The evening breeze flowed softly through the open window of Bella and Kathy's cozy off-campus apartment. The gentle hum of cars outside mixed with the faint laughter of students walking down the street. Bella sat on the armrest of their living room sofa, phone in hand, waiting as the call connected.
Her dad picked up after the second ring.
"Hello, Bella baby," came his familiar deep voice, warm and calm.
Bella smiled. No matter how grown she felt, hearing her dad's voice always made her feel like a little girl again. "Hi, Dad," she said softly. "I hope I'm not calling at a bad time."
"No, not at all," he replied. "I was just finishing up a meeting. How are you doing, love? And how's Kathy?"
"We're both fine. School's been going well," she answered, adjusting her legs on the couch.
"They just announced the date of our matriculation officially in the group chat. It's scheduled for the fifteenth of next month."
"Oh wow," he said, sounding surprised but pleased. "That soon?"
"Yeah. It's in about three weeks," she explained.
There was a slight pause before her dad responded. "Of course I'll be there," he said firmly. "I'll make arrangements immediately."
Bella's eyes lit up. "Really?"
"Of course. I've missed too many of your moments already. This one, I won't miss. I'll clear my schedule for that weekend," he promised. "And make sure you and Kathy start preparing early. I want my daughter to stand out."
Bella chuckled. "We haven't gotten anything yet. Kathy and I were talking about it earlier today. We'll probably go shopping next week."
"No problem," her dad said. "Just let me know what you both need. I'll send some money to cover everything,?your clothes, shoes, hair, even your makeup appointments. Just be ready."
"Thank you, Dad," Bella said softly, her heart warming at his support.
"And your mom?" he asked, gently. "Have you informed her?"
Bella's smile faltered a little. "Yes, I called her earlier… She said she might not be available that day. She's swamped with work again."
Her dad sighed. "I figured as much."
Bella stayed quiet.
"Well," he continued, "even if she doesn't make it, I'll be there. And I'll represent both of us well, alright?"
Bella nodded, even though he couldn't see her. "Okay."
"Good. Now, I'll be expecting a follow-up message with the details. Take care of yourself, and tell Kathy I said hi."
"I will," Bella replied. "Love you, Dad."
"Love you too, Bella. Talk soon."
As the call ended, Bella sat for a moment, staring at her screen. A soft smile lingered on her face. Despite everything, the distance, the pressure of school, the complicated feelings around her mom,knowing her dad would be there for her big day made her feel secure.
From the kitchen, Kathy peeked out. "You told him?"
Bella looked up and nodded. "Yeah. He's coming."
Kathy grinned. "Yes, we just have to plan our looks"
Bella laughed. "You already know."
The glow of Bella's phone screen lit up the dim room as a message notification popped in. She was still lounging on the couch when it buzzed. She picked it up lazily, expecting a group chat meme or a text from Justin.
But instead, it was a bank alert.
She blinked.
"Wait… what?" she said, sitting up straight.
Kathy, who was scrolling on her own phone across the room, raised her head. "What happened?"
Bella's mouth dropped slightly as she stared at her screen. "My dad just sent us three thousand dollars."
Kathy's phone slid out of her hand. "Three thousand dollars ?"
Bella nodded, still stunned. She opened her messages to see the follow-up text from her dad.
That should cover everything you and Kathy need for the matriculation. Let me know if it's not enough, okay?"
Kathy rushed over and sat beside her, peeking at the phone. "Whoa. Bella. That's insane."
"I didn't even ask for that much," Bella murmured, her voice low but impressed. "He's really serious about this whole matric thing."
Kathy giggled, picking up her phone. "Girl, now we have zero excuses not to slay. Let's plan this for real."
Bella nodded eagerly. The mood shifted from relaxed to excited in a second. She unlocked her phone, opened Instagram, and went straight into their saved outfit ideas. She had a folder titled "Matric Fits" and another called "Hair/Makeup Inspo."
Kathy pulled hers up too. "Okay, so I was thinking of something classy but extra. Maybe like that brown corset gown with the ruffle slit we saw yesterday."
Bella nodded. "That would look so good on you. I'm leaning toward that emerald green silk dress with the open back. Something that says, 'Yes, I'm here. Look at me.'"
They both laughed.
They began scrolling through Instagram, sending messages to verified and popular vendors they'd been following for weeks. Pages with names like @HouseOfSlay_, @LuxeGlamCloset, and @TailorLuxeuk. Each had clean feeds filled with glamorous matric looks, red carpet-worthy dresses, and imported curly wigs.
Bella tapped into a vendor's DM.
"Hi! Please I'd like to place an order for a custom dress. Matriculation event coming up. I have inspo ready."
Kathy was already voice noting a hair vendor.
They moved fast. In less than thirty minutes, they'd spoken with multiple vendors, gathered pricing, and agreed to fittings to be done during the week.
"Let's book our hair appointment for that morning," Kathy said. "You know how full they get on big days."
"Already did," Bella smirked, showing her screen. "Booked with TheLushStudio. She's coming to the apartment by 5am. That gives us time before it all starts."
Kathy clapped her hands once, grinning. "This is giving. The girls are not ready."
Bella laughed. "They've never been."
Then they both fell into conversation about their jewelry choices, shoe options, and how they would do minimal makeup, just to let the outfits and hair do the talking. The excitement was palpable, the energy buzzing.
"I swear, when we step out, even the mean girls will choke," Kathy added, throwing her hands up dramatically.
Bella leaned back, phone on her chest. "Let them. We've earned our spotlight."
The room was suddenly filled with that warm, glittery feeling of two girls living in the moment, proud of themselves, and ready to show the world what confidence looked like.
Bella was lying on her bed, scrolling through her saved outfits for the hundredth time when her phone buzzed. It was Justin.
Incoming call…
A small smile curled on her lips. She plugged in her earphones and picked up.
"Hey you," she answered casually, her voice soft.
"Hey, beautiful," Justin replied, his voice slightly deeper than usual, calm but with a warmth that made Bella's stomach flip a little. "What are you up to?"
"Just finalizing some stuff with Kathy… about our matric looks," she said, stretching slightly. "You?"
"I'm chilling. Thought about you and figured I'd call before bed."
"Aww," she giggled. "Look at you being all sweet."
"Don't get used to it," he joked, then quickly added, "Okay fine… maybe do."
They both laughed, then fell into a comfortable silence for a few seconds before Justin asked, "So, the big day is getting closer. You excited?"
Bella sat up, her tone brighter. "Of course I am. I'm actually low-key nervous though. It feels like a mini wedding with the amount of pressure it's coming with."
Justin chuckled. "Tell me about it. People are already hyping outfits, making bets about who'll slay. I heard someone say you and Kathy are going to shut down the whole campus."
Bella smiled. "Well… they're not wrong."
"Oh I know," he said confidently. "I already know you're going to look amazing."
Bella blushed slightly and tried to change the topic. "So what about you? You got plans?"
Justin leaned back on his bed, his eyes on the ceiling. "Yeah. John and I are planning to get our outfits ready by next week. We're going all black. I want to look sharp, something clean. I've got a tailor already working on it."
"Ouu… mister mysterious," Bella teased.
"I mean, gotta match the fly of my date, no?" he replied, his voice holding that flirty tone that always got Bella smiling.
She laughed, "Date? Did I say I was going with you?"
Justin paused, then said smoothly, "I didn't ask. I just knew."
Bella rolled her eyes, trying not to grin too hard. "Wow, so confident."
"Look, I'm already planning to take cute pictures with you, maybe get our names trending in the group chat."
"You're silly," she said between laughs.
"But for real though," Justin added more sincerely, "It's kind of a big deal for me. I haven't really celebrated anything in a while, and… I'm glad I'll be experiencing it with you around."
Bella's heart softened. She didn't say anything immediately. Instead, she just listened to the warmth in his voice.
"I'm glad too," she said quietly. "It's nice… having someone around like you."
They stayed like that for a while, chatting about little things, how the group chat had gone wild after the date announcement, how John was already hyped for the after-party.
"Promise you won't forget to take at least one good picture with me?" Bella said halfway into the call.
Justin laughed. "I was literally about to say the same to you."
"Great minds" she said
"Or just two people getting addicted to other's presence," he replied in a low voice.
Bella blinked and stared at her ceiling.
"Okay… you're not allowed to say stuff like that when I'm trying to act unbothered," she murmured.
Justin chuckled. "Then stop acting unbothered and just admit you miss me already."
Bella covered her face. "You win, okay? Happy?"
"Very," he said.
Their conversation drifted for another twenty minutes, full of laughter, a little teasing, and excited talks about the upcoming matriculation. It wasn't just about the event anymore, it was about the energy between them. Something was building. Something warm. Something soft.
And neither of them was running from it anymore.