GrandView High

~SEVENTEEN💙~

ILHAM'S POV

Midterms had officially begun, and the stress in school was palpable. The air felt heavier, classrooms were filled with the frantic flipping of textbook and notebook pages, and everyone seemed on edge. It was the worst time to be holding a grudge, yet I was still mad at Riri and Aasiyah.

I had ignored their messages and calls, their attempts to talk to me, even their concerned glances in class. But as I sat at my desk, rereading the same past exam question for the third time, my frustration wasn't aimed at them anymore—it was at myself.

I missed them.

I missed Aasiyah's unwavering support and the way she always knew what to say. I missed Riri's sharp comebacks and how she could make me laugh even on my worst days. And, if I was being honest, I was tired of being mad.

So, after my computer science paper, I finally caved.

I found them waiting in the hallway that led to the quad, their faces filled with hesitation and hope as they spotted me approaching.

Aasiyah spoke first. "Ilham, can we please talk?"

I sighed, crossing my arms. "I'm listening."

Riri and Aasiyah exchanged a look before Riri stepped forward. "I know we should've told you about Kamil and me." She took a deep breath. "But it wasn't what you think. It wasn't something we planned, and we didn't want things to be weird"

"We still don't," Aasiyah added.

I frowned. "Then why keep it from me?"

"Because it wasn't something we could even admit to ourselves, let alone you," Riri said quietly. "And Kamil was the one who shut it down first."

I stared at them, my anger fading into something else—something softer.

Riri continued, "I was mad at him for making that decision for both of us, so I just tried to move on and forget about it. But it didn't work, he came to beg me saying he didn't want us to stop anymore and it only made everything worse because it was emotionally draining for me."

Aasiyah sighed. "Ilham, no matter what, you're our friend first. We'd never intentionally hurt you or want to keep things from you."

There was a long pause before I finally muttered, "I hate how much sense you're making."

Aasiyah cracked a small smile. "So... does this mean we're good?"

I looked at both of them, exhaling before shaking my head in disbelief. "I swear, you two are impossible." Then, finally, I smiled. "We're good."

Riri grinned, pulling me into a tight hug. "You are so dramatic."

"Says the girl who started all this drama." I rolled my eyes but hugged her back.

Aasiyah joined in, squeezing us both. "Okay, group hug before Ilham changes her mind."

I laughed, shaking my head. "Let's just survive these exams first."

~~~~~~

The last day of midterms was the day before our friendly swim competition to decide who was going for the state swim competition at Oakridge, and despite how drained we all were from exams, Coach Bello made practice mandatory. The team had been preparing for weeks, and he wasn't about to let us slack off now.

After finishing our papers for the day, we made our way to the natatorium but our coach wasn't there yet so we just sat in the bleachers waiting.

Aasiya was cleaning her camera lenses. She did photography for the swim team and she was always tehre for competitions and some practice days.