บท 188: Ch 188 - Welcome New Enemies!
Once Phillipa had shown Alex to his dorm, he quickly found his own room.
His three new roommates looked at him as he walked in and thought he must have gone to the wrong room. Once they had called the administration office and confirmed that he was indeed their new roommate, he started to unpack his things.
The three roommates were very curious about the fact that he was able to switch from
another. He lied to them that it was because his family was poor, and
Washington state h university ad special policies for people like him that allowed him to switch.
When the three roommates saw that Alex was wearing cheap but new clothes, they asked
him more about his background. He told them that he had worked in a food truck for two months during the summer to earn the money. They all sympathized with him, and he was
grateful for their kindness. He felt very guilty for lying to these three kind-hearted students.
He slept in his new dormitory that night, and the next day he went to the classroom with
his roommates. The tutor found him and talked with him privately in his office. To his surprise, the tutor didn't know anything about his background or his true identity. He
really believed that he was a poor student who was transferred to Richmond University
through a special policy of the Education Department.
The tutor introduced Alex to the whole class, and he officially became a student of the
Richmond University Biology Department.
The other students in the class thought that he must be from a wealthy family to be able to
switch schools, but when they saw that he was wearing cheap clothes, they quickly lost
interest in him. Some even laughed together about his clothes and joked about his scruffy
shoes with the people nearby.
Alex didn't care what others thought about him. After class, he ran out of the classroom. He wanted to find out which class Leona was in.
**
At the same time that Alex was being introduced to his new classmates, a new student was
also being introduced into the music department.
That student was wearing a black silky top and a short pink skirt. Her arms and legs were perfectly white. She had long black hair and eyes like pools of water under the night sky.
The tutor told the class, "Everyone, this is the new student who has been transferred to our class, Miss Leona Marvel. As she is new, please help her settle in and take good care of her."
"Yes, we'll take good care of Leona," several lively boys cried out.
Everyone else in the class was whispering to each other.
One student said, "Leona is from the Marvel family. They're one of the top five families in
Washington, D.C. I heard that her father is looking for a husband for her."
His friend replied excitedly, "Wow, and now she's in our class. Whoever wins her heart and joins the Marvel family will never have to worry about anything ever again."
His friend laughed and said, "You're dreaming, aren't you? Don't even think about it. She
would never consider one of us. Stop teasing me."
"Well, I guess that out of the whole school, Colin is the only one who stands a chance with
her", agreed his friend.
Leona introduced herself and sat down. Lots of excited boys immediately gathered around
her. Of course, they knew that they didn't really stand a chance with her, and they didn't
dare to actually sit next to her, but they felt very lucky just to be in the same class as her.
Alex searched the classrooms one by one and finally found Leona's class.
"Miss Marvel," he said when he saw her. She was sitting very quietly, and he felt a bit self-
conscious as he walked into the room and approached her.
"What are you doing?" Several boys stood up and blocked him.
Alex ignored them and focused on Leona. But when she looked up at him, he saw a trace of disgust in her eyes. He thought, "She has told me several times now that she's not Debbie, but I haven't listened. Maybe she's starting to get angry."
He felt like he had been doused with cold water. "I was too bold today", he thought.
Approaching her on her first day in front of everyone has only made her angry. He took a last glance at her and left the classroom.
The boys in the class saw that he was badly dressed. They had never met him or heard his
name before. They thought that he was a stupid little loser and the whole incident was a Joke.
Alex printed a copy of Leona's class schedule from the university website. He decided to
visit her whenever he could to try to build a good relationship with her. He remained convinced that as long as he persevered, Leona would eventually be moved by him.
He watched her for three days and observed that she attended all her lectures, listened
attentively, and took notes every day. Although plenty of boys admired her, none had dared ask her out. Alex was satisfied to bide his time.
On the fourth day, when he went to find her after class, he saw a handsome boy sitting beside her. It was Colin, who he had met at the school gate on the first day of term.
Alex stood at the door and watched them talking. He could hear that they were talking about music.
"Folk music originated from the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl in the prairies in the nineteen-thirties. The focus isn't on vocal skills, but on a more natural sound.
I particularly like 'We Shall Overcome' by Joan Baez. Bob Dylan and Woodie Guthrie are also very good,"
Colin said with a smile.
Leona's eyes were full of appreciation. She said, "You know so much about music. I know
nothing compared to you."
He replied gently, "Miss Marvel, you flatter me. I've still got so much to learn, but I realize that you and I have very similar interests. Perhaps we can spend more time together."
Leona smiled and continued to chat with Colin.
When she happened to glance toward the door, she saw Alex standing there, but she
quickly looked away and continued chatting with Colin. She didn't react to Alex's presence at all.
Alex's heart froze for a second, and he was overwhelmed with a sense of panic. He clenched his fist and his nails were deeply embedded into the flesh of his palm, but he couldn't feel it at all.
Colin noticed Leona looking at the door and also glanced in that direction. When he saw
Alex gazing at her affectionately, he was surprised at first, and then laughed indifferently.
He didn't pay him any more attention, thinking that he was just one of her admirers. He thought, "I can understand that loser's admiration for her beauty, but that's all it
is—admiration and fantasy."
Alex had a strong urge to rush up and drag Leona away, but he knew that it would only
make her hate him even more. He had to wait.
Watching Leona and Colin chatting and getting along so well, his heart felt like it was being pierced by a knife. He slammed the classroom door and ran back to the dormitory.
"What's up, buddy?" Eddie asked when he saw how lost Alex looked when he walked back
into the dorm. The four roommates got along well and had spent a lot of time chatting over the last few days. Alex knew that none of them had much money.
"I'm fine," he answered and lay down on his bed. His mind was all over the place when he imagined Leona and Colin together.
"Well, you don't look fine, but okay. We're taking names of people to perform at the new
year's party. Do you feel like doing it?" Eddie asked. He was a secretary of the school's
student union, and they were trying to encourage students to take part in the show.
"Sorry, it doesn't appeal to me," Alex replied casually.
Eddie raised his eyebrows and said, "Come on, dude. There will be loads of beautiful girls at the party. Even losers like us will be able to pull."
"Beautiful girls?" When Eddie said that, Alex looked at him. He wondered whether Leona
would be going to the party. He asked, "Do you have a list? Can I see it?"
Eddie got out the program for the party and handed it to Alex. Scanning it, he quickly found Leona's name on it.
"Chasing a dream. Performers: Colin Patterson, Leona Marvel, Doug Finchley, Fiona
Stellwood."
Seeing Colin and Leona listed together, Alex felt a pain in his heart. But it was at least an
opportunity to see her again. An opportunity that he wanted to seize. He said to Eddie, "I'll
1. Add me to the list."
"Excellent," said Eddie. "I just had to mention the beautiful girls, and now you want to go."
He added Alex to the list.
In the afternoon, they went to the auditorium together. The performers were practicing
there and dancers were auditioning to take part.
Alex felt a little tired, so he found a seat and leaned against it.
About an hour later, he was woken up by the sound of music. He rubbed his confused eyes
and looked around him to find that there were now a couple of hundred students in the
auditorium with him. Some of them were on the stage practicing and others were watching
and waiting in their seats. The director was using a microphone to organize everything.
He said through the megaphone, "Okay. Colin and Leona, it's your turn to practice once. We haven't got much time. Let Colin try the microphone first."
The performers were supposed to be given rehearsal time in order of their arrival.
As Colin and Leona had only arrived ten minutes previously, they should have had to wait about two hours for their turn. However, they were both from important families. Colin was one of the most eligible bachelors in Washington and one of the star students at Richmond University, while Leona was from one of the top five families in the city. The director had come under a lot of pressure to give them preferential treatment.
The other performers were told to make way for Colin and Leona to perform. Many of them complained loudly, but they left the stage anyway.
Colin and Leona had been sitting in the first row of the audience, chatting through the
details of their performance. When they saw that the stage had been cleared for them, Colin took a long sip from his can of soda, put it on the ground, and invited Leona up onto the stage to practice.
When he saw them stepping onto the stage, Alex stood up and walked along the aisle
between the seats. As he reached the front row, he heard Leona starting to sing. He sat
down in the seat that she had just vacated and looked up at her on the stage.
"Where is the world full of flowers?
"If it does exist, then I will go.
"I want to stand on the highest mountain.
"I don't care if it is a cliff or not."
Leona sang the four lines beautifully. Then she stopped singing and looked at Colin.
"Live hard and love bravely.
"Don't ask for anyone's satisfaction, just be worthy of yourself."
Colin also sang very well, which surprised Alex. He looked too macho to have such a
melodious voice. But even people who didn't know much about music recognized that he
had a very good voice and was a highly trained singer. The girls in the audience watched
him adoringly as if he was already a superstar.
"About my dream, I never choose—" Colin was reaching the last two words of his lines
when he let out a loud hiccup.
The whole audience was stunned into silence for a moment. It sounded so funny that a few students started to laugh, but stopped when they saw the people around them glaring at them. Then they bit their lips and pinched their flesh to control their laughter.
Colin was mortified, and his face turned bright red. He didn't dare to look at Leona because he couldn't bear to see her reaction. Fortunately, no one else laughed, and Colin started to sing again as if nothing had happened.
Then suddenly, "Haha."
Alex just couldn't help it. He was already finding the disparity
between the way Colin looked and the way he sang funny. Then, when he made a fool of
himself in front of Leona, he was so happy that he just couldn't contain his laughter.
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