Fall and Spring

Chapter 3

AUTUMN's POV

"What are you doing here?" I looked at her confused.

"Working?"

"I know."

Then why is she asking?

I turned my back on her and continued putting stocks in the fridge. "What I want to know is why you’re working here."

"Because they’re hiring," she suddenly hit me on the arm. "What’s your problem?" I asked, annoyed.

"Answer me properly!" she pointed a finger at me. No matter where I looked, I couldn’t see anything wrong with my answer.

"Harumi-chan, you’re here already," I looked at the woman who came out of the staff room, the store owner.

Harumi-chan?

"Pffftt," I stifled a laugh and looked at the woman beside me, receiving another hit.

"Oh, do you know each other?" she asked us.

"Mom, no."

Mom?

She walks toward her mother and kissed her cheeks. "How was the seminar?"

"It was okay, and you?" I continued putting stocks as they continue to talk.

"It was okay too."

"Oh, by the way, this is Autumn. She applied earlier," I looked at them, "I hired her because we needed someone to work with Gusion and Guinevere here."

"Mom, next time, check the people you hire properly."

"Huh? Why? She looks nice, and you’re from the same university."

"Even so."

"What are you talking about? It’s obvious that Autumn is nice. She’s hardworking too."

"I know that" I heard her whisper.

Her mom left quickly because she had to prepare a lesson plan. She’s also a high school teacher at a private school. After she left, her daughter followed me closely as if she was watching me put stocks in the fridge. When I reached the last shelf, I spoke up.

"Why are you following me?"

"I have something to say," she said

"What?"

"Don’t ever spread that something happened between us." I stopped what I was doing.

"Why?"

"Why? The thing that happened was a big mistake. We were both drunk and... I just want you to know that I’m straight. So if possible, I want to forget what happened." I sighed.

"Are you disgusted with me?"

"Huh? What are you talking about? What I want to say..." she paused for a moment, "It was my first time, and I can’t accept that I did that with someone I don’t even love."

"That was also my first time," she went silent for a moment.

"YOUR FIRST TIME?!" I stepped back because of her loud voice. Luckily, there were no customers and none of my other co-workers are inside.

"Are you sure it was your first time?" She held her temple as if she heard something unbelievable.

"Sorry if I didn’t satisfy you, but I just did what I know," I was about to leave when she hit me again before going back into the staff room with a red face.

It was only my first day here, and my body already ached.

The next day, I arrived early because I needed to visit the registrar for my grades. I sighed as I looked at the paper. I failed two subjects from last year’s first semester and one from my second year. I enrolled in all these subjects this semester and one advanced subject.

I’m an irregular student, so I’m in different classes. I even had to enroll a minor subject in different department because the offered subject in our department conflicts with my other subjects.

After my morning classes, I went directly to the library to take a nap. It was a peaceful nap not until I heard some noises. I lifted my head and saw someone looking at my grades.

"Your grades are pretty high from your first year, but why do you have failed grades?" I was about to snatch it from her, but she immediately pulled it away.

"You’re too nosy, Harumi-chan," she blushed immediately upon hearing what I called her.

"Who told you that you can call me that?" she said pissed.

"Okay, fine. Haru-chan," she threw the paper she was holding at me, which made me laugh.

"Don’t add 'chan' to my name. We’re not close."

I laughed even more at what she said.

"Why are you even here?"

"Why not? This is a library, I can be here anytime I want."

"What I mean is, there's a lot of vacant seats here. What made you think that it’s okay for me to share a table with you?" She glared at me.

"Because Bailey has a class and I have no one to sit with." She picked up a book from the shelf next to her.

"So, I’m your second choice?"

"It just happened that I saw you here and I wanted someone to be with while I wait for Bailey." I looked at her for a long time.

"Do you have a crush on me?" Because of my question, she suddenly hit me with the book she was holding.

Geez, for a moment, I felt like I went back in 1942-1945. It seemed like everything from that year was flashing back to me. It might be my past life.

"What made you think that? I always see you alone, so I wanted to keep you company."

I rubbed my hand because it really hurt. She really hit me hard. "I don’t need a anyone."

"You know, you’re too independent. Don’t you have a friend?"

"No. I really don’t need anyone."

She furrowed her brow and thought for a long time.

"I just remembered, I was in first year when I first saw you---"

"So, you had a crush on me for a long time?" I joked while laughing and I received another playful hit. It felt like a World War II reenactment flash on my mind again.

Geez, this cute Japanese girl,

"Just let me finish," she sighed. "You were in second year by that time, and if I remember it correctly, you were popular here."

Ah, that was the time when I was completely focused on studying.

"Because I don’t need anyone," she suddenly hit the table and stood up.

Fortunately, the librarian didn’t hear us.

"Say that again and I’ll hit you."

"Okay, I won’t do it again," I raised my hands to calm her down. She sat back and then looked me in the eye. I quickly avoided her gaze.

I hate eye contact.

"You know, it's not bad to have a friend. Even just one person who will always be there for you, you'll be okay." She smiled at me, and this time I looked into her eyes.

"If I ask you to be my first friend, will you accept it?" I asked her seriously.

"Of course, baby," she said and gave me a warm smile, and that was it. I grabbed my things and left her.

When I left the library, I found myself holding my chest. My heart was pounding so hard.

I sighed and went to the rooftop of our building, I spent all my free time there until my next subject.

When I sat down in our room, Bailey sat next to me. We were classmates in this subject. Our professor arrived, and my seatmate started talking to me.

"Girl, Harumi was looking for you earlier," he said.

"Why?"

"I don’t know. She just said you are going home together," and that’s when I remembered that I was working for them. "So, are you courting her now?"

"Nope," I answered with a frown.

"I thought you followed her to their convenience store"

"It was just a coincidence. How was I supposed to know it was their store?"

"Omg, Omg~! This is what they call destiny. Oh my god!"

"Mr. Clark and Ms. Ortega, get out of my class. Now!"

---

Bailey and I were in the canteen, and he was still laughing.

"Checklist number 1127, getting kicked out of class. Check!" I saw her fiddling with her phone.

"What kind of checklist is that?" I asked, eating the the lumpia she bought. The rich gay treated me.

"Girl, it’s fun!"

"Seriously? getting kicked out of class? on your checklist?"

"Girl, it’s not just positive things that goes on a checklist, it should be balanced. Put all your goals on it, no matter how small it is. So, what’s your goal?" he made me think with that question.

"None."

"Huh? You don’t have anything you want to do?"

"Nope."

"I mean, anything small or big, good or bad? Anything you find interesting?"

I shook my head.

"Nothing."

"Then how are you going to live your life?"

I thought deeply and blinked three times before I answered.

"Breathe?"

He remained silent for a few seconds before bursting into laughter.

"I like you, girl... HAHAHA," he wiped the tears from the corner of his eye. "You can marry my best friend now," he typed something on his phone before handing it to me. "Here, if you want, pick something you want to do."

I took it and read from the top of the list:

1. Kiss Peter

2. Kiss Juan

3. Kiss Pedro

4. ...

There were various names that followed. I looked at him.

"Seriously?"

"I’m not going to do all of that if I can’t. Just accomplish what you can."

I scrolled down until I reached the middle. I didn’t read everything because there's a lot.

698. Graduate

699. Work at the company

700. Take over the company

701. Make my parents proud

He also had some serious goals in life. I scrolled to the end.

1509. Go to space

1510. Befriend an alien

1511. Organize a tea party with aliens

1512. World domination

It was okay, but then he added things that were out of this world.

I returned his phone.

"Did you find something you want to do?" he asked. I shook my head. "Okay, let’s do this. We’ll pick 10 randomly from here, and for now, try to do those list," he said and I nodded. "I’ll say it again, just try, okay? Don’t force it if you can’t."

"Yeah, yeah, I get it."

"Alright, wait here." He took a piece of paper and a pen, stood up, and went to the next table. "Hi, Diana. Can you pick a number between 1 and 1512?"

Does he know her?

"Sure, ummm, 100."

"Okay, thank you," he moved to another seat and did the same until he had completed the ten.

"You know a lot of people here," I notice it since he greeted everyone he passed by.

"I’m everyone’s friend, you know," he sat and looked at the paper he was holding. "Okay, let’s start. The first is 100..." He looked at the paper and his phone. "Oh my god! Hahaha, girl, who are your friends?" I was puzzled by his question.

"No one."

"Huh? Not even one? With your beauty, no one tried to befriend you?" The conversation with Harumi-chan in the library came to mind.

"It's..." I sighed. "Harumi." When he heard the name, he laughed loudly.

"HAHAHA! This is really destiny!" He wrote on a new piece of paper, and I was shocked by what I read.

1. Kiss a friend

What the heck?!

"Why is there something like this?"

"Well, I didn’t pick the numbers. Okay, next number is 101. Oh," he read the next on the list and he almost died laughing.

What now?

He continued writing, his hands shaking. He was still laughing and his face was red.

1. Kiss a friend

2. Have s*x with a friend

"Are you playing tricks on me?" I took his phone and checked the checklist. It was true that those were listed under 100 and 101.

"I’m not my fault, girl," he said, still laughing.

"Why do you have this in your list?" I wondered suddenly. "Isn’t Harumi your friend?" He suddenly stopped laughing and looked like he was about to vomit.

"Girl, that’s gross! Harumi is my best friend, but I have other friends too, okay? Not just women, and besides, girl, I don’t eat mussels," he pretended to gag again.

He continued writing, and I let him finish it. After he that, he took a photo of it before giving it to me.

"Oh, here. Do what you can. Add more if you want. Try to do everything because they’re goals, but it doesn’t mean you’ll achieve everything. There are things that aren’t meant for us," he looked at a table not far from us

"Just like Gabriel, why does he have a girlfriend!" He acted like he was about to cry before turning back to me as if nothing had happened. "Anyway, there are so many guys out there, so girl, good luck. I'll go ahead, your destiny is already here." He grabbed his things and left. I watched him leave and saw Harumi entering the canteen, Bailey even whispered something to her before leaving.

"Let's go?" Harumi-chan asked with a smile when she reached our table.