July 9th, 2024, a Tuesday. A year since Dad died in that crazy accident in Kazustan – left a crater the size of a city, both in the landscape and my life. I'm living with Fleur, my stepmom, who, surprisingly, treats me like her own kid. She's got two kids, Marisse and Zelaive.
7:00 AM. My alarm clock shrieked. Got ready, went downstairs. Fleur was already making breakfast. I offered to help, but she waved me off, "Go get ready for school, Jazel."
"Zelaive still asleep? Big exam today. Should I wake him?"
"Nah, let him sleep it off. He'll learn eventually. It's his exam, let him own it." Her tone was sharper than usual.
I left Zelaive be. But Fleur kept calling him, getting increasingly frustrated.
"Zelaive! Get down here! You've got school! Next time, you're on your own!" Her voice was strained.
Seriously? How's he supposed to learn? I thought, watching her struggle with this whole "let him learn from his mistakes" thing. She finally gave up, leaving Zelaive to his fate.
Marisse came down. "Hey, can you wake Zelaive? Big exam today."
"Didn't Mom already?" Marisse looked confused.
"Nope. Looks like she's given up," I whispered, noticing the shift in Fleur's approach.
Marisse went upstairs and woke him.
I was about to leave when I remembered the story I promised Agatha. Heading upstairs, I bumped into Zelaive, rushing down, hair a mess, looking totally panicked.
"You didn't wake me, Jazel!" He was accusing.
"Even if I did, you wouldn't have gotten up! You're impossible! I've woken you up a million times. Last time, you threw a pillow at me!" I snapped back.
"Yeah, and the time before that, you threw a book. A year ago. Whatever. I'd forget anyway. I'd even put up with your annoying voice," he said, completely unfazed.
I left, said goodbye to Tita Fleur (still couldn't bring myself to call her Mom).
On the way to school, it hit me – I'd forgotten the story! I'd just tell Agatha I left it at home.
At school, there was a confession letter in my locker. Before I could read it, Agatha showed up. She snatched it and tore it to shreds.
"That's from me. I was gonna give it to you yesterday, but..." she mumbled.
"You're a lesbian?!" Agatha yelled, completely shocked.
"Huh?"
"The letter! It's a love letter!"
"Oh... yeah... wrong locker, haha," I stammered, lying terribly.
"But you said it was for me earlier!" She was suspicious.
"Um... yeah, I did have something for you, but... wrong one," My lies were getting worse by the second.
"Where is it, then?" She narrowed her eyes.
"It's... in my bag. Gotta run!" I practically fled.
"Oh, like that? Sorry for all the questions," she said, clearly not believing me.
She totally knows I'm lying, I thought, feeling guilty.
"It's okay. My bad," I mumbled, trying to smooth things over.
Agatha stormed off, furious. Earlier, she'd seen Alvin writing something.
"What's that? Spill it!"
"Do you know Jazel?" Alvin asked.
"Yeah, theater club. Why?"
"I like her. Can you help? I'm writing her a love letter," he confessed.
Agatha felt totally betrayed. I shouldn't have asked. She thought Alvin was different. He wasn't. Every guy liked Jazel. Heartbroken and furious, Agatha confronted Alvin, slapping him with his love letter.
It was recess. I tried to talk to Agatha, but she avoided me, chatting with someone else. Recess ended, she was still avoiding me.
Seriously? She's running from me! The bell rang. I cornered her.
"Are you avoiding me?" I demanded.
"Huh... No! Gotta go home early, Jazel," she said, trying to slip away. I stopped her.
"I rejected Alvin's letter," I blurted out.
"What? Why?" she was surprised.
"Why were you avoiding me? You like Alvin, right? Why would I pick him? Even if you didn't like him, I wouldn't. Are you scared I'd pick him, so you're avoiding me? Is that it?" I accused, my voice rising.
"Please, don't avoid me anymore. Let's still be friends," I pleaded, tears welling up.
"Okay, okay, don't cry. We're still in class," she said, her voice softening.
Agatha pulled me outside. "Don't cry. You're being dramatic."
"Are we still friends?" I asked, still sniffling.
"Yeah, so stop crying. Look, I'm sorry for ignoring you, but honestly… I don't really like you. I'm jealous. You're smart, pretty, every guy likes you. I'm jealous, so... we can't be friends. And I'm not the only one, okay? Don't be too nice to people, you get walked all over." Her words were harsh, but true.
I started laughing, surprising her.
"What's so funny?"
"Was I that convincing? I wasn't actually crying! You're so dramatic! I know all this. People have been jealous of me forever, but I don't care. It doesn't make me pathetic. It makes me want to ace my exams and look even better, because that's my only defense," I said, my laughter fading.
Agatha was annoyed, but a small smile played on her lips. If only I'd known you better…
"Good. Okay, I'm going," she said, clearly relieved.
"Hey, we can still be friends if you forgive me," she added before leaving.
"You're crazy. Of course, I forgive you," I said, genuinely smiling.
I went to a burger place, got two burgers, a candle, and flowers. It was Dad's death anniversary.
On the way home, I saw Zelaive.
Ugh, not him. This will ruin my mood, I thought, turning away.
"Going to Dad's grave? I'm coming. I don't know why, but I need to apologize to him," he said, surprising me.
"Me too. I don't know why, but I do," I replied, a strange sense of shared purpose connecting us.
We went to Dad's grave. I offered a burger.
"His favorite?" Zelaive asked.
"Couldn't think of anything else. He always liked whatever I gave him, so it doesn't matter," I said, my voice thick with emotion.
After we prayed, someone called my name. A hooded figure.
"Who are you?" My heart hammered.
The figure lowered the hood. It was someone who looked exactly like Zelaive.