Checkmate - Chapter 7: Chapter 7

With bated breath, Hana turned around, yelping at the sight of British Mean Girls. "Geh! I thought I lost you two!"
"You didn't lose us, silly!" the redhead peered through the Professor's right arm.
"Yeah, Madeline and I know where you're headed!" Heather peered through the left.
"How dare you disregard a professor?" The imposing figure had long curly brown hair which she had perfectly tied in a French bun, her thin lips curled into a snarl and her prim and proper uniform added, even more, superiority to her appearance. "This is such an unbecoming of a student of Neos Athens! Disrespecting authority, disruption of classes, and practical exams; never in my entire life had I had the chance to witness such a vulgar and barbaric act of a student. What can you say for yourself?"
"Ummm..." Hana was at loss for words. If this old woman thought she was worse, wait till she meets Samantha, her redhead American friend. She clutched her upper arm, hoping her voice circumvented a bit of self-assurance. "I... w-was in a hurry to find Althea Lancaster?"
"For what purposes could be that extreme for you to run amok these halls like a tornado?"
Hana answered apprehensively, "Ehh... to save my life?"
"Listen," she sighed as if to control her volcanic temper. "If you're just going to keep giving useless excuses, I might ask you to give me your name and department so I can call your Dean to deal with your punishment."
"Professor Faulkner, I can vouch for her." The blonde said coolly.
"Ehhhh?" Madeline and Heather gasped. "You know her?" But the professor was still sporting an incredulous look and needed convincing.
"Really Miss Lancaster?" she asked.
"Yes, actually we had met only yesterday. Long story short, I took hold of her medicines, and it just so happened that she has no other means to contact me. She must take it on time."
"Oh, is that so?" she drawled before facing the Japanese, "You troublesome girl, why wouldn't you just say so?
"Umm..." Hana gulped, still stunned to witness such events wherein a person she barely knew—someone who had grown to dislike her—a cover-up for her.
"With all due respect, she might have been too intimidated by you, Professor. She has reasons for her behavior. She has ADHD and selective hearing as well, which explains her behavior."
Those were terms that Hana hadn't heard of a long time. She tried her best not to cause trouble around here, but sometimes her impulsiveness and refusal to listen to certain speakers always get her in trouble. Sometimes they let her off the hook, sometimes the punishment was even worse.
"Ah, I see. Well then, I should leave you to care for this undergrad." She then turned to Hana. "Next time, please try not to disrupt classes."
"She won't, Professor I guarantee that," Althea said quickly, never giving Hana the chance to speak, less she does more damage than repair. "She'll have various means to contact me."
Hana shot a transitory glance at Madeline and Heather who was not at all pleased with how the events were unfolding.
"Very well then," Professor Faulkner said, although positive that she'll see more of the Japanese in the next upcoming days. "Good day Miss Lancaster. And a good day to you too, Miss Yoshida." she gave stress to Hana's last name before leaving.
Madeline and Heather watched with their jaws hung at the Professor who let go of the misbehaved undergrad. They both gave her dirty looks before noticing that Althea was staring at them.
"Althea?" they both called her.
"Hana might have caused distress to the both of you, I understand but she means me no harm." Althea crossed her arms. "Now, I believe your exams are approaching in the next 30 minutes."
The girls screamed as they both stared at their watches, eager to leave but apprehensive about leaving Althea with the barbaric undergrad. Screaming about why their nursing exams were scheduled at an irritating time.
"I'll be fine. I can handle the hurricane."
Hana shot the taller girl with a look at that nickname. But it was enough assurance for Madeline and Heather as they gave Althea a warm hug to which the blonde girl didn't know how to reciprocate and stood there awkwardly.
"Thanks for saving me," Hana whispered as soon as the Protect Althea Squad were gone. "Using all those big words really helped."
"You're welcome. It might not be my specialty but I am textbook diagnosing you." Althea placed a hand on her chin while the other arm held her elbow. "Hana, are you aware you're an atypical?"
"I don't know what that last word means or what you're trying to imply, but let's move on to a more important issue. You did agree you will be my model, didn't you?"
Althea sighed. "All right then. Please do relay your plans with me."
Hana looked like a question mark appeared behind her head.
"Tell me your plans. As a model, I should be informed of what I should do."
Hana suddenly looked guilty, what with all her eyes trying to avoid hers and pointy fingers meeting together in a childish gesture.
"Hana," she spoke and Hana flinched at the hearing of her name. "Don't tell me you don't know what to do. I'm certain your photo exhibit has a theme."
"I do know! Our theme is about perspective."
"And?" Althea raised a tentative brow, waiting for the shorter girl to elaborate. When none came, she took the liberty to remind Hana of her preparations. "Where is the location of the shoot? What is your motif? Have you prepared your props? Who are your crew?"
"Wait. Wait, wait." Hana raised her hands in surrender. "I got my friends who could help me out. And umm... location, props, and motif?" she mumbled.
Althea sighed. "You don't have that figured out, do you?"
"For motif, I want something of red and black."
"Red and black?" Althea repeated, questioningly. "Why?"
Hana refused to say because it reminds her of Althea on her chessboard match with Joshua. "I also love sweets so a pastel and sweets motif would be nice too."
"Sounds a lot of work for you... and for me," Althea said, figuring that the brunette hadn't fully decided what to do as of yet.
"I'll manage! I can get my friends to help me out on a favor."
A subtle smile was conjured at Althea's lips. As fast as it came, it disappeared completely. "Your friends must really serve the purpose of friendship."
Hana couldn't help but think of her ghost of a smile and noticed the sadness on her tone but she decided to go against opening the topic up.
"If you don't have any location plans, I could accompany you to canvas the place you have in mind."
"You would?" Hana asked, quite alarmed.
"I'm free as of the moment. Are you?"
"Yeah, I got a free afternoon."
"So having settled that..." Althea spoke after a brief moment of silence. "I think we should leave now; the sooner, the better. I'll drive."
"Eh, I didn't know you had a car."
"I'm allowed to leave it here in the University grounds as I please."
"I figured." Hana huffed her cheeks, envious of the girl's privilege. "I'll get some of my stuff to get ready."
"See you at the University's parking lot in 15 minutes."
After Althea told her that, Hana dashed to fetch her backpack. She went to her dorm room, collected all that was necessary for their trip, and as she emerged outside again towards their meeting place.
She noticed Althea waiting for her before an old Porsche.
The British girl removed her surgeon outfit and now wore a simple brown dapper, but in the morning light, they seemed to have gained certain elegance.
Hana approached her and as Althea lifted the passenger's car door. "You're two minutes late."
"Aww come on, give me a break, I ran for my life for you. Twice." Hana snarled but can't help but blush at the gesture and went in.
Althea drove them back to the garden where they first met as Hana instructed.
They started marching towards the east as Hana had previously thought of as soon as they got in. "I hadn't reached this side of the forest park last time."
"Why?" Althea asked, even though she knew the shorter girl became a little too preoccupied with watching her and Joshua play chess the last time.
"Ehehehe..." Hana laughed awkwardly. "You just happened to catch my eye."
As they walked over the empty field, covered by little red flowers that seemed to stain the green strands of the grass, they had lost themselves into the farness only a couple of minutes after they had left the car, for they walked fast and hadn't even opened their mouths to speak.
With her camera in hand, Hana was busy scanning the area for them to find a perfect spot for the photoshoot while Althea thought about her conditions to agreeing to be her model. She hadn't exactly told Hana what it was.
What could Althea possibly say to introduce the topic and to diffuse the tension?
Words had suddenly lost their value for Althea reconsidered if she would pursue in asking her for that favor. Althea no longer managed to convey her need to understand what was so peculiar of Hana that she would ask such a thing.
"Do you think we'll see bunnies today?" Hana said, out of the blue.
"Bunnies, you say..." Althea replied pensively. "Do you want to take a photo of it? Or you want me to interact with a rabbit? Even with your friends, it would be quite difficult to handle one, if we came across it."
"Oh, it should be interesting," Hana added. "I haven't seen one up close since my preschool years. One of the boys handled a bunny and tamed it. So as there are two of us right here and right now, we'll do an even better job."
"It might be potentially troublesome," Althea said. "But then again..." she trailed off, recalling she did play with some rabbits that came upon her childhood estate. "Furthermore, we don't know how to handle rabbits. We could mishandle and endanger its life."
"True," she admitted.
"Why? What are you thinking?"
"Suddenly, I thought of a good way to combine red and black and pastries and sweets together! Alice in Wonderland! You could dress up as the Queen of Hearts!" Hana explained while her beaming eyes gazed at her.
Althea nodded approvingly, though deep inside she had no idea why she was going to dress as the Queen and not Alice herself. It didn't matter at that point, for once Hana has set her mind on a goal, and she would stop at nothing. "You do realize that I need a costume to be Queen."
"We don't need fancy a fancy ballgown for you. A simple black and red dress would be enough!"
"My styles are all of the corresponding shades of blue if you'd like to know."
"Eh really? You strike me like a Queen."
It's been a while since Althea indulged herself with the joys of photography and its planning. "Then you would need a Chessboard. I could call Joshua to lend his precious collection."
"He collects them?" her eyes sparkled. "Okay, I sidetracked. That'd be awesome! Thanks!"
They had walked a fair distance without any breakthroughs, but Althea was reluctant in abandoning this trip just yet, and somehow she could guess in Hana's stare that she was feeling the same.
There had been precisely three hours since they had left the car and had ventured on their own in the farness, looking for that something, whatever that meant.
But for Althea, this little trip did have a professional connotation. They had agreed to go because they had issues that both needed to see solved and some time on their own was bound to do just that. However, having passed some hours and having walked a fair distance, still, neither of them had concluded, despite the conversation they had carried.
"Can we stop for a minute?" Hana said at some point.
"Are you tired?" Althea ceased walking and asked. "Would you like to eat after? My treat."
"You would?" her face lighted up while leaning over to sit on the ground. "Yes please!"
Althea sat next to her, stretching her legs while relying on her hands to support her body weight. She gazed up to admire the grey clouds that had started forming on the once spotless sky. The sun still shone bright but its power would soon be lessened by the darkness of the rain clouds that threatened to take over everything in just a couple of minutes.
"I bet it will rain," she spoke up, thus breaking the silence that abashed them every time it settled between them.
"How much?" Hana asked while leaning her head on her palm, all this time losing her sight into the depth of the horizon.
"I beg your pardon?"
"How much would you like to bet?" Hana asked.
Althea smiled, thinking that she should cease making affirmations that would practically require an action to be made while in Hana's presence.
"Five pounds then," she finally spoke, while extending her right hand.
"You've got a deal," she replied, as her hand met hers.
Althea looked at her, daring to lose herself in the swirling red shade in a way the horizon line could never make her do. Althea smiled as their hands clasped in what should have been a firm shake, and as their gazes met, Althea felt a peculiar heat taking over her whole body.
Then, Althea felt a cold drip hitting her right cheek and as they both glanced up, the sky was instantly alighted by the flash of lightning.
She smirked. "Looks like you're losing the bet."
In a matter of seconds, heavy rain started pouring on them, soaking them to the bones, making their hairs stick onto their cheeks and clothes glued to their chests. Althea grabbed Hana's bag and then pulled her by the hand in the direction of a nearby forest, hoping to avoid catching a nasty cold that would keep them in bed for quite a while.
They ran through the field, hand in hand, Althea virtually dragging Hana along while the shorter girl pranced around, smiling and feeling rather pleased to run in the rain.
Althea and Hana reached the entrance to the forest and as the drips of rain decreased their cadence through the tree branches, they eased down their walk. Althea guided Hana beneath a tall oak tree that provided good shelter from the rain and as they stopped beneath its heavy branches, they found themselves caught in a peculiar silence that seemed to be screaming in their ears.
Althea watched Hana with the same avidness like she had done that hot day by the gazebo, analyzing every single imperfection of her face that made her perfect in every way: her eyes, her cute nose, the pink lips, and the way she often curled them in a smile.
Her gaze slid down onto Hana's cheeks, and as Althea put a damp strand over her ear, her gaze met Hana's. Hana gulped; her cheeks flushing even when she wasn't the one caught staring.
Hana's hair hung now loosely on her shoulders for the heaviness of the wet strands had managed to tear apart the little band that she had used to tie it in a bun. Althea contemplated Hana's bright eyes and, for a brief second, she thought she had never seen such a beauty.
"So, what are your conditions?" Hana suddenly asked. "We were interrupted before and you didn't open the topic again."
Althea's lips curled into an amused smirk. "Oh, it's simple. Seeing that as you struggle with your photography, I assist you in a certain way you need me. I, on the other hand, also struggle with my painting and you help me out."
"You paint too? How talented and smart are you?"
"You can refuse my offer if you want."
"No, it's okay I can be your model! What kind of pose shall I be doing though? Shall I be like a statue and not move or anything? Fair warning though I can't just stay put in place more than ten minutes."
"Oh, I got my phone to take a photo for references. If there's one thing I can't paint that well—that is my struggle with women's bodies. So, Hana... I'm asking you if you can be my nude model."
"EHHHH?"