“So… what is going on?” he laughed nervously. “What do you want?” Mari was blunt and to the point. Michel lowered his head. “I… I just wanted a second chance. I know I fuck everything up, but I´m trying to show that I've changed. Mari squinted, analyzing his face and expressions, trying to discern lies in his voice. “I don’t believe you. You hurt him so much, and years of not even giving a single call or message, saying anything, and now you want to what? Walk back into his life? God, you are messed up,” Mari remarked. “Mari, he has, he went to the tournament, and he helped me while I was injured.” Michel sighed and put his phone on the table. “Mari, look… I know you and everyone else have no reason to ever trust me again, look through my phone, hell I´ll give you all of my accounts passwords, this isn’t a prank” she thought for a moment and spun the phone in her hand “if what you say is true… then let me quiz you” she said and handed the phone back “what do you mean?” I asked her “the Michel I know would not be able to know basic things about you, if you have change I assume you give a damn now” He nodded “favorite place in the city?” was the first question “if Mika is not available, it should be the dojo he practice” she nodded “birthday” Michel forgot my birthday several times to the point that the girls dint fully know if he ever knew it “June 24^th and it hurts that I didn’t know it for years” Mari looked shook as even if this are just plain question they are loaded, she doesn’t think he knows me and is trying to prove it “favorite subject at school?” “Chemistry, although he would swear it is not.”

By the end of the question Mari was confused but she shrugged “Richard is this true?” she asked me “he did went to my tournament and even cared for me” he glasses almost fell from her face as she looked at Michel, “you two need to give me a moment to process, it´s a lot to take in” we both nodded “look I know is a big change and believe me I didn’t want to say anything until I was sure” I placed my hand over his “and I believe he  has changed” Mari owed and hugged me “Oh Rich I´m sorry, if I made you feel like you should hide this, but you know that I’m the easy one, the others will punch him” Michel flinched remembering how Bianca punched him “I know but I will have to tell them” Michel moved closer to me “If I have to get beaten up three times I think it´s a small price to pay” Mari whistled “get a room you two” Michel wiggled his eyebrows and I give him a chop to the forehead “Not yet” “but… but you were mow- ASDFGHJ!!!” I covered his mouth with my hand as he was about to tell Mari what happened with my injuries, “eh… you move quick” she laughed “all right love birds, you can leave Elise and Bianca to me, however you have to be the one that tell Lisa” my mouth became a line, I started to sweat as I know that out of them she is the one that I fear disappoint the most, she sworn that the next time she saw Michel will be the last time he sees anything, “I´ll tell Bianca I think I know how to tell her and keep his face intact” they nodded and Mari and I left Michel in his office.

“Oaky Richard…” Bianca shuffled a deck of card in her hands “pick your cards and remember to ask your question” she spread them in her hands, Bianca likes tarot and mysticism, she is actually quite good with her deck and tea reading, so I thought that maybe if the reading tells her about Michel it will help with the understanding, I picked the center card, left most card and the third card form the right, She took a look at them “Oh the lovers, I think Mr. right is around the corner for you…” she squinted at the card “someone taller than you… someone you knew or tough you knew… No” she said and put the card back into the deck “what do you mean no?” she lifted her hands, shuffled again and asked me to pick another card “I didn’t like what was appearing, so you are picking a new card” “that’s not how that work” she stoked her tongue at me “and you are not supposed to fall again for that jerk but here we are” she said and left the deck in the middle of the table, she looked upset and I understand why, Bianca can and will get physical for any of us and as Michel put it, she a few days after the brake up happened she was walking through the campus one day and overheard Luis, and how he was congratulating Michel on the brake up, she mention he didn’t say much but the fact that he didn’t feel much pissed her off, she clocked her head and asked you think you are tough? She then punched him square in the cheek and nose. She then cracked her neck and knuckles and told them anyone else want to say something about him? Now is the fucking time!” Like the cougars, they are they scattered.

“How did this happen, Rich? Don’t you remember?” I nod, and swallow, “I do, I remember everything too well, being on the floor, crying, and verily moving or eating, it took time and effort on my part to get back on track.” She bit on her lower lip and held my hands close to her “Then why? Why would you want to risk it again for him?” “Actually, I do want to hear the reading, you know, something is bugging me about this situation.” She let go of my hands. I breathed in to steady myself. “I think there´s something else going on, I don’t think this is a prank nor a trick, however.” I held my arm and looked at the card on her side. “However?” “I think he has another motive for returning, I understand I really do, this is nuts but the way he look at me, how he cares, is not a trick but there’s something else” I finally told someone besides Val and David, she sighed and took the remaining two cards, she turned to me a card of a crescent moon over a lake “he is hiding something, something big, is not a coincidence you met him again” she returned the card to the deck and gasped when she saw the last card, her eyes going form the card to mine, she didn’t turning it or show it to me she just let it fell to the table “Is it the death? Or something bad?” I asked while moving her arm, “Bianca!” “Rich… something is wrong very wrong” she showed me the card and on it a tower was burning and strike by lighting “talk to him” she said, she users me out of her house and I stay looking at her purple door for a moment thinking to what does the full context of this reading was, he is hiding something, something bad, I felt a tug in my chest like if my heart was been strangle, he pants more often even when we do something not straining I thought he got sick very sick a few weeks ago he was looking like death what if he lied to me about the demo and he was doing something else?