Chapter 6

• "What? With Daniel? No, I'm not jealous, he's my aunt and he's nothing to me... Out of imagination, inside it, he's tied to my bed... Yes, you're definitely going crazy, Melissa."
• "Didi!!! Is he the one you like? No? " Melissa."
• She sent it to get information.
• "Him? No way, he would never notice me or anyone, he's a one-night man, I don't know if you understand " Diana."
• "I think I do, too bad, he's so good-looking ;) … hahaha... Where will you be early? " Melissa."
• "At Daniel's company: I haha he's more than good-looking :P hahaha, I'll wait for you at 10 and we'll have a little coffee, kisses " Diana."
• "I'll be on time. Kisses, witch " Melissa."
• She had waited for an hour for Andres and was feeling confident about her suspicions that Andres just wanted her to do the work for both of them when the doorbell interrupted her unfruitful reading due to her many thoughts.
• "Hey! I thought you wouldn't come, I started reading something already," scolded Melissa quite seriously.
• "I'm here now, I had a problem but it's solved now."
• "Everything okay?"
• "Sure, let's work."
• "Okay."
• "So, who should we imagine interviewing?"
• "Weren't we going to interview Van Gogh?"
• "That was an example, smart girl."
• "You forgot to say 'For example, a' illiterate."
• Andres looked at her amused.
• "How offensive."
• "Don't make me bring out the repertoire and just tell me what you have in mind."
• "I don't know, some musician."
• "Slash," said Melissa, making a silly love face, Andres laughed.
• "I don't think the teacher would appreciate that."
• "I wish I had your good taste in music," they both laughed. "Anyway, interview a genius... Nikola Tesla. We can imagine asking him how it feels to have your ideas plagiarized," Andres looked at her strangely.
• "What a nerd," he said. "I thought you were the pretty girl who listens to pop and knows nothing about life." Melissa looked at him with a "go to hell" expression.
• "You turned out to be quite annoying," he said and began typing to search for interviews already done "And you're a cutie, a box of surprises I would say" He said it seriously "Read and shut up, macho," Melissa said to stop him from goofing off They spent the afternoon reading and organizing their work, not talking much so Andrés decided to break the silence once again.
• "Why are you so quiet? I mean, we've talked a bit now and you're interesting, but if I hadn't talked to you, I wouldn't know. Do you understand? " The boy suddenly blurted out "And how should I know, I have nothing to say, almost never. I understand that you're kind of silly, I don't talk to people who don't interest me and no one interests me" She said, surprised by what she was expressing "You could say you're very pretty, for example, and just because of that you would have tons of friends and taking off the "If you come closer, I'll bite you" face. You're the crush of many at school" It was a poor attempt by Andrés "If you want me to do the work for you, you're on the wrong path," Melissa spoke, reproaching herself for how foolish she was to agree to work with him.
• "I'm serious and we're working together, right?"
• "Then shut up or you'll end up working alone, besides, it's already done, we need to print and that's it."
• "How quick"
• "Just shut up"
• That's how the conversation and the work ended, Andrés went home and Melissa stayed thinking about him... No, about Daniel. His image and his words ran through her mind over and over again, she didn't know what to do, she wasn't sure what was happening. Why couldn't she get him out of her head, besides the fact that he couldn't be any hotter?
• *Ding Dong* the doorbell rang, pulling her out of her thoughts.
• "Andrés? Did you forget something?"
• "How kind" he laughed "Yes, I forgot... This." And he kissed her, a quick and failed kiss.
• "What's wrong with you, you son of a...? I knew it! I knew you just wanted to play with me... Get out, idiot! Go away! Was it a bet? Yes, it sure was"
• "Hey no! Mel, why are you acting like this? Come on, I'm not that kind of guy. I... It's just that you..."
• "Go to hell." She slammed the door in his face, on the verge of bursting into tears. While he finished his sentence "It's just that I like you. But I messed up." And he left.
• She couldn't believe what had just happened, not again, not to her. It was her biggest fear since high school, that they would laugh at her so much again, she couldn't bear it, she was already getting over that incident and Andrés had come to relive it all over again. She was sure he had bet on that kiss with one of the jerks at school and that's why he was so kind.
• And she began to remember.
• She was only 13, in her second year, and she was still a girl, the kind of girl who never cared about such vain things as looks or the way she looked, she was chubby and with rosy cheeks, she cared little about what others thought of her, the only boys she found attractive were those from books and movies, she knew she weighed more than the other girls her age because her mom never stopped telling her and taking her to doctors and nutritionists, but that didn't matter much to her, she loved food, especially desserts, and she wouldn't give them up for her mother's demands who was never at home or the opinions of her classmates who kept calling her "chubby whale" since she entered school, she hated them of course, but it wasn't enough for her to look ugly in front of a mirror.
• Spring came and with it the long-awaited coronation of a queen in her school, inside Melissa's classroom there was a vote to choose the girl who should fight for that coveted title, there were several names written on the board, including Melissa's, which Darla had proposed to mock her once again, she was her competition but of course, she wouldn't win, she was the typical thin blonde, more developed than usual for her age and the prettiest in the school or at least that's what they said."
• Lola was Melissa's best friend and knew what the sneaky Darla wanted to achieve, which was to have her best friend's name mentioned without any votes to humiliate her. So she came up with the worst plan she could think of. She knew that Darla was not liked by many boys in the class, so she managed to get the majority to vote for Melissa to favor her. And that's how the embarrassed and chubby girl earned a spot in the awkward competition among girls around the age of 13 and 14.
• Winning or losing would have been the same to her if it hadn't been for the terrible humiliation she suffered on the day of the coronation. There she stood among other girls of similar age, wearing the best dress her mother could find, after reminding her of the weight she needed to lose. They were all thin and heavily made up. On the other side of the stage was the "Spring King," who would choose his queen. The moment came when Luis, the most handsome boy and unfortunately Darla's boyfriend, now named King, chose his companion for the fake and momentary reign. And that's how Melissa's disastrous future began, with a 15-year-old boy avenging his blonde and mean girlfriend.
• " "Well, it's the most anticipated moment of the night. Our esteemed King Luis will take the stage to name his beloved queen..." That ridiculous speech still echoed in Melissa's head some nights. "Go ahead, King Luis," boasted the poorly made-up principal.
• The so-called king took the stage with an air of grandeur, believing himself to be a true king, and announced into the microphone,"
• " "As you all know, tonight I must choose the girl whose beauty will reign over the school for the whole year, and that is a great honor for me. It was quite difficult for me to decide because they are all so beautiful," the boy said with a hint of sarcasm. "But I have done it. I have chosen the best..." Drumroll. "Melissa!" Her name echoed throughout the auditorium as she approached the microphone, ready for her downfall. "Yes! The best," he continued his speech. "The one destined to leave the kingdom in absolute poverty because she is the best at eating, and with the amount we would spend on fabric for one of her dresses, we could end hunger worldwide..." Laughter filled the room, teachers rushed to the stage, and a chubby girl froze in the center of the stage, being mocked by many. "I'm not done yet. Is there a castle door big enough for her greasy backside to fit through?" The laughter increased, and a teacher managed to snatch the microphone from that repulsive brat. Melissa burst into tears and ran out of there, while Darla and her friends shouted in unison, "Earthquake, earthquake, help!" and burst into laughter. A teacher followed Melissa to the bathroom, but she never responded. Locked in a small cubicle with a mirror on the door, she looked at herself and told herself that everyone was right, and she didn't understand why she never realized it, even though her mother told her every second."
• That was all she could remember from that night, and the only words her mother spoke on the way home were, "I told you so."