Goal: A Normal Life

For Granted [CAIUS]

Parker's POV

Athena was everything we've ever wanted.

She was the sun in my world and always had been. When I first met her, I was mesmerized even as a child, I knew what beauty was the moment I locked eyes with her.Her long black hair and bright eyes had a strong effect on all of us.

We would do anything to see her smile. I would give up anything and everything just so she stays happy.As years passed by, I slowly gained the confidence to confess to her.

We were in eighth grade and I stayed up the whole night to prepare chocolates. I knew how she liked her sweets and I wanted to be the one who personally made them. She was a very sentimental woman, to her, the small things were what mattered the most.

A week prior, I had already slowly started crafting every individual paper roses. She gushed on and on about them a month ago so I figured to do it for her as well. What more perfect opportunity to do it than on Valentine's Day?

She was on duty as the class representative so I waited patiently outside of school. I remembered that I left something in our classroom, and turned back but right before I could open the door, I could hear her talk to one of our classmates.

"What would you do if any of your childhood friends confessed to you? Can't be impossible now, can't it?" from the voice, I could tell that it was Rosa. It went silent for a while so I glanced nervously at her back.

I couldn't see her facial expression but I feared the worst.

"Impossible. They don't like me that way...We're definitely like siblings, all they do is tease me. I love them but I don't think it's up to that extent..he..uldn't...me...that...way..It's purely platonic.." She explained.

Some of her words were unaudible but I could make out enough of them to understand what she said. I fully understood that she didn't say anything wrong but...how come it hurts?

She only cared for me like she would a brother. I never expected how much the word brother would sting. I didn't know what to do but when I heard her packing up her things, I knew I had to run.

But when I did, I never noticed that Cecil was also behind me, listening to the conversion. When our eyes met, it was at that moment that I realized that I wasn't the only one in love with her.The pain I felt, I saw them being reflected back to me with his eyes.We didn't speak about it for a few days and within those days, I couldn't look at Athena's eyes at all.

I knew she was starting to pick up on it and I had to get over it. But I couldn't.

No one told me that being rejected without even having the chance to confess would hurt this bad. I was walking down the hallway when I saw Cecil at the end. He motioned with his hand that I followed him and it led to a vacant room.

When we got in, I didn't expect that the rest of them would be in there too. We had a conversation that I never thought I'd have with them. I knew that Cecil was in love with Athena but the rest? I didn't expect it. I suppose I get what she meant now. I mean, the signs were all there but because it became a habit for us to treat her like the precious treasure she is to us, she wouldn't see beyond it.

We made a promise to each other that we wouldn't confess just yet and wait for the time when she's ready. We will all try to win her heart fair and square and whoever she fell for, we wouldn't complain.

But as the years pass by, we all eventually had to choose which path we wanted to go through and Stone was the first to explore that. He told us that he had confided in Athena first because we all understood that she always knew what to say.