Beyond the Obvious

Chapter 1

Avery's Point of View

I was hanging out in the kitchen with my mom, dad, relatives from out of town, and those who had just returned to the Philippines. They were clearly discussing something serious, but since they didn’t ask me to leave it means that the conversation is okay for ur children to hear, so I didn’t bother going to my room.

"We have a proposal" my aunt said, my mom's sister. She was the one who went abroad with my mom. But while my mom returned to the Philippines after six months, my aunt stayed abroad, eventually marrying a Japanese man.

"Proposal? About what?" my mom asked her later on after putting down her phone to listen. I put down my phone, too, and decided to watch them. My cousin Gian was beside me, and the two of us listened to their conversation. I mean we were kind of curious as to what she would say.

"Masatoshi wants to bring Avery to Japan so she can continue her studies there" Aunt Rena said, surprising me and everyone else, especially my mom and dad. Masatoshi, whom she mentioned, is the Japanese man that she married.

"He said she could help us with the business" she added.

"Why? Hiro is already there, so why does it have to be Avery?" my mom asked her with concern, I mean they have a son that could help them so why does it need to be me? Hiro is their eldest son, who is the same age as Gian and me. The three of us were born in the same year, but in different months—Hiro came first, then me, and finally Gian.

"Exactly! Why does it have to be Avery when Gian could go instead?" Aunt Gela said, unable to believe it, always wanting to promote her own child.

"Our business is doing fine. In fact, it’s even grown, but Hiro isn’t interested and is only focused on sports, while Hina is still too young. So Masatoshi thought it might be good if Avery could help us until Hina gets a bit older," my aunt Rena explained ignoring what my other aunt said, while looking at my mom and dad, who were quietly listening.

"What if Hina isn’t interested either, just like Hiro?" my mom asked with concern.

"Once Hina is old enough, we’ll figure that out then," my aunt replied. "Please, Mary," she begged, looking at my mom. My mom turned to me.

"Ave? Do you want to go?" she asked. Everyone was looking at me, waiting for my answer. I was feeling pressured! This was an opportunity for me; I’d always dreamed of studying abroad, so would I let this chance pass? Of course not!

I took a deep breath before looking at everyone, especially my mom and dad, who were waiting for my answer.

"Yes, I’ll go. This is my chance, and I don’t want to pass it up," I replied, looking at my mom and dad. They nodded at my decision and smiled, clearly happy with it.

"Thank you, Avery," my aunt said gratefully, hugging me. She shared the good news with my uncle, who gave me a big smile. After hugging me, they began discussing the paperwork I’d need.

"Good thing you got your passport last month," Aunt Grace said while holding her baby, Harry. She's the one who helped me with my passport so I am very grateful for her.

"Mhm!" I nodded.

THE NEXT DAY, my mom accompanied me to school to get the documents we’d need for my transfer. She stayed in the principal's office while I walked to my classroom.

"Good morning, Ave!" Daphne greeted me as we walked together. It was Wednesday, so we weren’t in uniform. We didn’t have a class schedule on Wednesdays, but we’d been called in for a lab experiment in our chemistry subject.

When we arrived at the room, we saw Natasha sitting in her chair, busy crocheting and listening to music—Taylor Swift, to be exact.

"Hi, Nat!" I greeted her with a tap on the shoulder to get her attention. She stopped what she was doing and looked at me.

"Hi, Ave," she replied, turning off her music.

"I saw your mom heading to the office. Was she called? Why? Did you get in trouble without us knowing?" Daphne asked me once I sat down. She and Natasha were seated next to each other, while I was in front, so I turned my chair to face them, took a deep breath, and prepared to answer.

"Called right away? Can’t she just be visiting Ms. Divine?" Natasha joked—she always has a comeback. Ms. Divine is our school principal.

"Actually, about that..." I trailed off, Natasha stopped crocheting and looked at me, while Daphne listened intently.

🥼🥽

"Avery Catherine Velasco," Professor Kevin called me.

"Present," I yelled before entering the laboratory.

I sat down next to my group mates, specifically beside Daphne.

"When are you going to tell them?" she asked me softly while arranging our materials. I helped her and answered, "Later, after this." She just nodded.

"Why are you whispering?" Briar joined in on our conversation.

"Secret," Natasha teased her playfully, giving her a mock attitude.

"Wow, huh," Briar replied in disbelief, ready to respond to Natasha, but the Professor began speaking in front, so she just stayed quiet and listened.

"Laboratory Activity: 1A - Do and Observe Surface Tension."

🥼🥽

"So, what is this big secret that we are going to talk about?" Briar asked when we got to the room after our laboratory experiment.

"Just wait, you impatient monkey" Natasha teased her. Whenever these two are together, they’re always bickering, no matter where we are.

I didn’t beat around the bush and just said it right away. They deserve to know since they’ve been with me throughout this school year. Thanks, guys.

"I’m transferring schools and leaving next month," I blurted out.

"What?" Briar shouted.

"Really?" Ellianna and Pearl asked in disbelief.

"But the school year isn’t over yet, Ave," Charlotte said in concern.

"Well, to be exact, our school year is almost over. Finals are done, and we’re only here now because Professor Kevin gave us an activity to fill in our performance task grades. For the remaining days, it’s just about clearance, so technically, she can leave next month,"Daphne explained to Lotte.

"True, but why are you just telling us now?" Briar asked in disbelief.

"They only discussed it last night, and I really wanted to go, so I accepted the opportunity immediately," I answered her, looking at each of them. They all had sad expressions. I’m really going to miss these monkeys.

"As long as you're happy with your decision, Ave,"Daphne said with a smile, and they all nodded in agreement.

"No crying just yet, okay? She’s not leaving now—it’s next month," Pearl joked, and we all laughed.

"Heyyy, the 7 apes will be short by one!" Elli said.

"Yeah!!" we agreed, laughing.

"How are you going to tell your boyfriend?" Elli asked while combing her hair.

"Yeah, I wonder how he’ll react," Nat said, curious.

"He’ll probably cry right away," Lotte joked. I mean, knowing he definitely would.

"I better be there to see his face—another chance to tease him!" Briar said excitedly, imagining Vince’s reaction. Vince is the name of my boyfriend.

"You’re so mean, Briar!" Nat teased her.

"Hey! I’m not mean," Bri retorted.

"Che," Nat replied.

The two of them kept arguing while we did what we had to do. We let them be, knowing sooner or later they’d stop once they got tired.

"Just kidding about me being there for your talk with Vince, Ave," Bri said, ending her argument with Nat. Maybe she got tired.

"Talk?"

To be continued...