Inside the Antagonist's Heart

Chapter 4: His Smile

4. HIS SMILE 4.

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It's Saturday. I have Soccer in the morning and judo in the afternoon. My foot is in good condition now. It's been three days since the accident and I was able to wear my shoes yesterday. I'm so excited to attend Judo for the reason that I will have Dan as my partner. The accident was kind of a blessing for me, although I really felt sorry for Gio. When the girls found out that I'm the one who caused his accident, they're going to harshly kill me.

I'm still going to attend soccer practice even though I can't join them in nationals. Soccer is my only life here in St. James High. I love the game, the heat, the grass, and its mud. I can be dirty and still feel happy about it. I love every little thing here in the field. My team loves me and I love them too. I feel so stress free every time I'm here just happily playing with them. I feel so carefree.

After the practice, we stayed in the field and hang out with my team for a while.

If there's something I'm going to miss in St. James, it would be this lovely field. I really hate leaving. Thinking of leaving just gives me bad vibes.

"Angel." Lyra, my teammate called me all of a sudden.

"Ahmm, yes?"

"Someone is looking for you in the Gym. I think it's Dan and the judo group."

What the hell? Dan is looking for me? Well I also hear the judo group part, but I look like a dirty monkey now.

I stand up, panicking. "I should get a shower first. I can't face them like this."

"I think you should see them now. It's okay. You just had your soccer practice. It's gonna be fine, you have an excuse." Lyra pushes me.

I walked towards the Gym with my soccer uniform, I put on my varsity jacket too so I may be able to hide the mud and dirt around my arms. And I saw them, sitting carefree while talking to each other. A picture of perfectly looking students, adored and loved by everyone at school. I never see any judo girls there. I started panicking more. Please let me talk as normal as possible. Please let me act as normal as possible. Please! And then, they finally noticed me.

"Hey!! Girl!" the tall guy waved at me.

"Her name is Angel Montecillo" the boy in glasses answered.

He knows me. Well, he may have remembered it when I was introduced to them by Sir Leo.

"Yeah, I'm Angel." I shyly answered.

"Hi Angel, we called you here because the training was canceled. We already called the other girls. You're the only one who didn't answer, then someone told us that you're also here playing soccer" Dan finally talked.

"Oh. I see. I'm sorry I was not able to answer it. Maybe you called when I was on the field." I apologized to him. I just missed a chance to talk to him via phone. It's on my wish-list.

"No, it's cool. And you're really cool too." Dan told me.

"Yeah, we were watching you earlier. You kick really well." the tall guy added.

"You're watching me earlier?" It sounded like a complaint.

"Well, we're a little captivated by your actions earlier so we stopped to watch you. You play really well. Our school will definitely win the regional's" the guy in glasses explained to me.

"Actually we're getting ready for nationals now. Well, I don't know what to say, thank you Dan, ahmm, and the two of you."

"I'm Jake and this man in glasses is David. Wait a sec? How come you only know Dan?" Jake asked me.

Oh no! I'm going to lose it. One moment they all like me and after they found out that I like Dan, they're not going to talk to me again.

"I told her that he is going to be your new partner bulldog." a man behind me answered Jake's curiosity.

"Long time no see Gio! How's your arm?" Dan asked the man behind me.

I turned around and saw him. I'm safe. Gio was just right on time. He showed his cutest smile at me and jokingly punched the face of Dan with his good arm.

"The doctor said that it should be gone after a week. You have to take care of my partner for a while Dan."

"Sure, I'm not sending her to the clinic like you did." Dan joked around and all of them laughed. That made me laugh too. It's my first time laughing with new friends. Normally, I just smile and put the silly thoughts out of my head. Maybe it's different because Dan is here, laughing with me.

All of a sudden Dan looked at me. He stared at me for seconds then stood up from the bleachers.

"Hey, Angel, stand still." He commanded.

Seriously, how can I move if he's staring like that at me? I'm frozen solid and I can die like this.

He put his left hand behind my long black hair (which is in a ponytail at the moment), and touched my left cheek with his right hand.

I am really going to die now.

"You have mud on your cheek. Don't worry, I already removed it?"

"Hey Dan, don't shock her like that. Look at her, she turned tomatoes." Gio protested.

"It kinda looked like you're about to kiss her. It flooded my mind the moment you touched her cheeks. Hahahaha!" Jake laughed.

"If you didn't have Jessie for a girlfriend I might have thought that you like Angel." David added.

"I'm sorry Angel, don't listen to them, they just misunderstood it." Dan explained.

I'm still not answering them. And I'm still not moving.

"Look at what you did to the poor girl Danielle. Hahahaha" Jake teased him again.

What poor girl is he talking about? Me? I snapped out. I like Dan. I like him a lot. But seeing how his friends laughed, reacted, and compared me to his girlfriend as if I'm not worth liking by him. Making me the weak one and the humiliated one. I couldn't take it.

"Look Dan Esguerra!" I finally answered. "I can take care of myself and my own dirt. I'm used to having lots of mud around my body. You can just tell me that I have dirt on my face, you know! Acting like a cool man behind your friends. Making me humiliated like this. You're so......you're so self centred."

Well, I think I exaggerated a little bit. At least they will not have any idea that I like Dan after what I said to him. For him, and for his friends, I despise him now, but inside of me, my heart is beating faster. I can't breathe.

I removed my jacket and left after I said those mean words. I walked fast towards the Gym's exit without taking a look back. Before I was about to reach the exit door someone in the Gym clapped his hands. I turned around and was shocked to see that it's Dan. And he's just a foot away from me. He moves a little more forward and I feel my heavy heart again.

"Angel Montecillo, you're so cool. I like you." Then he showed his smile again.

The smile he showed after saving me. The smile that made me fall for him three years ago.

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