The moment I pushed him away, I turned back to the spot where I had last seen my mom, but she was gone. 
“YOU! IT’S YOUR FAULT! IF YOU HADN’T HUGGED ME, I WOULD HAVE SEEN MY MOM!” I screamed at him, tears welling up in my eyes. My voice trembled with a mix of anger and desperation. 
He furrowed his brow, turned to where I had been looking moments ago, and raised an eyebrow at me. 
“Your mother died eight years ago, so you’re just imagining things or hallucinating. I didn’t even hug you; I just placed my coat around your waist because you had a red stain on your shirt, tsk!” he said, rolling his eyes as he stormed off.
Could it be true? Was I really seeing things? And to add insult to injury, he was the one who witnessed my emotional breakdown! It was utterly embarrassing!
“SALAMAT!” I shouted after him, a blend of gratitude and frustration weaving through my tone, but he kept walking, ignoring me completely.
“BESSY!” I turned sharply at the sound of my best friend’s voice. 
Joy rushed towards me, breathless and a little panicked. “Where have you been? I’ve been looking for you!”
“I just had a mini-crisis. You wouldn’t understand,” I replied, trying to wave off the gravity of what had just happened.
“W-What?” she stuttered, clearly concerned. “I just needed to use the restroom. Let’s go home now.” She hopped onto my motorcycle.
“Wait! Let me rephrase that. I’ll drop you off at the dorm, then I’m heading home to Venn’s place, remember?” I teased, a grin creeping onto my face.
“Are you two sleeping beside each other? AYIEEE! Am I going to be a ninang?” she squealed exaggeratedly.
“HEH! Not a chance! I might end up kicking him to Mars!” I replied, slightly annoyed, but really just trying to act unfazed by my own embarrassment. I revved the engine, and off we sped towards the dorm.
As soon as I dropped her off, I decided to head straight to Venn's house. I parked my Ducati and made my way through the garden towards the main entrance.
“Why are you so late?” Venn greeted me coolly, his expression unreadable. 
Wow! Did he wait for me? Miracles do happen! I couldn’t help but laugh internally. 
“I was on a date; why do you care?” I shot back, raising an eyebrow in a teasing manner.
“Don’t even think about going on a date again! You should be home after school. If not, I’ll throw your things into the backyard!” he replied frostily before walking away from me.
Amazing! He was angry? How curious! If he can do whatever he wants, so can I. Besides, he has a girlfriend now.
I sulked my way upstairs to my room. As soon as I turned on the light, I was greeted by a life-sized purple teddy bear. It was stunning! I couldn’t help but run to it, scooping it up and rushing out of my room.
Where could Venn be? I searched his room, but he wasn’t there. I then headed down to the living room, but still, no sign of him.
“VENN!” I shouted when I finally spotted him and immediately enveloped him in a bear hug.
“W-What the?” he exclaimed, startled.
“THANK YOU FOR THIS!” I chirped happily, beaming up at him.
“Get off of me!” he pushed me away, and I landed on the floor.
I didn’t understand why his rejection felt so painful; I was overly sensitive, and I could feel tears starting to form in my eyes.
“I-I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to push you away! I-I was just scared of the teddy bear,” he stammered, concern evident in his voice as he helped me back up.
“All I wanted was to thank you for the teddy bear, but you said you’re scared. So why did you give it to me?” I asked, trying to hold back my sobs, genuinely puzzled.
“Someone left it in front of the gate, maybe your secret admirer,” Venn answered coldly, glancing at the teddy bear with disdain.
In a daze, I walked away from him. I couldn’t believe I had gotten the wrong idea. I thought he had given it to me, but it seemed I was mistaken. Who, then, had left it? 
I went back to my room to change into something decent since I wasn’t planning to do my assignment just yet. 
The shrill ring of my cellphone jolted me awake. I grabbed it without looking at the caller ID. 
“BESSY! Can I come over? I need to film for the assignment, and I need a partner,” Joy’s voice crackled through the line.
“Sure, just give me a minute to freshen up. I just woke up,” I mumbled, feeling sleepy still, before ending the call.
To wake myself up, I opened Facebook to check our group chat. Maybe they posted directions for our assignment.
“POLARIS SECTION”
**PROFESSOR BERNAL (MUSIC): ANNOUNCEMENT! FOR THE ASSIGNMENT THAT REQUIRES PARTNERS, YOUR DANCE PARTNER WILL ALSO BE YOUR PARTNER FOR THE VIDEO. PLEASE DO NOT REPLY, OR I WILL BLOCK YOU ALL, CHAROT!”
I couldn’t help but laugh when I realized that Barbie was my partner for the dance. No surprise whatsoever!
*KRINGGGG*
“Bessy, it seems we aren’t partners for this project because your partner is your own husband,” Joy’s sad voice echoed from the other end.
“H-Hala! I completely forgot about that! Ugh!” I facepalmed, exhaling dramatically.
“Okay, Bessy, see you tomorrow! Good luck!” she said cheerfully before hanging up. 
WHHHAAAA! Good luck, indeed.
*Knock knock*
I immediately closed my eyes, tucked under the blanket, and pretended to be asleep. It was an old trick, but I thought it might work, at least for a moment. 
“Don’t act like you’re sleeping! I know you’re awake! I heard your conversation with Joy,” Venn said sarcastically as he walked in.
“YOU’RE SUCH A SNITCH!” I shot back in irritation, sitting up to face him properly.
“We have to prepare for the music video, so dress appropriately. Dress like a lady, not a tomboy,” he added, scrutinizing me from head to toe. 
Tomboy? I was wearing a simple jersey short and loose shirt! Why did he care? Tsk! He smirked before leaving the room.
I marched toward my walk-in closet and picked out a lovely sleeveless dress that fell just below my knees, featuring a cross-back design. After a quick half-bath, I powdered my face lightly and applied some lip gloss. Simple yet elegant! I thought to myself that simplicity is beauty, hoping he would notice. 
When I came downstairs, I decided to flaunt my look a little.
“Am I beautiful?” I teased, striking a pose in front of him.
“Yeah, it’s okay,” was his dry reply, and he went back to tuning his guitar.
“Ugh! What do we even need to do?” I asked, irritated as I plopped down on the sofa.
*DING DONG*
Venn stood up to answer the doorbell. 
“Hamissyuuuuuuu! Cousin! So, are you guys ready?” he said, and I couldn’t help but stand up in shock as I recognized the girl standing there—a tall girl, dressed in jogger pants and a sports bra, her hair tied up in a messy ponytail as she looked like she had just come from the gym.
“HIIIII! I’M KYTHE RHEA MEA ARCENAL, BUT YOU CAN CALL ME KYTHE!” she beamed, rushing towards me and hugging me tightly.
Whoa! Who is this girl, and why is she here?
“I forgot to mention! I’m Ellinox Venn’s second cousin. Actually, I’m moving to your school tomorrow since my new house is just next door!” she explained, her smile wide. “By the way, I’m going to be taking your video, I hope you won’t mind.”
Ah, that explains everything! Okay then, let’s do this!