I still can't wrap my head around how he was able to find my instagram account.

When I checked his profile, I saw the button that says, follow back. I then tried to check my notifications to see if he just followed me recently, but no, he wasn’t among one of my new followers. Which means that he was already following me since...I don't know when. Oh my!

I wanna send him a message, but he might think I’m really interested in him, so no, I shrugged it off.

I just liked the tagged photo.

I really tried to shake the thought off my mind by replying to messages from my followers, when I saw a message coming from him:

ejandrada: Go to sleep.

Okay. Calm down, Avery. Take a deep breath.

I typed and deleted multiple times before coming out with the safest response I can think of:

averyday_: You’re not my mom 😛

ejandrada: lol 😂

What time do you wanna go out tomorrow?

I had to hug my pillow very tight while stifling a giggle. So he really wants to hang out with me. That thought left a smile on my face. I tried to think of a response that doesn’t imply that I’m too excited.

averyday_: I’m not sure

I might wake up late 🤔

ejandrada: How does 10am sound?

averyday_: Hmm…

I think 10’s good

ejandrada: Okay then

I’ll see you at the basement?

averyday_: Wait

Where will you take me?

ejandrada: It’s a surprise

Don’t worry

It’s a real tourist spot this time 😊

averyday_: Okay

I trust you 😂

ejandrada: You better 😛

Now go to sleep

averyday_: Yeah

Good night

ejandrada: Good night 😊

Even though I told him that I was about to go to sleep, I still wasn't able to do that because I can't help but feel that he was so interested in me! I wanna scream!

I tried checking out his IG profile, and for a guy, he actually has a neat feed—photos of buildings, landscapes, very few portraits of him. What’s interesting is I’m the only other person in his feed—a silhouette though, but still.

I checked that photo again and noticed the comments made by his friends.

Wow 😍

👏👏👏

Nice bro

Okay. Don’t think too much, Avery. Those comments were vague. It can mean a lot of different things.

I just headed to twitter and scrolled endlessly until I fell asleep.

When I woke up, I immediately looked for my phone under the covers. After finding it, and with my eyes half open, I noticed that it was still early—it's only 7:00 am!

Am I that excited to see him and I woke up this early even without an alarm?

I just yawned. I still feel sleepy, but I can't get myself to sleep again, I'm excited and quite nervous at the same time.

I usually go around having my whole day planned, but it feels different this time—someone else is deciding for me. Not to forget that it's actually my crush who does that for me. And yes, I know I already have a crush on him based on what I'm feeling now. I can't believe it.

Normally, I'd only sport a light makeup for a more natural look, but my eyebags. Can't help but shake my head. I had to apply more to be able to cover it up. I hope he doesn't notice though.

Great. Now I’m all dolled up and there’s still 30 minutes left before 10:00, and I don't even know what to do anymore. I already replied to all the comments and messages by my followers, and I got nothing left to do.

I tried to check if he sent me another message, but he didn’t.

See, Ave? He’s not that interested, he’s probably just being nice since you’re neighbors and all.

Just as the clock struck 10, I immediately made my way down to the basement, and there he was— leaning on his sports car, looking like a mysterious model with his usual all black ensemble.

He was busy fiddling with his phone and hasn’t noticed me yet.

I walked slowly towards him. And he slowly lifted his head up, probably starting to feel my presence near him.

“So, where to?”, I asked.

I slowly made my way towards my car while waiting for him to reply.

“Wait”, he called, “where are you going?”

“To my car?”, I nonchalantly replied.

“No, we won’t need that”, he pointed to his car.

“So, you wanna be my driver now, huh?”

“Well…that depends.”

“On?”

“If you’d want me to”, he smirked.

My eyes widened and I felt my cheeks burning.

He then shook his head, “it’s just more practical that we only bring one car.”

A bit fazed with what he said, I only managed to nod in response. I made my way towards his car and he went to open the door for me.

Not knowing what to do, I just sat straight, barely moving, and just clutching my bag. I can't figure out how I should act around him. I really wasn't prepared for us to be together like this.

When he sat in the driver's seat, I felt his gaze at me.

“If you want, you can put your bag at the back”, he pointed at the back, “and your seat belt, Ave.”

“Huh?”, I absentmindedly asked.

He shook his head and chuckled, then I suddenly felt his body leaning towards mine. My heart skipped a beat and all I can do was stare at him. He stared back at me, and I just closed my eyes and bit my lip.

I waited…

And waited…

I kept waiting for his lips to touch mine.

Moments later, I felt my lap becoming lighter and the seat belt strapped across my body. It's like someone poured a whole bucket of ice cold water and I just froze.

I slowly opened my eyes and saw him looking at me with a straight face, “you okay, Ave?”

I just nodded. I can't fathom why that thought crossed my mind. To save face, I just tried to compose myself and asked, “where are we going by the way?”

“I told you, it’s a surprise.”

“Fine. Just drive”, I rolled eyes.

He just laughed, “yes, ma’am.”

When I saw this geodesic dome building, I knew right away that he brought me to the SciArt Museum. It’s one of the famous tourist attractions here in Forthworth and I’ve been dying to go here!

Aside from the exhibitions which features artworks designed with various kinds of technology, the place is also highly instagrammable, which is one of the things I usually look for in places I go to.

When we arrived, I asked, “uh, can you just stay there and look away for a few seconds?”

“Why?”, he asked, an eyebrow raised.

“Uh, because I’ll try to vlog?”

“Come on. We’ll be going to a lot of places for days, you can’t expect me to always keep my distance”, he added, “just treat me like another stranger.”

Well, he actually has a point. Although I have to admit, I still don't feel comfortable vlogging in front of him. Compared to other strangers I stumble upon, he's the only one who has the ability to make my heart flutter.

I sighed. Oh well, here goes nothing.

“Hi everyone! It’s me again, Avery, for another episode of Avery Day”, I continued speaking as he avoided looking at my direction. Perhaps this won't register well on video as I kept on glancing at his direction, trying to gauge if he'll make fun of me or not.

“See? That wasn’t so bad”, he praised me with a sweet smile, “if you want to, I can join you.”

“In vlogging?”

“Yeah”, he shrugged, “I’ll be your tour guide anyway, so why not make myself more useful?”

“Are you sure? I mean, well, I haven’t really had another person show up in my vlogs…to help me out, that is.”

“It’s fine. Plus, I can also be the one holding the camera. I think it would look more stable that way.”

"But that's too much! You're already driving me around, and now you even offer to be my cameraman?"

“I insist. I wanna do this for you. It’s the least I can do.”

“Fine, but keep your fee to a minimum, I don’t think I can afford you”, I can't help but chuckle.

“No need, you already paid me.”

I raised my eyebrows, “how so?”

“Just by letting me keep you company”, a smirk was playing on his lips.

I can’t help but pout and shake my head with what he said. I really don’t know what to make of this guy.

He came closer to me, “I guess you should film your intro again and introduce me.”

“Oh wow! What a demanding cameraman”, I scoffed. 

He opened his palms, as if asking for the camera.

"Fine", I caved in.

He then focused the camera on me and gave me a thumbs up.

“Hi everyone! This is Avery, for another episode of Avery Day. Throughout the day I’ll be taking you on various tourist spots here in Forthworth, and to do that, I have here with me a new friend I made”, I approached him then took the camera and pointed it at him, "he's Ethan".

He smiled and waved at the camera.

"And for our first stop, we're here at Sci-Art Museum. I'm looking forward to this and I hope you enjoy it too!"

I turned off the camera and he spoke right away, "you pulled it off".

"Yeah, thanks", I smiled. I can't believe I didn't stutter while speaking in front of him. I guess he also has a way of making me feel comfortable.

"Let's go?"

He just nodded and we went in the museum. Since it's still the summer break, there are quite a lot of people here. I actually got nervous and suddenly found it hard to speak, but he just squeezed my hand in a reassuring way.

He then guided me along those exhibits—capturing me in moments when my eyes would just be filled with childlike wonder, giving me a reassuring smile when I run out of words to say and when I start to get bothered by the number of people looking at me, at us.

Although I usually don’t get shy when vlogging, this day’s a bit different. Probably because I'm here with him. He’s a local here and some people might know him. I guess I’m just scared of what they’ll think when they’ll see us together.

I haven’t been in a relationship yet, so I don’t really know how the dynamics of a relationship usually work. Well…Not that we’re in one.

Okay. I need to stop overthinking.

I asked for the camera and tried to check the photos he took of me—it's neat! I feel like I'll have a hard time choosing what to post.

When we reached this room with thousands of glowing light strings hanging from floor to ceiling, he asked for the camera, “just stand there.”

I just looked towards my right as he clicked the shutter. He was probably able to take around three shots when he approached me to show the photos he took. And same as what he captured yesterday, it was a silhouette of me.

“Can you send me that later?”, he asked.

“Sure.”

When we were done checking out the different exhibits at the museum, we just had lunch at a nearby restaurant. He then brought me to two different spots before we decided to head home.

After my usual nightly routine—editing my vlogs and photos to post, plus skincare—I easily fell asleep because I was so tired.

When I woke up to check my phone, I noticed that there were a lot of messages from Ethan.

ejandrada: I tagged you again

just wanted to say sorry abt my friends' comments

Don’t mind them

Hmm

You’re probably asleep

That’s good

Good night, Avery ☺️

averyday_: Hi ☺️

Good morning

Yeah, sorry

I fell asleep right away

I tried to check the tagged photo, and it was that silhouette of me in Sci-Art Museum. I then looked at the comments.

ugh 😍 ig boyfriend 😂😂😂

❤️❤️❤️

someone’s whipped 😏

y u do dis to me bro? 💔

so this is why you’ve been ditching us…

I can't help but giggle at his friends' comments. As much as I try to avoid overthinking, I feel as though it's not wrong to assume about things between us. I may not have an experience with relationships, but I can't avoid feeling as though he treats me differently—in a very special way.

When I noticed that he replied, I checked it right away.

ejandrada: Good morning Avery 😊

Had a good sleep?

averyday_: Yeah

Slept like a log 😂

btw

I noticed the comments

😂😂😂

ejandrada:🤦

they're shameless

averyday_: hahahaha

and you're not?

ejandrada: oh wow

everyone's ganging up on me 

😭😭😭

averyday_: hahaha

Sorryyy 😙

ejandrada: Well…

that made me feel better

🥰

I have to admit. I can feel my heart fluttering with his reply. I wanna slap myself though for trying to flirt with him. Whatever happened to the innocent Avery?

This is why it's best to talk personally, the conversations are more controlled because of consciousness. You really can't control what you say sometimes when it's only in front of a screen.

I struggled to think of a reply with no hidden meanings, good thing I saw him continue typing.

ejandrada: So…

basement at 10?

averyday_: Sure ☺️

Two weeks passed and we're pretty much together everyday—going to different places here in Forthworth, eating out, and I even barely get to drive my own vehicle. I can't deny that we're really getting closer. Perhaps, I might even be falling for him, though I can't say for sure if it's just some shallow attraction or if it's a deeper one—love. I think it's too soon to tell.

Now there are only a few days left before classes begin and we're currently here at a cafe near our condominium building. With our laptops, I'm editing my vlog while he's trying to learn some animation software.

After I finished editing, I realized that I'm actually running out of contents to post. I aired my frustrations to him, "Ethan."

He turned to me.

"I actually don't know what to vlog about next."

“You’re done with all the places we’ve been to?”

"Yeah, and I noticed a steady increase in my views and subscribers", I sighed, "I feel like I need more though 'cause classes are about to begin, and I don't think I'll still be able to produce more content regularly.”

“How about a tour of your room?”

“Already lined up for next week”

“Shopping hauls? Opening your PR packages? You just got those earlier, right?”

“Same. Already lined up”, I sighed. “Well, I already have a couple of things lined up, but I think it’s still lacking. And I think those will only be good for two weeks, I need to make more just so I'll have some sort of buffer for when I get busy with school."

“We’ll come up with something later, okay?”

“Yeah. Okay”, I smiled.

In the days that we've been together, I became more comfortable with him and so it was easier to voice out my frustrations to him.

“What the-“, Ethan was startled when a coffee spilled on him.

The waitress immediately apologized, apparently she tripped, and gave Ethan a tissue.

"Sir, I'm so sorry."

"It's fine. No worries", he answered with a shy smile.

"I'm really sorry."

"Good thing you're wearing black, at least the stains won't be visible", I commented.

“Yeah, this is actually why I love wearing black", he shrugged.

I then looked at him from head to toe...when an idea came to me.

"I already thought of something!", I exclaimed. "You're willing to help me with my vlogs, right?"

“Yeah, always”, he said coolly.

“Promise me first.”

“I think I don’t like where this is going.”

“Please, just promise me”, I pouted.

“Fine. I promise.”

And with the biggest grin I can muster, I said, “Well then, how about a makeover challenge?”