Days have passed, and I couldn't help but feel confused about Liam. So, I sneaked a peek at his diary hidden beneath my table. As the days went by, my confusion grew, and I thought diving into his diary might give me some answers. I opened it up and skimmed through his personal thoughts.
'Today was rough. I couldn't shake off this feeling of being lost, but playing soccer, something my dad and I used to bond over, made it a bit easier. It was my way of escaping reality.'
My face changed as I read the next paragraph. I had no idea someone like him was going through something too.
'There's this fear deep inside me that I've never shared with anyone. The fear of not being good enough, of never living up to expectations. The fear of losing someone unexpectedly.
It's funny how I've always hated the rain, but lately, its sound brings me comfort. It's like it's telling me that it's okay not to have everything figured out.'
He feels the same way I do sometimes. Especially after losing someone dear, like my dad. And I'm sure he's talking about his ex. It's a different kind of pain for both of us, but it's still that same feeling of regret.
Today, I discovered that he has a vulnerable side too. I closed the diary, a mix of emotions on my face.
———
It's been three days since my makeover, and everything has changed. Suddenly, Briana's group doesn't pay any attention to me. It's weird how they've become so nice all of a sudden. Whenever I see them at school or Briana at home, they just avoid me. I don't know if it's because of my transformation or if they're up to something.
Secondly, my classmates have started treating me differently too. Before, they used to tease me all the time, and I was just a regular student. But now, they're suddenly being nice to me. They greet me when I pass by, just like they do with Sophie. Sometimes, I even find letters and things in my locker. Some apologize for picking on me before, some want to be friends, and believe it or not, some even want to date me. I used to read about these things in books, but now it's happening to me.
It feels strange with everything that's happening. Jhea and Sophie say that I'll get used to it eventually. Deep down, I know they're right, but it's hard to believe it just yet.
We've been hanging out a lot with Ace, Ken, and Liam. Sometimes, we even have lunch together at the canteen. Our classmates have noticed, but they don't really care because Ace and Sophie are a couple. But I know it's a big deal to Briana. Even though they don't fight with us anymore, we can tell they're giving us dirty looks.
Yes, we're often together. Liam is there too, but I can sense that he's distant when we're all together. Especially with me. I don't know, but sometimes I feel like he's avoiding me. He's so mysterious, to be honest.
The three of us are in the school garden today. We spend our free time here most of the time.
"Jhea, just tell us already!" I blurted out suddenly. She still hasn't told us what she talked about with Liam. Okay, call me nosy, but we're just curious.
"Seriously, it's been three days and you still haven't said anything!" Sophie pestered her.
Jhea let out a sigh. She looked up from her phone and looked at us. "I can't tell you right now, but I promise I will soon." She weakly smiled.
Before we could say anything, she stood up and bid us goodbye.
Sophie plopped down on the bench she was sitting on. "What if there's something or a history between her and Liam?" She pondered while looking into the distance.
"I don't think so. And stop thinking like that about our friend." I replied.
"Don't tell me you're jealous?" She raised an eyebrow.
"Are you crazy? No way. Besides, why would I be jealous?" I denied.
"Probably because you have a crush on him." She rolled her eyes at me and looked away. "I just have a feeling something is going on between them."
"It's impossible for Jhea to have a crush on him. I know what type of guys she likes, and Liam is not it." Which is true.
"Well, if nothing is going on between them, why do they need to talk in private?" She sighed. "I get it if it happened once, but it's happened twice now! Who knows, maybe it's happened more times." She kept insisting.
Sophie talks as if she's the one who likes Liam, but she's right. It did happen twice.
Yesterday, when we caught Jhea and Liam talking at her locker, they stopped as soon as they saw us approaching. We asked them what they were talking about, but they quickly changed the subject. I don't want to think too much about what's going on between them, but sometimes, especially when Sophie speaks up, I can't help but think she has a point.
It was time to go home after class. I didn't have anything else to do, and Sophie was busy with Ace, Jhea had a student council meeting, Ken didn't come to school according to Ace because he overslept, and Liam was nowhere to be found.
I walked out of our classroom and was about to pass by my locker when I noticed Jhea and Liam talking in front of Jhea's locker, not far from mine. I wanted to listen to their conversation, but I couldn't hear them from a distance. Instead of going to my locker, I decided to leave the campus.
I admit, I felt jealous of the two of them. I tried to brush off their conversations, thinking they were nothing, but now I can't help but feel like there's something more. Maybe Sophie is right. What if there's something going on between them? What if Jhea doesn't want me to have feelings for Liam because there really is something between them?
Do I need to move on? Wait, move on? That's too much. I playfully slapped myself for thinking like that. How can I move on when we were never even together? Besides, I only had a crush on Liam. If they like each other, then I have no place there.
I decided to go to a fast food restaurant because I suddenly got hungry. I placed my order and sat at a table for two. I quietly ate my food until I heard a familiar voice. "Can I sit with you?"
I lifted my head to see who said that, and I was right. "C-Chris, it's you. Sure," I replied.
He sat down, a smile still on his face. "What are you doing here all by yourself? Where's my sister and Jhea?" he asked.
"They're still at school. I was supposed to go home, but I suddenly got hungry, so here I am. What about you?"
"Same here." He said casually.
There was silence between us. I could feel the awkwardness in the air. We didn't exchange a word for several minutes until he broke the silence. "Mira."
I looked at him. "Hm?"
"I'm sorry for what happened between us in the past. I know I hurt you because I developed feelings for your cousin Briana, but—" I interrupted him.
"I have forgiven you, Chris. It's been a long time. I know you didn't mean for it to happen. I know she just seduced you. Sophie told me the truth back then," I explained.
"Thank you, Mira, but still, I want to apologize. I hurt you. I let myself be swayed by your cousin, and it hurt you."
"Well, apology accepted. I admit I was really hurt back then, but it's all in the past now, Chris. I've moved on a long time ago. Perhaps we were never meant to be together, and that's why God used Briana to separate us." I smiled.
"You're right. Perhaps we just need to be patient and wait until we find that person who perfectly complements us."
"And I think you already found her?" I smiled mischievously at him.
He raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"
"Sophie told me about her. She said you have a girlfriend, but you haven't introduced her to us yet."
"Oh, Sophie. That girl, seriously." He sighed. "She's not my girlfriend yet. I'm still courting her. I'll introduce her when we're officially together. It would be embarrassing to introduce her and find out she didn't say yes." He chuckled.
I laughed at what he said. "So who is the lucky girl?"
He smiled shyly. "She's in California right now. Her name is Hailey."
Hailey? The name sounds familiar. Of course, it does. Hailey is a common name.
"I can already tell she's pretty based on her name. I hope to meet her soon."
He smiled. "Of course you will." He paused and looked at me. "Your new look suits you well."
"Thank you." After we finished our meal, he offered to drive me home.
When I arrived home, I saw Briana on the balcony. I was about to just walk past her, but she suddenly spoke, causing me to stop.
"You two are together again?" I looked at her, not sure what she wanted to say.
"I saw Chris drive you home. Are you two back together?" she asked with a hint of sarcasm.
I gave her an annoying smile. "What's it to you? Are you jealous? Are you planning to snatch Chris away again if we were back together?"
"Well, I would've liked that." She smirked. "But I guess you're not."
I rolled my eyes at her. I was about to walk away again, but I stopped once more because of what she said. "Too bad for Sophie."
I stared at her, my confusion evident on my face. "What does Sophie have to do with all of this?"
"I like Ace." She said, trying to be frugal with her words. This girl was really something else. I knew she had something up her sleeve.
I glared at her, my voice filled with a warning. "Don't you dare, Briana."
"You know I'll do anything to get what I want. I always get what I want, Mira. If I could have Chris from you, I can definitely snatch Ace away from Sophie." Her words ignited a fire of anger within me, and before I knew it, I had slapped her.
At that moment, a maid walked by and witnessed me slapping Briana. She was shocked by what I had done, as they never expected me to do something like that. I saw Briana smirking.
"Are you okay, Briana?" The maid asked her. The smirk quickly disappeared from her face, replaced by a dramatic expression.
"I'm okay. It's just a misunderstanding." She said softly, pretending to be all innocent to the maid.
I rolled my eyes and let out a sigh. I couldn't believe this girl! I left the two of them in the living room and decided to go up to my room.
———
I woke up to a gentle knock on my door. I checked the time and realized it was already 8 in the morning. I quickly opened the door and saw that it was Mom knocking.
Based on her appearance, she must have just come home from work. She probably slept in the condo near her office. I knew they had a lot going on right now, so she couldn't come home often. Especially since she took over as the CEO after Dad passed away.
"Mira, what's this I heard about you slapping Briana?" Mom confronted me right away. Wow, not even a good morning? Is she starting another sermon already? I could tell she was angry with me based on the tone of her voice when she called my name.
"Who told you? Briana?" I asked curiously.
"One of the maids told me. I asked Briana about it, but she denied it. Now, tell me Mira, is it true?" That maid is such a gossip. She acts like she knows everything that happened. And Briana, she's pretending to be all innocent again. Of course, I'll be the one who looks bad in this situation.
"Yes." I said quietly.
Mom just looked at me, waiting for my explanation. "Mom, I didn't do it on purpose! I only did it because I got annoyed by what she said." I explained.
"Even so, you shouldn't have done it. You know Briana is going through something, right? Her mom is sick." Mom said. It's like she doesn't have any problems herself. It's like she doesn't care that Auntie is sick. She's so selfish, if you ask me. She only thinks about her own interests.
"Sorry." That's all I could say. I didn't want to say anything else. I knew that no matter what explanation I gave, I would still be the one in the wrong.
"I don't want that to happen again. Whatever misunderstanding you have, try to understand each other first." And after that, Mom left. She didn't stay long at home. She just took some papers and left.
Because I was so annoyed, I went to Briana's room. "Are you going to apologize?" she asked, teasing me.
No, but I just want to say something. Briana, I pity you for being such a mean-spirited and deceitful person. You may be attractive and intelligent, but with your ugly character, you're far worse than Lucifer!
"So, what do you want to say?" She retorted.
"Nothing. I just want to tell you that sometimes, try eating on some makeup to improve your attitude. Instead of putting everything on your face and looking like a coloring book!" And with that, I left her room. I could see from her face that she felt insulted.
"Ugh, she was so annoying!" I muttered as I kicked a big rock in the village park. I went out of the house for a while. I needed some fresh air, and I didn't want to see Briana and make my anger worse.
"Who are you talking to?"
I turned around to see who it was. It was Liam. Just my luck. "The rock." I pointed to the rock that I had been kicking.
Liam laughed at what I said. "You're crazy." He said, shaking his head.
I glared at him. I didn't care if I had a crush on him, I wasn't in the mood. "Why are you here?"
"I followed you."
I immediately looked at him. I felt like my heart was going crazy. "Y-you followed me?"
He suddenly laughed. "You know, because of how you look right now, I might think you have a crush on me. Don't be assuming, it was just a joke."
I gave him a dirty look. He's even more clueless than a clueless person. If only he knew that I actually liked him. I was already annoyed, and he's just adding to my irritation.
This guy is so mysterious. Sometimes he's scary, sometimes he's cold, sometimes he's nice, sometimes he's annoying. I don't know! I might go crazy with this bipolar guy's attitude. I kicked the rock again in front of me. But because I kicked it wrong, I slipped. Before I could fall, Liam caught me.
We locked eyes. His face was so close to mine. I felt myself blushing. Before he could notice, I quickly pulled away. "Ouch." I whispered. My foot hurt from the fall.
"Are you okay?" He asked, helping me sit on a bench.
He bent down and looked at my foot. He held it and tried to find where it hurt. "Does it hurt here?" he asked while holding my foot.
I just shook my head. "I'm okay. The pain will go away soon."
"Are you sure? You might get injured."
"Yes." I insisted.
He sat beside me. "What's your problem with kicking rocks? Don't you feel sorry for them?"
"I'm just letting out my frustrations."
"Do you have to take it out on rocks too?"
"Well, I have no other outlet. And besides, rocks are numb." Just like you.
"Is something bothering you?" Why does he keep asking?
"Wait a minute, when did you start caring about my life?"
He sighs. "I'm just giving you the favor."
I looked at him with confusion. "You want to vent, right? I'm here to listen." He explained further. My heart started beating faster again. What is this guy doing to me? Now he's being concerned.
"Is this another joke?" I made sure to ask him.
"I'm serious, Mira."
I stared at him for a few seconds.
Liam, who are you really? Why are you so mysterious?