The Thrill Of The Chase

"Congratulations, Lace!" I gave a big smile to those who congratulated me. Today is the most important day of my life. It’s our graduation day, and as I expected, I received many awards. Best in Filipino, Best in English, Best in Mathematics, Best in Science, Most Outstanding Award, Perfect Attendance Award, With Highest Honor. I really cleaned up. Solace Bridget Marquez, top 1, class valedictorian. "Congrats, girl! Next school year, we’ll be in senior high," said Yza excitedly. She’s my best friend. Right. I can't believe how fast the days have gone by; it feels like just yesterday was my first day as a grade 10 student, and now here I am, graduating! "Congrats, Yza!" I greeted her back. I walked over to hug her. Her toga was a bit wrinkled, probably because she had been jumping for joy earlier. After our hug, Mom and Dad suddenly arrived. They greeted Yza before turning to me. Their eyes were full of joy, the happiness on their faces was unmistakable. "Congratulations, anak, we're so proud of you," Mom and Dad embraced me. "Congrats too, Yza," they added. "Thank you, Mommy, Daddy," I said, giving them a kiss on their cheeks. "Thank you, auntie, uncle," Yza said, smiling before saying goodbye. I returned to where we were seated earlier. Our teacher said we couldn’t go home yet. It was still too early, and it would be a waste of the fee we paid for this Hall if we left immediately. Mom and Dad also said they would go ahead to the restaurant they reserved for our celebration later. Feeling bored, I decided to walk around. As I wandered, something caught my attention. "Congrats, Luigi, you're doing great. Keep up the good work," I heard an older man say. He wasn’t too old. He was probably in his mid-40s. Tall, handsome, and he looked like he had mixed ancestry. Tss. Luigi. Luigi Keil Gonzales, my worst enemy! Who could that handsome man be? Maybe he's Luigi's dad? But they don't look alike. I saw Luigi smile slightly, revealing his dimples. "Nako, sir, this kid Luigi is really smart. He’s the top of their batch," our teacher said cheerfully. Wow! Our teacher didn’t even congratulate me, but he’s full of praises for Luigi! And oh wow! He’s the top? As far as I remember, we have almost the same grades, whether it’s performance or written works or anything! Well, he’s ahead of me just because his surname comes first. But still, we have the same grades! "It runs in the family," the man joked. "I wonder about his parents, they didn't even come," he added, sounding disappointed. I was about to leave when our eyes met. He looked shocked to see me, but it quickly faded and was replaced by a little grin. I rolled my eyes and walked away. I didn't even look back to see his reaction. After a few hours, we were finally allowed to leave. I headed straight to our car after saying goodbye to everyone. "Are we heading straight to the restaurant, ma'am?" our driver asked. "Home first, Manong. I need to change clothes," I replied. After I said that, he started the car. I didn’t stay long at home as I just changed my clothes. I wanted to fix my makeup too, but I was already 10 minutes late! When I arrived at the restaurant, the waiters greeted me right away. They guided me to our reserved area and then left. When I got there, I immediately saw Mom and Dad along with some of our cousins. There weren't too many of us here since it was just a family celebration. Mom wanted a mini reunion with some of our cousins. "Congratulations, Soly!" I immediately turned to see who greeted me. My eyes widened a bit when I saw who it was. Kyra, my favorite cousin! "Thank you! I miss you, Kyra!" I went to her for a hug. Kyra is my cousin on my mother’s side. I hadn’t seen her for years because she went abroad with her parents. She had an illness that required them to go abroad for proper treatment. Thankfully, she’s well now. After our hug, we went to our seats. A few more people congratulated me before the food arrived. There were different kinds of food on the table. There was salad, pasta, chicken, a buffet, and many more. "So what strand are you planning to take, Lacy?" Aunt Karyl, Kyra's mom, asked. I took a drink of water before answering her question. "I haven't decided yet, Auntie. I plan to take TVL because I dream of becoming a chef, but I also want to take STEM because I feel like being an architect is my calling," I said. Argh! I can't decide! "Take your time, hija. Don’t pressure yourself in choosing a strand. You just graduated, don’t pressure yourself already," Mom said, holding my hand and smiling. I smiled and continued eating. My aunts and uncles who were done eating were already chatting, so I just listened to them. They talked about work or school, and some asked me questions, which I answered. After eating and catching up, we all said our goodbyes. We got home around nine in the evening, thankfully it wasn’t traffic. When we got home, I cleaned up and changed into my pajamas. I also organized my things before lying down on my bed. Unable to sleep, I grabbed my cellphone and opened f*******:. I had over a hundred notifications. Many people congratulated me, and I saw the picture my mom tagged me in with my cousins. After getting tired of f*******:, I opened i********:. Like on f*******:, I had over a hundred notifications. After thanking everyone who congratulated me, I decided to take some pictures and post them on my story. I took 3 selfies: one was fierce, one with a messy bun, and one with a heart. I was about to turn off my phone when one notification popped up. It immediately caught my attention, so I clicked on it to see. Zianfuentes_ replied to your story. Zianfuentes_: cute Oh my gosh! Ziander Fuentes! My crush! My brows raised when I read the text. Should I respond to his message? Well, I guess yes, it’s a compliment. itslacy: thanks♡♡ He immediately saw my message. Wow, fast replier? Zianfuentes_: wc, congratulations btw.❤ What the hell? I immediately threw my cellphone when I read his message. s**t! Did he just put a heart on his message?! Argh! What the freaking f**k! My heart!! Did Zian Fuentes just make the first move on me?! The next day, I looked like a mess with huge eye bags. The f**k, I couldn’t sleep because of the excitement. Is this how it feels when your crush chats you?? Should I tell this to Yza?? After a few minutes, I decided to take a bath. I wore a white crop top and a nude skirt. I planned to invite Yza to hang out since it’s vacation time anyway. When Yza agreed, I picked her up at her house. We went to Victorina first because I needed to buy skincare products. After that, we headed straight to the mall. We planned to buy new clothes, and Yza was already hungry. We decided to eat at Kenny Rogers Roasters. "Guess what," I teased her. "What?" She raised an eyebrow before sitting down. "Zian Fuentes messaged me," I giggled like a baby. Her brows furrowed but quickly relaxed when she realized what I said. "As in Ziander? Ziander Fuentes? Your crush?" she asked repeatedly. "What did he say?" she added. I told her everything that happened. She was left hanging because our order arrived, but I promised to tell her everything later. After eating, we shopped for clothes. I didn’t buy much because I still had clothes at home, so I only bought a few pieces. Yza also said goodbye as she needed to go home. It was already getting late, the sky was turning orange, so I needed to go home too. Tss, I’d be in trouble with Mom if I got home late! I was about to call Kuya Efren (our driver) when I saw a group of guys walking towards me. My heart skipped a beat for a second. Oh my gosh! I saw Ziander with Luigi and Yohan. It was like everything went in slow motion as I watched them walk. f**k! I felt like I was going to die. "Didn't know that you’re a ghoster," Zian whispered in my ear, making it hard for me to breathe. I was momentarily stunned. It took me 5 seconds to recover. I saw a grin on his face, and I could feel my face turning red. He walked away, and when I glanced back, I saw Luigi and Yohan teasing him. It seemed like Luigi was just pretending while Yohan was over the top with his teasing. My heart was racing. Gosh! They’re gone, but why is my heart still pounding? Once I recovered, I immediately recalled what he said. What did he mean by ghoster? I immediately cursed, remembering that I didn’t reply last night. s**t! I’m in bad shape now! When I got home, I quickly put away my purchases. Gosh! This is so embarrassing. itslacy: sorry, I didn't mean to last chat you. ☹☹ How will I make a move if he thinks I’m a ghoster? Sigh! I didn’t wait for his message and went to sleep instead. Luckily, I fell asleep quickly, probably because of exhaustion.