Chapter 3 - Real Identity

I didn’t know where Glace disappeared to, but after the chaos inside the classroom died down when she left, I shoved my notebook inside my bag and got up from my chair. It was completely unbelievable. The girl I helped and had a HUGE crush on was super famous. To make it worse, she saw my dorky doodle on my notebook.

Oh, God… How could I show my face to her tomorrow? Please, ground, just swallow me whole. If not, then make her forget about it, I prayed. I headed to my locker and saw Denise waiting for me while leaning against the wall. I groaned to myself. If it wasn’t one thing, it was another. I ignored her and opened the door to my locker.

“Why the cold shoulder, Dulce?” she asked from behind me.

I pretended that I didn’t hear her and arranged my stuff inside the locker. Her footsteps alerted me that she was getting nearer.

“I’m serious, babe. I really want to be your friend. Please don’t avoid me.” Her warm breath against my ear felt uncomfortable, so I leaned away and glared at her.

“Denise,” I said in frustration. “I’m not your babe, and can you please not do that again? I thought you didn’t want to be my girlfriend. Why are you still giving me mixed signals? It’s not only annoying; it throws me off-track.”

There, I said it to her. Maybe she’d get the hint and leave me alone. It was bad enough that I was rejected, but did she have to get near me every chance she got?

She lowered her eyes and twirled a lock of her blonde hair with a finger before glancing back at me. “I’m sorry for turning you down, okay? I know I was a bitch for doing that, but give me a chance, Dulce. Let’s be friends, please.”

I crossed my arms in front of my chest and raised my eyebrows. “What for? Don’t tell me it’s because of popularity reasons. You’re pretty popular yourself, so you don’t need me for that.”

“Of course not,” she said with wide eyes. “Look, let me prove to you that I’m serious this time.”

“How?”

“Let’s go out today, just you and me. No mixed signals, no innuendo, just plain old friendship talk. That sound good?”

I thought about it for a second. From the looks of it, Denise would continue to pester me if I didn’t give in to her. I could always try avoiding her, but that would be hard because we ran in the same circles. Besides, having her as a friend would be better than being all awkward with her. I guessed this was for the best.

“Okay, Denise, let’s go out today. But don’t forget about your promise. This is for friendship and nothing else, right?” She nodded sincerely. “I’ll just text Tim and Patty so they’ll go home without me.” I grabbed my phone from my jeans and quickly sent my two best friends a message. I didn’t wait for their reply and replaced the phone inside my pocket.

“So, where do you want to go, Dulce?”

“Want to hang out at my favorite coffee shop?”

“Sure, whatever, babe,” she said with a nod.

Since both of us brought a ride, we just agreed to meet inside the café. I was the first one to arrive. The inviting smell of cream and coffee greeted me as I opened the door to the shop. I couldn’t help but smile to myself. I felt completely at home here.

“Hey, Dulce,” said Tina—one of my favorite baristas. Everyone knew me here since I visited once or twice a week. Yeah, I was addicted to coffee like that. My heart probably pumped brown liquid inside me.

“Hi, Tina. Please give me the usual,” I said with a smile.

A couple of minutes later, she handed me the Toffee-nut drink mixed with caffeine. After paying for it, I scanned the area and settled on a table in the corner. I couldn’t help but overhear two girls my age talking about Glace—errr, Frio. Whatever.

“Did you hear about it?” the girl to the right asked.

“Oh my God! Frio enrolled at King’s Valley High! I can’t believe it! I asked my parents to switch schools, but they didn’t want me to. What a pain!”

The girl was talking so loudly that the other customers inside the shop were staring at her in annoyance. The two friends continued to giggle and speak in high notes until the girl on the right took out a magazine with Glace’s face on it.

I stole a look and saw Glace’s familiar coffee-colored eyes staring modestly at the camera. My mouth opened slightly when I noticed what she was wearing on the cover. Not only was it familiar—it was mine. Yup, that was the grey shirt I lent her the other week. My cheeks turned bright red in embarrassment.

Why did she wear that for her interview? The shirt wasn’t cheap to begin with, but that wasn’t the point. I just couldn’t believe that she’d wear something of mine and flaunt it for the entire world to see. I knew that nobody would think that it wasn’t hers, but still… What was she thinking? She could have worn one of the outfits selected for her.

My train of thought was interrupted by the arrival of Denise. “Hey, babe,” she said.

“What took you so long?” I caught the word ‘babe’ that she said, but I chose to let it slip.

She smiled coyly at me. “Dulce, sweetheart, girls like us should prepare first when going on a…”

I stopped her with a stare. “You promised,” I accused. There she went with her mixed signals again. I let out a puff of air.

She rolled her eyes. “Fine, fine… Let me just get my coffee at the counter so we can talk about friend stuff.” She flipped her blonde hair and turned her back to me before going to her destination.

Meanwhile, the two giggling girls stood up and went on their way, taking Glace’s magazine and all her cuteness with them. I still couldn’t wrap my head around the fact that she was a celebrity.

Two gorgeous women took a seat at the booth that was vacated a few seconds ago. The girl with black hair and blue eyes stared lovingly at her companion, making the other woman blush. “Stop looking at me like that, Emiri,” she said with a smile.

I quickly averted my eyes and concentrated on my drink. It was clear that they were a couple. I envy them so much. I wished that I could have someone like that. Denise was the first person I had ever asked out, and look how that turned out.

“Penny for your thoughts?”

Speak of the devil. I glanced at Denise and watched as she took a seat in front of me. “So, what did you want to talk about?” I asked.

She shrugged. “Normal stuff. Like, what’s your ideal partner?”

“That’s normal?” I asked with raised eyebrows.

“Whatever, Dulce. Just answer the stupid question.”

“Okay… When you say partner, I’m assuming that you mean a girl. I’m a lesbian, Denise, and whether you like it or not, I’m attracted to women.” I stared pointedly at her to get my point across. She didn’t object, so I continued. “I don’t really have a specific type. I used to, but I realized quickly that you don’t always get what you want, especially when it comes to love. I go with my instinct instead. If she gives me the whole butterfly in the stomach thing, then I’m good with that.”

“What about the looks? Don’t tell me you’d go out with just anyone because she gave you the butterfly thingy. That’s, like, eww.” She rolled her eyes and fanned her face with her hands.

I smirked at her. “I’m not a hypocrite. Of course I’m attracted to beautiful people. But I also understand that it’s not the foundation of a good relationship. Only shallow-minded people think that. What about you, Denise? It’s clear as day that you’re gay. Why hide it?”

My question caught her off-guard. She looked uncomfortable for a moment but soon regained confidence in herself. “I’m not lesbian, duh! I totally go out with guys.”

“Don’t kid yourself, girl. I know what you are.” I stood up and leaned near her. “Look… When you’re ready to accept who you are, just call me, and I’ll be your friend. Until then, please stop spitting lies in my face. It’s really annoying.”

I took my cold drink and left her at the table. I didn’t need people like her in my life. When I reached my car, the phone in my pocket vibrated, startling me. The number on the screen was not listed in my phone records. Who could it be?

“This is Dulce,” I answered. “Who’s calling?”

“Hey, stranger,” said a familiar voice.

“Glace? I didn’t think you’d still have my number. What’s up?” I tried to sound casual, but my high-pitched voice betrayed me. Oh, God… When would I stop embarrassing myself in front of this girl?

“Nothing much,” she said. “I totally forgot to return your shirt earlier. I had it in my bag, but school was crazy, so it slipped my mind. Want to meet up instead? I’ll give you the shirt.”

“S-sure,” I stammered. “Where do you want to meet?”

There was a pause on the other line. “Come to my house. I’ll text you the address. Don’t bring anyone, okay? I just bought the house and don’t want the paparazzi to discover where I’m residing. You cool with that?”

“Of course… I’ll be there in a jiffy. Bye.” She didn’t reply and disconnected the call. Meanwhile, I did a small celebratory dance inside the car. We were going to be alone in her house, I thought with satisfaction. Fine, she wasn’t lesbian, but that didn’t mean that I couldn’t enjoy her company.

As promised, she texted me the address, and I drove quickly to her place. I was so excited to see her twice in a day that I totally forgot about the fact that she brought my shirt with her to school.

I reached her house in a few minutes. After I pulled over and parked the car on the street, I stood awkwardly outside her gate. Because it was surrounded by stone fences, I didn’t know what the property looked like. But I was definitely sure that the whole thing was expensive as heck. She was a celebrity, and there was no doubt that she could easily afford luxury homes like this.

I felt self-conscious as I took out the phone in my pocket and called her back. She answered after two rings. “Dulce? Where are you?” she asked.

“I’m, ahhh, standing outside your gate. Mind letting me in?”

“Oh yeah. My bad. I’m on my way there.”

The call ended, and I waited for a couple of minutes before the gate opened and her head poked out. She smiled widely when she saw me and beckoned for me to follow her inside.

My eyes roamed around the property. The lawn was well-manicured, and a huge rectangular pool greeted us in front of the main house. The water was illuminated with lights, which was kind of pretty because the sky was already darkening. I bet Glace had lots and lots of pool parties here with her celebrity friends.

I glanced at the modern-looking house. It was a two-story tall building that was colored white and had this huge floor-to-ceiling glass that replaced some of the walls. It looked like one of those homes you’d see inside a magazine.

My nervousness doubled in an instant. We belonged to different worlds. Even if she were a lesbian, I just knew that I wouldn’t have a shot with her. How could I? I was normal, and she was on a pedestal.

Glace ushered me inside her home. Like the exterior design, the interior was pretty much modern. A bespoke chandelier in the middle of the receiving room lit the whole place. We passed the living room, which was dominated by white, grey, and black colors. The only splash of color I saw came from the contemporary art on the walls. The house screamed of luxury, and I wondered what I was doing there.

Glace interrupted my thoughts. “In case you’re wondering, I didn’t have a hand in designing this house.” She smiled sheepishly. “Everything was done with the help of a designer. So, no, I’m not a stuck-up bitch like you’re thinking, Dulce. I’m actually a little uncomfortable with the place.”

I waved my hands in front of me in embarrassment. “No, no I wasn’t thinking that. Everything’s just different. That’s all. The design is very, uhhh, tasteful.”

She gave me an amused look. “Oh, really now? Hmmm… Come to my room. I left the shirt there.”

I nodded. “Sure, let’s go.”

She led me to a flight of stairs, and we silently climbed up. We reached the end of the hall, where a white double door was located. Glace opened it and signaled for me to go inside. I entered curiously and looked around. I was startled to see that the room differed from the rest of the house. It was like a rainbow had exploded inside.

The first things I noticed were the purple walls that had hand-drawn artwork of naked women hanging in a frame. I glanced quickly at Glace and stared at her with wide eyes.

She lowered her gaze. “Yes, I drew those, and yes, those were real subjects. I’m a freak, right?”

Somehow, I was able to find my voice. “Not at all… It’s really good.” I walked to the artwork and carefully inspected it. I blushed furiously when my eyes connected with the breast of the woman in the drawing. “So, this is your hobby or something?” I asked.

She cleared her throat. “Kind of… I guess I just really like the silhouette of a woman.”

“Me too,” I said in agreement. “But, uhm, let me ask a question.”

“Okay, shoot.”

I searched her eyes. “Why did you bring me here? You don’t know me that well, Glace. For all you know, I could snap a picture of this with my phone and sell it to the media. From what I heard, you’re the type of person who doesn’t easily let other people into their life, so why?”

She met my gaze with her coffee-colored eyes. “I’m not going to say that there’s something different about you, Dulce, because that’s just bull. I’m not in love with you or anything. I don’t want to have a relationship with you either.”

“Fair enough,” I interjected. “But like I asked earlier, why?”

She ran a hand through her raven black hair and stared at me seriously. “I wanted to show you this before I ask you something.”

“Oh? And what is that?”

“Can I draw you, Dulce?”

It was like someone had pulled a rug underneath me. What did she say? Was she serious? “Draw me? Draw me what?”

She smiled a little. “I want to draw you naked. It’s nothing personal, of course. As I’ve said, I didn’t bring you here to hook up. It’s purely for art purposes. When you helped me last week, I couldn’t help but notice your slender body and your beautiful face. It would be perfect, Dulce.”

I looked at her in disbelief. “Then what? You’re going to hang me up on your wall?” I shook my head. “This is crazy, Glace. I’m sorry, but I barely know you, and I’m not ready to show you anything.”

I quickly left her room while she followed behind me. “See you at school, okay?” I said before going down the stairs and running outside. This girl was completely, totally insane.