On Graduation Day, He Pushed Me Aside For Her Chapter 02
Something changed after Gloria came to our school.
Patrick was always the top STEM student, and she was the top in Humanities. You would never hear their names mentioned separately.
No matter how hard I pushed myself, I could never keep up with them.
Sometimes, it took me forever to understand a simple math problem they tossed around casually.
Patrick used to be patient with me when I struggled to keep up.
Then talking to Gloria became a priority,and he started to lose patience when it came to me.
Deep down, I already knew Patrick and I were over.
Growing frustrated with my silence, Patrick finally lost patience.
“Fine. Let’s take the picture now, okay?”
Before I could respond, he snatched my phone and handed it off to Gloria in a quick move.
Gloria froze briefly before accepting the device.
Patrick stood beside me, but kept a deliberate distance between us.
I had not even lifted my head when he returned the phone and pressed it into my palm.
“There, being good now.”
“I’m going with Gloria to reclaim the reports. Wait here, and we’ll head home together.”
With that, he took Gloria’s hand and led her into the office.
I stood rooted to the spot and clicked into my photo album.
The picture was blurry, showing nothing but the gray hallway floor and the edge of his jacket as he walked away.
I stared at the photo for what felt like forever before letting out a quiet, bitter laugh.
I tapped delete, then blocked Patrick Muller.
Clutching my report, I turned and left the school.
I wasn’t going to wait for him.
A few close mates messaged me in our group chat, saying we should hold a last-time party.
Midway through the party, the girl next to me suddenly choked and nearly spit out her food.
“Wow, did Gloria just make it Instagram official?”
She flipped her phone onto the table for everyone to see.
It was a new Instagram updated by Gloria.
Two movie tickets sat in the photo, captioned with just two words: Major Announcement.
A man’s wrist peeked into the frame, a black hair tie wrapped around it.
My heart sank the moment I saw that hair tie.
It was the matching hair tie I’d begged Patrick to buy for us ages ago.
I’d told him it was a cute way to show we were together, but he called it childish and refused to wear it even once.
But recently, he’d finally started wearing it. I’d foolishly thought he was just too stubborn to admit that he liked it.
Looking back now, it was nothing but a cruel joke.
The others crowded around the phone, buzzing with excitement.
“Who’s the guy? Is he someone from our school?”
“She’s always been glued to Patrick Muller. I thought they were dating for a long time.”
I spoke up in a calm, steady voice.
“It’s Patrick Muller.”
They snapped their heads to me out of curiosity, then froze the instant they noticed my red eyes.
“Are you crying? Ivy?”
I ducked my head and picked up a can of soda. “Just getting caught by the wasabi dipping.”
Right after I blame the sauce, someone came in and they happedned to be Patrick and Gloria.
He carried her backpack slung over one shoulder and held her jacket in his hand.
The food caterer greeted them with the menu. Gloria smiled brightly. “That heart-shaped sushi looks nice, why not have a try together?”
My friends immediately started teasing them..
“We’ve known something was going on between you two this whole time! Patrick!”
He spotted me and paused for a second, then quickly composed himself and strolled over to my table.
“What a coincidence. Mind if we join you?.”