Chapter 128 - The Wingwoman

While Myrrh stood under the warm glow of the stage lights, her voice weaving through the notes of her song like silk, the audience erupted in applause, showering her with praise. 

Amid the celebration, I narrowed my eyes and shot a glare at Dianca, who sat with an unmistakable smugness curling at the edge of her lips. That look—it was as if she knew something she shouldn’t. But how could she possibly know how I really felt about Myrrh? Unless… someone told her.

My eyes flicked toward the only two people who knew the truth—Fei and Neil. Neil simply raised his shoulders and shook his head, his expression blank but honest, silently assuring me he hadn’t breathed a word.

Fei, on the other hand, blinked at me with a wide-eyed, innocent stare, her lips still clamped around a dangling strand of mozzarella cheese from her pizza. It stretched in a gooey thread between her mouth and the slice, swaying slightly as she tilted her head like a puzzled puppy. Judging by her clueless expression, she was in the dark too.

I let out a long breath, feeling the weight of anxiety melt into reluctant acceptance. Then I turned back to Dianca, who was still beaming, as bright and carefree as ever.

“H-How the hell did you know?” I asked, cheeks burning as I tried to keep my voice steady.

“Oh, come on, Zaft!” Dianca laughed, giving me a playful elbow. Only, it wasn’t so playful this time—it nearly knocked me off my chair. “It’s so obvious! The way you stare at her every time we eat here? You look at her like she’s the only star in your sky.”

“Am I really that obvious…?” I muttered, mostly to myself.

Dianca leaned in, her eyes sparkling with mischief as she looked between Fei and Neil. “Now that the school year’s over, don’t you think it’s finally time you tell her how you feel?” She nudged them with her elbow. “Right?”

“R-right!” Fei exclaimed, quickly putting down her pizza and clenching her fists with enthusiasm. “You’ve been head over heels for Myrrh for so long now. It’s about time you tell her!”

“Confess! Confess! Confess!” Neil joined in, drumming the table with his hands like it was some kind of halftime rally.

“Shuuuush! Keep it down!” I hissed, blowing a sharp puff of air against my raised index finger in a desperate attempt to shush them. “I haven’t even prepared anything for my confession!”

“There’s no need to prepare anything!” Dianca said, brushing my worries away with a sweep of her hand. “No extravagant roses, no overpriced boxes of chocolate. Just tell her how you really feel—be yourself!”

Be yourself. That same overused line—echoed across love songs, teen dramas, and corny advice blogs since the dawn of time. If I had a coin for every time I heard that phrase, I’d probably be able to fund a small nation. Or at least buy enough chocolates for all the girls in this restaurant.

“You sure about that?” I asked with a skeptical pout, glancing sideways at Dianca. “We all know

 Myrrh’s standards are basically sky-high.”

“Well… maybe try to set the mood a little,” Dianca admitted with a chuckle, tapping her chin. “But if she feels the same way, she’ll definitely respond. Trust me—you’ll be fine!”

“YOLO, right?” Neil grinned, throwing up two thumbs in search of validation.

Dianca and Fei both nodded with big grins, like cheerleaders rooting for the final play.

“F-fine…” I muttered, my voice tinged with resignation. “I was planning on telling her sooner or later anyway…”

I looked down at the half-finished slice on my plate, my heart fluttering as the thought finally settled. This was it. Maybe.

“Attaboy!” Dianca said with a grin, giving my back a soft, encouraging pat. “And to help set the mood, I’ve got something for you. Make sure you give it to her, okay?”

She rummaged through her shoulder bag, her bangles clinking softly as her fingers searched around. Then, with a triumphant little aha, she pulled out a small red pouch tied with a silky ribbon. Inside, nestled like treasure, were a few neatly wrapped chocolate cookies.

“Here!”

I blinked. “Wait—where did you even get these?”

“One of my classmates confessed to me earlier today,” Dianca replied with an airy sing-song tone, swaying her head as if reliving a dull memory. “But I totally friendzoned him. He gave me those cookies, and well… returning them would’ve just made things awkward. So, I kept them!”

Her voice was almost too cheerful for someone casually discarding another person’s feelings. She waved the pouch like a magic wand. 

“And I figured—what better way to get rid of them than to pass them on to you, as a gift for Myrrh!”

“That’s… that’s the most unromantic gift ever!” I cried, recoiling from the pouch like it was cursed.

“You’re not a romantic person to begin with, Zaft,” Neil added with a smirk, not even looking up from his drink.

Fei, mid-bite into another pizza slice, gave a solemn nod, her cheeks puffed like a chipmunk in silent agreement.

Before I could defend myself, a sudden burst of applause erupted from the audience. Myrrh had just finished her third song.

I froze.

Her third song.

I missed it. I missed her voice—her delicate high notes, her subtle vibrato, her soft smile as she sang. All because my so-called friends were too busy dragging me into an impromptu intervention about my love life.

I turned toward the stage, catching only the tail end of her bow. My heart sank a little.

Damn it.

As Myrrh walked gracefully toward our table, the room still buzzing from her performance, Dianca couldn’t hold back her excitement.

“Splendid, Myrrh! You absolutely stole the hearts of the audience!” she cheered, clapping her hands in admiration.

Myrrh gave a playful scoff and flicked her long greenish-blonde hair over her shoulder with exaggerated flair. “Hmph. That was just a basic skill,” she said with mock arrogance, her voice smooth and full of sass.

Before I could stop her, Dianca reached for the red cookie pouch—the one I had so adamantly refused to take—and held it out to Myrrh like it was a prized offering. “Oh, by the way, Zaft said she wanted you to have these! A reward for being such a magnanimous diva!”

My eyes widened in horror. “No I didn’t!” I blurted out, my face instantly flushing red.

I knew I was telling the truth, but the way my voice cracked and the way I flailed my arms—it only made it look like I was trying to deny a romantic gesture I totally meant. A classic “caught in the act” reaction. And of course, Myrrh wasn’t about to let that moment pass unnoticed.

“Heh?” Myrrh raised an eyebrow, narrowing her ocean-blue eyes at me with a slow, judgmental grin curling at her lips. That look—it was equal parts amused and dangerous.

She reached into the pouch, pulled out a cookie, and took a bite—slowly, deliberately. Her movements were elegant, almost too elegant, like she was showing off on purpose. The way her lips curled around the cookie, the way she chewed with that poised confidence—it was criminally cute.

My heart stammered in my chest.

She was totally enjoying this.

After we finished our meal, the five of us stepped out of the restaurant and onto the dimly lit sidewalk. The evening air was cool, humming with the distant sounds of passing traffic and faint laughter from other nearby diners. We lingered there, chatting idly under the warm streetlights.

“Haaah…” Dianca let out a satisfied sigh and stretched her arms toward the sky. “Singing after those hellish final exams really melted the stress off. But now I’m exhausted.”

She rubbed her eyes and let her arms fall back to her sides with a groggy sway. 

“I think I’m gonna head back to the dorms.”

“Same,” Fei mumbled as she gently rubbed her stomach like a full-bellied cat—or maybe a pregnant lady. “I think I inhaled too much pizza tonight. Once I lie down, I’m gone.”

“I’ll call it a night too,” Neil added, his fingers subconsciously brushing over his neck, trying to cover the scarred, root-like marks that peeked through his collar. “Those back-to-back exams in History and Advanced Calculus wrecked me. I swear they aged me a decade.”

I nodded and offered, “Let’s just head back together—”

“Nope!” Dianca interrupted, stepping in front of me with a raised finger and a cheeky smirk. “You two are not tired yet, right?”

I blinked. “W-what?”

“Hmmm…” Myrrh tilted her head, her long ponytail swaying slightly. “I don’t mind wandering around for a little bit longer.”

“See? Myrrh still has energy!” Dianca declared triumphantly, then turned and gave me a firm push on the shoulder. “So go keep her company!”

“Wait—”

“No buts!” Dianca wagged her finger. “We three are going back to the dorms. Don’t let our absence distract your date.”

She emphasized the last word like she was trying to seal my fate with it.

Fei gave me a sleepy thumbs-up, while Neil stifled a yawn, already checking his phone for the time.

“Fine, okay, geez,” I muttered, scratching the back of my head in defeat.

“Attaboy, Zaft!” Dianca beamed as she gave my shoulder a firm pat. Then she leaned in close, her voice dropping to a mischievous whisper. “Make the most of your night with Myrrh. I see good things coming from you two.”

Before I could react, Neil stepped in next with a grin that spelled trouble. He clapped my shoulder harder than necessary and whispered, “Go get her, Tiger. And hey—don’t forget the condoms.”

“Why you—!” I spun toward him, eyes wide, but he was already backing off, hands raised like he’d just delivered gospel.

Then came Fei, her face calm and oddly supportive as she placed a gentle hand on my arm. “If anything goes wrong,” she whispered sweetly, “I can give Myrrh some Plan B pills.”

My jaw nearly hit the pavement. A hundred retorts brewed in my chest, but I swallowed every single one of them. If I reacted now, Myrrh would definitely notice. And I didn’t want her asking why I was turning tomato-red with steam coming out of my ears.

So I kept quiet. Barely.

As the trio began walking away, they all turned back one last time to wave.

“See you next school year, Myrrh! Bye!” Dianca called out with a wink.

“Yeah, keep in touch!” Myrrh waved back, her voice casual, but there was a softness in her tone.

And just like that, they were gone—leaving Myrrh and me alone under the quiet streetlights, wrapped in a cocoon of awkward stillness and night air. A silence stretched between us, not heavy, but uncertain. It was just the two of us now.

Our “date” continued.

“So…” Myrrh turned to me, the corners of her lips tugging upward into a teasing smile. “Where are we headed tonight?”

A spark lit inside my mind—a flicker of inspiration like a sudden match struck in the dark.

“I know a place,” I said, smiling back.