Sparks Of Hatred

10. Something Is Wrong

Angie was confused and wondered to herself about the silhouettes of two people dancing together. One man and one woman. They were dancing, occasionally kissing, hugging, and seemed to be happy.

Wait, happy?

"They're dancing, Angie."

"Yeah, I know they're dancing. I'm not blind. My point is, why are they doing that? What was the reason?" Angie peppered Thomas with questions. But Thomas didn't answer, his gaze was still directed upwards, prompting her to speak again. "I'm sure they were Hilda's parents, but what made them dance like that?"

What Angie and Thomas were staring at was actually just a window covered by a thin curtain, but the light behind it created an image of two people dancing together. Faintly, there was even music playing.

It was cloudy, and it was even dark outside. It was no wonder that Angie's parents were inside the house, turning on the lights to brighten up the dark room. Plus, it was late afternoon anyway, nothing strange about that. The only thing that was strange was what they were doing. That's what Angie thinks.

"I think it's strange and a bit unnatural that they're dancing like that, Thomas." Angie said again, this time she glanced at Thomas, who was also looking at her.

Realizing Thomas was watching, Angie continued, "Look, Hilda just died, and is it appropriate for them to be happy?"

"If you think so, maybe they're just entertaining themselves. They're just trying to be happy."

"I know that doesn't mean they can't be happy, but it just seems unnatural," Angie continued.

Angie thought Thomas would immediately agree with her, or at least be of one mind with her, but he didn't, instead, he looked at Angie with narrowed eyes.

Angie growled softly. "For God's sake, Hilda just passed away, Thomas. Do you think it's natural for them to dance happily like that?"

"No, Angie." Thomas shook his head. His shake of the head took Angie's breath away, and she immediately stiffened. "You don't know if they're happy or not, and I don't know either. We're just staring at their silhouettes from down here."

"But, they are—"

"I know they're dancing," Thomas cut in. This time, he disagreed with Angie. He said what he thought.

"Dancing means happy, right?"

"No, it doesn't. Just because they are dancing doesn't mean they are in a happy mood. Look up again, look at them carefully."

Angie followed what Thomas said.

Thomas, who had confirmed that Angie was staring at the silhouettes of the two dancing people visible from the upstairs window of Hilda's house, then prepared himself to continue his speech.

Thomas said, "The dance they are doing is very slow, accompanied by soft music. You heard the music, right?"

"Yeah, I heard it."

"That soft, slow, melodious music actually supports their sad and grieving mood. Hilda's death definitely pain them blue, okay?"

Angie nodded.

"At this point, you understand, right?"

Once again, Angie nodded.

"Good. And actually, I don't know if they're sad or happy either, but I think the dance and music they're drowning in are something that supports their sadness."

Thomas's words, which Angie thought back on, seemed to make much more sense than her thoughts. Angie looked up again, staring at the upper window again, but their silhouettes were gone. The two people who were dancing in slow motion, occasionally joining their bodies (touching and dancing together), were either gone or they were satisfied with what they were doing. Or else, as Angie didn't want, they heard the commotion below and realized that she and Thomas were talking about them.

"Your words are true. Yeah, we weren't there, we can only guess. We don't know if they're sad or happy," Angie says.

"Like I said earlier, right?"

"Slow, melodic music is actually a good match for a happy mood. But I think your point makes a lot more sense here. Hilda just passed away, I think they're in mourning."

"If the silhouettes we saw just now are indeed Hilda's parents, yes, they must be in mourning."

"Right, after all, you saw their anger in the hall last night, right?" Angie asked. Her thoughts were now taking her in the direction of that incident.

"Yes, but it wasn't the two of them who were angry, it was rather her mom who was explosive because she needed justice. She thinks one of the students in the hall is responsible for her daughter's death."

"Very scary, right?"

Thomas and Angie have now resumed their journey.

"But I know how Hilda's mom feels. Just imagine being her, seeing someone you care about die in such a cruel and unusual way. It's an event you'll never forget for the rest of your life."

Angie shuddered softly. She hugged her body. "I might have fainted. Or at the very least, I would have been wailing."

"See?" Thomas sighed softly. "But, Hilda's dad is much calmer and can control his emotions. Unlike her mom, who exploded."

"But I think it's wrong to shift the blame for Hilda's death onto all the students in the hall. They shouldn't have done that."

"It's not justifiable." Thomas said, who this time strongly agreed with what Angie had to say.

"After all, everyone is happy in the hall, including you and me."

"Yeah, you're right. But, we should be able to put ourselves in their shoes. I mean, we have to understand them and understand what's happening to them. It must be really hard, right?"

"It's very hard, and it shakes them up."

"That's what must have happened. Only they know exactly how it feels. No one is strong enough to accept such a big, scary, and sudden problem."

Angie nodded. She looked once more at Hilda's house, which was getting smaller as she and Thomas moved further away from it. She now wondered what the girl's life had been like. Although she didn't know Hilda very well, let alone the fact that Hilda was Alice's henchman, she could guarantee that Hilda's life was secure and pleasant. Her parents had a lot of money, judging from the large house, coupled with the fact that Hilda always wore expensive clothes and went to school in her private car. It was clear that they came from a wealthy background. Angie remembered that last night, when Hilda's parents came to school after being told that their daughter was dead, they came wearing clothes that, you know, clearly showed that they were rich. I mean, you can definitely tell a rich person's aura by the expensive clothes they wear, right? Yes, that's what Angie is referring to now.

Angie once again envisioned Hilda, who actually wasn't very friendly to her, probably because Hilda was under Alice's control, and Alice's hatred for Angie naturally rubbed off on Hilda and Zana. Once again, Angie reminded her that they used to be a team, a camp, a gang, or whatever you want to call it. But, for sure, Alice was the leader. She's the head, she's the one who organizes this and that, she's the one who rules and controls Hilda and Zana.

Of course, Angie thought and wondered to herself, Why would Hilda and Zana want to be treated like slaves by Alice? It was strange and made no sense.

But now, Angie knew that their friendship had been destroyed because of the problems that entangled them. Angie knew from the rumors that the students were gossiping about. Not to mention that Hilda is now dead. Everything was over, and Angie doubted if Zana would ever be friends with Alice again.

One more thing, Angie had even wondered, more precisely, whether Hilda and Zana were not as bad as they looked if they did not hang out with Alice? Angie did not know. In her opinion, it was Alice who caused Hilda and Zana to be like her. In other words, in short, Alice was the virus that infected them.

Back to Hilda, Angie strangely knows quite a bit about her. Hilda is an only child. That's what she knows so far, which she thinks is the truth. With that fact, she was sure that Hilda was loved by her parents. As for being spoiled, Angie didn't know, but it seemed not.

Hilda was the kind of girl who couldn't be managed this way or that way by her parents, let alone pampered. She wanted to be free. And maybe that's where she met Zana and Alice. Maybe for Hilda, being friends with them was a challenge. Actually, when it came to their gang, Angie didn't know much more.

All Angie knew was that they were always together and liked to mess with her. To be precise, Alice was the one who messed with her, but because Zana and Hilda were part of the gang, they also became hostile to Angie.

Now, if Angie was allowed to be honest, she was happy that the gang had disbanded. Not to mention, she was satisfied that Alice's biggest lie had been exposed, that all this time Alice had been pretending to be rich. In fact, Alice was just ashamed to admit that she came from a poor and underprivileged family. Angie was confused by these types of people. Why pretend just to look well-off? Why be ashamed? Does Alice feel that she needs flattery and praise if she pretends to be rich? Angie couldn't understand.

Angie was happy that Alice's cover was blown and that both Zana and Hilda knew about it. But now Hilda was gone. This was inevitable, but at least Hilda knew that Alice had been lying all along.

"We'll be there in a minute." Thomas said.

Angie said yes, then answered when she thought of something so sudden. "Hey, about that, I think it's also possible that the silhouettes we saw weren't Hilda's parents. It's someone else's. Perhaps a relative who came, right?"

"That could be one possibility, but I don't know, we don't know much, do we?"

Before Angie could respond, they had arrived at the coffee shop, and Angie chose not to discuss the topic.

Whatever happened, Hilda must get justice, that's what Angie wanted, no matter what Hilda had done to her in the past.

"Thomas."

"What?"

"About what my dad said, you don't have to take it to your heart, okay?"

Confused by what Angie had said, Thomas asked, "which of your dad's sayings?"

"He thought you were my boyfriend. You remember that, right?"

"Ah..." Thomas nodded slowly, then smiled. "Okay."