Masquerades

Chapter 18

Of course, someone will grab this opportunity to get Arcane Wong and the Masquerades’ attention using her name. She expected no less. She’s sure that girl won’t be the last and she’s ready to watch in silent amusement.

The fake Calista successfully made everyone focus on her, making it easy for the real one to escape the chaos. She went straight to her class and was greeted with silence once she entered, making her stop in her tracks. She looked around the familiar faces, and smiled.

“Good morning,” she skeptically smiled.

“Calista Song,” Annie suddenly recited her name with a suspicious tone. “We all need to talk.” The class president then nodded in the direction of her usual seat, and the moment she sat, the interrogation began.

They asked her at least seven times if she really wasn’t that Calista Song, and she decided to lie each time. Even if she trusts these people, it’s not the right time to fully reveal her identity even to them. Besides, she’s certain that once she did, they might start treating her differently – especially Warren and Shannon. Speaking of her best friends…

“Where are Ren and Shan? I haven’t seen them,” she asked around.

“We haven’t seen Warren around. Maybe he’s running late? And Shan is with Connor, probably…” Snow drawled. She was about to reply when a loud voice beat her to it.

“Cali!” Shannon’s voice resounded throughout the entire room as she ran towards her direction and hugged her. “I thought I'd never see you again.”

“I told you, remember? No goodbye,” she laughingly said, looking up. She was met by Connor and Warren standing side by side by the door. When Connor saw that she was looking, the guy promptly nodded and left for the next classroom where Section A is. Warren, on the other hand, lazily entered their room and didn’t spare her another glance.

Is he mad at me?

“He’s kinda disappointed in you because you didn’t talk to him before leaving last Friday,” Skylar answered her unsaid question, perhaps due to seeing her worried stare towards Warren.

“I knew I'd be able to come back, there was no need for me to talk to him…”

“You knew?” Zion Zhou – her seatmate who usually keeps quiet – asked all of a sudden, surprising not only her, but also the others. “Did you know that the news about Calista Song being alive would be released during the weekend? How?”

Ah… that was a careless mistake on her part. This ever-so observant seatmate of hers would undoubtedly grasp this small detail. He isn’t first in their class and tenth in the overall rankings for no reason.

“While hiding in Hall M, I heard Arcane talking with someone over the phone. He already found out even before the announcement from Song International, as expected… the Wongs have insiders everywhere,” she smoothly reasoned out, looking straight at Zion’s eyes. Spouting these lies is becoming second nature to her, it’s slightly scary.

The guy smirked and tilted his head, “sure… I believe you.” What’s up with him?!

*

The Masquerades doesn’t usually attend the morning assembly every Monday, but during Penta – which she had almost forgotten about – where they are supposed to promote equality among students, they tend to participate in every activity. That’s why the faculty smartly moved Sports Day to the last day of Penta, so they could have a reason to ask Section M to participate without losing their jobs.

While Principal Huo and their PE teacher discussed the aforementioned upcoming Sports Day, she felt Shannon, who was standing behind her, lean closer. “You dressed up today, I love it.”

Cali smiled and decided to tell her best friend the truth this time. “I just wanted to mess up with Arcane Wong’s head.”

“And you actually did… I heard he hugged you this morning, thinking that you are his ex-fiancée.”

She silently chuckled, covering her mouth with her hand and glancing in front. When she had made sure no one was paying them attention, she continued. “It was pretty funny, don’t you think? Just a little revenge for what he did to me last week. Good thing the real Calista arrived.”

“Do you really think she’s legit? I was with the Populars earlier, a lot of them don’t seem to believe that girl – especially Dakota and Maddox.”

Of course, those two won’t believe it right away. Dakota and Maddox are the only ones among the Populars who actually use their brains. Not to mention, the interaction she had with the latter inside the auditorium, he was pretty adamant on believing that she is the Song heiress. Now that the news broke out, does he still think the same?

She shrugged, “I really don’t care if she’s real or not… as long as it pisses Arcane.”

Shannon giggled, “seems like he’s still hell-bent on believing that you are the real one.”

“Maybe because I bruised his ego last week, and the thought of me being his ex-fiancée lessens his embarrassment a bit.”

The assembly soon finished and they were eventually permitted to go back to their classrooms. Because her pace is a bit slower than the others, she was one of the last ones to enter and had already heard the gasps from some girls even before she reached the door. This made her frown as she walked faster.

Each class has thirty to thirty-five students, and each room’s space is just enough for that fixed population. But when you add another six sets of desks and chairs? It tends to make the room seem cramped, even though whoever put those extras has made sure to arrange the space properly.

Desks are initially aligned in pairs in three rows and only five columns, but now, there’s an added column at the back. None of her classmates even want to take their seats because they seemed to be transported to an unfamiliar place.

“Why don’t you take your seats?” Their class adviser, Mr. Qiu finally arrived… but he’s not alone. Everyone, including Calista, didn’t even bother to look at their teacher, their eyes were glued on his companions instead. “Everyone, in your places, now!”

Their bags and other stuff are left untouched on their desks, and she’s still seated beside Zion – even though the guy wasn’t the best seatmate to have, at least he never bothered her. The tensed silence obviously made everyone uncomfortable, especially when the group finally entered their classroom and stood in front, right beside their adviser. Even Mr. Qiu looked intimidated and nervous.

The man cleared his throat and gestured at the six. “We all know that today is the start of the annual Penta, and to further observe the equality and camaraderie among Xian High’s students, the Masquerades themselves, offered a great proposition to our dear Principal Huo. They will now be joining our class for the rest of the week! Let’s warmly welcome them.”