Today was a special day for the Elsan twins. It was the day when they legally turn into adults. For teenagers, it meant that they could become independent, and many look forward to it. They also celebrated it by partying and drinking liquor with their friends. For some people, this will be their first experience, while for others it has been repeated many times. As for the twins, the former was more accurate. 

However, being eighteen years old didn’t exempt anyone from school. Fortunately for them, it was a Friday. So, even if they went overboard, they didn’t have to fear missing a day of school the next day. With the future event in mind, it was no surprise that the group of teenagers was unable to concentrate in class. Their eyes were glued to the clock and impatiently watched each second pass by. 

“Finally, it’s lunchtime!” Enrico, Malak’s friend, cheered with his arms stretched above his head. 

“Is sleeping and eating all you know?” the red-haired young woman, Kayla, criticized while rolling her eyes. “You were dozing all morning. I wonder how the teacher missed it.” 

“It is undoubtedly because of my excellent genes,” he boasted his ego shamelessly. 

“Or she already knows that you’re beyond saving,” Malak snickered as Kayla laughed behind her palm. 

“Why are you siding with her? You were asleep too!” Enrico retorted with annoyance. 

Malak never slept in class. But recently, he had trouble sleeping at night. He was never one to believe that we could connect dreams to reality, but he slowly accepted that it couldn’t be a mere coincidence. Each time he closed his eyes, the same scenario kept happening. 

At first, everything was black, and Malak couldn’t see much. Gradually, a shadow appeared as it was walking toward the teenager. As he got closer, he noticed that everything was blurry except for the person’s eyes. They had a deep bronze colour that was almost metallic. It was a shade he had never seen before. Then, they slowly gained a red hue until they were ruby red. They were so pure and bright that it looked like they were sparkling in the dark. It looked surreal. However, Malak wasn’t afraid. He found comfort in them. They were beautiful and nostalgic to him. Once the unknown silhouette got close enough, it tilted Malak’s head up before embracing him. It was an overwhelming experience that couldn’t compare to anything he had experienced so far. It was almost magical. When their lips parted, the spell was broken, and the boy always ended up staring at the ceiling of his bedroom with a smile and a tear rolling down his cheek. 

“Well, it’s your words against mine. And who do you believe?” both boys turned their attention to their red-haired companion. 

“I believe you,” she smiled before wrapping her arm around Malak’s shoulders. 

“W-what? Why?” 

Kayla glared at the raven-haired boy. “Look at how innocent he looks, and then, look at you, and you’ll understand.” 

“You’re only saying that because you prefer him to me,” Enrico grumbles as both his friends ignored him and packed their school books into their backpacks. 

Shortly after, the group of friends arrived at the school cafeteria, where hundreds of students had already gathered to enjoy their meal and the company of their companions. They effortlessly blended into the crowd and patiently waited for their turn to order their food. They may see each other five days a week, but they never ran out of topics to chat about. In the middle of their meal, Lesley finally arrived with her own set of friends. Except for their appearance, their personalities were different. 

“I’m so excited about tonight, I can’t sit still!” a cherry blond-haired girl named Genesis chirped happily as she set down her tray filled with food on the table next to Kayla.

“I know, right! Let’s party until we collapse,” Bella, the dark-skinned girl, sitting next to Genesis, added enthusiastically while thrusting one of her slender arms in the air. 

“Haha, you only think about alcohol. You should also keep an eye out for boys,” Lesley comments cheerfully, before gently kicking her twin. 

The boy forced out a smile before mentioning that Enrico is still single. To his relief, everyone’s attention shifted to them. Malak never said it before, and not even his twin knew about it. He was scared about their reaction to the fact that he was gay. His family never breached the topic, so he didn’t know what to expect.

In the past, he had no concept of what his partner would look like. But after having the same dream every night, he now had a fresh hope that his future lover would have the most beautiful ruby red colour eyes. Snapping out of his reverie, he snorted at the thought. 

“Who knows, maybe we will both find someone memorable. Isn’t that right?” Lesley comments cheerfully while intently staring at her twin.

Malak laughed nervously. He hoped that his friends would not try to throw every girl they see into his arms. 

“Let’s all go shopping after school. I need to find something new and sexy to wear,” Kayla winked as all the girls rapidly agreed to the suggestion. “You guys will come too, right?” 

“Let me guess. You’re in dire need of bag holders,” Enrico sighed dramatically while pushing a cherry tomato around on his plate. 

“Come on. It’ll be fun! We will also help you choose something for tonight,” Genesis rapidly adds as the other girls quickly agreed in unison to support their friend.

Both male teenagers looked at each other as if they were conversing while only using their eyes. “All right, let’s go,” Malak suddenly exclaimed as his friend stared at him in shock at his betrayal. 

“Why did you agree?” Enrico whispered to his male friend as the girls were chatting about the stores they would visit. 

“You didn’t think I’ll let you escape. Did you?” Malak squinted his eyes at the other boy, who just laughed it off. “Of course, you did.” 

“Don’t be like that! You know how boring it’ll get. We will have to stand next to a wall while nodding and exclaiming how beautiful they are.” 

“We can slip away at some time. I heard there’s a new video game that just came out. Want to go check it out?” 

“Hell, yeah!” 

A short hour after, the students separated to attend their respective classes. Just like the first half of the day, time moved at a snail pace for all of them.  As soon as the bell rang, no one lingered in the classrooms. They all rushed to clean their schoolbooks and notes from the table before gathering around their lockers. With most of the students gathered at one location, the uproar was overwhelming. Everyone tried to talk over the others to make plans for the weekend or to talk about the regimen of their practice schedule for the team they were playing for. 

As for our group of friends, they eagerly made their way to the mall by bus and subway. It didn’t take long for them to arrive at their destination. 

“Where do we start?” Lesley asked as they entered the mall by the underground entrance that was connected to the subway. 

“Let’s go to Élysée first,” Bella proposed as all the girls agreed while the boys were merely following along. 

In the first store, they spent almost an hour trying on clothes and deciding which one to buy. As Enrico mentioned earlier, the boys were standing near a wall while giving their most honest opinion. If they didn’t say what the girls wanted to hear, they would pout angrily and try something else. But even if they did express the right words, it didn’t mean that they would stop trying new clothes.

“We got our dresses. Now, let’s go to Rara Avis Accessories!” 

“No, we need to buy shoes first, so we have to go to Sensations.” 

“What are you saying, it is common knowledge that Glimmer Collection has the best accessories and shoes!” 

Hearing all those brand names made the boys light-headed. They knew that even if the girls were arguing about the location to go next, they would end up going to all of them. If they wanted to escape, they had to do it now. There was no other choice. 

“Girls, Enrico and I are going to the bathroom. Go ahead first,” Malak announced as he interrupted their arguments about jewellery, glitters and whatever. 

“All right, but don’t take too long,” Kayla answered and waved them goodbye.  

“Oh, and could you buy me a-,” Lesley started but got interrupted by her twin. 

“Gingerroot Walk?” Malak completed as she smiled. 

“Exactly!” 

“Does anyone else want something from StarCups?” the dark blond teenager asked and wrote the drinks orders from his friends. 

After taking the money from those wanting a drink, the group separated in two. The girls went to continue their shopping while the guys went to buy their video games and drinks. 

“You’re a real lifesaver! I could kiss you right now,” Enrico praised while attempting to hug his friend, who avoided him. 

“Thanks, but no, thanks. Let’s go check the new games before we have to go back.” 

“Can’t we just let them do all their shopping by themselves? I also need new clothes for tonight.” 

In the end, they bought everything they needed in less than an hour and a half. Fortunately for them, the girls also finished their shopping spree. With their drinks in hand, they individually made their way back home to prepare for tonight’s event.