High School Popular

Chapter 6

Everything I Won't Say.

Tayler POV

I'm really not in the mood to talk to anyone right now... and the girls screaming around us? It's starting to give me a headache. We're in Grade 12—graduating soon—but not a single day goes by without chaos the moment we step into school.

I get it, we're famous. But would it hurt to have just a little privacy? Just a little peace? Sometimes, it all just feels too much.

The moment we entered the room, Froi and Russ immediately started playing with a basketball like little kids. They do that all the time. I wasn't really paying much attention—until I noticed they hit a girl. I don't know her, but for some reason, she looked familiar. Then again, I've never really cared about what's going on around me, so I don't even know most of my classmates. Just my friends. So I let them laugh at the girl who got hit and quietly took my seat without saying a word.

"D*mn it!" I bumped into someone, and the sauce from her food spilled all over my clothes.

My brows furrowed when she didn't say a word—just kept her head down. All I could see was her messy bun and the tray shaking slightly in her hands.

"You!" I pointed at her. "Who are you?"

"I-I'm sorry," she mumbled.

"Answer my d*mn question! Sino ka?!" I snapped, my voice rising with anger. I didn't care that people were watching us now—I was pissed, and I wasn't about to let this slide.

"B-Bricelle," she stammered. It was like something snapped me back to my senses the moment she looked at me and said her name.

So she's that girl. That's her name.

"Get out of my sight before I do something I'll regret." She looked at me, confused, brows slightly furrowed.

"Sabi nang alis!"

That day was the first time I ever encountered someone brave enough to stand firm against someone more popular—someone stronger—than her.

She looked fragile... quiet... like someone who'd easily back down. But she didn't. There was something about the way she held her ground, even with fear in her eyes, that caught me off guard.

I don't know why, but for a moment, I couldn't look away. Maybe it was her courage. Maybe it was the way her name suddenly meant something to me.

Bricelle. It stayed with me, echoing in the back of my mind long after she walked away.

"Tigilan n'yo nga ang boyfriend ko!"

Nang marinig ko ang sigaw na 'yon ay tumigil ang kaguluhan ng girls sa'kin. Then I felt someone's hand on mine, pulling it away from my face. I looked up—and there she was.

For a second, I froze. I didn't expect it to be her. Didn't expect that calm look in her eyes. No words. No judgment. Just... her. It threw me off. I'm not the type to get caught off guard, but there was something in that moment I couldn't shake.

I don't even know why it hit me like that—but it did.

And d*mn, I hated that it did.

"Be my girlfriend." I knew exactly what I was doing. I asked her to pretend to be my girlfriend—just to keep the girls away. I needed the noise to stop, the stares, the clinging. It was getting pathetic.

So I made a move. Simple. Clean. Strategic. Why her? Because she didn't follow me around like the rest of them. She wasn't desperate for my attention. She kept her head down and minded her own business. That's all I needed.