Letter from the Mysterious Author: A Tempting Proposal

"Alright, let's go. What do we have to lose?"

'Seriously?' - I thought. - 'Isn't this a bit beneath the mafia son?'

"So are we going or not?" - the brunette asked, tossing her empty cup into the trash.

"I was kidding. And it seems we should have been in class by now. "- Indeed, I glanced at my watch and noticed we were running terribly late.

We dashed our way to class, laughing as we entered. We were greeted with surprised looks, and I apologized as we took our seats.

"And where were you, may I ask?" - the mafia girl asked ironically.

"A secret. "- Grace hissed in response. Their relationship had its ups and downs, which I observed every minute I spent at school.

After the lesson, I headed to the library. Someone was already sitting in my favorite spot, or more precisely, Lisa was. When she saw me, she smiled warmly and waved. I winced. Why was she acting this way? Wasn't she the one who showered me with insults a couple of months ago? Wasn't she the one who threw my notebooks out of the window? Stole lecture notes to copy? Tattled on her dates to me? Quite an interesting situation, indeed. Wasn't the library the most boring place in the world for her?

I sat in my favorite spot (I wasn't going to give it up), placed my books, used one of them as a barrier, and started working on homework. I had a schedule: if I didn't have any work in the evening, I would do homework at home, and if I did, I would do it at school right away.

Grace and his sister weren't around me. The older one, not forgetting his grudge against Francis or whatever his name was, suggested tossing firecrackers into his backpack. I immediately declined because Francis's father was a big shot. But Mort wasn't offended. "You don't have to go. If you do, it will look extremely suspicious," he told me. The brunette girl agreed; the idea intrigued her. I was happy that the mafia guy and his brother would finally do something together without quarrels and rivalry. And the French guy wouldn't be seriously hurt... probably. It's just firecrackers, but what if the guy came up with the idea to launch fireworks?

"Julian." - a voice echoed. -"Julian."

And then, the book that was serving as a barrier for me from the blonde girl, dropped onto the table.

"Why didn't you let me finish yesterday?"

"I wasn't in the mood to talk. "- I said, trying to put the book back, but Weston tugged it toward herself.

"So, why are you avoiding me?"

"Why shouldn't I avoid you?" - I muttered, trying to put the book back in place. - "We're not friends, after all."

"Why?" - the girl frowned and snatched the book. I grabbed the other end.

"Let go!"

"No, first tell me what I did!" - she almost shouted. We both pulled on the book, each in our direction, and I realized if this continued, the book might tear.

"Okay, fine." - I said and released my end of the cover. Lisa didn't expect that and tumbled with the chair to the floor. I quickly stood up and approached her. -" Hey, are you okay?"

"Ouch, you did that on purpose!" - she exclaimed. I took the book from her hands and started arranging it. I realized I wouldn't be able to do my homework, no matter how much I didn't want to. At that moment, the girl got up and came over to me.

"Listen, if you want to talk to someone, you have Karen and Josephine and a million other friends. I don't have time for that."

"You never have time. Mainly for lessons and the mafia, you have time." - I rolled my eyes. -" Let's sort this out."

I sighed and sat in the chair. The blonde girl sat down across from me and began.

"Listen, I apologize for all the wrongs and troubles I've caused you all these years, during your time at school. You...?"

"I accept your apology. "- I cut her off shortly. - "Is that all?"

"I would like you to help me with a subject." - she begged, clasping her hands and batting her eyelashes. - "Please."

"Alright, but not today. You can message me, you have my number, right?"

"Of course." - the blonde girl smiled, showing her white teeth.

Suddenly, there were loud explosions, and Mort and his sister entered the library laughing.

"Did you see his face?"

"How could i not see? "- they gave each other a high-five and then noticed us. At first, Grace wanted to take his sister by the arm and leave the library, but when he saw my expression, he approached.

"What are you doing here? Did you do everything you wanted?" - I nodded. - "Well then, let's go."- he looked at the brunette as if conveying information. She giggled and said:

"Go, the lesson is about to start." - we were about to leave, take the first steps to the door, when I turned and looked at Lisa. I noticed my phone on the desk next to her. The girl next to her also noticed it. But the most cunning was the mafia girl. She approached quickly, took the phone, and then Weston snatched it from her. The brunette arched an eyebrow, but didn't let go of the phone.

"Julian, your phone. -" the blonde girl said cheerfully, not taking her eyes off the brunette.

"Miss Mort, please take it. "- I said to break the silence. The mafia girl took the phone and for a few seconds looked menacingly at Lisa.

"Hey, let's go. -" Grace exclaimed, and his sister handed the phone back. We walked into the classroom, where there was silence already. When Lisa came in and sat next to Karen, the other girls surrounded them and started whispering. Of course, everyone wanted to know.

Honestly, I didn't pay that much attention to all those girls. There were a lot of them: Betty, Cleo, Dorothy, Sophie, Nika, Agatha, Cora, and some others. But they didn't play a major role. They were mostly just Karen's and Lisa's followers.

This lesson went by in no time, as if it flew by. It surprised me a little. Mort, who was pleased, pulled me to the cafeteria. When we returned, I saw the drawing that the mafia girl had been working on. It lay on her desk, and the brunette girl was obviously gone somewhere. I approached it to take a closer look. The drawing depicted a full moon.

"Where did she go?" - Grace asked in surprise. - "She could have said something."

"She probably went out. "- I shrugged, not taking my eyes off the picture.

Suddenly, I noticed a piece of paper under my desk. I wouldn't have paid much attention to it if it hadn't been neatly folded. Additionally, I didn't remember putting any notes on my lecture notes. Unfolding the paper, I saw a few lines of text.

"Karner, come to the restroom on the first floor during the fifth break. We need to talk about a job that pays $10,000. I know your situation, so come."

I exhaled. This was probably... could it be a prank? The note wasn't signed. The handwriting looked familiar, but I couldn't figure out who it could be. I've scoured the whole city looking for a job; what could I have missed? And such a salary... And wasn't the restroom on the first floor out of order? Grace looked around for his sister and didn't notice my find.