"Ouch." Raymond complained as the cold compress pressed against his swollen cheek.
"Stop whining. It's your stupidity that got you there," Joel snapped.
"I'll do it myself! You sound like you're mad at me."
"Who wouldn't be mad? And Kevin listed your behavior down—don't blame me if you don't get a good moral certificate for tenth grade," Joel warned.
Raymond didn't reply. He stayed quiet, replaying everything that happened earlier.
So I got punched and slapped today, he thought bitterly.
He lived under the same roof as Joel—their parents insisted so Joel could keep an eye on him.
He sighed heavily. Joel stared at him, and another sigh escaped Raymond.
"Just say what you want to say, Joel. We're already home," he muttered.
"Why did you do that to her? I thought you'd changed." Joel's eyes narrowed.
A sarcastic smile tugged at Raymond's lips. "Come on, you know me. I'm your great cousin—the Casanova, right?" He smirked.
Joel exhaled sharply. "I thought you liked her."
"Yeah, I do like her," Raymond admitted.
"I know you, Raymond. I won't hit you—yet. It depends on how you explain this," Joel said, eyes fixed on him.
Raymond sighed again. "Honestly, I was happy when that diary note spread. Really, I was surprised someone sent it to me. She really does like me… and damn, she's good with words. But—"
He paused.
"My gut tells me this was either bound to happen or someone planned it to ruin the way I see Melissa. And here it is. So I just… went with the flow. I showed my old self to satisfy whoever's behind this—whoever thinks they can manipulate me."
"The punch and slap hurt, though. I could feel their rage—especially Kelly's. She really, really loves her sister." He let out a long breath.
"Yeah. At least you know she hates you. Which means you can't just walk up to Melissa's sister anymore," Joel replied.
"I'll find a way. But for now… what's bothering me is who the hell sent it to me?" Raymond muttered, brows furrowing.
"Was it really Navares who chatted you?" Joel asked.
"I don't know. I checked the profile. I couldn't tell if that was actually her display picture, but the account was created just yesterday," Raymond said flatly.
"And the friend list? It looked like they deliberately added everyone Melissa knows," Joel added with a shake of his head.
"Before I apologize to Melissa… I need to know who's behind this."
"You think it's Miss Villa?" Joel asked.
Raymond didn't answer immediately. "…I don't know," he muttered.
"Whatever. You'll figure it out. For now, rest. Your face already looks terrible," Joel said.
"Hey, Joel—thanks for always helping me," Raymond said softly.
Joel let out a frustrated sigh. "If you weren't my cousin, I would've let them slap you three more times," he muttered as he walked off.
Raymond chuckled faintly before lying down.
But Melissa lingered in his mind—the way he'd hurt her.
Damn this.
He needed sleep. At least no one dared repost the incident, too scared of the school council.
The next morning, he walked quietly. His face still ached. He spotted Julie and Nicole up ahead.
Julie raised an eyebrow at him but said nothing. Nicole gave him a brief, unreadable glance.
"Nicky, just put that on the teacher's table. Melissa's absent today," Julie said.
What? She's absent? Raymond's chest tightened.
Julie shot him a sharp glare and rolled her eyes. He didn't react.
But the question wouldn't leave his mind—who really messaged him? If it wasn't them… then who?
A tap on his shoulder.
"Don't add to what you did yesterday," Cielo warned firmly.
Raymond only sighed.
****
"Hey, Raymond, you're not yourself today," Dennis commented later.
Cielo listened quietly, stuck in his own thoughts.
Yesterday was really intense, he thought.
"Nothing, I'm just… thinking," Raymond said.
"Thinking about what?" Dennis asked.
Raymond hesitated, then pulled out his phone.
"Tell me honestly—before midnight that day, did any of you get a friend request from 'Navares'?"
The three boys exchanged looks.
"I did. That morning. I saw the request and accepted it," Dennis admitted. "She was mutual friends with Cielo, Joel, and the rest."
"Yeah," Raymond nodded. "I hadn't slept yet. I checked my phone, saw the request, confirmed it. Then that post showed up. It's weird—the account was new."
"Maybe it's just a dummy account made by Navares," Dennis guessed.
"Possible. But I didn't think she'd send requests. My brother even bothered me about it," Raymond muttered.
"But Chris didn't buy it. He knows her real account," Cielo added, deep in thought.
"I need confirmation."
"You want to talk to Navares?"
Raymond paused, then sighed. "Yeah."
"Joel, go get them. They're with Kelly," Cielo said.
Joel sighed. "Hey, Dennis!"
"Yeah, yeah," Dennis replied, following him.
A few minutes later, Julie and Nicole arrived.
"What do you want?" Julie snapped.
"Sit down first," Cielo instructed.
"If this won't take long, we're not sitting," Julie insisted.
Raymond tossed his phone onto the table.
"That account—was it you or not?" he demanded.
Julie exhaled sharply. "I've been avoiding this, but fine. To shut you up—no, it wasn't me. Check my account."
She tossed her phone on the table as well.
Nicole followed. "Mine too."
Joel picked up both phones.
They checked Julie's first—friend list, posts, details. Raymond searched quickly. Same name. Same picture. But the difference? He wasn't on her friend list. Neither was Nicole.
"Is that your dummy account?" Raymond pressed.
"Why would I make a dummy account?" Julie snapped. "No. I don't make fake accounts. Check my log-ins if you want. That's my only social media."
"Yeah, she's telling the truth. No other accounts. Same with Nicole," Dennis confirmed.
"There. We had nothing to do with that post. I don't know what the intention was of whoever made that fake account and messaged you," Julie said firmly.
"Read it. Compare the typing style," Cielo instructed.
Julie skimmed the messages.
"That's not how Julie chats," Nicole said. "She doesn't use that many emoticons. And she's not flirty." She hesitated. "J-Julie… can I show them our convo?"
"Go ahead. Let them stop doubting us," Julie said.
Nicole handed over her phone.
Flirty in chats? Cielo thought, uneasy.
There was no reason left to accuse Navares. Nothing pointed to her.
Cielo frowned, deep in thought.
I should ask Jason about this.
He returned to his seat, no longer pushing the issue.