Yannie Ace Ruiz"Sorry, Yannie. I was also short on funds and couldn't think of anyone else to turn to but him. And I didn't know that he... got evicted from their place," Veron explained to me while we waited for Mom to come out with Dad and Josh.I called Veron and the others to borrow money so I could get Mom out, as my savings weren't enough for the amount they were asking for."It's okay, Veron. It's not your fault," I replied to her.A moment later, we saw Jenny and Jomar arriving quickly."Yannie! How's Auntie?" Jomar asked me anxiously."She's okay now. She's with Dad and James inside. Josh is also there," I replied."And how are you?" Jomar asked me again after a while. I saw Jenny glance at Jomar because of that."Huh?"Jenny cleared her throat and then spoke. "Ivory wants to apologize for not answering your call right away. They also had an emergency.""Huh? Why? What happened?" I asked Jenny worriedly."The owner of the house they're renting suddenly evicted them
Yannie Ace Ruiz"Yannie! Are you at the shop already?" Jenny greeted me with a question when I answered her call."Hello, Jenny. I'm on my way to the shop. There was an emergency at home, so I'm late—" I couldn't finish my sentence because Jenny started talking from the other end."Please tell the boss that I can't come in today.""Huh? Why? Is there a problem? Did something happen?""It's my brother, he was picked up by the police," Jenny replied, which worried me a lot."Huh? Why? What happened?" I asked anxiously."He was accused. His colleague is blaming him for scamming the complainant. Honestly, I don't really understand it either. So, my mom and I are going to the precinct now.""Okay, take care of yourself and your mom.""Thank you!"I gently put down my phone and rubbed my temples. I didn't know why it felt like problems were coming at me one after another. The problem at home hadn't even been resolved, and now my friends were having issues too.When I arrived at th
Yannie Ace RuizMy chest tightened as I finally exited and got away from that place. It felt like all the courage I had earlier suddenly abandoned me, causing my knees to weaken significantly.Once again, I felt the corners of my eyes start to heat up. I didn't know what I should feel after realizing that the cause of all the problems my family and friends were facing was none other than me. I was the reason all of this was happening to them. I didn't know what to feel, and I didn't know what to do.I didn't want them to be hurt and suffer. I didn't want anyone else to be involved just because of me. But... I couldn't leave Josh. I couldn't hurt him and let him go.I bit my lower lip as my tears finally started to flow. What should I do? I told Josh's mom that I would fight, but in truth, I didn't know how I could fight when all the people important to me were being affected.Am I bad because I'm selfish? Am I bad because I can't let go of the man I love so much, even though other
Yannie Ace Ruiz"Are you not coming with us, Ate?""Yeah, Ate. Are you really okay with leaving you and Kuya James here? What about us there?""We won't have an Ate beside us when we sleep."It feels like something squeezes my heart as I watch and listen to Yuri and Yumi packing their things.I don't want to be separated from them, but I really don't know what else to do. I want to run to Josh's Mom right now and beg her to stop tormenting my family, but... something inside me is holding me back from doing that, because if I give up on Josh's Mom, it means I'm letting Josh go from my life."Don't worry, everything will be alright," I told my siblings."How, Ate? They don't even want us to live here anymore. And we don't have any money left because dad and mom don't have jobs anymore," Yumi said sadly.I smiled faintly at my siblings. "Just trust that everything will be okay." I hope.Moments later, my phone rang loudly with an incoming call from an unknown number. My heart raced with
Yannie Ace Ruiz"That's not fully cooked yet. It needs more time, so just let it be," I heard Veron complain while I was busy arranging the things we would need later."Isn't this cooked already? It's almost burnt," Ramil replied to Veron."This isn't cooked yet. Why do you always think you know better than me? Like you're some expert chef.""I don't know how to cook, but I always eat. Besides, this is always served as a snack during our drinking sessions.""Oh really? You're such a party animal, huh?""Once you're my wife, I won't drink anymore," Ramil teased Veron, who blushed and was stopped by Veron. We all laughed because of that."Oh well, you two haven't changed at all. You still bicker like cats and dogs but really love each other in real life," Jenny teased, which Jomar agreed with."What lover are you talking about?" Veron snapped at Jenny. "We're not like that!""You just don't want to admit it yet," Ramil added, teasing Veron again, which made Jenny laugh and Veron blush a
Yannie Ace Ruiz"Yeobo, are you really sure about what you want?" Josh asked me, his concern evident as I insisted."Yeah. It's just this once, and I'm with you and my friends," I decisively replied to him."But, Yannie... you're not used to drinking. You might regret it," Jomar reminded me, a concern shared by everyone here."Hey, bro. I should be the only one concerned about my girlfriend," Josh told Jomar, which made Ramil and the others laugh."You're so overly jealous, bro! Can't someone be concerned about your girlfriend because they're friends with Yannie?" Byron teased Josh, joining in the banter."Yeah, bro. We're all concerned about Yannie here," Ramil seconded."Whatever," Josh grumbled in response."Alright, it's Yannie's shot now!" Ivory interjected, handing me a shot glass filled with alcohol.We were still at the picnic park, now in the late afternoon, and they had decided to drink. Luckily, drinking was allowed in this area.I really don't drink any kind of alcohol. Bu
"HEY, Yannie!" I was startled by Belle, who was beside me, loudly calling me."Seriously? Am I deaf for you to shout like that?" I commented to her while clutching my chest due to surprise."I've been calling you several times, but you've been ignoring me. Kris might just melt with how much you're staring at him," Belle said angrily to me. I immediately felt my cheeks flush from what she said. "You know, friend, it's so obvious that you're in love with your suitor. Why haven't you answered him yet?" she continued, repeatedly fanning herself.We are currently in our school gymnasium to watch a basketball game. It's our school's intramurals, and Kris is one of the basketball players playing today.Kris has been courting me for over two months now. Although I have developed feelings for him, I can't find the right time to tell him. Additionally, I'm concerned about how my parents would react if they found out I have a boyfriend. My father often reminds me that it is not the right time to
Yannie Ace Ruiz"Veron, hurry up, we might be late! Come on!" I shouted loudly from the living room of Veron's house. After a few moments, Veron hurriedly came out of her room with her messy hair still soaking wet."Okay, fine. Jeez! Can't you wait?" she said, rolling her eyes at me."Hurry up! We might be late, and we could end up at the back!" I urged her, quickly passing by her on my way out of her house."Wait! I haven't combed my hair yet!" she complained, but I continued pulling her out."Auntie, we're leaving!" I bid farewell to Veron's mom, who was currently busy sweeping in front of their house."Oh, okay then. Take care, both of you. Manila is far, and you might get lost!" We heard it shout.Veron and I quickly hailed a tricycle to ride. After a few minutes, the driver dropped us off at the highway. Then, Veron and I promptly walked towards the jeepney terminal behind Central Mall."You're really something, Yannie. Your 4SBLUE press conference starts at one o'clock, and it's