Segment: Confession

The Preparation

Lyle's P.O.V

Today, we are going to check out the places that each class picked for the trip. It was honestly a mediocre day. Not too hot, not too cold. I felt numb too. It was distracting me to the point that I forgot I was holding the papers that I needed.

Jamie looks at me with concern painted all over his face. I give him a reassuring smile. Although it didn't work, he's not glancing at me any more than necessary.  

We are currently waiting for the student council to show up. They were a bit late, which also adds up to my sour mood. I hate people who don't think about other people, making them wait. It's not like they're important or anything. 

I should stop this.

After a few more minutes, the student council arrived with quite an entrance. The pathway looked like a runway, shining under their steps. Their hair, perfectly groomed and no blemishes to be seen, not even pores. Designer clothes and branded accessories. They were too bright and positive for me to see. I look at Michelle and then Jamie, who was smiling to himself. I cringe at the sight. 

"We're sorry for being late," Michelle apologizes to me. 

"Please don't do it again." she nods apologetically.

"Pres, everyone is present and the vehicle is ready." Michelle's secretary, Van Reid, says.

"Noted. Let's go. The yacht is ready." 

"Okay." 

Van directed us to our vehicle to and fro the yacht. It was, again, a private yacht. The last time I was traveling was with Amelia and a yacht was too big for just the two of us. There are still less people here than normal but at least I'm not stuck at constantly thinking how to not cross a line. 

"Hey," Jamie nudges my elbow with his own and whispered in my ear. 

"What?" 

"Why you so sour-y today? Not enough s*x?" I shake my head.

The passengers of the vehicle were picked meticulously by Van. Jamie and I are in the same vehicle but there are still some that aren't in the fake student council. I could ask Jamie right here and now about the meeting but what if someone hears us? That would be the end for us. It's better to be prepared than sorry.

"What's s*x? I don't know what s*x is." he pokes my side with his fingers and prolongs 'awe' teasingly.

"Dude, you have to do it first-"

"No. It's not that. I'll tell you later when we're alone." he notices the seriousness in my voice and straightened out his posture. 

"Okay." 

We arrived at the port and we quickly boarded the yacht. As soon as we boarded, drinks were handed to us like usual. I said no to the waitress and went straight to the deck. The yacht started moving and we were already on our way to the city. 

There was something about the waves that calms me down, especially if it's a day out, the waves are calm and so blue or green, or just basically cyan. It was so beautiful to look at. The ocean looked so deep, so vast that my problems seem like they're too small to be even compared to the world. 

I felt a hand on my shoulder. I look at my side and see Jamie also looking longingly at the ocean. He looked so deep in thought that I find it unneeded to say anything to break this serenity. 

"If you were talking about the message, then I guess it's our first mission together." I hum in response. 

The higher ups made sure to not let us meet with the preceding fake student council. I'm guessing because they don't want us to know what they were given. They know that a tiny mess up in their system will make a huge impact on them in the near future. 

"I guess this is happening." I say with pain. Prolonging my exhale as I sigh. 

"You seem to have your s**t together." he commented. 

"You think so?"

"Yeah. That's why I'm not making a big deal out of it." he turns to me with a smile. 

"Don't forget to give Michelle a credit." he laughs at me and turns his head three-sixty degrees, searching for Michelle. 

"I won't. It's too soon to say but I'm glad I met her." I scoff.

"What happened to the bitter Jamie? You only hanged out with her for a day and you're already this cheesy. Sheesh, get outta here." he flashes me his toothy grin. 

"I really think you should be with Amelia though. Chrelia's not that good for you." 

"What made you think that Amelia is?" 

I know Jamie is only looking out for me but I still don't understand why he always pushes Amelia to me. What we have is only s*x, nothing more, nothing less. In fact, I like that she doesn't know that it's me. Other than telling the world that I was the one who took Amelia's virginity and sleeping with her exclusively, I want it to be under the radar. Amelia is sought after in this world. I'm just a stone, mistaken as a gold, wandering around a room full of gold. 

"I can list a lot of reasons." 

"Give me one right now then."

"Well, she can match up your drive?" 

I shrug.

"Meh." 

"You have a monstrous drive, you know. Girls beg you to step but then the next day, even though you're so tiring, they still ask for you. You're just that good." I shake my head.

"Stop it. We should relax for now. By the time we finish there, I bet these people will want to go shopping." 

"You're right. Ah, I wish I have money to spend." 

"Me too, bud." 

For the next few hours, we slept soundly, roamed the yacht, ate till we were sick to our stomach and just plain chill. As soon as we arrived to the port, immediately paparazzi came flocking at us. They were pushing and pushing, I thought some were going to fall into the water. 

Michelle Young was here, along with other children of tycoons. It was a sigh to see. Jamie and the rest of us, who aren't rich, decided to stay behind them. 

"Be vigilant. We have orders to protect them and assist them to the fullest. I won't accept a single mistake. Got it?" I say to them before putting on my ear piece.

Other than visiting the places that our classes picked, we were also ordered to guard the student council. They're so rich that they have death threats. That was also the reason why the school is located far and in an island at that. The whole island is surrounded by military trained troops. Any boarding unannounced will be interrogated. 

"Yes, Ma'am." they all said in unison and followed suit, putting their ear pieces in. 

The eight of us went to the side and fend off the paparazzi from the student council. 

"Please don't push." I say to the man in front of me. 

"Miss Young! Miss Young!"

"Here, Mr. Reid!

"Mr. Morris! Here!"

The student council ignored them and walked towards the cars that we were going to use. When we entered the car, all of them heaved a sigh, at least those that are in the same vehicle as me. 

"Thanks, Lyle. They're so persistent sometimes." Michelle gives me a smile and combs her hair using her fingers. 

Her silky hair wasn't even untangled. Her fingers went right in and slid right down without struggle. Indeed Michelle has a beautiful face but she's just not my type, even though her and Chrelia are almost identical in terms of personality. Chill, relax and kind - when Michelle wants to, that is. 

"It's part of our job. Don't worry about it." 

Michelle, Kevin, Van, Cameron, Samantha and I are in the same vehicle. 

"Miss President, don't worry about it. This is no big deal." Samantha says as she smiles widely at Michelle. 

Samantha idolizes Michelle so much. If Samantha was talking to Michelle right now face to face, she'd be shaking her legs right now. It was a good thing that Samantha was behind us. It was a position sitting arrangement kind of thing. 

"Thanks, Samantha. You too, Cameron." Michelle kindly thanks the both of them too. 

"You're welcome, Miss President." Cameron coolly says and looks at the window. I shake my head. 

"Michelle, how are we going to do this?"

"We have eight classes here in total and two people each from those. The student council decided to go separate ways."

"By classes, right?" Michelle nods.

"But since both the first years have the same venue, another team will be assigned another task." 

"What's that?" 

"I thought that since our classes picked a beach, even though it's fall, we wanted to at least hold games and tournaments. I talked about this with my class and they were actually hyped about it." 

That's actually quite a good idea.

"Alright then. I'll tell my class about that. I heard that the place both classes picked has a different climate." 

"Yes. It's an island, actually. Owned by Amelia." 

I stopped breathing for a second. 

"She's - she owns an island?"

"Yes. She wanted to make profit so she uses it now to make money."

"Is it a resort now or something?"

"It's called Getaway Island."

That's too literal.

I can't help but smile at Amelia's choice of name. It was kind of cute. I shake my head. We're not that close for me to smile at something she did. 

"Right."

"You just laughed, didn't you?" 

Crap. She caught that.

"What? No. Don't be absurd."

"Look, if you like Amelia, then tell her. I know she won't reject you." I was about to open my mouth when Cameron beat me to it.

"Miss President, please don't joke like that." 

I wanted to punch him in the face but I controlled myself. He is so not worth it. 

"What made you think that I was joking, Cameron?" Michelle snaps subtly. I could feel Michelle's poisonous tone. 

"Well, for starters, Miss President, Miss Amelia is of high status, whilst President Lyle only has skills. Miss Amelia is beautiful and elegant. Her innocence is out of this world and if she were to be with President Lyle, she will be soiled to her very core." Cameron told Michelle with so much assurance. 

I look at Michelle's side profile and she had her brows knitted together and murmuring something under her breath that I couldn't hear nor understand. I wanted to laugh so bad but still I held it in. I wanted to take a picture though and let Jamie see how distasteful Michelle looked. 

"I see. You're entitled to your opinion so please, don't judge my own." Michelle tries to sound gentle but there was still some venom in her voice. 

"Alright then, Miss President." 

Michelle sighed silently so that no one else could hear except me. 

"Anyway, we four will decide by playing rock-paper-scissors." 

"Excuse me, what?" Michelle chuckles. 

"Rock-paper-scissors."

"Because?"

"Well it's easier and not time consuming. The real competition will be held in the island so, yes, rock-paper-scissors."

"Right, okay. Sure."

Michelle and the others discussed some things to the others. The four of us aforementioned will be leaving again and use another yacht. Michelle and Johnny had something to do so Jamie and I had time to kill while the others regroup with the others and visit the sites. 

"Rock-paper-scissors, huh. I think you'll win by playing scissors." Jamie laughs at his dry humor. 

"Not really laughable." he rolls his eyes at me. 

"Amelia sure is rich and she's making more money by the second." 

"Yeah." 

"I heard Amelia also runs an orphanage." 

It's a new info after another. I'm starting to see Amelia under a new light. The more I know about her, the more kinder she looks to me. She's more humane than I thought. I really do think that she was like the others. I should really stop with the fallacy: Hasty Generalization. 

"Wow. That's something."

"Yeah. She funds, established, and visits the orphanage when she has time." 

"Wow, okay. Is she even human?"

"Will you consider making her your girlfriend then?"

Will I? 

"I don't think so. Now that she's that great, I don't think I even deserve to breathe next to her." 

"I thought about that too. Michelle's great too, and sometimes I feel so small when I'm next to her." I chuckle. 

"Those two are so different from the people we know." he nods vigorously.

"If you still feel like that after getting to know Amelia better, then I guess you'll be stuck single for the rest of your life." I elbow his rib and he yelped in pain. 

"I won't be single, trust me. Unlike you." 

"Pfft. What? I am so not going to be single." 

"Really? Then if Michelle says she really does like you, will you be willing to be hers exclusively with no pay?" he stopped moving and was instantly lost in thought. 

"Thought so," I added. 

"You're right. Love is not for us then." 

"I'm always right." I say smugly. 

"Hey, the yacht is ready. Let's go?" Michelle inserts in our conversation with a happy smile. 

"Alright, let's go." 

When we arrived at the yacht, we won't be touching the ground for another hour. Honestly, I was getting tired of traveling so many times. If you think about it, I travel everyday for a week but when I travel, I'm not alone. I travel with tourists of the island and act as their guide and entertainer so I'm getting more drained by the day. 

"You look blue," I look at my side and see Johnny towering over me. 

Johnny is the historian of the student council. I don't really know his specific job but overall, his role is to take account all the school's enrollees, status and everything about them and then travel sometimes with Jamie if needed, like how Michelle and I talk sometimes.  

"I'm okay, man. Thanks." I give him a small smile which he returns. He sits next to my bench and opened a can of cola. The cola made a hissing sound as it was being opened. 

"You want some?" he grabs another can from his table and offered it to me. 

"Yes, please. Thanks." 

I opened the can myself and gulped it down. I was so thirsty that I didn't realize it until I drank the coke. Come to think of it, Jamie and Michelle are nowhere to be seen. I hope they're not having s*x right now. 

"Can I ask you something?" 

Johnny's feminine voice engulfed my eardrums. It wasn't eerie or too feminine, but it was still feminine. It matched his frail appearance though. He doesn't look tough, nor buff nor threatening, but this guy has money so I should be careful. 

"Sure, what is it?" 

"What made you enroll in System High School?" I was taken aback by his question. 

No one has ever dared to ask me that. If I were to translate his question, he was asking me if I was okay. It made me want to cry in front of him. He make me feel safe somehow, with his frail figure. He looks so comfortable that it makes me want to live under him. 

"I need money."

"You know that's not what I'm asking."

"Please do clarify. I don't want to give out unnecessary information." he looks at me pitifully before looking away. 

"You all need money but only some can withstand everything the high ups give you, right?"

Does he know about the system? Does he know everyone? Up there? What does he know? How does he know that? I should probably immediately contact the higher ups and have a meeting with them. A leak is a leak. But if I do report this, I know Johnny will be under supervision. 

They won't probably make his life comfortable for long. So it's either my or his, huh. Crap. 

"Johnny, I advise you to stop right there before I report you." he looks at me with horror in his eyes. 

"I-I'm sorry. I know this is not allowed to be out." 

"Don't ask anyone else about this, Johnny, especially the other ones and especially Cameron." 

"I'm sorry."

"You're not giving me any harm, Johnny. By stating and asking me those question, you're putting yourself in grave danger. If someone were to hear you right now, someone else, you'd be gone already." he nods frantically. He was so nervous that his hands were shaking. 

"I-I'll keep my mouth shut." 

Though I want to know how he knew that, I should probably not. I don't want to accidentally spill it to someone in the heat of a moment. I don't want to risk putting Johnny in trouble. He's too frail for that. 

When we arrived at the island, we were greeted warmly by Amelia's staffs. 

"Rock-paper-scissors time." Michelle announced to the three of us spontaneously. 

"Right now?" she nods. 

"Alright then. Johnny versus your team then." Johnny looks at me with surprise. 

"Why me, President Lyle?" 

"Oh, shush. I respect and look up to your sportsmanship." I give him a grin. He gulps and faces the opponents. 

"Then it's Johnny versus Jamie." Michelle steps back and let Jamie step up, now facing Johnny. 

"Alright. Whenever you're ready Johnny." Johnny nods. 

They brought out both of their fists. Determination painted all over their faces. I like Johnny's determined face. He looks like he can conquer the world. 

"Rock," 

"Paper,

"SCISSORS!" both of them revealed their choice of battle stance. 

Johnny lost. 

"Wait wait, we still haven't figured out which side will do what." Michelle facepalms upon the realization too. 

"Damn, I forgot. Well, the loser will have to visit the reception area, inquire and just basically do everything other than making games." 

I smile and whispered something in Johnny's ear. 

"Rematch is a must." 

"WHAT," Jamie exclaims. 

"She's right. This is unfair. Rematch it is." Jamia glares at me before playing again. 

"Rock,"

"Paper,"

"SCISSORS!"

"WOOOH, we won, bitches." I say and jump in happiness. 

"f**k. How'd you know I was going to pick rock?"

"We've played rock-paper-scissors before. When you chose paper first, you always follow rock." 

"Damn you." 

"We won." Johnny smiles and cheers too. 

"This is your fault." Michelle says in a scolding matter to Jamie. 

"What? How is this my fault? If you just told us the consequence earlier, we would've won." 

The both of them were bickering while I was here, listening and chuckling awkwardly. 

"I haven't seen President like this."

"Like what?"

"This. So high, so competitive and so alive." 

"Well, you should expect more of that."