The Wallflower's Revenge

AWR Chapter 16: Insisting, Instigating

" What is the meaning of all of this?" Leylah's dad said as he stood on the door of her room.

He seemed like he has heard everything that they have been talking about since a while ago. She froze and she didn't know what to do. 

"Leylah, do you have something to tell me?" Her dad looked serious. She can't even tell if her dad is angry or not. All she knows right now is, she's doomed.

" Dad, it's, it's nothing." I said as she stepped backward.

" And you really think you can make a fool out of me?"

"No, dad."

"Who is that guy? I heard you are talking to someone on the other line."

"He's my boyfriend, dad…"

For about thirty minutes, they both talked to each other and Leylah explained everything her dad wanted to know from her.

Leylah gave her phone back to her father. All throughout dinner she was so obviously quiet that even her mom noticed it.

" What's wrong, Ley?" Her mom shifted her gaze between Carson and Leylah. She just looked down and said nothing. Instead, she continued eating her dinner like nothing 

happened.

" Carson, can you tell me what's happening?"

" Why don't you ask your daughter about it?" Leylah finished her dinner and stood up. She took her plate and put it in the sink and she quietly climbed up to her room.

" Well, it turned out that I was wrong all along,"

" What do you mean you are wrong?"

"I confiscated her phone again because I learned that she had a boyfriend."

"What?!"

"See? Shocking, right? It serves her well. She's two months grounded and I will not give her phone until she will learn her lesson to the fullest."

" That sounds too harsh."

" That's my definition of discipline. If you do not agree to it then it's up to you." Stella, Leylah's mom, held his hand as he looked upon his eyes.

"Okay. Just do what you think is right."

Leylah went to her room without saying anything. All she felt was sadness and her dad being unfair to her again. Now that she and her boyfriend are okay, they can't communicate that often again. And the cycle goes on.

The next day she went to school without even talking to her dad. She felt really bad for what happened last night. Worst of all, she couldn't hang out with her friends anymore, including Lea.

" Can you really tell me what happened?" Lea insisted as she sat next to her. She looked weary and she felt tired for no reason at all.

"Look, if I explain everything to you you will still not understand it okay." Leylah told Lea. They only had a chance to talk because it was their  school time. Leylah felt really bad not to tell Lea about what was really happening. Could she tell her without her best friend getting hurt? She felt like it's all her fault why everything of this happened in a blink of an eye.

" I have all the patience in the world, believe me."

"You are on the wrong timing." 

"Why?"

"Please, Lei. Not now."

"We are not having the same name for nothing. You know that I will never stop asking you about it, right?"

Leylah secretly clenched her fist because of Lea's questions. It made her feel really bad. She can't help but to think about Lea who was the root cause of it all. What is she going to do now?

"No, Lei. I will never tell you about this, alright? Please don't ask so many questions."

"Were you grounded again? What's the reason again this time?"

" I don't know," Leylah tried to meet Lea's eyes. She looked worried as hell that Lea could feel it deep within her.

" Don't worry, I think dad was just so stressed out from work that he dumped those unnecessary luggages on me." She instantly replied with an awkward smile.

"Wow. I guess your dad is so tired that he made that decision,"

"Y-Yeah, he's kinda harsh sometimes, you know…" Leylah reasoned out. As she looks at Lea's reaction, he still worries about it.

"You didn't make any grave mistakes, right?" 

"N-No," She replied right away as she put her arms around Lea's shoulder.

"Alright, alright. I will not insist anymore since I kinda get the situation you're having."

"That's why I shouldn't have ever said it in the first place." Leylah answered for her best friend to stop pestering her. 

"Sorry. I will stop asking you that now." Lea replied. She realized that Lea is the insisting kind. She knew the personality of her best friend. She will never stop until she will not get what she wants.

Wait…

She looked at her best friend and a sudden guilt and realization hit her: now that she helped Lea to get near Walter, she will not stop until she'll get Walter for herself. Leylah felt like getting a knife and stabbing it on her own chest. Why did she ever help her when she'll face all the consequences alone in the end?

She's always thankful that the class started right away even before Lea could ask another question.

Right now she's trying her best not to get mad at Lea because her best friend is her only chance to communicate to Walter. She could borrow her phone anytime. Through Lea, she could talk  and chat with him even without her knowing.

As for Lea, she didn't know that Leylah was communicating to her own crush. Most of the time she doesn't mind whoever Leylah communicates with. For her, it's her own business and she really trusts her so much.

"Sure, no problem." Lea smiled as she said it to Leylah. She was taken aback as she got the phone out of her hand. It's as if Lea had already read what's on her mind at that particular time.

Leylah logs in to one of the social media sites that she communicates with Walter. It was her f*******: messenger and she left a message to 'Wilma's account', telling him that she won't be available for a long time. As she explained everything briefly.

She's smart enough that she hid the words she intended to tell Walter. 

"I'll be missing you. Please behave while I am gone."

"I love you. I hope you will be back soon so that we can communicate more often."

She handed the phone back to Lea after reading Walter's message. 

"Thank you so much, Lei. What will I do without you?"

"You can always trust me, Leylah Hacke. That's what best friends are for, right?" Lea offered her hand for a handshake. She looked at it for about a minute before she shook Lea's hand.

"You know what? You looked really worried and stressed out. Don't worry about it too much, okay?"

"Months are long enough, Lei. I can't live without my phone with me these days."

"Alright, why don't you do good deeds, kill yourself with too much study time and ace those exams? For sure, your dad's heart will melt and he'll give your phone back."

"I hope so, Lei. I really do."

Lea hugged Leylah and it made her heart beat really fast. Right now, she couldn't help but to feel guilty about Lea falling in love with her boyfriend. In return, she set up her boyfriend to do things for her that seemed very unnecessary at all.

"Let's go back to class and ace everything we need to ace!"

Leylah and Lea went back to the room after their break. Lea received an alert from her phone and looked like it came from Wilma. She then discovered that Leylah didn't log out her messenger from her phone.

"I hope you will take good care of yourself. ILY." Lea's eyes widened.

"ILY? I love you? Eww...a girl is telling that to Leylah?" Lea had goosebumps all of a sudden. She looked at her best friend who was walking away as she swallowed.

'Is my best friend gay or something? Who is this Wilma? For the record, I am the only bff of Leylah. Who is this girl?' 

"I love you too," Lea giggled as she replied to the girl named 'Wilma' on her phone. Lea thinks that Leylah will not really mind if she will reply to her. Anyway, Lea will eventually get to know this new girlfriend in the long run. 

She's thinking that maybe Leylah is just shy to confess what's happening to her and her feelings towards...perhaps, the opposite s*x?

She's suddenly confused all of a sudden. She looked at Leylah again but this time, she's already very far from her. When Leylah realized that she's already far from Lea, she ran from where she was.

"Why are you not even moving?" Leylah said while gasping for air. She ran so fast that she's almost breathless.

"I'm not in the mood," Lea said as she grinned at her. It made Leylah chuckle a little.

"Are you crazy?"

Not as crazy as you are.

"No." Lea replied right away, still grinning as she looked into her eyes. Leylah finds it creepy already.

"Hey, what's wrong? Are you really okay?"

I should ask you that first…

"Yup, I'm totally fine." Lea answered her but her unconscious thoughts kept on pestering her.

"Alright, let's go to the cafeteria then. We'll have a quick snack before I go." She smiled weakly at Lea that she understood what she meant instantly.

"Oh, yeah sure. I know your dad doesn't even want to see me hanging around with you even in our dismissal time or while you're still waiting for him," Lea answered as Leylah nodded.