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[img]https://fontmeme.com/permalink/180813/b04f7979aa0d45380c45393548b0df3d.png[/img]
[img]https://em.wattpad.com/3bf74cad1e9f8c30182306190d6a0dfa6d366099/68747470733a2f2f73332e616d617a6f6e6177732e636f6d2f776174747061642d6d656469612d736572766963652f53746f7279496d6167652f43595f797a434a39704b645774773d3d2d3538353135343434332e313533353639643365623366353739303239353435323230323739392e676966?s=fit&w=720&h=720[/img]
[sub][i][color=DA70D6]Boom, clap!
The sound of my heart.
The beat goes on and on and on and on and…[/color]
[color=FFF79A]Boom, clap!
You make me feel good.
Come on to me, come on to me now.[/color][/i][/sub]
[img]http://backgroundcheckall.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/line-dividers-without-background-7.png[/img][/center]
[indent]Shock, upon shock, upon shock…

That was perhaps the best way to describe the feeling coursing through Martha’s body at that very moment. One moment, she’d been staring at the cards on the table in utter disbelief, struggling to digest the possible meaning behind them: [i]Beginnings, Love, Union, Persistence and Resilience[/i] with Andres De La Fuente… [i]What?![/i] How was that even possible?! They hadn’t so much as crossed a word since that 7th grade project had been over. And now these cards were suggesting she was going to be involved with him?! She’d probably made a mistake shuffling the cards or asking the question… Yeah, that had to be it. There was no way that-

The next thing Mar knew, the very same individual she’d asked about was standing right next to her in all his handsome glory. The neatly styled black haired, the uniform tailored to perfection, and that bright smile that -as Rihanna sang- shone bright like a diamond… 

[i][color=FFF79A]“Thanks for finding my ball, Martha was is?”[/color][/i]

The young woman nodded silently, incapable of coming up with any words. Under the table, her legs began to shake with nerves, and it took all of her self restraint to play it cool and not run away like the coward she very much was. It was then when she saw Andrés’ eyes locked on the tarot cards on the table, and she braced herself for the inevitable good-bye and dismissal as ‘that strange girl with the Satanic cards”. But to Mar’s surprise, the young man eagerly took a seat next to her, asked her to read his fortune, [i]and[/i] said what was pretty much her favorite quote of life.

Was she dreaming? Had she unknowingly died in some freak accident and was now in this heaven-like limbo, living all the experiences she’d always wanted? Mar discreetly pinched herself, and nearly cried out in pain instantly. Nope, still very much alive and kicking. This was all real.

[i][color=FFF79A]“Oh, I’m Andrés by the way, nice to formally meet you”[/color] [/i] he’d said with a hand stretched out, those brown eyes focused on hers. 


[color=DA70D6]“Nice to meet you as well,”[/color] Martha found herself saying, taking and politely shaking his hand. Once the introduction was done with, she carried on. [color=DA70D6]“H-have you ever had your fortune read before?”[/color] she asked him, feeling herself slowly loosen up with every word said.

Sometimes the gassed up Colombian was a lot to handle -Colombians in general were a lot to handle. His confidence was worn like an aura: whether he was aware of it or not it, it was intoxicating. Martha was only one of many to fall prey to it, as she was frozen in both tongue and cheek. Almost like one of the animatronic robots from Chuck E. Cheese, Martha let out a slight head nod that accepted Andrés forced entry. It took a moment that almost left Andrés feeling like he said something inappropriate or maybe she was a mute… Regardless, the chance to look confused was quickly stolen back by the dark-featured beauty. 

Contrary to her decadent fashion sense and clique, her response was rather prim and proper. [color=FFF79A]“I was half expecting you to shoo me away,”[/color] the young man said with a sigh of relief. 

To everyone, Andrés was king of the forest. He was kind to every man, woman, or whatever came across his path. If he could make just one person’s day, that would be enough for him. Her hands were soft, yet as he was about to pull away he noticed her shiny black nail polish. Chips of vibrant colors from all across the spectrum kissed the tips of her fingers. [color=FFF79A][I]”Maybe she’s an artist lik—“[/i][/color] But before he could put two and two together, her voice brought him back to reality. 

Her hand was once again her own, while the familiar toothed smile etched itself on his face. [color=FFF79A]“No, I’ve always thought I was the master of my own fate. [i]Tú sabes[/i]?”[/color] Andrés realizing his Spanglish had been set loose. A small shade of rosy red lit the edges of his defined cheekbones..

Meanwhile, Martha raised a questioning eyebrow at the words she hadn’t understood before letting out a small laugh at his expression. [color=DA70D6]“That’s a nice mantra to live by. But sometimes it’s nice to entertain the possibility of pretending to know the uncertain,”[/color] she commented with a shrug. 

[color=FFF79A]“I’m sorry about that, I’m still in house mode. Anyway, where were we? Oh, yes: you were about to read me my fortune,”[/color] he said, leaving his future in her painted hands.

[color=DA70D6]“It’s no problem!”[/color] Martha said earnestly, waving a dismissive hand. With a shadow of a smile on her face reminiscent of the one Mona Lisa wore, Martha took the cards from the case and the ones on top of the table and gave them a quick shuffle before handing them to Andres. [color=DA70D6]“Okay, first of all, what you have to do is hold the cards between your hands for a good thirty seconds, focusing all of your attention into one particular question you would like the answer to.”[/color]

A sort of chill went through his back as tiny bumps were raised on his skin. Her curious eyebrow reacting to his mother tongue, her subtle laugh that diffused the situation, her expressive shrug that set him at ease. Andrés didn’t know if the goosebumps were from her or the black magic that was being shuffled in her hands. Andrés had always contemplated whether his mother’s superstition had any basis, but it sure had kicked in today. Andrés studied the girl’s face, her gestures pronounced and defined. His favorite part was definitely her lips since they seemed to naturally pucker. 

[color=FFF79A]“What if it’s a future you don’t want to see? And the more you try to change it the more it becomes true?”[/color] Of course Andrés was speaking from his own story and the stress he had at home. It was almost unfair to spring this all on Martha, but he quickly gathered himself. His ears latched onto every word of instruction she had to say, he could tell she was really into it. 

[color=DA70D6]“Then in that case,  I would suggest not asking in the first place,”[/color] Mar said simply, shrugging her shoulders. [color=DA70D6]“ A cowardly move, I know. But, sometimes, the less you know the better. They say the truth will set you free, but in certain cases, it is that very truth that can hold you prisoner.”[/color]

Her words resonated with him in the back of his head, maybe he shouldn’t ask questions he doesn’t want the answer to. Some things were better left unsaid and untold, Pandora’s box was closed for another day. Her reaffirmation of what he could and couldn’t ask was enough for him to make his decision.

[color=FFF79A]“Okay. So I can ask any question, whatsoever?”[/color] The laundry list of questions unraveled in his mind, but the only thing that came to mind was his father. And while Andrés would have done anything to know the answer, now wasn’t the time.  

[color=DA70D6]“Yup!”[/color] Martha answered almost brightly, waiting eagerly to see what Andrés would come up with.

Andrés picked up the cards with his eyes shut tight, channeling his focus into the cards. The curiosity weighing heavy on his mind. It was now or never, the answer he had been waiting for the last 18 years…

[color=FFF79A]“Would you like to go out sometime?”[/color] 

And there it was: the moment of truth, taking a small detour out to the middle of nowhere.

Martha’s brown eyes widened to the size of saucers, jaw slightly dropping in shock. If she had been the one holding the cards, this was the moment in which they would have dropped to the floor and either scattered all over the concrete or flown away with the wind. Instead, she was left staring at Andrés for a few long seconds until finally she could muster up some words to break the tension.

[color=DA70D6]“I think you don’t need the cards to answer that question, now do you?”[/color] she asked with a shy smile, in an attempt to control the excitement growing inside her.

Andrés didn’t know where he found those combinations of words. It was as if he had been possessed in that moment. A look of disbelief washed over him just as it had for Martha, the feelings were clearly mutual. 

Despite the sudden shock and twist of fate, Andrés was content in his choice of question. It wasn’t completely far fetched either, Martha was a gorgeous woman who didn’t suffer from the drama and whatever else the thots of King’s Academy had to deal with. There was something that pulled him towards her like a red string of fate. Andrés was getting nervous in anticipation as she re-enacted her favorite mime impersonation. Finally, her silence was broken. 

[color=FFF79A]“I bet your cards didn’t see that in your future.”[/color] Andrés smiled before tracing the holy across his head and chest like he did whenever he scored a goal. This goal was just slightly more satisfying. 

[color=DA70D6]“Not in a million years,”[/color] she admitted with a laugh, a weight she didn’t know she was carrying being lifted off her shoulders. Her answer was a half-truth, though. The cards [i]had[/i] forecasted a beginning, so she had known [i]that[/i] part was coming. But that it would be so soon, so sudden and so upfront? [i]That[/i], indeed, was something the young woman hadn’t seen in the cards.

[color=FFF79A]“Come on, I’ll walk you to first period while you tell me why you were out here alone,”[/color] Andrés said before he stood up, reaching out his hand in anticipation of their first moments of intimacy. 

Possessed by the spirit of daring, impulsivity and just a dash of recklessness, Martha took his hand, and next words surprised her once more. [color=DA70D6]“Or I could tell you over lunch,”[/color] she replied, grabbing her bag with her free hand and swinging it over her shoulder.

Her laugh was refreshing, a sound that made his center whole. It was the first time in a long time there was a feeling that he could slip away from his problems at home that was a field of grass with painted lines of white. Whatever spirit had possessed those cards had his gratitude. Andrés could get used to being this spontaneous. [color=FFF79A]“I’m not sure your cards can see that far,”[/color] he said sardonically, while Mar laughed again in response. 

The girl he had startled and intimidated beyond belief had vanished as something else had taken over completely. Her hands laced through his perfectly as he closed his grip in hers. Andrés couldn’t tell what dropped faster, his jaw or the his ball. His coveted soccer ball made its getaway to stage left of King’s Academy, rolling towards the building’s entrance. [color=FFF79A]“I...uh..yeah, we could do that. My car or yours?”[/color] He said sheepishly almost letting out a flurry of tangled Spanglish. This must be what XiXi felt like on every first day. 

[color=DA70D6]“Um… We can do yours… If you’re cool with that...”[/color] Martha said in a soft voice, giving him a sweet smile. Whatever nervousness she had been feeling at the beginning of this encounter was long gone, replaced with a feeling of ease and peacefulness. In this short time with Andrés, things had gone incredibly smoothly, almost as if it was a previously established routine. As wild as it sounded, things just came so easily to her being around him: her actions, her words... Like pieces of a puzzle who’d finally fallen together in the right place.

[color=FFF79A]“Perfect! So it’s a date. If you want you can paint me like one of your French girls”[/color] Andrés said with a playful wink, making his prior notice of her fingernails common knowledge.

[color=DA70D6]“Gladly,”[/color] Martha replied in between laughs, shaking her head in amusement and gently squeezing his hand.

With everything falling into place, there was only one thing left to do. [color=FFF79A]“We don’t want to be late for class, do we?”[/color] He asked, hoping that the upright lovers card wasn’t more than just a chance mistake.

As much as she wanted to say what she really thought (that first period could suck it and they should skip it with no regrets), Mar decided to not jeopardize the amazing karma she was having, and to continue going with the flow as she had up to now. [color=DA70D6]“In that case, I guess we should get going, then,”[/color] she told him with a soft smile, jerking her head in the direction of the school.

And with that, Martha and Andrés made their way into the school to join up with the rest of the pack, hands still bound together. So far, this was looking like one hell of a promising senior year for them both.[/indent]