Chapter 5: Fetch

Josh Rain Montez

Sissy burst into laughter at what I said. "Don't worry, Josh. Soon, you'll also meet her," she assured me.

Sissy wasn't aware that her best friend, Aika, was my first love. I also didn't want to disclose it to them because I was happy and content with our friendship. I just really dislike seeing her being treated that way by other guys because she doesn't deserve it.

Since it was already late on the road with Sissy, we opted for a drive-thru for our dinner. Later on, I noticed that Sissy was busy typing on her phone, and it kept ringing while she held it.

"I thought Rodnie still has a flight today?" I asked Sissy, referring to her pilot boyfriend.

"He does. I'll talk to him later," she replied to me.

"Then who are you talking to? Is it Aika?" I asked her again.

"No. She's busy with her boyfriend because they're together now," Sissy answered with a laugh, which I didn't find amusing. "I'm talking to Yannie. I told her you're upset because we didn't get to visit her."

"What?" I exclaimed in surprise at Sissy and then redirected my gaze to the road we were traversing.

"Yeah. Didn't you say earlier that you're annoyed because we can't drop by her place?" I swallowed. Right, I did say that. But did she really have to tell Yannie that? Suddenly, I felt embarrassed. "Yannie said she couldn't meet us earlier because she was at work," Sissy added.

"Work?"

"Yup. She is a working student."

"How old is she?" I asked Sissy again while continuing to drive the car.

"20. She's a 2nd-year college student. She studies at P.U.P Biñan," Sissy said.

"I just asked how old she is. Why did you tell me so much right away?"

"Oh, come on! You're just pretending, but it seems like you're curious about her, too," Sissy teased with a grin. I just shook my head and smiled at her antics. "Do you still want to know more about her?" she asked me.

"Nevermind, Sissy. It's better if I get to know her myself—" I couldn't finish what I was saying because she suddenly burst into laughter beside me. I glanced at her, then quickly returned my gaze to the road. "You're going crazy again," I told her.

"Look, I told her your name. Do you know what her reply was? She said it's a nice name, but she's not interested. Oh my gosh, Josh, just with your name, you got rejected immediately!" Sissy said, laughing heartily while showing me their exchange messages with Yannie.

I gasped. "When she sees or talks to me, she'll change her mind. I'm pretty sure."

"Quite confident, huh?" Sissy teased me as we arrived at her place. I parked the car, grabbed my phone, and turned to her.

"What's her number?" I asked Sissy.

She quickly moved her phone away from me. "I won't give it. I told her you should meet first— " Sissy couldn't finish what she was saying because I swiftly grabbed her phone from her and quickly got out of the car.

Sissy shouted at me, and I hurriedly searched for Yannie's number in her contacts. I memorized the number in two glances before Sissy caught up and retrieved her phone from me. I'm very good at memorizing things.

"You should meet before exchanging numbers," Sissy insisted.

"Why bother? It's the same, right? You want to introduce her to me, so here, I'll be the one to talk to her," I teased Sissy.

"No, Josh! It's better if you meet before doing that—"

"I'm leaving," I casually said to Sissy, then returned to my car. She followed me, but I quickly locked my car doors to prevent her from catching me.

"Josh, I'm really telling you!" she threatened. I laughed at her and started typing on my phone.

To 09*********: Hi. I messaged you. She doesn't want to give your number. Can I get your number, right? I just took it from Sissy's phone.

"I'll make sure she likes me even if she hasn't seen me yet," I said with a grin to my cousin after texting Yannie.

Sissy gave me a stern look. "I'm really telling you. Don't do anything foolish to Yannie. You'll be in trouble with me," she threatened me again, but I just shrugged it off and left.

In less than a few seconds, I felt my phone vibrates. I checked it immediately and saw Yannie's reply.

From 09*********: Who is this?

I chuckled and quickly replied while driving.

To 09*********: It's Josh Rain.

After replying, I put my phone aside and focused on driving back to my condo. When I arrived, I checked my phone to see if Yannie had answered, and I couldn't believe that she hadn't responded after telling her who I was. So, I texted her again.

To 09*********: Is this Yannie?

I asked her to ensure I was texting the correct number. However, I'm sure that I got the correct number earlier, and it's unlikely that I made a mistake. While waiting for Yannie's reply, I took a quick half bath before resting completely. After that, I checked my phone and saw Yannie's message.

From 09*********: Yes. Sorry, I was just shy.

Her reply brought a smile to my face, and I quickly responded.

To 09*********: Shy? Why is that?

I lay on the bed, and my phone vibrated again due to her response.

From 09*********: I just didn't know Ate Rica would take what I said seriously. It was meant as a joke, you know.

I swiftly typed another reply after reading her message.

To 09*********: What did you say to her, then? May I know?

I asked her. One, two, and three minutes passed without a reply. I couldn't believe I was experiencing this with her. I'm used to getting immediate responses from the girls I texted, and I never wait for them for this long. Maybe it's because Yannie hasn't seen me yet, that's why she's like this. But surely, if she sees me, she might also be one of those girls in a hurry, always waiting for my attention.

Five minutes have passed without a reply from Yannie. So, I texted her again.

To 09*********: Is it not allowed to know? Sorry, maybe you're getting uncomfortable with me. Sissy said you're okay, and she wants me to get to know you. I'm sorry to bother you.

After 10 seconds of sending that text message to Yannie, my phone vibrated again. I checked and read her reply, and in the end, I found myself smiling at what she said.

From 09*********: I should be the one apologizing. What I told her back then was that you should be mine.

I saved her number in my contacts and typed a reply to her.

To Yannie: Don't say sorry. It's okay. From now on, I'm yours.

I replied with a smile.

***

Yannie Ace Ruiz

"Who's that? Your Ate Rica again?" Jomar asked me as I held my phone, engrossed in typing.

"Huh?"

"I've noticed you have always had your phone with you since yesterday. Like now, instead of eating first, you're still into it. Who is that person you're always talking to?" Jomar remarked as we were in the middle of having lunch at the convenience store where we both work.

It has been two days since I started exchanging text messages with Josh Rain, Ate Rica's cousin. Initially, I hesitated to text him because I didn't know him well. However, I couldn't understand why I felt comfortable chatting with him. Apparently, Jomar also noticed my preoccupation with my phone. Every time he sends a message, I respond promptly, and our conversation effortlessly continues.

I bit my lower lip, unable to answer Jomar's question until he snatched my phone, checking who I was talking to. I was taken aback, my eyes widening in surprise, trying to stop him, but I couldn't prevent him from seeing who I was talking to.

"Josh Rain?" he asked with a furrowed brow as I swiftly took back my phone from him. "Who is that, Yannie?"

I scratched my nape. "Ate Rica's cousin," I replied to Jomar.

"A guy?" he asked, to which I nodded in response. "Why are you texting each other?" he asked me again.

"Just casual conversation, making friends," I replied, avoiding eye contact with him. He shrugged and spoke again.

"But you don't really know him well enough to talk and be friends like that," Jomar pointed out.

"It's just texting. I don't think there's anything wrong with it," I insisted, taking a bite of my food.

"Regardless of—" Jomar was cut off from lecturing me when a customer suddenly arrived at the store. He had no choice but to stand up and attend to the customer. As soon as he left, I quickly texted Josh Rain.

To Josh Rain: I'll text you again later. I have quite a lot on my plate right now.

I sent my reply and hid my phone, then continued eating until Jomar returned. I immediately brought up a different topic to shift our conversation away from my texting with Josh Rain.

"Have you done the assignment for our Steno class?" I asked him.

"Yes, I've completed it," he responded. "Have you finished it as well?"

I smiled and nodded in response. "What about our P.E.? Who's your group mate?" I asked again, but someone else entered the store before Jomar could answer. Jomar stood up again but was quickly halted when he saw who arrived.

"Chelle?" Jomar asked. I quickly turned to see Chelle, who was smiling sweetly at Jomar. However, when her gaze met mine, the smile on her lips slowly faded, as if she was disappointed to see me here.

"Yannie? What are you doing here?" Chelle asked me. I stood up and greeted her with a smile.

"I'm also doing a part-time job here. Jomar brought me in," I replied with a smile to Chelle.

Chelle Landrito is one of our classmates, ranking second in our class, while Jomar consistently holds the top spot.

Chelle didn't return the smile to me and instead shifted her gaze back to Jomar. I'm used to this kind of treatment from her. She rarely talks to me in school, so this is nothing new.

"What are you doing here, Chelle?" Jomar asked Chelle.

I cleaned up our eating area with Jomar since we were done eating.

"We have practice for our P.E. class later," Chelle told Jomar.

"But my shift here lasts until seven in the evening. Can we practice next week or maybe tomorrow during our vacant class?" Jomar asked Chelle.

"No, it's not possible," Chelle quickly answered Jomar.

"Huh?"

"Yannie is here. Maybe you can leave work early since she's already here, right, Yannie?" Chelle said, directing her comment at me.

"Huh? Y-Yes, of course. It's fine, Jomar. I can handle it here," I replied.

"But, Yannie—"

"Our practice is at three o'clock this afternoon," Chelle quickly interrupted Jomar before leaving.

"It's okay, Jomar. I can manage here," I reassured him after Chelle left.

Our presentation in Physical Education was scheduled for next month, but knowing how competitive Chelle is, she probably wants to get started with her group early.

Time quickly passed, and Jomar left, leaving me alone to watch over the store. There were few customers, and earlier, Jomar had helped me clean up, so closing up later would be easier. I took my phone from my pocket and noticed that I had three messages. They were all from Josh, so I opened and read them.

From Josh Rain: Alright, I'll wait for your message.

This was his reply to my earlier text. Jomar had asked me many questions about Josh, making me uncomfortable. I didn't know why. But when Jomar mentioned it earlier, I started to think. Is it really wrong to text someone I don't know well? However, he is Ate Rica's cousin, and I trust Ate Rica not to introduce me to someone untrustworthy. And over the past couple of days, conversing with Josh has been pleasant for me. I mean, I enjoy talking to him.

I read his two latest messages to me again.

From Josh Rain: Are you still busy? Our game ended early, and Ramil invited me to hang out at their place in Taguig, but I declined.

From Josh Rain: You're always busy. Where is that store you're working at? I'd rather go there than be with Ramil.

My eyes widened at the last message that I read. It had a laughing emoji, so I knew he was just joking, but I didn't understand why my heart suddenly raced.

To Josh Rain: Sorry, I just had a lot on my plate. Go join your friend.

I replied to him, and within seconds, he responded.

From Josh Rain: Aren't you busy anymore?

Josh replied with another To Josh Rain: Still busy.

From Josh Rain: Ah, you're still busy, but you make time to reply to my message. (blushing emoji)

laugh emoji. It seemed like my response amused him. I couldn't help but smile at that.

I blushed at his reply, especially with the blushing emoji he used.

Even though we were both occupied with our tasks, Josh and I continued exchanging messages. Suddenly, time had passed, and it was time for me to close the store.

From Josh Rain: You're almost home. You can finally rest. You're really diligent.

To Josh Rain: That's how it is. I need to work hard (laugh emoji). I'll just close the store.

From Josh Rain: Are you closing it alone?

To Josh Rain: Yes. Jomar left early today, so I'll be closing it by myself.

From Josh Rain: Jomar?

To Josh Rain: He's a classmate and a friend who recommended me for this part-time job.

From Josh Rain: A guy?

To Josh Rain: Yes.

Almost five minutes passed, and Josh didn't reply. I was preparing to close the store when suddenly, my phone rang. I quickly looked and read the message from Josh.

From Josh Rain: Text me your address. I'll pick you up. It seems you're alone there. Tsk.

My heart raced, and I was momentarily stunned by his text. But I quickly looked up as someone entered the convenience store.

"Jomar?" I asked in surprise. "W-What are you doing here?"

"What else? I'm here to pick you up. I can't let you go home alone," Jomar replied, giving me a sweet smile.