Masquerades

Opening her eyes felt like a miracle. After a year of trying, she finally got her consciousness back. But reality tends to mess her up. Now, she had to accept what happened the past year – from the fall of her family's name to the death of her parents. Yes, she knew. She knew all this time. While on coma, she was able to hear conversations around her but was only capable of crying in her dreams. For almost three-hundred and sixty-five days, she wept for her parents internally. She doesn't know if she can even consider herself lucky for being alive, now that she's an orphan. "Calista," a familiar voice called out. She turned to where it came from and saw a guy about five to seven years older than her. His voice was the one she had been hearing from time to time but she had zero clue of who he was. "Let the doctor examine you first," he smiled and faced the newly-arrived figures; one male, the doctor, and one female, a nurse. The middle-aged man examined her carefully, saying words she wasn't able to listen to because her mind was in utter chaos. The guy listened to him instead, nodding at every reminder. She kept watching him. Who is he? What is he doing here? When the doctor left, she was still in a trance. The guy looked down to her again and gave her a tight-lipped smile. "You must be confused. I'm glad to see you're in a good condition now, you just have to stay here in the hospital for a few weeks to fully recover." "Who are you?" Her voice lightly cracked so he immediately walked towards the bedside table and got her a glass of water. He then adjusted her bed, clicking one button on its remote control so it could recline a bit. Finally, he handed her the glass, still carefully supporting her hands. If not for him, she must've spilled the water. Her hands are shaking and had no strength at all. "I'm Pierce Alastair," he started. "But you may know me as Callum Song." Cali's eyes widened, "but I thought..." "You thought I'm dead," he sadly smiled. Of all the things she's expecting to find out once she's awake, this is certainly not on her list. Callum Song was her cousin who she long thought had already passed. Her uncle fell in love with a Canadian woman and coming from a traditional Chinese clan, it was considered taboo. So he eloped with his lover, and was missing for seven years. When he was finally found, he was already married with a son. This greatly angered her grandparents and without her uncle knowing, banished his wife and child. Months passed and a devastating news reached him, the pair of mother and son were both casualties of a great fire in an apartment complex back in Toronto. This lead to her uncle committing suicide a month later. She grew up knowing this tragic story. Her parents would always remind her of the family they have lost. But now, she found herself looking up the unfamiliar guy who is considered the only family she had left. "Don't worry, I'm not a bad person. Your parents had been good to me, I owe them my life," he said. Her parents knew he's alive? How long? "I promised them I'll take care of you," Pierce added... or should she call him Callum? "They're gone, right?" Callum pursed his lips and nodded. "You must've heard." "Yes," she whispered. "What happened?" "It's still under investigation. There are too many people involved, you don't have to stress yourself out about it. I'll handle this. Just rest and recover your strength." "What will happen now?" Her cousin was silent at first, "are you sure you want to know right now? You can rest first and—" "I've rested for such a long time now, Callum. I need to know." He contemplated for a moment and pulled a stool close to her bedside before sitting on it. "It was known all over China that the Song clan has fallen now. All your properties and stocks are bought by someone, for the past year your family's name had vanished in the industry and the minds of people." She kept herself calm and continued listening. "What they didn't know was; I'm the one who bought it, Cali." This made her eyes widen a bit. "I intend to use my identity as Pierce Alastair while you're still not ready to manage the company. When the time comes and you're ready, I'll put everything back into your name. For now, let them believe you're gone, it's for your safety too." "Callum..." she breathed out in disbelief. How can he help her this much? They just met! Can she really trust him? "I can see you're still unsure about me," he smirked. "That's good, don't trust strangers easily, kid. But let me gain your trust alright? We only have each other, our family's name had been a big part of China's history for centuries, we can't let it just disappear unjustly." "How about the Wongs?" She watched as her cousin's expression slowly darkened. She already predicted this, since she gained one of her senses while in a coma, she had never heard the voices of her parents' so-called 'best friends.' "Forget about them. They unhesitatingly cut all ties with our clan the moment news broke out about the accident," Callum said with a hard tone. "It really is just the two of us now, Cali. I'm sorry about your engagement." She faintly chuckled, "it was only a passing thought between mom and Mrs. Wong. I haven't even met the Wong Clan's heir, it's not a big deal." "That's good to hear. Don't worry, we'll be fine. This big brother will take care of you." Maybe, she's lucky after all. * Waking up in the morning is already a blessing for Calista. With the state she was in two years ago, she learned to appreciate all these little things life has to offer. She gingerly sat up on her twin-sized bed and stretched her arms, officially starting yet another mundane school day. She checked her phone and her cousin’s usual 'Good morning, Cali. Stay safe and call me when you need anything' text greeted her. She messaged him back before starting her daily routine. Once all's set, she went out of her apartment and like always, went straight to the bus stop a block away. Being in a coma for a year didn't affect her schooling that much. She was homeschooled before the accident happened and can shamelessly say that she's academically skilled. Her age and grade still matched. Growing up with only books and having not much of a social life does that to you. Since enrolling in Beijing Xian International High School two years ago, her life has been ordinary. And for Calista Song, it's a dream come true. No more home tutors, no more piano lessons, ballet lessons, harp lessons... or anything her grandmother would come up with. No more having fun with only the maids and the butlers. She is finally free and could finally experience how a normal high-schooler lives. Although her school is far from normal, who cares? At least the way she's living is normal. Thank heavens to that popular couple who broke up and made drama around the campus back when she transferred. All the attention was on them the entire week, no one really paid attention to her. Not that she expected them to, but you know, with how all those teen fiction books and movies portray 'transferees,' she began stereotyping too. Anyway, luck was on her side cause up until now, her life has been drama-free. She's completely non-existent to the eyes of many, which she happily accepts. She's content with the company of her two best friends and she could see herself graduating this way – in peace. "Hey Cali Song!," Shannon's loud voice resounded throughout the front yard, making her roll her eyes. Can she calm down a little? "Can you be any louder?," she sarcastically said once the girl is only a foot away before giddily hugging her. "We just saw each other last Friday, why are you more clingy today?" Shan pouted as she released her, "you're such a killjoy, and you never miss me." "How can you even have this much energy so early in the morning?," a lazily walking figure caught up beside the two, sipping from his carton of yogurt milk noisily. "Good morning, Ren!" "Jesus Shan, stop shouting," he instantly complained, slightly leaning away from their loud friend. Shannon just poked her tongue out before turning to Cali again, "Penta is next week." Calista raised her brow, "when did we ever care about that?" "Have you forgotten about our friend's little crush?," Warren scoffed. "That Connor guy will be part of Penta. Of course, she'll give extra attention to it now." "Seriously?," she turned to her female best friend with furrowed eyebrows, "Shan, that guy is bad news." "Believe me Cali," Shannon pleadingly said, holding her hand with both of hers. "Connor is different from them! He saved me from those drunkards the other day, he even sent me home personally. I know we just judged him because of the group he's in." Cali helplessly sighed. What happened to her friend is just another 'knight saving the damsel in distress' story. Of course, Shannon – being the hopeless romantic that she is – won't forget about her self-proclaimed hero despite his infamous identity. To cut it short, this Connor He is a popular jock in the campus. He's part of this nine-member athletic group who bullies students daily. This obviously made them active contributors in the annual Penta. Some would courageously act against them and have their revenge, but it was rare, for many are still afraid of how they will retaliate after the five-day tradition. "Watching him from afar is enough, don't involve yourself with him any further," she reminded her pouting girl-best friend which earned her a sad sigh. "I know," the latter replied, but she still heard the undertone in her friend's voice and it made her feel immensely troubled. * Since the day she transferred, she could count on only both of her hands the times she had eaten in the school cafeteria. As much as possible, she and her friends would avoid eating in what they call as the 'Coliseum of Humiliation' of Xian High. Every day, it was the venue of the endless verbal and physical bullying between the populars and the underdogs. It was bordering inhumane actually, and Cali cannot do anything but turn a blind eye. It was sickening but even the school administration wasn't doing anything to stop the madness, so what kind of power does she hold? Call her a hypocrite, but she knew the moment she makes a move, not only her drama-free life will be forgotten but also her friends.' She never knew this 'prestigious' school was hiding such a stench with their pleasant-sounding name and the reputation of clans their students come from... who would've thought? Indeed, diamonds may shine but how sure are you that those were real and not just some leftover broken glass? "Just this once? Please?," Shan begged the two of them and she swore, the girl is close to kneeling. "We rarely eat in the cafeteria, just let me see him for a long time? Cali, you said it yourself; I can look, right? As long as I don't go near him." Warren looked at her with accusing eyes and she just narrowed her eyes back the guy. "Fine. But only this day okay? Besides, this will prove that he had completely forgotten about you," she savagely added. At this point, she didn't care if it'll hurt Shannon anymore. The lovesick girl had to know the truth so she could move on from this unrequited infatuation of hers. Funny how she was only recalling about not eating in the cafeteria earlier and now here they are, on their way to the 'pits of hell.' Unlike its pseudonym, Xian High's cafeteria was actually a luxurious place. It was the biggest hall in the campus with mezzanine floors on each sides and a single-room-sized one on the center – overseeing everyone. The said room looks like a VIP lounge in a football stadium and just like its comparison, the space was also for the VVIPs of the campus. They – the aforementioned ‘VVIPs’ – don't always go in the cafeteria though but when they do, no one dares to act up. The rare times Cali and her friends chose to eat in the hall were the times they were inside too. Some days, rumors of them visiting the dining hall will spread so they were informed ahead of time, while on other occasions, the group would just suddenly appear without notice. The three of them chose one of the tables on the ground floor – not-so far from the center but also not too near the corners. They were perfectly placed as one of the invisibles. They brought their packed lunches out one by one before starting their meal. They're used to eating on the bleachers at the soccer field so bringing packed lunches is also a routine. "They're here," Shan giddily whispered once she was on her second bite. Cali followed the direction of her gaze and saw a group of boys entering the cafeteria. They then proceeded up the east-side mezzanine floor and took their usual table. She took another glance at her friend's Connor and went back to eating. "Don't gawk too much," she reminded. Shannon harrumphed and continued eating, "I know, okay? See? What's so wrong about eating here?" "He really doesn't remember you huh?," Warren suddenly snickered, earning a glare from the girl. "He didn't see me! But once he does, I'm sure he'll recognize me." Shannon's voice got softer towards the end, showing her uncertainty. "You guys are so unsupportive, and you call yourselves my friends? The audacity," she added before folding her arms against her chest in dismay. "As your friends, we know what's good for you and that guy isn't," Ren insisted. This slightly shocked Cali. This friend of theirs has a lazy attitude and doesn't really give them much of his reactions most of the time but now, his tone sounded really stern. Did she hear it right? "But—“ Whoosh! The three of them froze as a yellow object suddenly passed above their heads in such a great speed, before a loud bang resounded throughout the entire dining hall. This was then followed by a ten-second silence before howls of laughter filled the room. They slowly turned to the direction of where the object flew and saw a chubby guy with pasta and red sauce all over his face and uniform. He was currently rubbing the back of his head, seemingly in pain, while his shoulders started to shake. "Hey fatty! Does your meal taste good?!," William Li yelled out as he leaned against the mezzanine's steel handrails. "You want some more?," the devious guy added, playing with yet another tennis ball in his hand. Immature bastard, Cali cursed inside her head. She could just bow her head and glare at the food in front of her. Karma will bite you back soon, you son of a b— "Are we having P.E. in the cafeteria now?," a lively voice suddenly cut off everyone's merry mood. Silence ensued for the second time before it was overtaken by gasps. "Oh my gosh, they're here!," Shannon whisper-shouted, making her look up. How cliché.