Chapter 7: It's complicated

Dyren was out of his mind when he arrived at the restaurant. His friends never bothered to ask him because they already knew what it was. They already know about Carina.

Zharia was not in the restaurant. Her friends said that she had something to do with her scholarship. Dyren was sad to hear that. He wants to see her. Her heart wants to see her.

They spent the day enjoying each other's company after their project was completed. To know each other more.

"How do the three of you met together?" Archer asked the two girls.

Sabrina smiled at the memories. They met Zharia in a very complicated way that they didn't expect.

Flashback ~

It was summer. Sabrina and Danilaey enjoy the beautiful view of the ocean. The fresh breeze and the white sand that match their skin. Since they became teenagers, they like to go to the beach every year to celebrate their friendship anniversary.

"Hey Sabby, do I look beautiful in this bikini?" Sabrina invited Danilaey in.

"You look fine."

"Fine? I'm beautiful, you know."

"Whatever." Sabrina said, still wearing his swimsuit.

Danilaey and she were childhood best friends because their families were also friends. They always spend the time enjoying their lives to the fullest. They always go to the mall, travel to another country, or waste their money on frivolous purchases.

Well, it's their way to be together without their parents. When they are around their parents, they feel constricted.

The beach was full of people because it's already summer. Couples are dating. Families are having their picnic. Ggroup of friends that are playing beach sports.

Some people were looking at Sabrina and Danilaey when they got out of the hotel. It's not new either. They are beautiful, sexy, and have a different charm that everyone can notice. They went to the shore to watch the beautiful moon and stars in the sky. It was already evening.

"It's bad for you to be alone, gorgeous ladies." Five men came to their place with an untrustworthy face.

Sabrina and Danilaey stand to face them, but it's the wrong decision to make. They held them both in their hands, trying to sniff them. They are struggling to get out because they are stronger than them. Sabrina was about to cry. They are frightened.

"Let us go, please!" Sabrina was pleading, but the two men holding her weren't listening.

"Why? You're too beautiful to let go," their leader said while touching Sabrina's face.

"Don't touch my friend." Danilaey was afraid, but she didn't want to show it.

"Why? Do you want me to touch you first?" Their leader said, looking at her with scary eyes.

She is totally afraid of them. They wish someone would save them from this.

"Hey! What do you think you're doing?" Someone interfered.

They investigate the source of the voice. It was a girl. She is wearing a simple, loose shirt and shorts. She is beautiful and respectful in the way she stood.

They released Danilaey and Sabrina and went to the girl who interrupted them. The two girls watched as they harassed the girl. She just let them play with her hair. Talk dirty to her, but

"Ouch! Ouch! Let me go!"

The girl twisted the hand of their leader, and it hurt from the reaction on his face. His classmates were astounded by what they witnessed. They are powerless to act because they are also terrified of the girl.

"A woman should be respected, not treated unfairly. Do you understand?" The girl said, their leader just nodded.

She let his hand go, and the man was whimpering in pain. Their leader punched her, but she blocked it. It backfired on him because the girl punched him in the stomach. Their leader was scrunching in pain, and his friends just helped him get out of that place.

Danilaey and Sabrina both stopped the girl from fleeing without knowing who she was, who their savior was. They're very thankful to her for saving their lives.

"I'm Zharia Rylie Smith," she said.

Flashback ended ~

They become friends since then, friendship that will never last. Sabrina and Danilaey promised themselves that they would protect Zharia, too, for she had saved their lives before. They are grateful to have Zharia in their lives. She changed their lives. She taught them to be responsible, humble, and kind.

"Wow! You have a very interesting friendship story." Archer said.

"Yeah!" Danilaey happily agreed.

"Uhm, can I ask something about Zharia?" Lyxander asked.

"Yeah, of course." Danilaey replied.

"How is she as a friend?"

Danilaey thinks deeply. They've been friends for how long, but they don't know much about her.They didn't know about her parents. Even when she is hospitalized, her parents never come to visit her. She also does not discuss them. When they ask about her parents, she never responds to them.

"Mysterious, I would say." Danilaey said. Curiosity hits them because of what she said.

"What do you mean?" This time, Prince asked them.

"Well, because her name was the only thing we knew about her. Nothing more." Sabrina said.

After Sabrina finished speaking, no one asked a question. They were thinking, and they were curious about the persona of Zharia. How come her friends only know her name when they have been friends for years?

Dyren thought that something was not right about her. He was very curious, but he never knew where to start. He wants to know more about the girl who makes his heart crazy. He doesn't even know if he can trust her.

After that weird silence between them, they decided to part ways. The boys went to their rooms while Sabrina and Danilaey went strolling around the resort. They didn't go to their respective hotel rooms, but they did go to Dyren's room.

They talked about what the two girls had just said to them. They've come up with the idea that they will investigate Zharia since one of them is a hacker. Jhaderylle McCallister is a good hacker.

They hacked different platforms and sites, but either one of them doesn't show Zharia's identity. It was being blocked by something, and even Jhaderylle can't go through the difficult security that is blocking her identity. It was complicated.

"I smell something fishy about Zharia. I'm not sure how she was shielded by whom." Archer said.

Is she dangerous or what? It's like someone is protecting her for some reason. But what might be the reason?

"Can you try it again, Jhaderylle?" Dyren asked his friend again.

"I can't!" He said he was struggling to get through. This was the first time Jhaderylle had a hard time hacking a system.

"Can we trust her?" Prince said while looking at them.

That is the question to which they never have an answer.

"Maybe. As long as she doesn't show anything bad toward us, she's not dangerous at all. Maybe we can trust her." Dyren answered.

He wants to trust Zharia, but what if that's the wrong decision to make? What if she's really dangerous? Dyren's mind was astounded, but her heart is different. By the way Zharia looks at him, he knows he can trust her. His heart knows that he would never be wrong in choosing Zharia over his ex. It would be the best decision he could make.

Dyren left his hotel room without his friends around him. His mind wandered a lot that day. From his ex, who had returned, and the personality of the girl he is gradually falling in love with, he never paid attention to his surroundings, not even to Zharia, who was staring at him, dumbfounded.

"Hey," she said, trying to get his attention.

He looked at the voice that called him, and it was Zharia. It's like he has a million butterflies in his stomach when he sees her eyes again. Her beautiful eyes hypnotize him all the time. Zharia approached him because he was far away from her. Dyren just stood there awkwardly, watching her walk slowly toward him.

It's like his world has stopped. She doesn't wear any eyeglasses anymore, and her beauty was exposed. It was a perfect view of a beautiful scene that only he could see.

"Are you okay?" she said.

"W-what?" He awkwardly replied, trying to find the words he needed to say.

"Are you okay? You seemed to be problematic" she said.

Dyren was having a hard time maintaining his normal breathing because of their distance from each other. Being so close to Zharia is suffocating him. He's very nervous, and he doesn't even know how to react.

"I-I'm okay." he's stuttering.

Zharia laughed at him. It was amusing to see her bully act like that. She laughed really hard. Dyren was supposed to be mad at her, but he isn't, because in that moment when Zharia laughed, his world stopped again. It was the first time he had seen Zharia laugh. It was whimsical. He just stared at her, unsure what to say or how to respond.

He gradually moved his feet and made his way out of that scene. He will die if he stays there. Staring at Zharia's beautiful face is killing him. He needs to get out and rest his heart. It was beating abnormally for her.

Zharia was intrigued by his behavior, especially since he had never done so before. She just left that place and went to his room, thinking about Dyren's behavior.