Yannie Ace Ruiz
"I'm Yannie Ace. But you can just call me Yannie," I politely responded to the girl. Her appearance shows that she's not a student like Veron and me. She looks a bit older, a few years ahead of us.
Ate Rica smiled and shook hands with me. Later on, other girls with her approached us.
"Hi! I'm Renalyn."
"I'm Becca."
"Hello, I'm Christine!"
"I'm Jan."
Ate Rica's companions introduced themselves to us. I shook hands with each of them and introduced myself in return. Before Veron and I headed home, we joined their group for dinner.
"So, how old are you, Yannie? Are you already working?" Becca asked me.
"I'm 20 years old. I'm in my second year of college. Veron and I are classmates," I replied.
"Really? What's your course?" Rica asked.
"I'm taking BSOA, Bachelor of Science in Office Administration."
"Oh, which school? Where are you from again?" Rica asked while twirling pasta on her fork.
"I go to PUP Biñan. We're from Biñan, Laguna."
Our cheerful conversation continued as we all ate together. I felt comfortable with them, perhaps because we shared similar interests and were all fans of 4SBLUE.
"Let's meet again at the 4SBLUE concert," Ate Rica said with a smile.
"Oh, I'm afraid that might not happen," I replied with a hint of sadness.
There's a public press conference today for 4SBLUE because their upcoming concert is scheduled in the next two days here in the country.
"Huh? Why? Aren't you attending their concert?"
"No, I won't be able to. I don't have the budget to buy a ticket for their concert. So, I just really tried to make it to their public press conference today. So even if I won't be able to see them at their concert, at least I saw them today."
Ate Rica smiled sweetly at me.
"You're so honest, Yannie," she said.
"Huh?"
"What's your social media account? We'll add you," Jan said with a smile. I learned earlier that we're in the same age. That's why I quickly warmed up to her.
All of them are kind—especially Ate Rica, who was the first to befriend me.
I shared my social media account with them, and they did the same with me. We also exchanged numbers.
"Thank you for the enjoyable conversation. I had a great time today. Aside from seeing 4SBLUE, I also got to know all of you," I happily told them.
"Thank you too, Yannie. You're so sweet and nice. Take care on your way home," Ate Rica said to me, and Veron and I bid them farewell.
When I got home, I checked my social media account and saw the tagged pictures of me that we had taken earlier with Ate Rica.
The days quickly passed until the 4SBLUE concert arrived. Even though I couldn't watch them live at the big dome, I settled for watching the live stream. In that simple act, I couldn't contain the joy I felt.
I continued communicating with the new friends I met through 4SBLUE, especially with Ate Rica. We've been exchanging chats on social media and text messages for several days.
"You have new friends, huh," Jenny remarked as we walked out of the campus.
"True! She talks to them more often than us," Veron agreed with what Jenny said.
"Yes, I have new friends, but that doesn't mean I'll replace you guys," I said with a laugh.
"No, Yannie. It's okay," Ivory, who was brushing her long, curly hair while walking, replied.
While I happily bantered with my three friends, I accidentally bumped into someone as we exited the school gate.
"Oh, sorry!" I quickly apologized to the person I bumped into while walking.
"Sorry too, Miss." I raised my head, and my eyes widened when I saw who I bumped into. I didn't expect to see the guy who hurt me the most. Kris.
"Y-Yannie..." His voice revealed surprise at seeing me again. "H-How are you?"
"Do you know him?" Jenny asked me softly, looking at Kris.
"L-Let's go," I quickly stammered to my friends. I started to walk away, but Kris called out to me.
"Yannie, can we talk?"
"Hey, Yannie, he's calling you," Veron intervened.
"Go talk to him," Ivory whispered to me.
I took a deep breath and faced Kris again. I saw a hint of sadness in his eyes, but I ignored it. It might just be my imagination.a
"Go ahead, Yannie. We'll wait for you here," Jenny said.
Kris and I went to the nearby park at the school. I didn't even know why I agreed to talk to him.
"Yannie..."
"Do you have something to say?" I asked him directly.
"How are you?"
"I'm okay. Is that all?"
"Yannie... I know you're angry with me—"
"Kris, if you just want to talk to me to revisit the past, please don't." I turned away, but I quickly stopped when he spoke again.
"I loved you, Yannie," he said seriously. "I loved you for real."
I faced him again and let out a slow laugh.
"Are you trying to make me laugh?"
"Yannie—"
"You loved me? Then you ended up with my friend?" I asked bitterly.
"Yannie, I didn't mean to fall for Belle—"
"Okay," I cut him off. "If you have nothing else to say, I'm leaving."
"Yannie, please forgive me."
"I have forgiven you a long time ago, Kris. Even when you didn't explain things properly, I already forgave both of you. Because who am I, right? I was not even your girlfriend at that time. So, I have no right to resent both of you. But at least you did it early. So I woke up to the truth about what kind of people you are."
"Yannie..."
"The next time we meet, I hope you won't mention my name again." After saying that, I completely turned away and left.
I admit it. I was deeply hurt when I found out that he and Belle were already a couple. I liked him back then. I was ready to say yes and be his girlfriend. But that's all he did. He replaced me quickly because he got my snake-like friend to say yes to him.
But I already forget all of that. So, instead of sulking, I focused my attention on other things. There are many reasons to be happy, so I always choose to be happy because it wastes time to spend on sorrow.
Yannie Ace Ruiz"I loved you, Yannie. I loved you genuinely."I took a deep breath as those words echoed repeatedly in my mind. Why do some people find it so easy to say the words 'I love you' without being able to stand by them? Because of people like them, those words lose their actual value. It is as if those words are only used to deceive others.When I saw Kris earlier, I didn't feel anything anymore. Except for irritation after he told me that he supposedly loved me. Why did he even need to tell me that? Who did he want to deceive after all? He loved me, but they hurt me. Just wow!Although we never officially became a couple, they still deceived me. The two months he pursued me in the past were swiftly overshadowed by a single day with Bella. It’s funny, isn’t it?I quickly shook my head to remove Kris and Bella from my thoughts. I don't want to think about them anymore. Two years have passed, and hopefully, I won't see them again. It just happened earlier, and hopefully, it wo
Josh Rain MontezI quickly caught the ball that Ramil threw at me and promptly shot it into the basketball ring. As expected, it went in smoothly, and my game today was flawless."Whoa! You're really amazing, Papa Josh!" Ramil exclaimed with a teasing smile as he high-fived me. I chuckled and sat on our team's bench because the head coach of the opposing team called for a timeout.I grabbed a bottle of water and took a sip. While doing so, I heard my phone making a noise inside my bag. I retrieved it and saw Sissy's name—my cousin Ate Rica—on the screen. Before the game could resume, I quickly answered."Why—" I started, but Sissy immediately cut me."Where are you now?" she quickly asked."Why—""We're going to Laguna. Join us," she cut me again."What?!" I asked in surprise."Hurry up, Josh—""I can't. I'm in the middle of a game right now, Sissy," This time, I cut her off."What time does it end?" she asked."It will be over later.""Alright, we'll wait for you to finish." If she d
Josh Rain MontezSissy burst into laughter at what I said. "Don't worry, Josh. Soon, you'll also meet her," she assured me.Sissy wasn't aware that her best friend, Aika, was my first love. I also didn't want to disclose it to them because I was happy and content with our friendship. I just really dislike seeing her being treated that way by other guys because she doesn't deserve it.Since it was already late on the road with Sissy, we opted for a drive-thru for our dinner. Later on, I noticed that Sissy was busy typing on her phone, and it kept ringing while she held it."I thought Rodnie still has a flight today?" I asked Sissy, referring to her pilot boyfriend."He does. I'll talk to him later," she replied to me."Then who are you talking to? Is it Aika?" I asked her again."No. She's busy with her boyfriend because they're together now," Sissy answered with a laugh, which I didn't find amusing. "I'm talking to Yannie. I told her you're upset because we didn't get to visit her.""
Yannie Ace Ruiz"Huh?" my surprised reaction to Jomar.Jomar walked towards me and took the store's padlock. After that, he headed straight outside. "Aren't you coming out?" he asked me, and I quickly moved. I grabbed my bag and followed him.This convenience store only opens in the morning because Mrs. Maricel is still busy taking care of family matters. According to Jomar, it used to be open 24/7, and Mrs. Maricel would watch over it at night or whenever he couldn't make it.Jomar was busy closing the store. It was a good thing he arrived because I would have struggled to lower the rolling steel door of the convenience store. While waiting for him to finish, my cellphone suddenly rang. I checked it and saw Josh's name appearing on the screen. He is calling! I didn't know what to do because it was the first time he called me. I haven't heard his voice yet, and I really don't know why I'm feeling so nervous right now."Who's that?" Jomar asked me, and I didn't realize he had appro
Josh Rain Montez“Nice game, Josh!” Byron greeted me with a smile, tapping my arm.“You’re really good, Papa Josh!” Ramil chuckled, putting his arm around me as we walked back to our bench.I sat down exhausted, wiping off my sweat. As usual, we won again in the university basketball tournament. One more victory and we’d reach the finals, where the winner would represent the university in the National Collegiate Basketball Tournament.As I took a sip from the bottled water handed to me by a teammate, I checked my phone in my bag. I saw an unread text message from Yannie, so I quickly opened it.From Yannie Ace: Good luck in your game (smiley emoji)I smiled and promptly replied.To Yannie Ace: Thank you. Our game just ended, and we won again (wink emoji)“Josh, who’s the person you’re always texting?” Ramil asked curiously.“Yeah, I’ve noticed lately that you always have your phone in hand. And you often smile to yourself, like now,” Byron remarked.I smirked and put my phone
Yannie Ace RuizI don't know how long I've been staring at my cellphone screen. Every now and then, I tap it softly, patiently waiting for the following message from Josh. He mentioned earlier that he had something to do, but almost four hours had passed, and there was still no message from him. I've already returned from the market, completed other household chores, and had dinner, but he hasn't texted me again."Whose text are you waiting for, Ate?" suddenly, Yuri asked me. Apparently, she's been observing me for a while."Huh?""You've been staring at it for a while," she pointed out.I adjusted my sitting position and pretended, "I'm not waiting for any text," denying it to her. In a few moments, my cellphone quickly lit up and vibrated. I immediately grabbed it and checked. However, I paused abruptly and glanced at Yuri when I felt her still looking at me."Tss. She said she's not waiting for any text," she muttered softly, with a slight roll of her eyes. Then, she left my s
Yannie Ace RuizI woke up to the sound of my cellphone's alarm. With half-closed eyes, I groped for it beside my bed and turned it off. I stretched, a sweet smile forming on my lips as I opened my eyes. I was still very sleepy since I went to bed late last night. But as I remembered why I stayed up late, I couldn't help but smile.I got up and checked my phone. There was an unread text message. I opened it with a smile and read:From Josh Rain: Good morning (smiley emoji)I bit my lower lip as I typed a reply.To Josh Rain: Good morning, too (smiley emoji)"Ate? Are you okay?" I turned as I heard my brother's voice. It was James. He peeked into my room from the door."Huh?""I've been knocking for a while. You're awake, but you weren't responding. And... you're there, smiling at your phone," he remarked, puzzled."Huh? Oh... were you knocking? I didn't hear you," I responded, followed by a chuckle. I quickly got up from bed and tidied up the sheets."Mama said you should have
Yannie Ace Ruiz"He messaged, Yannie!" Veron exclaimed, handing me back my phone. I took it from her and feigned nonchalance. "What did he say?" Veron inquired. I had no choice but to open and check Josh Rain's message.Josh Rain: Hi! (smiley emoji)Veron and Ivory let out a slight scream. "He's handsome, Friend! But just to be sure, video call him!" Ivory suggested."Oh, right! Video call him, Yannie, so we can see if he really looks like his profile picture!" Veron seconded."Uh, what are you guys..." I started."Hey, what's going on?!" We all jumped as Jenny suddenly entered the room, followed by Jomar. My lips parted as if I had something to say to him, but I wasn't sure what."Friend, Yannie's texting a really handsome guy!" Veron enthusiastically informed Jenny. Jomar overheard, and his gaze intensified on me. I pursed my lips as if I wanted to tell him something, but I wasn't sure what."Oh, really? Let me see!" Jenny said, grabbing my phone again to check Josh Rain's so