Hera watched in silence meanwhile her friends got busy choosing their outfits for the party. She shivered nervously, not having a clue of what to expect from the so-called welcome party. She could already guess that it was going to be nothing but trouble for her. She grimaced at the thought. 

“So, Hera, tell me about your boyfriend,” Adelaide asked out of the blue. 

Hera frowned in confusion. 

‘What was Adelaide talking about?’ 

She couldn’t remember when their conversation topic shifted to Hunter. Well, that was what going to happen if she continued to zone out in between the conversation. Adelaide playfully rolled her eyes at Hera’s confused state. “I said, tell me more about your boyfriend who also happens to be the heartthrob of the school,” she asked again. Adelaide genuinely appeared curious to know more about Hunter.. She’d heard enough praises about him to get her interest piqued. 

The smile on her face and the excitement in her tone said how greatly Adelaide loved the gossip with juicy details. 

Hera scoffed. “He’s not my boyfriend,” she said in a dismissing tone and pulled a face at her new friend to make it clear that she’s thinking ridiculous. Except, her new friend didn’t believe her. “Why would the school’s heartthrob host a welcome party for you if he’s not your boyfriend?” Adelaide questioned, wiggling her eyebrows. She ignored how Hera snorted in response. 

Sitting cross-legged on the bed, Adelaide waited for Hera to answer. Hera’s patience was wearing off slowly. Adelaide was not shutting up her mouth, nor was she ready to give up on the topic. Hera agonizingly realized that she’s worse than Abby. Her cousin wouldn’t shut up with her questions once she gets determined to pull out the answers from you. 

Hera grabbed her toiletries along with a towel and clean clothes. Deciding to take a shower, she made her way to the bathroom without answering Adelaide. 

“God! She’s such a bitch,” Adelaide said, scowling with distaste. “What’s that arrogance for?” She was annoyed by Hera’s behaviour. 

Hera heard what Adelaide said, but ignored her and closed the door to the bathroom. She leaned against the door and closed her eyes to calm her nerves. Hera knew that was rude of her to ignore Adelaide. The problem was she didn’t know how to answer that question. 

‘Who is Hunter to me? What’s our relationship status?’

She pondered on that question for a second before discarding that thought. She shook her head in denial. 

‘No, he’s not my boyfriend. He’s not anything of mine.’ 

Hera could still hear voices behind the closed door. Brittany and Celine were trying to defend her rude behaviour. “Don’t judge her so soon, Adi. You don’t understand her situation, it’s complicated, and please, she’s not a bitch, okay,” she heard Celine say. Her friend sounded so defensive. Hera smiled, knowing they have got her covered. They’re best friends, alright. 

She tuned out their conversation and opened her eyes. Immediately a wide grin adorned her lips. Finally, Hera got the chance to explore their bathroom, and as Brittany said, it was gorgeous. 

‘All thanks to the thick wallet of the students’ wealthy parents.’

It was nothing like the communal showers with a screen partition they had in the middle school dormitory or in the school gym that they used after physical education. It’s spacious with six separate showers with glass partition. A thick glass door promised the required privacy with a touch of elegance. It also had four washbasins and toilets. 

Hera enjoyed the hot shower, washing off all the dirt and tiredness from her body. Quickly getting dressed in a simple white T-shirt and black jeans, she walked out of the bathroom. 

After packing her backpack with necessities for two days, she stood in front of the mirror, brushing her wet locks with a hairbrush. Hera sensed eyes on her and glanced up into the reflections depicted in the mirror. She found three pairs of eyes set on her. 

Hera was very well aware of the fact that they all were talking about Hunter before stopping their conversation abruptly when she walked out of the bathroom. She sighed and slumped herself down onto her new bed. 

“It’s okay. You can continue from where you left. I know you were discussing my non-existing love life with my supposed to be Prince Charming,” she said. Hera shot a faint yet sweet smile towards Adelaide as an apology, and the broad grin she earned in return said that Adelaide had already forgiven her. Just like that whatever awkward encounter they went through earlier, went out of the window. 

“What’s it like then? A typical bad boy of the school falling for the nerdy, ugly, boring, good girl? A cliched high school romance?” Adelaide asked with a mischievous glint in her greenish-brown eyes. 

Taken aback, Hera’s eyebrows scrunched a little. Adelaide straight out called her ugly. But her smile suggested she didn’t mean any harm. So Hera chose to ignore the sting. 

Hera didn’t know how much her new friend had come to know about Hunter and her story. She was sure her friends might have sugarcoated everything. It’s not exactly their fault. She knew that every girl in school had a crush on him. He’s every teenage girl’s fantasy. He’s the heartthrob, thousands of schoolgirls want to date. 

Even Hera’s friends were crushing hard on him. Could she blame them? 

Hera once again got lost in her thoughts. Sensing her lack of interest, Brittany answered Adelaide’s earlier question. “Oh, she can’t be a good girl if she knows how to curse. Certainly, she’s not a nerd if she’s struggling with her grades to pass,” Brittany smiled at Hera before continuing. 

“Ugly?” She shook her head negatively. “Not at all. Can’t you see how beautiful she’s?” She asked, and Adelaide showed her thumbs up in acknowledgement. Celine agreed as well while Hera blushed at the compliment. Of course, she’s beautiful. Even Hera knew that. Though she lacked a bit of confidence, she’s definitely not ugly if not sexy or hot. 

“And boring? Maybe a little,” Celine said, making Hera stick her tongue out. Her friends laughed at her childish response. As they continued to describe Hunter, Hera was sure that Adelaide would be just one step behind in joining Hunter’s female fan club by the time her friends finish describing him. 

‘How cliche will that be?’ 

Hera mentally scoffed.