STORY 2. Parallel Lines
I met Jonathan when I was in 6th grade while our entire grade was rehearsing for our graduation. He was a cute mischievous little boy who had chubby cheeks and a center part. That was the trendiest hairstyle back then 😂. We weren't friends then, I didn't even know his name, but he loved to bother me. He would always do things to catch my attention. Whether it be taking away my song sheet, tugging my hair, or just snatching anything that I was fidgeting with. I didn't mind, though, because I had a tiny crush on him back then 😝. When our graduation finally arrived, he was nowhere in sight and I thought that was the last time that I would get to see him. But lo and below, when I reached high school, he was my school mate.
I wanted to say hi to him, ask him how he was but it seemed that he doesn't remember me. So I pretended not to know him as well. We still became friends though, as he was a dancer like Anna, Keith, and Ryan. In fact, before I became close to Keith and Ryan, he and Anna were my closest friends. We would often loiter in his house when there were no classes. And I was his default passenger when we had road trips. Sometimes I would even have naps at his place. He was like a brother to me. He calls me Lil sis and I called him Big bro even though I was older by 3 days. I still had a crush on him, but I kept it to myself because I was happy enough to have that kind of friendship with him. Unfortunately, we slowly started to drift apart in our second year in high school when he got a new motorbike and a lot of girls started giving him attention. Some would even flirt with him so that they'll get to ride his shiny new motor. Pathetic creatures. 🙄He became a snob and he seldom hangs out with us. Other than school, I would only see him when he was rehearsing with Anna and Keith. After their rehearsals, he wouldn't even stay to chat, he would say just tell us he was busy and he would take off on his mighty steed. This was when I started getting close to Ryan and Keith. And when all the drama from STORY 1 happened.
When we reach our 3rd year of high school and all the drama finally died down, Jonathan started hanging with us again. Perhaps he came back to his senses and realized that owning a bike wasn't that much of a big deal. He had a girlfriend then but she didn't hang out with because she was a year younger and simply because she had a different circle of friends. His time was divided but it was still nice to have the old Jonathan back. Their relationship was rather rocky. They always had petty fights and they were constantly on and off. Regardless, Jonathan was happy with her and that's what matters.
When we were in our senior year, I had my second serious relationship with a guy a lot older than me, but that story's for another time 😉. Around January I broke up with him because I caught his cheating, lying, ass with another girl who was not half as attractive as I am. Ahem. But you know what they say, "Bitchiness beats beauty." Ahem 10x. But I didn't want to wallow in my sorrows. I distracted myself, kept myself busy, and I refused to be alone. Being constantly surrounded by supportive friends greatly helped. We were hanging out one time, and Jonathan was in the midst of his celebratory dance because he and his girlfriend got back together again for the 100th time. We were happy for him of course. As a stupid joke, I suddenly said, "Who's single? I need a boyfriend." Of course. Anna called me crazy and we just laughed it off. But Jonathan suddenly stopped what he was doing and said, "Why didn't you tell me you were single. Had I known, I wouldn't have gotten back with my girlfriend." I was speechless. The room was silent like we didn't know how to react. Like what???? Somehow, we decided to ignore his statement and we didn't talk about it since.
March came and we were nearing our high school graduation. One afternoon after graduation rehearsals, the group decided to have a picnic. We were on a small hill overlooking our small town. We sang, laughed, and talked about everything under the sun. We were cherishing our time together. In our minds, perhaps after high school some of us might go to different cities and we might not see each other again. I was admiring the view of the town when Jonathan sat beside me and we talked.
"Do you remember how we first met?" I asked as I looked at him.
"Yes, during rehearsals for our Elementary graduation. You were so cute and chubby." He teased as he grinned while still looking at the scenery.
"I thought you didn't remember. You acting like you didn't know me when we were in our first year."
"I was surprised to see you. And I was shy to say hi to you. You were my crush after all." Jonathan said as he looked at me. Immediately my face felt hot and I didn't know how to respond.
"Shut up!" I manage to blurt out as I smiled awkwardly and diverted my eyes from him to the scenery hoping I wasn't blushing.
"I'm serious! There were so many times when I wanted to confess you but.."
"But why didn't you?"
"When were freshmen, I wanted to confess to you but I thought you had a boyfriend already." He said.
"Do know they were all rumors," I said as I rolled my eyes.
"I know. When I found out they were just rumors, I was already dating Jenny. When we broke up, you were already dating Evan. When you and Evan broke up. I thought it was my chance but I found out that Ryan and Keith were both interested in you and I didn't want to make things more complicated. When you announced that you were single and I got back together with my girlfriend, I also meant what I said then." He said.
"Why didn't you tell me?" I asked.
"Had I confess, would you have said yes?"
"Yes," I said. "I liked you since 6th grade. I was happy to be friends with you. I got sad when you dated Jenny. I was sad when you changed and distanced yourself from us. The only reason why Ryan and Keith got close was that you weren't there anymore. And when you said that I should have told you I was single, I was glad because I thought my feelings were not one side." I continued with a smile. And he sadly smiled back.
"I'm glad I knew you. We might be together but I love you and I will always be here for you." He said. "Perhaps, if we did starting dating then, we would still be together." He added.
"Perhaps," I answered as I rested my head on his shoulder.
And that was that. After graduation, I studied college in another city. We seldom communicate, and we were both busy with our own lives. We became very different people but we remained friends. Nothing changed between us. We just accepted the fact that regardless of how we feel, we weren't meant to be. Just like parallel lines, always side by side but never really together.
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