Dear Love,
What I thought would be just an ordinary first day of school turned out to be the beginning of a story—one where you and I play the lead. It was the strangest day, yet it changed my world completely. And all of it happened... because of you.
Yours truly,
Valentine
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IT'S THE FIRST day of classes at Nacionales State University. Students filled the place—quietly seated while listening to the chancellor speaking onstage in the university gymnasium.
It's the first day of my first year in senior high school. I enrolled under the STEM program, which aligns with the pre-med course I plan to take in college. As preparation, I still have two years to complete before graduation. Starting today, I'm training myself to give my best in everything. And just like the past years in middle school, I've always worked hard. I don't let myself slack off, and I definitely don't allow anyone to distract me. So now, here I am.
"And to give the speech on behalf of all the senior high school freshmen here in our university, let's call on the outstanding student who ranked first in last year's DAS Exam—Ms. Valentine Keziah Andres!"
That's me.
I stood up as soon as I heard my name. I could also hear the shock rippling around the gym. They didn't expect it would be me—or maybe they were simply amazed that out of nearly a thousand freshmen who enrolled this year, I ranked first.
"Wow! She's our top one?" a student beside me whispered.
Who else would it be? I thought.
"She's so pretty! Her hair is long and straight. And her bangs really suit her!"
Really now?
"Is her skin tone natural? It's like soft corn-gold. She looks like a Barbie doll! Does she have foreign blood?"
Maybe a quarter? My mom's half-French.
"She's smart too, right? I heard she almost got a perfect score on the DASE!"
That's it? The questions on that entrance exam were so simple.
"I hope she ends up in our section! Or at least in our strand! I would really love to be her friend."
Why am I even listening to all this? As expected, no one's going to let me live quietly no matter who I end up with in class. Just like in middle school—everyone pretending, only wanting to hang around me for popularity.
"I noticed she's been alone since earlier. Does she not have any friends?"
Friends, huh? They're unnecessary.
"Also, where are her parents? I don't see them anywhere. It's a shame they won't witness her speech today."
Why...
"Ms. Andres!"
Of all things to notice—why my parents?
"Ms. Andres! Will you come up on the stage?"
It's true, I'm alone today. Unlike the others around me, smiling and waving at their parents in the bleachers. So what if I'm by myself? I still deserve this recognition, don't I? I worked hard for this.
"Yay, amazing! A round of applause! Woohoo!" a girl yelled from behind.
I blinked, startled by the sudden applause that surged around me. All the students stood and cheered for me.
For me.
Why?
And who was that—
"Congratulations for ranking first in the DASE, Ms. Andres! You deserve all our compliments!" the school admin greeted me as I stepped onto the stage. She shook my hand and presented me to the crowd.
The cheers grew even louder, snapping me back to reality. Right. Why was I wasting energy thinking about people who aren't even here?
The next moment, they handed me a microphone and encouraged me to give a short speech about my award. I thanked them and offered a brief encouragement for my fellow freshmen. When I finished, I quietly returned to my seat.
As expected, everyone greeted me with congratulations. Some even introduced themselves and invited me to join them for lunch. I didn't really know what to say, so I just smiled and nodded politely.
The program continued, and I waited patiently until it ended. Parents started approaching the students around me—smiling proudly, some on the verge of tears, others patting their children's shoulders with pride. I had none of that.
No one to greet me.
No one to say, "Your speech was amazing, daughter!"
No one.
Absolutely no one.
"Hi, excuse me? Your speech earlier was really good—so beautiful!"
Wait.
I turned around and found myself staring at a girl with curly hair. Her eyes were a warm shade of brown, framed by long curved lashes. I wasn't expecting her presence—much less the smile she gave me.
"Congrats, VK!"
VK?
She called me that so casually... wait. Who is she? Do I even know her?
"Bye-bye, VK!" she said suddenly.
The girl was waving happily from a distance. She was wearing the same uniform as mine. Which means she's also a freshman like me. But really? I'm sure it was her voice cheering loudly behind me before I went up on stage.
"Ms. Valentine?"
I turned toward the deep voice that called my name. My gaze lifted immediately to Gerand—my butler. "What are you doin' here?"
"I just came to inform you, miss, that your apartment has been arranged. All your belongings have been moved in, the bed is ready, and the entire place is clean, just as your mom and dad requested."
My parents? Geez. Why am I still not used to this?
"Will you be going home during your lunch break, miss?" Gerand asked as I started walking away. "Perhaps you'd like to check your room first, and if there's anything you don't like, we can change it right away—"
"That's enough," I cut him off. "I have classes this morning. I'll go home later this afternoon after school."
"How about your lunch, miss?" he asked again, making my brows furrow. "Miss Valentine?"
"The school has a canteen, and I can eat by myself, Gerand," I answered firmly, quickening my steps. "Go home already."
"But how will you get home later, miss? You have a car—why didn't you bring it?"
I bit my lip and exhaled. "I don't need it, okay? And besides, my apartment is right across the university gate."
He still followed me. "If you don't want to drive, miss, I can pick you up and drop you off instead."
I finally stopped to face this nuisance. "Don't you understand, huh? The university gate is extremely close. I can walk to my apartment from here."
"But, miss—"
"And please!" I snapped. "Stop following me on campus. It's creepy. People might mistake you for my stalker. This is a university, okay? I'm not in middle school anymore, and I already have an agreement with my parents. If you can't follow it, Gerand, I'll have you fired!"
"Miss—"
"Get lost!"
I didn't wait another second and walked away. So annoying. Why do they insist on having someone follow me even here? I'm not a kid anymore. I'm not dependent. I know what to do, and I can take care of myself.
Damn.
I wanted to run, but I forced myself to stay calm, gripping my bag strap tightly in frustration. So irritating. It's so annoying, but I have to deal with it. I'm in the hallway now, passing by groups of people. Most of them look like college students—older, stressed-out. And here I am stressing out on day one. What more after a whole year?
"Hey, love!"
I almost jumped when someone suddenly appeared in front of me. I was about to turn at the corner when he practically leaped at me. That idiot—my boyfriend, David Sulivani.
"You freaking moron," I muttered, scowling. "What the hell are you doing?"
He laughed and slung an arm around my shoulder, which I immediately brushed off. "Sorry, love. I'm just messing around!"
I rolled my eyes and continued walking. "Find someone else to annoy, not me."
He still followed. "Hey, love! It's too early. Why are you so pissed already?"
"It's almost eleven," I shot back. "Do you even know how to read the time? You think this is early?" I retorted, stopping and glaring at him.
"Alright, fine!" He raised his hands in surrender. "I can't win any argument with you anyway. You're too smart!"
I crossed my arms. "What do you want?"
"Oh, relax. I just wanna congratulate you for your speech this morning. You were amazing up there!"
I groaned and began walking again. That's what he came here for? To annoy me?
"Wait, love! You topped the exam," he continued. "That means my girlfriend is a genius!"
"Aren't you ashamed of yourself?" I snapped. "You almost fell below the cutoff score of the DASE, and you only got in by miracle."
"Ouch," he whined dramatically, placing a hand on his chest as if struck by an arrow. "My love is still harsh as ever, huh?"
I sighed. "Will you get lost, David? I need to go. Stay there."
"Hey, wait!" He stopped me from walking. "Where are you going?"
"To the library."
"What?" His eyes widened at me. "You're studying already?"
I gave him a look that clearly said: Yes.
"Whoa, look! It's the first day of class and you're going to the library? Come on, love! Isn't it too early to study?"
He had too many complaints. I was getting irritated as I stepped away and turned my back on him.
"I'm not like you who slacks off, Dave. I'm here to study, not to waste my time talking to you."
"But Val! I'm not slacking off," he argued. "Classes haven't even started yet. You're too hype about studying!"
I closed my eyes in irritation, still walking. "Whatever. Will you just go away?"
"No, wait! Why don't we go somewhere else?"
David grabbed my hand and pulled me with him.
"Hey!"
"I promise, just this once!"
I tried to yank my hand away but he insisted. I had no choice but to follow wherever he was dragging me.
In one corner of the school building, somewhere beside it, we finally stopped. And since I still wasn't familiar with the campus, I had no idea how to return to the hallway we came from.
"What exactly are we doing here?" I asked while freeing my hand, but David suddenly held both my shoulders. He pushed me lightly against the wall, making me wince at the impact. I looked straight into his round dark eyes, paired with that stiff hair that always stuck up. He looked neat enough, the type of face you could bring to the mall? God, fine. Yes, this idiot is good-looking. I just don't like the arrogance he carries around.
Then his grinning face moved closer. I couldn't dodge when he claimed my lips. I pushed him away, but he grabbed my hand and pinned it above me.
I shut my eyes at his boldness. I gasped when I felt his hand sliding up my chest, but before he could touch me, I stopped him with my other hand.
"If Gerand were here, he'd think this is assault." I reminded him, but he only smirked inches from my mouth.
"Heh? Didn't you send him off?"
"You saw us? Where were you?" My irritation was boiling. I pulled my hand away again and shoved him, but he caged me with his arms. "Dave, will you just—"
"Come on, love. We should make up for all the time your bodyguard kept ruining for us."
"Or maybe you just want what you want?"
"Ugh, come on, Val. Look, we're in the university now. We're both independent. We have the right to do things couples do. You know what I mean, right?"
"You're gross. Get away from me."
"No."
"You're hopeless. What if someone sees us here? Do you wanna be infamous for the rest of the semester?"
"Then we'll transfer to another school. We can afford it, right?"
Ugh, damn. What the hell is wrong with this guy? How did I ever end up dating this idiot?
"What now, love?"
He cupped my face with both hands before I could react. He tilted my chin up and I shut my eyes. His lips touched mine again, and I felt something wet brush against my mouth.
"VK!"
My heart jumped out of my chest when I heard the voice that caught us. My eyes flew open—and landed on the girl. Wait.
"Who the fuck are you?!" Dave barked.
The girl didn't answer. She just stared at me, unmoving. I didn't even know how long I had been staring back because she didn't blink either. Ah, I remembered her. She was the girl who congratulated me earlier after the induction ceremony.
"Hey! I said who are you? And what are you doing here?!" David snapped, finally letting me go. He marched toward the girl and confronted her. Without warning, he grabbed her arm tightly.
"Are you spying on us? What's your deal, huh?"
"Cow," the girl muttered.
Cow?
Did she just call David cow?
"What did you say?" he growled, gripping her arm even tighter. She gasped in pain and I instantly got worried. I stepped forward to stop them, but before I could reach them, the girl kicked David straight in the groin.
The balls.
Ouch.
"Fuuuck!" Dave groaned in agony. I couldn't bear watching him drop to his knees and roll in pain. I cringed at the sight. "You biiitch! Fuck you! You're dead!"
The girl turned to me. I froze. Was she going to go after me too? If I assumed she knew Dave, I'd think she was his other girlfriend getting revenge or something.
I couldn't say anything. She stared at me wide-eyed, like she wanted to say something but was holding it back.
Then she turned around and left. Just like that. Leaving me alone with the guy crawling on the ground, screaming in pain.
"V-Val! H-help me!"
David looked so pitiful right now. He was reaching out a desperate hand toward me as if I'd actually help him.
I paused, letting myself think for a second. Knowing this jerk, it wouldn't be surprising if that curly-haired girl earlier really was one of his girls. Maybe she only pretended not to know him, kicked him as payback, and left. And that would make me... what? The third party in their little mess?
"V-Val! Please, help me! It hurts!" he cried again, still expecting I'd save him. No way. "Valentine! Wait! You—you got it all wrong! I don't know her, I swear! Please! P-please help me, love!"
He still had the nerve to call me that after everything I'd just realized?
"Love—"
"Enough!"
"V-Val?"
"Don't ever come near me again, David Sulivani. We're done."
TOO bad. I actually thought my first day at this university would end there. I couldn't have been more wrong.
"Alright, class. Let's settle down!" the woman at the front announced. "I'll be your adviser for the whole semester. My name is Teressa Kibune, and I'll also be teaching you Oral Communication in Context. Now, since it's your first official day as freshmen, we'll begin with short introductions!"
Introductions? What was this—elementary school?
"And we'll start with you, miss!"
Damn. Of course I had to go first. Blame the seating arrangement. And my name. Whatever.
I stood and faced my new classmates. Most of them already knew me from the induction ceremony earlier. I gave them a short smile and a small bow. "Hi, everyone. I'm Valentine Keziah Andres. I hope we can be friends. It's nice to meet you all."
That should've been it, but Miss Tessa stopped me. She brought up again about me being the top scorer of last year's DASE. She looked delighted to have me in her class, and the others agreed. I just nodded and gave them a polite smile. As a sign of respect, I smiled, even if all the praise made my skin crawl.
"I hope you'll be acquainted with everybody, Ms. Andres!" she added, and I thanked her before stepping back. "Alright. Let's move to the next student!"
I was only two steps from my seat when she stood up.
Yes. HER.
The girl who kicked David in the groin earlier. I didn't expect her to be in my section too. What made it even weirder—we were assigned the first two seats in the front row, right beside each other.
Earlier, before class started, we were like mute statues pretending nothing had happened. She didn't speak, and I had no idea what to say. I couldn't just ask, "Hi. So you're also dating my boyfriend? Small world!"
Wouldn't that be even more awkward?
"H-hi, guys!" she started, obviously tense. "Um, I-I'm Love. Love Antonino. I'm simple, and I'm not sporty so there's nothing special about me. My eyesight's kind of poor, so don't be surprised if I wear glasses sometimes. You can just call me L not Love, because your partners might get jealous! He-he. Uh, that's all. Thanks!"
Everyone laughed at her introduction. Meanwhile, I was stuck on one thing.
So... Love is her name?
She stepped back toward her seat. For a split second, our eyes met. I raised a brow, and just when I almost smiled, she quickly looked away. She sat down on my right and turned her whole body away from me in silence.
Weirdo. Why was she avoiding me? It was obvious I'd been looking at her the whole time she introduced herself, yet she couldn't look at me properly? Damn. This would bother me all night. If she couldn't bring it up, then I absolutely would!
"Hey," I finally called. "Do you have a moment after class... Love?"
She only turned to me when I whispered her name.
"H-huh?"
For the first time, I got a clearer look at her brown eyes. I knew she was wearing contacts, but they suited her well. She was slim, shorter than me, and—annoyingly—had a smaller, doll-like face. Her nose was straight, her skin was clear, her nails were clean, and even with just lip balm, she was... ugh.
Fine. I admit it.
She was cute. Really cute. And her curly hair? I loved it. It was like a helical DNA strand—like something sculpted. Like a doll.
"You... you called me, VK?" she asked, confused.
God, why does she look so innocent? There isn't even a hint of anger in her eyes. She seriously doesn't care that I was with her boyfriend earlier? She literally caught us kis— wait. She's really not mad at me? Is this girl numb?
"VK? W-What did you say again?" she asked.
I don't know why, but I smiled at her. It's obvious she knows exactly what I meant.
"Can we talk over lunch... Love?"
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