DOCILE GEMS AND THEIR SECRETS

Mia Dorothy

“Dain, are you up for it?”

He has plans later and yet he is hesitant. Claudia looked at him with genuine excitement, despite it being their second time interacting within the semester.

Right. She’s asking for him, oddly yet specifically him, to join her along on a museum work.

“It won’t take long! Please?” Claudia clasps both of her hands together in attempt to show plea. Dain begrudgingly accepts the offer.

She gleams. “Oh, thank you! I thought for sure you’ll be busy like usual.”

He scoffed. He does have plans.

He’ll deal with it later.

Afternoon came and a certain painting catches his eye. Dain approached it with hands in his pocket, seemingly enticed in this specific artwork displayed in front of him. He then continued observing the line of paintings, watching details of it intently.

A gasp was the one to break his attention away from it. Followed by a small squeal, he looked right to see an approaching Claudia. She gave him a side hug, to which he just patted his hand on her shoulder in return. Letting go, she beamed at him once again.

“You came, oh thank you!”

Ah, her energy is infectious. He smiled as a reply.

“It seems I’ve already caught your eye?” She looked at her right, to the paintings.

He raised his eyebrows, following her line of sight. “Yours?”

“Yes! My first opportunity for my works to be displayed!” She walked closer to her works and slides her hand on the canvas corners. “This is going to be here the whole week!”

Dain couldn’t help but be proud beside her. She was a quiet one in class. “Congratulations.”

Claudia took a gander back at him, still with a smile on her face. “Thank you! To show my appreciation of your highly welcoming presence,” his eyebrows furrowed at the sudden formality, and she merely chuckled at the sight. “Dinner is on me! Wait for me after the presentation round, will you?”

Though a man of few words, everyone appreciates free food. Even him. “Alright, I wish you luck.”

She walked back slowly, “I don’t need luck.” With a cheeky grin, she turned around. The echoes of her footsteps faded as the distance between them grew.

After a fair exchange of convos and a wonderful dinner, Claudia placed a box between them.

Dain, after observing said box, peeked back at her. “And this is?”

She stood up, unwraps, and opens it, to show a circular cake. It spelled out: Happy Birthday Dain! And a little smiley face beside it.

Took him a while to process the scene infront of him. “But we’re…”

“Not close?” She continued, lighting up the candle on the cake. “I’ve known you since you started working at the coffee shop near my home.”

“I’m already assuming you don’t remember.” She chuckled and sat back down. Their eyes met. “I purposely sat next to the counter in hopes of you noticing and remembering me. Sadly, you were too busy.”

She sighed. “One night, before closing, I cried. Not a hard cry but you noticed. I haven’t ordered, and yet you brewed the same order, and sat in front of me. Took your apron off too.”

Dain’s eyes widened as he now remembers the same scene. “…Maris?”

Claudia giggled. “Yes, Claudia Maris.” She then grabbed the paper bag on the floor and placed it on her lap. “I wanted to thank you for the company, as you have today and long before then. I was also ecstatic to know just this year that we were classmates on arts.”

“I kept your little doodle that cheered me up then.” She brought out a sticky note with a doodled dinosaur. “Friends were away, and I was alone, yet you were there.”

Dain looks at the note on her hand and reads it aloud. “I took a job, and I didn’t have the rawrificati-okay that was bad, and you laughed at that?”

Claudia laughed. “Yeah and…yeah.” She handed the note to him. “Your presence meant a lot to me, Dain. I hope to keep this friendship of ours.” She then pulled out a canvas, smaller than those from the exhibit. “If only you’ll have me too.”

He held the canvas to see a painting of cartoon dinosaur, with the same dialogue. Dain looks back at her in awe. Claudia, with a smile, greets him. “I like you, Dain. Happy Birthday.”