I Think This is Love
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Tatiana Mendoza
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18,8K
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38
Something's wrong...
That's what always nags at Gabriela whenever she sees Kevin Saldivar, the cousin of her crush, Francis Saldivar. Kevin is the ultimate St. Therese royalty: star athlete, everyone’s friend, and devastatingly handsome. But while the rest of the school swoons, Gabriela knows a fraudster is hiding behind the golden boy's mask.
Now a high school senior, Gabriela plans to make Francis notice her. But to get close to the kind-hearted and brilliant boy she's pined for since sixth grade, Gabriela needs to deal with Kevin, the very person she'd rather avoid!
Chapter 1: Prologue
GABBY
“GABBY!!!”
“Oh, what the heck—?!” I scream, dropping my spoon and fork on the cafeteria floor with a clatter.
Kaye’s voice is shrill, like she’s swallowed a microphone. I am not entirely sure how my ears haven’t fallen off since we became friends four years ago. Maybe this year will be the year? Knock on wood!
“Why are you yelling? What do you want?” I ask, picking up my utensils and wiping the dirt off with a napkin. Lunch is officially over for me—I’m not that hungry anyway.
I pack up my lunch box, although my ears are perked up, ready to pick up any signs of the impending arrival of my crush. Janine and Kaye, my best friends, continue enjoying their meals.
“Geez, I’ve been talking and talking, and you’re not listening. Where’s your mind off to? Are you daydreaming again?” Kaye grumbles, munching on her sausage.
Yes, maybe I am daydreaming again. Exams devoured my time a couple of weeks ago, and I bet Francis was busy too, so I couldn’t see him at all. I miss him terribly. He should be here by now. Where is he?
“Aren’t you used to it?” Janine chimes in, giggling.
Kaye scowls. “Yeah, I should be. It’s my fault for wanting to chat with my bestie—”
“Ssh!” I say, lifting a finger to my lips. “He’s here!”
Kaye’s mouth is still moving, but I don’t really hear anything as everything else goes into slow motion. My heart isn’t agreeing, however, as it speeds up wildly against my rib cage.
Francis walks into the cafeteria, his thick, black hair sticking up a little at the ends, his glasses hiding the warmest eyes I’ve ever seen. He waves. Not at me, of course, but at someone else. But who cares? I’ve been recharged!
He’s drawing closer, and I swallow. Over and over and over. And then I choke and my saliva gets stuck in my tonsils. Is that even possible?
But the energy shifts as I inevitably realize that he isn’t alone. He’s with…Kevin. The guy I don’t want to be associated with. He probably thinks the same of me, anyway. I can’t conjure any justification off the top of my head, but I have this odd feeling that he’s…hiding something. As if beneath his smiles lies a different person.
People naturally get pulled by Kevin’s charm because he’s the basketball team’s MVP and is, admittedly, good-looking. I’m not one of those people.
I’m Francis’s people. He often gets overshadowed by Kevin, but I will never not see him. I gotchu, F.
The important thing to note here is that Kevin and Francis are cousins, and they are practically inseparable. They’re like twins! So, as expected, students slowly trickle down and form a crowd around them, completely blocking my view.
“Yikes, there are too many people,” I whisper, frustrated.
“Then why don’t you do something about it?”
“Like what?” I respond, extending my neck a little in the hopes of having a glance. I can’t see anything.
Frowning, Kaye urges, “Like joining that crowd. Come on, I thought you might at least introduce yourself? Before we graduate?”
I wince, my lips sealed. That’s true. I’ve vowed that I’ll do whatever it takes so that Francis gets to know me. Even just my name will make me happy. However, the first quarterly exams have just ended, and I am still stuck here. Far away.
It’s just that…I have no clue what to say to him. He probably doesn’t even recognize me. He won’t be rude because he’s so incredibly kindhearted, but I’m scared of the tiny chance that he might ignore me. I won’t be able to recover from that. Dead.
“Why don’t you force yourself into that circle and give him something? I’ve seen people do that to Kevin, and it seems to work just fine,” Kaye suggests. “Also, you’re going to speak to Francis. He’s definitely…unoccupied.”
I shoot her a glare. “What do you mean by that?”
She shrugs casually, dismissing my irritation. “I won’t be surprised if he melts into a puddle since you stare way too much without doing anything.”
I bare my teeth.
What can I do? Although I desperately want to approach him and introduce myself…it isn’t as simple as just walking up to him. I’m average-looking. Average height. Average grades. He’s slated to be the class valedictorian, while I’m in a lower section.
If I’m ever asked about a cool fact about me, I wouldn’t be able to say anything. I camouflage into the background. Which is what I prefer. I don’t want the attention.
“Kaye is right, you know,” Janine concurs.
“See?” Kaye grabs my unopened can of juice and clutches my hand, dragging me from my chair. My skirt nearly catches on the edge.
“What are you doing?” I ask, half freaking out, half confused.
“Come,” she insists as we walk toward the forbidden circle. Panic rises to my throat as I try to resist.
“No, no, Kaye!”
“Shh! Just give this to him. This is his favorite, right?”
I struggle to loosen her grip from my hand. Kaye is about five inches taller than me with the strength comparable to three dudes. As the president of the karate club, she easily overpowers me.
Gasping, I try to steal the can from Kaye, but my arms aren’t long enough, my feet sliding on the floor as she drags me with her. Students are looking at us. My nerves are overstimulated. I don’t want people looking at me.
Fueled by an adrenaline rush, I finally manage to get hold of the can. Kaye doesn’t make it easy as we push and pull like madwomen.
“Gabby, we’re just handing it over! You’re just gonna make yourself visible, okay?”
“No, it’s fine!” I refuse, trying to yank the juice away from her.
Good news: the can slips out of her fingers. Bad news: it flies into the very direction I’ve intended to avoid at all costs—right into Francis’s group.
Yikes.
“Kaye!” I groan.
“Hey, that’s not my fault,” she murmurs, defensive but without a tinge of remorse. “You shouldn’t have tried to take it!”
The air shifts, the background noise dissipating into an uneasy silence. I’m not sure what exactly happened, but my gut tells me that we’ve messed up. More eyes are on me. I hate this. I hate this. I hate this…
“Who threw this over to me?”
My jaw hangs. I know that voice—it isn’t my favorite, but I can tell who owns it without fail.
“K-Kevin?” I stammer, spinning on my heel to face their direction.
The throng of students surrounding them begins to disperse like startled birds. Good news: I can see Francis now. Bad news: Kevin is clutching the can of juice, his glare icy and fixated on me. His forehead is flushed red. Like something has hit him.
Oh, no.
Of all the people here, why does it have to be Kevin?!
“You,” he says, pointing a finger at me. His tone is deceptively calm, but I’m not fooled. I’ve always had my reservations about Kevin.
I can tell that he’s angry, which is definitely justified. The red mark on his forehead is swelling by the second.
“Is this yours?”
“Sorry,” I reply, aware of the murderous looks everyone’s shooting at me. “I didn’t mean to. It was an accident.”
Never in my whole life did I imagine I’d apologize to this guy. And why is it just me? I swear, I’ll get Kaye for this!
Kevin keeps his fiery gaze fixed on me, and I’m getting antsy, sweat prickling my back and temples. I gulp, feeling the pressure to say something. What should I do? Should I beg for his forgiveness? Kevin’s? Right in front of Francis? No way.
“It’s okay.”
Thank goodness—wait, what?
I was so sure Kevin would start yelling. I wouldn’t have been shocked if he retaliated by throwing the can back at me. Instead, his eyes, once dark and furious, have softened.
Whispers emerge, many singing Kevin praises for his benevolence toward a nobody like me. I want to cringe and vanish. This whole thing is so frustrating!
Kevin smiles so widely it could be a toothpaste commercial. Worse, he saunters over to me, places the can in my palm, and then repeats, “It’s okay.”
I can’t say anything. I’ve never actually seen him up this close. Broad-shouldered, he is so tall that the top of my head only reaches his chest. My attention shifts to the lump on his forehead, and a shiver courses down my back.
Deep down, I can still sense hostility… But am I overthinking this?
