Reese's Pieces

Magenta was about to go into her dorm when someone tapped on her shoulder. She whirled around, ready to karate chop whoever disturbed her.

Reese stood in front of her and he held a single pink rose, a card, and chocolates. They were all store bought. Reese was sweet but not very thoughtful. He appeared organized, but he was really good at making other people do things for him.

"Magenta Davies, will you go out with me?"

Reese asked Magenta in front of her dorm. The inter-school soccer match was the next day.

Magenta wasn't super surprised, but she didn't think Reese would ask so soon.

Magenta didn't have the heart to tell Reese she only liked lemon candy, and that she didn't love the color pink. Instead, she accepted the gifts in the romance of the moment.

The girls entering the dorm gasped. They went "oo" and "ahh" while waiting for Magenta to respond to Reese. After a few moments, Magenta responded to Reese. It was a bit of a pressurized situation, but Magenta didn't think she minded at the moment.

"Yes," Magenta decided.

Aside from always being googly-eyed at Reese, Magenta did have a crush on him in the past weeks, even as she was confused about the state of her and Blue's friendship.

Reese pulled Magenta in for a hug, and he rested his head on her shoulder. Little sparks ignited in Magenta's body. Magenta wasn't sure if they felt like sparks of discomfort or of delight.

"I gotta go get ready for the big game. See you tomorrow?" Reese said, leaning in to kiss her cheek.

Magenta blinked, her cheek feeling like she'd been drenched in the fire. Weighted and blanketed in saccharine flames.

"Okay, bye…" Magenta spoke, waving mechanically like a rusty robot.

Turning to go into her dorm, Magenta entered her room. Shelby was already inside, making out with Jasper. His arms were locked on her waist, and her legs were wrapped around his. They knocked some bottles off Shelby's vanity as they continued making out.

Mortified, Magenta backed out of the room. She went to the adjacent shared bathroom. Checking herself in the mirror, she realized she just got her first boyfriend. She jumped about in joy.

She had to get ready for tomorrow too. Magenta wasn't very into sports. But she did like running. Looking into the mirror, Magenta glowed. Her skin felt like a fresh baby's. Her red hair hung in loose waves around her shoulder. The freckles on her face smattered here and there, which she had been insecure about before now she was proud of. Her angular jaw and thin eyebrows coupled with her green eyes, long ears, and small lips gave an elven princess vibe.

Shelby barged into the bathroom the next moment.

"Sorry about that!" Shelby said, going to pee while Magenta washed her face and brushed her teeth.

It wasn't very hygienic to use the bathroom at the same time but being in boarding school meant being resourceful at the right times.

Shelby checked herself out too in the mirror as she washed her hands. Magenta loved how different she and her best friend were in terms of aesthetics but that it worked. Shelby's long black hair was glamorous and lustrous. She was a bit shorter than Magenta. Shelby wore a floral headband and always had a special edition of an Ice Cold Elephants bracelet on her right arm.

"Sooo details?" Shelby asked

"I heard from a little birdie that a certain Mr. Popular just asked you out?" Shelby exclaimed.

"Yeah, he did." Magenta smiled.

Shelby felt happy that her best friend was venturing into romance and relationships. But she didn't know if Reese was Magenta's best choice. Shelby and Jasper had been shipping Magenta and Blue since they were all eight and it was only the two of them oblivious to the fact that there was a huge opportunity for them to be a couple eventually. Shelby didn't want to be mean and not wish well for Reese and Magenta, but there was just something about her best friend being with Blue that made her happy.

As they went back to their room, Gwendolyn Belle skipped by and passed them before speaking her opinion.

"Many congratulations. Watch out though, I heard Reese is a heartbreaker on the fly."

"How would you know that?" Magenta asked.

"Maybe I have firsthand experience," Gwendolyn said and she disappeared into a bathroom stall.

—

People swarmed onto the bleachers as the venue opened for the audience.

"It can't be true right? It would be known by everyone if he was that kind of guy," Magenta said to Shelby. They moved along the side of the rows to reach their seats near the mid-front.

Shelby shrugged.

"I mean, he's a senior and we didn't know him until this year, and his dad is the principal," Shelby pondered at the thought.

Magenta felt a twinge of hurt that Shelby insinuated and agreed that Reese was not what he appeared to be.

What did he appear to be though?

Magenta did not know Reese very well yet and would give him the benefit of the doubt. He seemed sweet and chivalrous so far but she hadn't seen him in any situation under pressure.

She also didn't trust Gwendolyn as far as she could throw a shoe. It would take time, and Magenta was willing to invest her time. Somehow, the picture of Blue flew into Magenta's mind as she was thinking about Reese. Blue was raucous and troublesome, but only with Magenta. He knew the limit and respected her despite their rivalry.

"Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the members of the home team the Mighty Oaks," The announcer blared over the loudspeakers.

The field erupted into cheers and whistles. The cheerleaders danced, shaking their pom poms and butts around. Gwendolyn was the head cheerleader. Gwendolyn was stunning as usual, but her skirt seemed to be very short. Magenta saw Gwendolyn blow a kiss in Blue's direction and something inside her began boiling. Blue acknowledged Gwendolyn with a wave, tousling his hair as he went forward.

Since when did Blue and Gwendolyn have anything to do with each other?

Magenta chewed on the words in her head. She tried to focus, especially when Reese finally came running out. Reese searched for her in the crowd, and when their eyes met his lips curved into an angelic smile. Magenta smiled back, looking equally as happy on the outside but feeling a dull throb in her chest.

"And now the visiting team, the Thunder Bears!"

The crowd on the other side of the field went wild, performing the audience wave for their team.

"Their captain is super tall and super buff," Magenta overheard a girl next to them say.

He was indeed very tall and buff. Ruggedly handsome. And he seemed to have a problem with Reese McCartney. He swore at Reese the second they saw each other. They seemed to already be battling with their eyes shooting daggers.

"I heard Matt and Reese used to be good friends but now they hate each other. Wonder why," the girl next to them said.

"Yeah, something about a girl in between," the girl's friend said.

As soon as Reese and the captain of the Thunder Bears squared each other up, some people from both schools shouted, "REESE REESE REESE! MATT MATT MATT!"

The referee commanded them to separate when they began shoving each other's chests. Boos came from the crowd.

"No roughhousing!" The referee shouted for them to back away.

The two captains flipped a coin for the start, and it was the home team who would start the game.

As the game started, Magenta cheered for Reese, Blue, and Jasper. They all ran so fast, and it was hard to see the progress clearly, but when Matt scored a goal, the crowd on his school's side went wild, shouting and dancing in glee.

Halfway into the game, the boys were all sweaty and needed replenishment. Magenta gave Reese some water and he winked at her, holding onto her hand from within the field.

Blue drank his water next to Jasper a few benches away. As he stared at the interactions between Magenta and Reese, the water he'd been drinking spilled onto his shirt.

"Dude, drink properly if you're not going to play properly," Jasper said, helping Blue wipe off his shirt.

Jasper was a bit annoyed with Blue, because his playing was a bit off. He didn't seem to have that much energy, like he didn't sleep well. He kept avoiding passes but getting the ball stolen from the other side.

Just then, Matt slammed into Reese, breaking the hand contact between Magenta and Reese.

Blue spat the water out in his worry for Magenta.

Magenta looked in horror as Matt and Reese rolled around, tussling and wrestling each other. Magenta wanted to jump in but couldn't reach them so she called loudly for help. Matt threw a punch that narrowly avoided Reese's face before help arrived and teammates pulled the two off each other.

"You should stay away from him, it'll do you good." Matt wiped the sweat from his eyebrows, pointing at Reese who was being held back by his teammates before jogging away with his team members.

Magenta felt a fear rising in her system. This was the second warning she'd gotten about Reese and she was starting to doubt the trust he'd built with her.

"We need to talk," She mouthed at Reese. Reese nodded.

The home team lost that day, breaking an almost perfect streak of three years. Blue was disappointed, knowing he didn't perform to the best of his ability. The coach gave them a real talking down and tried to motivate them for the next game, but everyone on the team was upset and tired.

"What's wrong with you Blue?" One of his team members asked.

"Sorry, my head wasn't in the game," Blue admitted.

"Well get your head in the game. I don't think coach will be as nice next time if you mess up again."

Blue returned to his dorm room, with one last glance at Reese who ignored him.

After Reese showered, he and Magenta sat in front of the playground.

The playground was for the junior school kids, but the older students often frequented the playground too. They had a set of cutesy swings, and a big slide with a frame structure and monkey bars.

Reese started the conversation first.

"Magenta, I'm sorry for what happened today." Reese began speaking.

Magenta asked, "So what's going on? I'm hearing different things about you and it's not sounding that good..."

"I'm sorry that I couldn't control myself better today. But I want to explain what happened between me and Matt." Reese said.

"Matt was my best friend," Reese had a faraway look in his eyes.

"We were best friends and I went to his school before my dad became principal at Oakstone and we transferred. Matt is still mad at me because he thinks I was the one who hurt his sister. But it wasn't me, it was our other friend Oscar. Oscar blackmailed me and said he would make me fail all my classes if I told Matt anything because his mother was an examiner. I couldn't tell Matt it wasn't me when he suspected me."

"And this reputation I had from my past school has now chased me into this new school. I don't know if you knew but I only came here two years ago. I tried to push the past away, and it worked for a while. Until Matt appeared in this inter-school match."

Magenta was glad he shared his side of the story but she wasn't sure if he was telling the truth. It made sense, but it could be false too, and there was no telling unless the other people confirmed this version. But from what they had already started a foundation on, Magenta wanted to give Reese another chance.

"Will you give me a chance? For us to get to know each other. Three dates, that's all I ask. And if you're still on the fence by the end of it, we can end it there. But I like you." Reese said.

"What do you like about me?" Magenta asked, turning to him.

"You're beautiful, funny, smart...what's not to like?" Reese switched on the charm.

"And what do you like about me?" Reese asked, leaning towards her.

"I..." Magenta started but then Reese placed a finger on her lips.

Magenta didn't know how she felt about Reese touching her as if he owned her sometimes, but perhaps this was what relationships were like at first. She wouldn't know since she had never been in one before. Being with Reese exposed her to all sorts of new experiences and feelings.

"How about you tell me once the three dates are over?" He said.

Magenta nodded, agreeing to his proposal.