14 Page 14: The Chase

I was confident I could handle everything.

I was confident that I could be able to keep Niko at bay as long as I stay true to my character whenever I'm Hera or Eve.

I thought I was professional enough.

I thought....

But his everyday investigations are killing me.

Today, I woke up earlier than the usual feeling more tired. It's been two weeks since that incident, and yet I don't feel any better.

"You're up early?" said Dave, suprised that I was already dressed for school coming out of my room. "Early and gloomy."

I flick my hand on air as I drop my butt to the chair and Dave serves me a plate of pancakes.

"He's impossible." I mumble stabbing my pancake with a fork, shoving the whole thing to my mouth. Yes, I am that stressed.

"By 'he' you mean Cherry?" Dave snickered.

I frown at him, "It's not even funny anymore."

"I thought you enjoyed him playing detective on you?" sips Dave on his mug.

"I don't know how you managed to get into that conclusion but..ABSOLUTELY NOT. He's tiring me out everyday while he doesn't even know that it is Eve he is tormenting and not Hera."

"It's not like he's chasing you around school with a megaphone."

I stare at Dave utterly speechless, "Why did that sound like you experieced it at some point?"

He spits his drink, "We are not going there!" he exclaims, stuttering,

"Exactly, what has he done that made you this drained?" he said avoiding my gaze.

Hearing that suddenly brought me back to my memory of what had happened for the past two weeks. It started with scattered notes posted by an anonymous person on the bulletin boards all over school, asking if anybody knew an absentee redhead female student. It was easy to ignore that since it didn't affect me, but it sure created an uproar in the student body. If only they knew it was their beloved Stepanov who had done that. The notes were taken down later that same day.

His second approach was asking the principal. I heard it from Miya, Stepanov visited Principal Langley for three consecutive days bugging him about something. Miya didn't know what it was but she said Niko looked desperate whenever she catches him coming out from the principal's office. Thankfully, the principal has a tight mouth and wouldn't even give Niko any hints.

Although he still sends me random messages through our private inbox in TeaDiaries using his Cherry account, his most recent absurd approach at me in school is through the student publication. You see, every Wednesday lunch break we have a school-wide broadcast of current events spearheaded by the Langley Radio team. And every week, they have a guest in their air time. Yes, you guessed it right. Niko Stepanov was on the most recent broadcast. I was already expecting something the moment I heard his voice from the PA system. I couldn't even focus on my lunch. While most of the girls in the room were giggling, enjoying the live broadcast, I was at the edge of my seat excessively chewing on my salmon in anxiety.

The first segment of the program was fine. They were just talking about the news and all that's been happening so far, keeping the students updated and to what the smartest boy in school has to say about it. I could tell by his voice how he's enjoying the spotlight. The next part was discussing about Niko Stepanov's academic record. The fool proudly discussed how he's always been a top student even in his younger years. He was very careful in answering questions about family, obviously dodging questions about his parents creatively. He even remarkably dodged the topic on being a famous model's twin brother. This guy makes me scoff. I was feeling at ease now knowing how the trail of questions don't seem to lead into any ambiguous topic. That was what I thought, but obviously whenever I get comfortable, the universe just seems to like it when I get all flustered and about to jump out of the window.

When the host said "Setting all that achievement aside, the girls in our school have been dying to know, is our famous Niko Stepanov also interested in a romantic relationship?" I heard the whole room hold its breath. No....I believe it was the whole school that held its air in. THE SILENCE IS DEAFENING. The girls were either staring at the broadcast speaker at the ceiling or intently glaring at their lunchboxes anticipating his response. The boys didn't seem all interested, but they look rather tensed as well. Miya, who was sitting in front of me, looked like she was about to murder her carrot, looking all tensed.

Stepanov hums at his mic then chuckles a little saying, "It would sound inhuman of me if I said I wasn't. I just haven't found the right girl for me."

And the whole school was filled with X chromosome screams. Excluding me of course. I was probably the only female who covered her ears amidst the chaos in the room. The boys didn't looked constipated on their seats.

The noise must have reached the broadcast site which was at the east building since the host mentioned it with a laugh. Niko laughed as well.

Niko: But...

Host: Oh hoh? Is there a follow up?

The girls started hissing at each other to shut up.

Niko: Ah yes. *chuckles* There's a girl I've been searching for.

My heart stops. Is he for real?

Host: Is this girl in LIA?

Niko: She is....but at the same time she isn't.

Host: Now that's confusing.

Niko: Right? But I really want to see her again.

Host: So you've met before?

Niko: Once. She has the most dazzling eyes, like of the ocean and hair like the sunsets in summer.

The girls in the room began to whisper. Even Miya looked alarmed of what she's hearing. I never thought he'd actually go this far just to find Hera. But in all seriousness, the way he's describing her is kinda.....

Host: Mhhhmm? Am I seeing a smile from our very own Niko Stepanov. To think I'll get to see you looking this flustered.

Niko: *chuckles* Flustered is exaggerating it.

Host: Then can I assume this girl you're telling us.....is a crush?

Niko didn't respond immediately. We could definitely hear him breathing on his mic. To think the guys now look interested on what he's about to say and the girls...they look like they're about to kill.

Niko: Yes.

You can imagine what happened next.

A disaster.

Remembering it makes my head hurt. I furiously exhaled, "Several things..." I slump back to my seat chewing on a piece of raspberry, exhausted, "I'm surprised you're not getting overprotective about this though. Normally you'd tell me to skip school for a while if anything risky happened."

Dave smiles at me.

"I don't think he's going to hurt you."

"You mean my reputation?"

He puts his mug down, "If it's easier for you then, yes, your reputation."

I don't know what's going on in Dave's head right now, but if there's something I can trust it's definitely Dave's intuition. I'll just have to keep a straight face when I'm at school.

"Oh by the way, don't show up in school unattended. Cher―Niko might recognize you." I said drinking my hot milk.

"Roger that. But if you're so bothered with his advances in searching for Hera, why don't you do something about it?"

I pop an eyebrow at Dave, "How is Eve doing something about Niko searching for Hera in LIA ever going to make sense? It's riskier than just me being Eve while he run around searching for someone who'll never show up the way he expects to."

Dave clicks his tongue thrice, waving his index finger at me, "I never said do something about it as Eve. Give him what he wants. He'll stop once Hera somehow responses to his efforts in school."

"Are you nuts? Hera can't just show up in LIA. It'll create a bigger problem." I exclaim.

"Wrong again," he said all smug, cutting me off, "I never said show up in front of him."

I stare at him, "Then what are you suggesting me to do?"

"Payback." Dave winks at me and I felt a strong breeze with heaven's light pass through me as if angels had granted me nirvana (wrong religion).

"Of course!" I yelp in excitement.

It's only natural to fight fire with fire.