"Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end."
-Seneca
Good Morning, Gabrielle! Have a nice day! -H💋

☔︎・☔︎・☔︎

"Thanks, dad. I'll see you later," I told my dad before we waved each other goodbye. He drifted off while I turned around.

As I look at the blue building in front of me, I can't contain my excitement. Even though everybody hated this place, I, on the other hand, love this place. Not just 'cause I am one of the most popular but also because of the boy I admired for a very long time now.

I finally opened the door and I was greeted by a lot of smiling faces. I greeted them back but, of course, one greeting stood out from all the rest, "Gabbieeee!!!" I turned around and there I saw my best friend, Faith running towards me.

"Woah there, gurl! What's up?" I asked, laughing.

"Nothing. I just missed you!" She hugged me.

"Okaayyy? Hey, Have you seen Xander today?" I excitedly asked.

"Why are you asking me? We're not close," she said and I sighed.

"Anyways. Why are you happy? Is Ian the reason why you're happy?"

"Maybeee!!" she said and I shook my head. Faith told me Ian's surprise for their anniversary and all that relationship goals stuff that I have never experienced.

While she was narrating, Ian picked her up from behind and spun her around before setting her down and giving her a kiss.

"Okay! The two of you, get a room or something. You guys are disgusting!" I said, crossing my arms.

"Oh, hey, Gabbie. Didn't see you there. What triggered the bitter bee today?" Ian asked.

"The two of you make me realize that it sucks not having a boyfriend!" I said and they both laughed.

"Jay's pretty available, Gab. May—"

"Oh no! No! No! Faith, you did not just go to the Jay topic. Jay's my best friend and you know that," I said, cutting her off.

"But Jay likes you!" Hope said.

"And Shine likes Jay," I crossed my arms.

"And you like Xander," Ian butted in.

"But who does Xander like?" Faith asked.

"Me! I have to go. This conversation is over," I said before walking away.

Not long after that, the bell rang and I went to my first class.

☔︎・☔︎・☔︎

"Someone's awfully quiet," Danica said, referring to me. We are now at the cafeteria having lunch.

"I'm not in the mood, Nics," I said while picking on my food.

"What's her problem?" Jay asked Ian.

"Xander's not around," Faith answered.

"It's not that!" I said, placing my fork down abruptly.

"Don't you lie to me, Marina Gabrielle. I know you too well." Faith crossed her arms.

"It's just that I feel like my day's incomplete without me staring at him for like ten minutes or something like that," I sighed.

"Please help this girl, dear Lord. She is in serious need of gui—" I threw a fork at her.

"Audrey Faith Ferrer, stop!"

"Baby, the lion on the other side of this table wants to eat me alive!" She hid behind Ian's back. All of them laughed while I just rolled my eyes.

She's right. I'm not in the mood because Xander's not around. It's just that... Xander is like my vitamins. Just seeing him for only a minute makes me feel better. I've been admiring him for 2 years now and since then, he hasn't noticed me yet. I may be one of the popular kids in school but he still hasn't talked to me or even just glanced back at me.

After eating, we all went to our respective classes. I walked with Shine to our next class.

"Hey, Gab. Don't feel down. I'm sure he'll be here tomorrow." She smiled at me.

I sighed. "I'm sorry for my behavior today, but y'all know that I need my daily dose of Xander," I said and she chuckled.

When we reached our room, we sat down together and chatted for a while before we saw our teacher burst through the door.

☔︎・☔︎・☔︎

"Gabrielle?" Our Performing Arts Club adviser called me.

"Yes, miss?" I said, raising both my eyebrows and I gave her a small smile.

"Would it be alright if you direct our next small play? I really liked the directing you did on the last major play we had. Everything was very organized."

"I would love to. It would be a pleasure, miss."

"So we're all set. Casting for our play will be tomorrow. I trust in you, Gabrielle to find the perfect match for these roles," she raised the script for the play.

"You can count on me, miss," I gave her a reassuring smile.

"Alright. Meeting is adjourned. Thank you for coming," she said and walked to the piano at the side of the stage. We stood up from our seats and walked to the exit. I was about to go out of the door when I saw Jay at the side waiting for me.

"Jay? What are you doing here?" I asked.

"Your dad can't pick you up because he and your mom are out on a date," he said and I rolled my eyes. "He called me to take you home."

"Alright. Let's go," I said and pushed the auditorium door. It wasn't a long walk from the auditorium to the parking lot. After getting in the car, we were off.

"You seem better than a while ago."

"Only because I'll be directing the next play," I chirped.

"Really? Then I expect this play to be great, Gabcake," he said and I glared at him. "What?"

"You know I hate it when you call me Gabcake, right?" I crossed my arms.

"Why do you think I call you that anyway?" he retorted.

"Then I'll just call you Jayie-poo again!"

"Marina Gabrielle!"

"Can y'all just stop blurting out my first and second name! It's getting annoying," I placed my hands in my ear, pretending that I heard something deafening.

He laughed. "Cry no more, little one. We're here," he said and stopped the car in front of our house.

"Wanna come in? You could play video games with my brother," I said, grabbing my stuff.

"It's fine, Gab. Athena needs a big strong brother right now and I also have a lot of homework."

"Alright, then. See you tomorrow, Jay," I said, getting out of the car.

"See ya tomorrow, Gab," he said before I closed the car door. After watching him leave, I opened our front door.

"Bunso! Ate's home!" I yelled at my brother who is probably just playing video games in his room. I really feel delighted whenever I call my younger brother bunso which is a Filipino word for youngest sibling/child and also he is so cute when he calls me ate which is a Filipino word for older sister.

When I didn't get a response back, I walked up to his room and as I've expected, he is playing video games. I cleared my throat and that is when he faced me.

"Hi, ate! Didn't see you there," he said before going back to his beloved video game.

"How long have you been seating there?"

"Since mom and dad left. That is like 5 hours ago."

"The f*ck, Max! Mom said you can't play beyond 2 hours!" I shouted while my eyes are still widened from what he said. Mom and dad always limit his use of gadgets because they don't want Max to have poor eyesight. One of the reasons is I have poor eyesight and it's because I watch way too much television. Now, I have to wear lenses which sucks.

"Mom's not here, ate so shut up."

"Abaaa!! Bunso is disrespecting his ate," I placed my right hand in my mouth, pretending to be shocked.

"Stop overreacting, ate," he rolled his eyes. I tackled him to the ground and showered him with tickles.

"Ate! Stop!" he said, laughing.

"This is what you get for messing with your Ate Gabbie."

"Alright, alright. I'm sorry," he said and I let go of him. "Look! I lost because of you!"

"Your game is rubbish anyway. Wanna watch a movie?" I asked and he sighed.

"Fine, but you microwave the popcorn," he said before standing up and shutting down his game console. I just nodded and went to my room to fetch some clothes and the movie that we'll be watching.

☔︎・☔︎・☔︎

"Thanks, dad. I'll see you later," I said while grabbing my bag from the back. He always takes me to school because he wanted to protect my well-being? I always wanted a car, but they wouldn't buy me one!

"Wait, Ariel!" He said and I looked at him. "Where's my kiss?"

"What am I? 10?"

"Oh, alright. I understand that you think you're too old to greet your father goodbye by giving him a—" I cut him off by giving him a hug and a kiss on the cheek.

"Love you, dad. You are the greatest father a little mermaid can ever ask for."

"I know. Now, go. I'll see you later, Ariel."

"See ya later, Dad," I said before closing the car door. I watched him leave before I entered school. I walked to my locker to get some stuff.

When I opened my locker, a piece of paper fell to the floor. I picked it up and read what's inside. My eyebrows furrowed after reading, thinking of who could've sent this to me.

Dear Brielle,
I've had the biggest crush on you for the longest time. I always have to watch you from afar. I really wanted to tell you how I feel but every time I try, I get scared. I am writing this letter to tell you that I like you and I hope that someday, I would be brave enough to tell you face to face.

Yours Truly,
Your secret admirer ♡