So Far Yet So Close | HVL Fanfic

(19) Choose Me

MARCH 31, 2024
AROUND 3PM

HAILEY'S POV

The game of University of South Caroline VS. Oregon State just ended. The score was 70 to 50. It wasn't a close game. USC was just too good. I wish Lilia was there to play. It's a real bummer she only played one tournament, and it was only for two minutes. But even so, within those two minutes, she still managed to prove that she is a great player for South Carolina.

Speaking of Lilia, what she said to me last night stuck through my mind. She told me that she loves me. But is it a friendly love? Or does she also see me the way I see her?

What Flau'Jae told me at first was right. Lilia is hard to read. Not only in an intellectual sense but also in an emotional one.

Although, never mind that. I'm contemplating whether or not I should confess to her. Preferably, just the two of us. That's why I'll ask Nadine later about Lilia's situation. If she's still not that okay, I'll just do what I did yesterday. Go to their hotel. I know they're still here because I saw Lilia and her friends on the stands near the USC bench. Some of her teammates even patted her head.

I got back to the hotel. My roommate, Poa, was on her phone. I sat on her side of the bed, getting her attention. "Hey, Hailey!" She greeted me with a smile.

"May I ask you some advice?"

"Sure, go ahead." She gestured.

I took a deep breath. "Do you think I should confess to Lilia?" I asked her. "Am I making the right choice if I do?"

"Lilia? The girl who has a concussion? Do you like her?" She raised a brow at me.

I nodded, "Yeah? I thought I was already obvious when I went to South Carolina just to check on her."

"I thought you were just being a great friend."

"You would be a great historian, Poa." I teased her, and she laughed along. "Anyway. These past few days, before she got into an accident, we were close, and then the girl she liked went along. She completely forgot about me, then last night she said that she loves me." I summarized my experience with Lilia to Poa.

"Love in a platonic way or romantic way?"

I shrugged at her question. "I don't know, to be honest. But she did look at my mouth and my eyes before she said that, though."

"Does she still like the girl you said?" Poa asked me.

I recalled Lilia and I's hang out last night. It was a good time, but every once in a while, she lost focus. Which made me remember the one hindrance during that. Nadine. Every time she loses focus and then finds Nadine, I see her smile widely and wave.

I nodded at Poa's question. "Yes, probably. She still stares at her crush with so much love."

I heard Poa snicker, "Mixed signals. That's a red flag." She laughed at her statement.

"Don't say that. She's lovely." I argued.

"In all honesty, yeah. Tell her how you feel. The worst thing that'll happen is her forgetting that you did. Well, depending on her condition. Still, though, go for it." She adviced.

I smiled at her and nodded. "Will surely do."

I grabbed my phone and opened instagram to DM Nadine.

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Fel
nadinegaia_

heeyyy
how's lilia doing?