A Trip Down Memory Lane

Chapter Twenty-one: Paparazzi

POV: Unknown 1

Megu, my little sister, and I had a fun time on the shoreline. It's very different to Celestia's seashore in which is much occupied, crowded and lively. In our place's version, it is gentle, tranquil and soothing.

We took pictures of ours in different spots while the wind made our hair fly and the waves touched our feet. Yea, we were soaked that time, but the bottomline is we enjoyed the scenery much. It's been light years since the last time we got here and so many memories came back to my head. Like, we used to play here and relish the totality of the place where the palm trees are always swaying, the waves are crashing and the wind is continuously blowing like there's no tomorrow.

Photography is my hobby that's why I really love to capture every single moment of our stay there. 'Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder', is a saying that I truly believed in. I appreciate everything, everyone around me is unique and has a beauty on its own.

The first thing I did when we went home was to turn on my laptop and inserted the memory card of my 'Nikon D3300 DLSR camera'. But before I check, pick and edit the images we captured, I opened first my social media accounts. As I browsed my newsfeed, one post caught my eye. It was a shared post of my schoolmate that says, 'Sorry boys, Annika Madrigal is taken.' I clicked the post but regretted it instantly. I saw pictures of Annika with her alleged boyfriend.

Tch. Of all the boys, why him? The one who I SECRETLY loved the most,

....

...

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FOR A LONG TIME....

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

POV: Annika

I'm in our room waiting for Suzy to came back from their camping. I received a text message from her that she's so many stories to tell. I can't wait to hear all of them.

While waiting, I got bored that I opened her computer and checked my social media accounts.

I'm surprised that I have an enormous amount of messages and notifications appearing in the top rightmost of my screen. These are not the regular numbers I see every time I opened my accounts.

I opened first the 'messages' button and then I saw messages from my showbiz friends and mostly to the fans asking one question, "Is it actually true?"

What true? I asked myself.

There is also a common internet link in each of those messages. I ignored all of them because I thought it's a virus.

Moreover, I checked the notifications button and in there, I am tagged to a link which says that I have a... boyfriend? WTF?

Curiosity came in that I clicked the link, nothing to expect.

I read the headline, 'Sorry boys, Annika Madrigal is taken'. I almost spat the computer screen with the coffee I'm holding. What the 'F' is going on? Even I left the showbiz, for now, this kind of issues still haunts me.

I don't know what to feel.

As I clicked the link, I read the paparazzi article and it says:

Our beloved teen idol, Annika, is allegedly in a relationship right now with a young man . Our sources confirmed that he is Annika's classmate and the two are always together in their school and they were spotted roaming in some public places in a small town of Celestia and a mall in Pyxis. We have some exclusive pictures to prove this.

I browsed the pictures and I saw the picture of us together in different occasions. These are some sneaky pictures!

Picture 1: This was when we bought some things in the market and we were paying the cashier.

Picture 2-5: These are the moments in Vermilion mall when I asked him to bring my newly bought things.

Picture 3-7: These are the moments when we ate in a Japanese restaurant. They captured when we were laughing together and when I taught him to use chopsticks.

Picture 8: When we entered the Arcade Game Center.

Picture 9-12: When we were singing together 'When You Say Nothing At All' in an open karaoke machine. There are also video clips attached to it.

Picture 13: Wtf? I did this? When we rode the train, I slept to his shoulder? Seriously?

And many more! I didn't finish browsing all of those. People nowadays are so creative in creating stories. Damn these paparazzi! Why do they do this kind of stuff? Do they have their own life?

I also read the comment section. Some of them seem like the idea. But most of them are outrageous comments.

I feel bad for Zieg. I think I dragged him to this situation. I am the only public figure here, I know how to handle these kinds of situations. But him? He is just a normal man with a normal life.

But you know what? I'll just ignore this kind of stuff. I don't care what people will say. Even I deny this, there are still people who will not believe me. Let them speculate. I've been in this kind of position before. It will not last long.

As for Zieg, I'll talk to him as soon as we meet. I'll explain things to him.

The next day, XII-2A's Classroom, CCS

I arrived in our room and its almost 'time'. Leah, my classmate, greeted me, "Good morning Annika! You didn't tell us personally that... you know."

"I know what?" I really do know what she's talking about. I expected this to happen.

"You know.. AZ and you. I feel bad that I learned it on the internet. Sad face."

"You believe in that too? We're just friends."

"Really?"

See that! Even I deny it, there are some people will insist.

"Yup!"

"Too bad. I think the two of you are cool together. Yeee!" she continued to tease me.

As soon as I heard it, it feels like a sweet tune music ringing in my ear. I can't explain it. I don't know what just happened.

I went to my seat and greeted my seatmate, Aeri, "Good morning Aeri!"

She seems not in the mood, "Oh, hi Nika. Good morning."

"Are you okay?" I asked.

"Yup. I marathoned 'The Game of Thrones' last night. I forgot that we have classes today."

"Eh? It's funny Aeri."

Minutes later, I was surprised to my classmates because they screaming, "Aaaayyyieee!"

I'm confused at first, and then I saw Zieg just entered our room. The moment I saw him, my heart went nuts and excited. My blood rushed through my veins and I felt my body temperature rose up suddenly. What is happening to me? Asdfghjk.

*12/14/2015