!ZWWOOONNGG!
"HAPPY NEW YEAR"
"Oh f*ck."
Mateo returned to the same scene he had been pulled out of earlier, the happy cheers slamming into him as his semi- refreshed brain was on its way to a migraine again.
"How! How is this possible? I clearly spent way more than an hour in that wretched tunnel, and then some more with EC. What the f*ck is going on then?"
Muttering some questions he felt he already knew the answers to, Mateo looked around for a seat of any sort when another round of cheers, led by his mother, broke him out of his pensive state.
"AND HAPPY NINETEENTH BIRTHDAY MATEO."
Forcing a smile on his face despite being worn out, he received the knife handed to him by his mother.
Helping his older brother, Wilson to set down the cake his mother baked, he got into position, his father and mother on his left and right, with one of his two siblings standing beside each of them.
Making a wish he never dreamed he'll make, Mateo blew out the candles and cut the icing layered chocolate cake from top to bottom, taking a slice of his favourite flavoured cake and relishing it, Mateo was welcome by another round of cheers and applause.
Given a cue, the maids and househelps began sharing slices of the other 1different flavoured cakes, the one cut by Mateo being reserved for the family and that of their next door neighbours, the Whytes, who they co-hosted the celebration with.
Too tired and confused to continue with the celebration, Mateo moved away from his family, using the excuse of looking for a friend when that same friend shouted his name and ran towards him.
"YO, MATTY I've found her."
A 5 foot 11 and a half boy with a handsome face and hair dyed in striking colours ran towards him, turning heads and earning lustful glances from many of their female collegemates, young women and even some mature ones, all without even trying.
"Leone, I'm too tired to play wingman for you, how about some other time."
"Pffft, too tired, when you slept the whole afternoon yesterday, you're funny. Anyway I didn't come here for your wingmanship, rather I want to introduce you to someone.", said Leone, who happened to be one of the neighbours entitled to the chocolate cake and sadly, his best friend.
Extending his greetings to Mateo's parents, Leone took a plate with some slices of chocolate cake on it and left, dragging Mateo by the sleeve of his suit which Mateo just noticed had no bloodstains or holes.
Being dragged and forced to meet someone against his will, Mateo was unable to say anything until they eventually stopped, in a corner of the dance hall playing loud phonk and jams made up of the most trendy songs.
The converted dance hall was on the Whyts property and was currently reserved for teens and young adults to party and socialise during the occasion.
Opening his tired eyes he saw two people, well three if you counted the irritating grinning face of Leone.
The first girl was in heels wearing a tight fitting red dress which outlined her curves and exposed her back.
Armed with an air of elegance alongside an aura which screamed 'high class' , this was obviously Leone's date and definitely not the one he wanted to introduce to Mateo.
Seated beside miss high class was the only other possible option.
With her lower face covered by a book and her eyes darting around nervously she fit the description of a frightenedkitten perfectly, something that for some unknown reason, tickled his fancy.
Pushed by Leone to break the awkward silence in their corner of the noisy hall, Mateo introduced himself.
"Hi I'm Mateo, a student and the best friend of this dolt beside me whose words about me you should not believe unless they are praises."
With Mateo's hand resting on his shoulder and a grin on his face despite being called a dolt, Leone was about to introduce the girls when one of them stole the opportunity from him, unsurprisingly miss high class.
"My name is Anabelle Starr though I'm sure you've already heard of me.", Miss high class– Anabelle said, her right arm extended forward and her palm facing down, almost as if she was expecting a knightly kiss to the back of her hand.
"Hmm, I can't say I've heard of you before. Why are you a famous musician or something. " Mateo questioned as his hand reached hers, swiftly turning it and giving a firm handshake.
Pulling her hand away from the brute she checked her nails and massaged her palms before returning to the conversation.
"Well I'm the sole heiress to a billion dollar cooperation currently owned by my father, Samuel Starr. I'm sure you've at least heard of him."
"Ah, I've heard of your father, Head of Starr Mining and Energy, as well as 23rd on the unofficial world's most hated list. It says he basically destroys the Earth to fill his pockets and you're happy to inherit him. Cool"
Flustered at the unexpected attack, Anabelle shot back.
"Hey your dad isn't any better. One of the highest ranked army veterans whose sole job was killing people under the guise of patriotism and service to the nation." Clearly this was a sore topic for her.
"Whoa Whoa, easy there tigress. I was just telling you what I know about your dad, no need to get angry, sheesh. Also about my dad being a killer, I can live with that. But can you live with the fact that many environmental activists are protesting for your dad's head, saying he's destroying the lives of everyone on Earth. Destroying the stars below, as a newspaper put it." Mateo smirked, acting like a shark out for the kill after smelling blood.
Feeling all her buttons being pushed, Anabelle excused herself and quickly walked away. She didn't need any bad publicity right now since her father was currently being privately investigated by many law enforcement authorities, and she felt that the more she talked with Mateo the higher the likelihood of her exploding and lashing out at him.
Fixing the buckle of her heels, the silent girl got up to follow her friend when Leone stopped her.
"You guys should sit down and talk, I'll go after her. Just don't do anything I won't do. Oh Mateo here are the keys to the guestroom, you already know your way there." Leone said, playing on Mateo's reflexes by throwing the keys.
Understanding Leone's subtle suggestions the silent girl felt her cheeks heat up in embarrassment while Mateo just wore a deadpan expression, silently plotting revenge.