Immersion High School is famous for being a gold mine of cogan—handsome guys—and cecan, or beautiful girls. Besides the official Instagram account managed by their public-relations team, the school also has an Instagram account run by its students, who are part of Immersion's Squad. Their feed is packed with all kinds of posts, from tips and memes to events. No wonder the account also offers paid promotions. But the posts students there love most are #DiamonsofImmersion. The posts, which feature the profiles and personal information of famous students, always succeed in attracting attention.
Just like today, when a bunch of girls started gossiping after @squadofimmersion's admin uploaded a photo of R. Although he was famous for behavior that went way beyond simply being mischievous, R was still R, with charm in every line of his face. His sharp nose and stylish haircut were his biggest draws. R was often called the King of the King at school.
[Photo]
@queenahadi Wow, Kak R is getting me pregnant through the screen @mutiaratih Heol, why does a guy this gorgeous have to be such a delinquent? He's so cute @pemujaaris Always looking handsome, babe @meyrahma How is a guy like this still single, Kak? Are you gay? LOL
Comments filled the photo, with praise and insults in equal measure. R's fangirls always sprang into action whenever the guy received hate comments. As a result, the post was filled with arguments between a couple of them.
Despite being blessed with a heavenly face, R never used it when it came to romance. He always rejected other girls' confessions and avoided contact with women. Whenever they wanted to give him something, like flowers or chocolate, R would simply accept it and walk away. Dean and Loen were the ones who had fun receiving the guy's hand-me-downs.
That was one reason so many rumors spread about him not liking girls. On top of that, R was only ever seen spending time with his two best friends. He was with them almost every day. Whether they were eating, going to the bathroom, playing basketball, or shopping at the mall.
Dean checked his Instagram account after seeing a notification from @squadofimmersion. He handed his phone to R, who was sitting across from him. They were enjoying breakfast in the school cafeteria.
"It's blowing up. You've got all the girls melting, dude," Dean said.
Loen snatched Dean's phone after seeing R's bored expression. The guy was always indifferent to all the commotion. Even though R had a personal account, he kept his comments limited so they wouldn't become a hassle. Eventually, a fan-based fake account reposted R's photo. When he found out, R simply stayed silent and wanted nothing more to do with it.
"Not my problem."
"Man, this is exactly what makes the girls melt even harder," Loen joked.
"Besides, you know I don't want anything to do with girls. They're a pain in the ass, you know?" R took another drink of his favorite mango juice.
"You're the complete package, R. Handsome face, plenty of money, and decent basketball skills. What are you waiting for? Aren't you tired of messing with guys all the time? All you ever want to do is hit people," Dean said.
"If I'm just going to end up playing with a girl's feelings, I'd rather not jump in at all."
"Ouch, ouch! The girls are going to die even harder if they hear what you just said."
Dean burst out laughing when Loen pretended to faint at R's words. They didn't even care that the school bell had rung for class some time ago. Annoyed by his friends' behavior, R immediately left them behind. Dean and Loen were startled when R kicked the table and walked past them.
"My king, don't leave me," Dean said dramatically.
Before entering the classroom, R vaguely heard the students in social studies class 4 talking about him yet again. Dean and Loen leaned their ears against the wall as well so they could listen clearly. As usual, the class, which contained both R's fans and haters, was gossiping in their respective corners.
"Did you see the Squad kid's post? Damn, damn, where did they even find that photo? I searched R's account, and it's not there."
"Yeah, and he's so freaking handsome. If this keeps up, I won't be able to focus on studying."
"When else are we going to get lucky? We get to be in the same class, so we're eating well."
R snorted and smirked. He pounded lightly on the door, and the lively room instantly fell completely silent. R and his two friends entered and headed straight for the back row, sitting down like perfect little angels. A female student then hurried over to them with a small box in her hand.
"This is for you, R," she said, handing him the box. "I made it myself."
"Thanks."
R accepted it. Then he placed it on the desk and went back to focusing on his phone.
The desk mate sitting beside R immediately gestured for the girl to leave. Though he wasn't part of their crew, the boy knew enough to understand that R never wanted to spend long dealing with women. The girl quickly returned to her seat. Dean, who was beside R in a different row, immediately grabbed the box.
"What's inside?" Dean asked, trying to open the wrapping.
"Don't open it, De!" The girl who had given it to him suddenly shouted.
"Huh? Why?" Loen furrowed his brow.
"I made that for R."
R, who had heard the conversation, immediately snatched the box from Dean's hands and walked toward the girl's desk. Without saying much, he placed her gift back down. The girl was instantly shocked and stopped R by grabbing his hand.
"Why are you giving it back to me, R?" she asked.
"If you weren't sincere about giving it to me, you shouldn't have done it. Now let go of my hand."
Mia and Kenand were busy joking around at Mia's desk. The guy sat on the desk facing his girlfriend. Every morning, Mia brought Kenand a sandwich.
"Excuse me, Mom and Dad. Your third wheel is here," Vero said.
She had practically become a piece of display material in the middle of their conversation. Mia immediately giggled and hugged her best friend. Kenand only grinned and continued eating breakfast. Like Loen—her twin—Vera never went out with other guys either, even though the girl was no less beautiful than Mia. She often blamed intimidating Loen for making guys afraid to approach her.
"That's why you should go find yourself a boyfriend. Ramli's available," Kenand said.
Vera immediately turned toward Ramli's desk, where the strange guy who had been pursuing her since tenth grade sat. The girl shuddered in horror and slapped her forehead repeatedly. She was completely grossed out by the behavior of the person obsessed with her. Vera was the type who liked to chase. She preferred pursuing guys rather than being pursued by them.
"God forbid. I'd rather stay single than be with him," Vera declared.
Their joking was cut short by the sound of their homeroom teacher. Even though he was still some distance away, the distinctive sound of Mr. Samsul's shoes could be heard all the way in their classroom. They were surprised when the man entered the room, since today wasn't the day he taught their class.
The question was answered when they saw a female student following him. All the male students cheered when they saw the beautiful girl their homeroom teacher had brought in. The girl merely looked around aimlessly and stood there casually.
"Focus, focus," Mr. Samsul said. "Starting today, you have a new classmate, a transfer student from Nusatama. Go ahead and introduce yourself."
The girl straightened up and looked at her new classmates. She took off the hat she was wearing and quickly fixed her short hair. The male students in social studies class 5 cheered again at the gesture.
"Call me Stela."
R stared indifferently at the bottle of deferiprone he had been taking ever since he began receiving regular blood transfusions. Heavy breaths escaped his mouth again and again. He cursed his own stupidity for spending too long getting carried away with basketball.
As a result, weakness now overwhelmed his body, and his heart was beginning to pound. He was afraid shortness of breath would come next. He was even more annoyed because Maria hadn't replied to his messages at all.
No matter how wild R was, he would still ask his mom for permission. He even told her when he skipped class with everyone and went to an internet café. Besides, Maria never restricted her son, as long as R told her the truth. She believed that the more a child was controlled, the more likely he was to rebel behind his parents' backs.
R's thoughts were interrupted when Dean patted him on the shoulder. Loen was already crouching in front of R, staring intently at him. Uncomfortable, R turned his face away from Loen's eyes.
"You okay, R?"
R shook his head. "Yeah, I'm fine. Go play again! I'm okay."
"You don't have a transfusion scheduled today, do you?" Dean asked too.
"No. What's with you guys? Don't panic like that. I'm just tired from playing for too long."
"Okay, then let's get back to the court."
Loen got up and patted Dean's arm. The guy nodded, then followed him. R smiled and rubbed his face anxiously after his two friends disappeared from view. Exhausted, he massaged his forehead, and unable to bear the dizziness attacking him, R decided to lie down. He hoped he would wake up on time, once his friends had finished practice and his mom had replied to his message.