knew all along?

"You... You were stalking me?"

"Looking for my best friend!" She was quick to retort.

"Well, you're annoying, you know that? I just fucking left for a while to clear my head!"

"Fine, but you tricked me."

"And I said sorry?"

"And how does that help now?"

I was going to debate when she spoke again.

"And I saw, the look you gave that guy. Trust me, I've never seen you look at anyone that way ever."

A deep frown set on my face as I jumped off my bed. "What the hell are you talking about here, Sally?"

"You can't deny it. I know."

I snorted and turned away from her. I wasn't a little bit worried about her accusation as much as I'm worried about why I'm suddenly starting to get alarmed over the discussion. I've never been so defensive about me looking at a guy.

" I was staring him down." I muttered.

"I'm not talking about that. You know—"

"Um, I just remembered. Isn't tonight Daniel's birthday party?"

"As if you're going." She rolled her eyes at me.

"Well..." I checked the time. "It's past six already. I'd rather be there than home alone facing calculus and you."

"Oh, you're so boring! Look at me, any guy would appreciate me unlike you, pfft..."

"You mean Daniel? " I rose a perfect brow in suspicion. Her cheek went crimson.

Bella, Daniel's twin sister and Sally used to be seatmates in Literature class. She disliked Sally to the guts. She was always keen on Sally never getting near her brother after he helped Sally when she 'lost' her note (which was Bella's doing by the way.) Sally loves to say she was not interested romantically in Daniel and that they were only friends but I knew anyway.

"So you like him after all!"

Her eyes widened quickly and she jumped off the bed . "No! I... I just, well? You're really coming?"

I was about to answer when Sally started to smile at someone behind me.

"Good evening, aunt!" I heard and immediately knew it was my mom she could refer to like that.

I turn immediately. " You're back?"

"Ah yes, darling. Sorry, I overheard you two. You are going to a party? " Mom asked, her eyes alternating between mine and Sally's, with her trying-to-look-unbothered kind of face.

"Ah, y—"

"No, just hanging out. " I interrupt Sally.

She'd kill me if she really knew I was going to party while my assignments were unattended to.