Older Brother

Since his mind was made up to apologize, the next thing to do would be to actually do so, but when and how? Knowing that she has some pretty thick walls built around her, how could he get close enough to apologize and when could he? Unaware his chance to make up to her would come sooner than expected. With his mind completely occupied with those questions, Philip ended up walking slower than usual, arriving at his last class of the day only to meet Gabriela. She just ignored the frozen person, as she passed by. As soon as he saw her walking towards him, well to the classroom he was standing next to, he stopped everything, from walking to even thinking, for a moment, stunned to see her appear before him, as he was just thinking of how he could get close enough to apologize. He just blinked and looked after Gabriela as she walked into the classroom, before a huge smile appeared on his face, truly grateful that they did end up having at least one class together. It will not only provide him a chance to apologize but also a chance to walk home with her. Walking home together would allow him to get to know her better.

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Philip's POV

Ever since their first meeting that very morning, she had piqued his interest. Even more so as he heard her being called 'miss studious', knowing it had to be her since they all said it was the new girl. His disappointment of not having a single class with or not even seeing her once throughout the day, quickly faded when he saw her eating by herself in the cafeteria. Anxious to see how she was doing and what her afternoon classes were, hoping they would have at least one together. He sat down beside her and started asking questions, seeing her annoyed face, he ignored her introduction and asked her about her other nickname. Not liking her silence, he decided to tease her by placing his arm around her, asking her in her ear if he could see her schedule. Well, most would think that his plan fell through as he was thrown immediately on the ground. But he did get to see her reactions change, once again, in just a split second as the silent girl beside him, turned into a vicious creature. Like a wolverine, calm, cute, yet very dangerous, capable of attacking anyone that made them feel threatened. He began to think she was raised in the jungle or something since he could only imagine her as some kind of animal every time they met. He definitely needed to tone down his teasing around her, if he was ever going to get to know her.

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As luck would have it, well Philips luck, Gabriela and he ended up sitting together at the back of class since they were the last ones to arrive and those were the only seats left. Not having any time to say anything before class, as soon as the bell rang to dismiss everyone for the day, Philip quickly looked to Gabriela, who paid him no attention (well she did remain cautious of him) and apologized. He said sorry and when he noticed she paused in putting her things away, he continued. She looked at him, wary of his words as he apologized again, explaining that he will not touch her again unless she was ok with it. You could see that she was debating on whether to believe him or not. He then asked which way she goes home, maybe they could walk together. At that last comment, she glared at him, he lifted up his arms in defeat, like he did that morning. She then went back to putting her stuff away, before saying that she will be walking home with her OLDER brother, emphasizing 'older', hoping that, that would scare him away, but he just said, that was fine, he would like to meet her older brother. Philip was curious to see if she actually had an 'older brother' since she seemed to emphasize it or was she just trying to scare him away. She didn't say anything else and just left. Philip followed her, keeping his distance, just waving to her every time she would turn around and saw him. There were still quite a few people walking around in the hallways, and he wasn't too close to her, so all she could do was just continue walking.

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Alex and Monica were soo curious about how Gabriela's first day of school was. They were wondering if she had friends, maybe she wouldn't want to walk home together. When they arrived at her school, they found a boy who despite maintaining his eyes on Gabriela, kept his distance. Alex quickly grew defensive and ran to Gabriela, calling out to her. She met him as he got close and they hugged, Phillip was gaping in shock, before walking up to them and saying hi. Noticing his tone was friendly and it didn't seem like he meant his little sister harm, Alex greeted him back. Gabriela was silent, not introducing anyone, only speaking up to ask to go home, after greeting Monica as well. Alex and Monica both said ok and were about to walk away with Gabriela, when Philip called out to them, "Um, I am Philip, I have a class with your Sister." Hearing the word "sister" caused Alex to become nice all of sudden. Taking Philip as Gabriela's friend, since he knew that she is Alex's sister, he introduced himself and Monica as well. Taking the initiative on behalf of his quiet Little Sister. He asked Philip where he lives. Philip living a few blocks away from them was invited to walk together. Gabriela remained silent, still cautious of Philip as he hadn't shown her a good impression since they first met. Although it did seem he meant his apology since as they walked together he made sure not to get too close to her and didn't show her any intention of trying to touch her either. Philip was glad he muscled up the courage and called out to them since it seems after introducing himself, her Brother seemed to change from defensive and tense to happy, even inviting him to tag along on the way home. Philip wondered if saying Sister was what caused the change in Alex's reaction before or not, either way, he was able to get one step closer to Gabriela.