1 One Cheek for Two

It's better to be alone than be with someone and be judged eventually. - miss_polarity

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It was a normal school day again, Tuesday.

Ella woke up early in the morning to eat breakfast before getting ready for school.

Alone, she ate two pieces of toasted wheat breads and belt down a whole glass of milk—not leaving a tiny drop to waste—for breakfast. Afterwards, she climbed up to her room to wash up.

She does have a habit, evading her family.

After drying herself, she slipped into her uniform, combed her hair and then made it into a ponytail, and wore her Parmigiani Fleurier watch. Before returning back to her room, her eyes brushed the Diamond 'c de Cartier' jewellery set.

It was given to her by her father, Anthony Cabreign, as a birthday present when she turned eighteen last October. For her father, he could only give as much as a five hundred-thousand dollar gift to his daughter for he knows she wouldn't take it if it was the most expensive he bought for her. He knew she would think it wasn't necessary to receive such an extravagant gift.

A quarter past six, she was done with her get up.

As she headed down for the dining room to fetch her brothers, she heard them together with their mother laughing.

It seems like they're laughing at Anthony, she said in her head as she lightly shook it to brush the thought away.

Hearing them laugh makes her smile slightly, she does deny it though.

She does not join them in any meal. She gets up quite early to avoid any interaction with her family as much as possible; seeing them as someone contaminated with virus which once touched, would kill her.

During the process of weaseling out of their ways, she developed a routine that didn't matched up with theirs.

As she finally reached the dining room, she forced herself a cough which had their immediate attentions.

"Oh, you're here, dear." Her mother said turning her head to see her well-dressed daughter.

"Sean, Caber, get ready sons, don't make your sister wait. Go, go!" She hurriedly shooed them away from their already spick-and-span plates.

Melissa, Ella's mother, had been facing the opposite of where the entrance to the room was, making her unaware of Ella's presence until she coughed.

Luckily, she still knew her daughter's presence.

Melissa was about to start a conversation with her daughter but before she drew out a word, her stubborn daughter was taking her path to the hall where she normally wait for her brothers.

Ella waited for more than five minutes before the long-awaited Sean and Caber made their entrance in the hall. Behind them is their parents whose becoming more and more clingy rather than mature.

"We're ready, sister," Caber informed her with a dazzling smile.

Those smiles had me, her thought had backfired her urge to smile back.

It was not until her memories back when she was a seven-year-old child gushed, crashing onto the broken shards of her soul that she thought the day will be long overdue—at least for her. Her recollections had weighed so much for her heart to lift.

Instead of drawing on her face a smile for her brother to not be offended, she was once again being flooded of her own emotions. The barriers that had been left to keep her guarded from her past were now having more cracks than the last time and soon, she thought, she would be

drowning.

Unable to do what she was supposed to, which was smiling back, she walked over to their family car not waiting for her brothers as they were currently taking their time bidding goodbye to their parents—Melissa and Anthony.

Sitting tight inside the car was their family driver, Mr. Soller, who had been in the service of their family since her parents' youth.

Ella went to the right backseat of the car where she used to sit. Inside, she tried to respite from overthinking and reminiscing her unfavorable past and used the time her siblings were far from her to take a deep, long breath whilst looking at the relaxing view of their garden situated at the fore of their mansion.

On the other hand, the man on the driver's seat was being reluctant to give his client a peek, much more to have a talk with her. Mister Soller knew Ella most back when she was still the lovely, bright girl she isn't likely to be now. Having not the courage to do so, he sent out the gas

from his lungs which he was unknowingly holding.

Subsequently, after so much time of showing their clinginess towards each other, her oh-so-talkative brother, Caber, came and took his sit beside her as Sean sat in front of her in the passenger's seat as usual.

She shot both of them a glance when she sensed the two looking at her with their burning faces and is about to explode from holding their laughter. Knowing the fact that it's more convenient for her if they were to hold it, she concludes it is better to ignore them as the ride to their university commenced.

After ten minutes of cooling their heels, they finally reached the University of Parametris. As Sean and Caber are in their freshman years, she spends her last year as a senior in the same university.

Once parked, she got off of the car first, put her bag up on her shoulder, and then started walking her way towards her first class.

As she walked through the hall, a lot of students look her way, giving her an unknown kind of countenance.

She looks through the soul of every one whose walking opposite her making them lose consciousness—only to find themselves off their course, away from Ella's track—for the while their eyes meet.

Step to step, she found Alexandra who stood in her way to her destination with her flock of friends.

Alexandra, otherwise called as AL, is an elite member thought to be everybody's friend. She is the 'Boy's Favorite Girl'.

"Omo, isn't this a great day, guys? Look who's here!" AL says out loud with her tiny, vexing voice as she pertains to the approaching Ella. Not to mention she's one, spoiled brat. Ella thought, bestowing no attention to her irksome friend.

Among all the students, Ella was one of the few considered not-to-be-messed-with. Not only that she was from an elite family but because no one really knew her. That is, for those who do not dare speak to her, but for some reason, it was not the case she have with Alexandra. She continued to set out on the course that would lead her to her room.

As she was about to pass by the immobile AL, she grabbed her by the right arm.

The crowd let out silent gasps.

"You do know how to irritate someone, don't you?" The girl holding Ella still, faced the direction Ella was taking until now.

Ella did not dare change her course a while ago—in fact, she walked towards AL's assembled amigos, right in the middle, where she almost bumped to the stupified AL.

She is such a bombshell, thought someone amongst the growing crowd.

Ella, sensing that she is now immensely tortured by AL's deadly glares from behind her still did not award her any attention.

Teed off, AL forced Ella to face her only to find an apathetic demeanor on her face. Unable to handle her own emotions, AL's hand flew and landed on Ella's right cheek.

Now, now, this is getting more interesting. Says someone in his mind.

There now grows an enormous tension in the air. The pressure was getting higher and no one seems to be brazen enough to take in a deep breath nor expel the gas from their lungs.

Amidst the fight, Ella's eyes seemed to dim as she straightened her bent neck. While doing so, her hand and tongue found its way to her reddened cheek, trying to ease the pain coming from it.

The cold morning wind blew. And it's as if the freezing breeze didn't even bother the crowd, instead it is the compressed air that enveloped the hall. They are frozen from the rising intensity between the two elites. No one did not feel the gravity pushing them down. They aren't the ones involved in the strife but their hearts drummed deafeningly.

Ella took a step towards the offender. Realization hits AL as she felt the gust of Ella's parlous wrath against her act.

"I--," AL could not get herself to calm, she gulped more than twice a second and took a step backward when Ella had another one. She wanted to take a long stride away from the approaching Ella but her body acted otherwise.

She gathers up all her courage and says, "I'm sorry! It was supposed to be a joke! But you, urm . . . you offended me!"

Ella only thought of scaring the hell out of her, she would have let the matter pass because she never wanted to attract any attention but to her dismay, AL spoke.

Only a ruler apart, Ella retorts an insult to AL, "You lack humor."

With that, she sends her heavy palms to Alexandra's. She is surprised, stunned perhaps.

Not waiting for her to recover from shock, Ella grabs AL by the collar and whispers something to her.

Vengeful miss. The gent among the witnesses believed as he pondered Ella's actions—from the grabbing to the slapping.

Ella's aura radiated all over the place along with every stride she did the moment she got away from the scene.

What an excellent start of the day! Ella proclaimed vehemently as she pictured out what could be worse than this.

Entering her room, she paid no attention to the gazes of her co-med seniors and sat on her usual seat.

~~~

Everything but the strife this morning fell on its place. It is boring as usual for Ella but still it isn't a typical day of school to her.

Half past three, all of the classes came to an end.

It has been convenient for the Chance's to drive back the mansion fifteen minutes after classes are over but as the school's driveway is still packed with students, still they haven't left.

It took them at least a 30-minute wait for it to be cleared. Finally reaching their home, the three scooted out of the car—not waiting for it to be parked to its usual stop.

Ascending the staircase to her room, someone called Ella. She faced the owner of the voice, it being her brother, Caber.

"Sister," he said as he approached the lady who has stopped in her track, "have you been told that we will be having dinner with the Davis'?"

She did not answer.

"Okay," it becomes evident in Caber's face the disappointment he has been holding. Somehow, as he felt the surge of his emotions, he manages to drop out the words from his mouth with humor he is known for, "I did not actually expect you to reply, but mom says we should be dressed before six."

"Tell her, I'm not doing the talking."

'Her', hearing that from his sister tightened his heart.

It is so simple for Ella to express herself without holding back her obstrusive words but it's too difficult for someone who listens—much more to those whose directly talking to her—to it although her straightforwardness may meant otherwise.

Has she forgotten to call mom 'Mom'? He is hurt with her drop of honorifics to their parents. It is a huge blow on his part, knowing he love his mother so much. No matter what happened to her, he knows it isn't appropriate to act like a stranger to them. They're her family after all; they

should act like one, not just them.

However, Caber knows what Ella meant to her statement—she won't attend the dinner with them.

It's not like I have to be there, Ella says to her mind as she mentally rolls her eyes.

"You're not getting away this time, Ella." Surprised, Ella turns to her father who throws her a forewarning rather.

Anthony is just a few steps away from them few minutes ago. Secretly listening to the conversation of the two, he is not pleased to the way Ella spoke to her brother.

"Ella, hija, are you going to run away again? Isn't it time for you to mature? You're 19, for Pete's sake! You have to admit it, even if you drive all the attention away from you, hiding in your shelf will not be a solution. You will always be the center of everyone's attention, Ella. Please, hija, at least just this once, don't embarass us in front of the Davis."

Ella tasted the bitterness in her dad's words.

"Did you just say 'embarass'? So, ah," it was like something became clearer to her. Her thoughts began to jumble as her tears threaten her from falling. However, she managed to collect some, "that's how you see me?"

She took a step towards her dad, "I have been out of your freaking sights ever since."

She paused to compose herself but failed to do so, "Never did I demand for anything from you. Now you're saying I am embarassing you in front of your friends?

Have you ever been called to school because I've gotten into a fight like Caber and Sean? No!

I've never done anything to embarass you in front of your stupid, little business partners!"

Good. That ended with another slap.

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Life, XOXO