Thirty-nine #2
"Because I'll cuss people out for you?"
"Because you always have my back no matter what. Thanks."
"Always." Ricky stuck the pencil into his mouth again. "Now read me the rest of this award-winning speech."
***
Wearing the cap and gown felt like we were playing dress up.
The entire day felt like it was out of a movie, there was no way it was truly the day of graduation.
We had completed high school and were about to walk across the stage and receive our diplomas.
It was something we all dreamed about but never expected it to ever get here.
We walked out to the crowd in a line sorted by our rank order. Seeing the massive crowd of people did not help my looming anxiety. I knew there would be a lot of watchers, but damn. No wonder we had to hold graduation on the football field, all of the bleachers were maxed out.
It took a while for everyone to get situated.
Me, Javi, and the class other officers got to sit on the stage for the beginning of the ceremony.
Once I gave my speech they would have us go sit with the rest of the class to start handing out diplomas.
Then at the end we would go back onto the stage for Javier's closing speech.
I didn't know what to do with my hands as I sat nervously.
I wanted to get my speech over with so that the attention could be taken off of me.
They allowed me to keep my notecards with me while I gave the speech, but I had rehearsed so much that it was burned into my brain.
I did not even need them, but I still kept them just in case.
Once Principal Montgomery finished talking on the mic, she called me up there. Javier was sitting next to me, and he gave my leg a squeeze for support before I stood up.
Before we had walked onto the stage I told him how nervous I was. It turned out he was pretty nervous too. He said we could be nervous together.
The principal gave me the mic and I set my notes on the podium. After a short introduction of who I was, she began clapping and urged everyone else to. They did. I was off to a good start.
I coughed nervously into the mic, palms sweaty as I pressed my hands against the podium.
"The person we were at the beginning of this year is not the person we are now.
This year alone has brought on a lot of different events for us.
Some good, some difficult, some exciting, some confusing, but it has all been a part of our journey.
The last four years of our lives have gotten us to where we are now: graduating high school. "
I continued on about how much of an accomplishment it was to have earned a high school diploma. How there are people who did not make it this far and did not get the opportunity to achieve what we had. We put in the work to make it and it paid off.
I didn't want my eyes to leave the notecards before me because I didn't want to have to look at my classmates. However, a good speech meant engaging with your audience. I reluctantly scanned the crowd as I spoke.
Some students were giving me their full attention, some looked bored out of their minds, and a couple had fallen asleep.
There were only a few who looked pissed, but the majority seemed to be indifferent about the speech.
I had to stop myself from letting out a sigh of relief when I realized they did not secretly have tomatoes stored beneath their seats to chuck at me.
It took me a while to find people I knew in the crowd. The first person I spotted was Bella, and when I locked eyes with her she gave me a thumbs up. Paxton was a couple of seats down from her and he too was giving me an encouraging look.
My eyes found my brother who was awake, but he was clearly struggling. He kept nodding off, but then he'd shake himself awake again and straighten up to pretend like he wasn't falling asleep. He was trying to listen. I almost laughed in the middle of my speech because of the sight.
I spotted Ricky who was listening intently, then Kailey a little bit after that.
I didn't find Emerson until closer toward the end of my speech, but when I did, she was already looking at me.
She was far away, but I'm pretty sure she smiled at me.
Our speech was required to be at least five minutes long, and I was finally nearing the end of it.
"We went through a lot during our high school careers. We met new people, made new friendships, relationships, and even found family. Now we get to carry on into the real world with those people and see what life is going to bring us. Congratulations to us all and thank you."
I gulped as I backed away from the podium and gathered the note cards. There was a moment of silence where the audience sat awkwardly, but it only took them a minute before they started clapping. My lips curled into a satisfied smile as my classmates applauded me.
When I sat down Javi leaned over into my ear. "I have to beat that? I'm not sure that's possible, you did so well."
Once I was done with it, I could finally relax. The next hour and half were spent with faculty calling out names and giving out diplomas. It was a very long hour and a half. I underestimated how long it would take to call out every individual student's name.
When that was over, they handed the microphone to Javier.
I whispered words of encouragement to him before he walked to the podium just like he did for me.
I found out that his speech was longer than mine.
The requirement for it was to be at least five minutes long with the max being ten. He went on for about eight.
It was better than I thought it was going to be—and that was saying something because I already had extremely high expectations for his speech. His words were powerful, meaningful, and he was passionate about what he was saying. It was also witty which earned chuckles from the adults around us.
Javier ended his speech on a high note, and everyone threw their caps in the air in celebration.
All of the families in the audience came onto the field to find their child.
Javi grabbed my hand and pulled me along with him through the crowded area.
It took us a minute to find them, but we eventually did.
"You guys did amazing!" Gabriela wasted no time pulling Javier and I into a group hug. "Your speeches were beautiful. Really long…but beautiful."
"I'm so proud of you both, you've graduated! My boys had the highest grades and got to speak at graduation," Anita beamed with excitement.
My boys.
"On to the real world with real responsibilities," Alan added with a proud smile.
"How about a celebratory dinner, sí?" Anita asked us. "Whatever restaurant you want, that's where we will go."
My boyfriend and I exchanged a silent look I was more than happy with wherever we chose to eat at. The food didn't matter when I was with them, the people who I could be my true self around. I was with my found family.
My eyes wandered as I thought about restaurants, and they landed on the twins. I didn't know how long they had been standing there, but they were just a few feet away. When we locked eyes, they started walking toward me with caution.
"Hello everyone," Emerson greeted with an awkward chuckle. Easton gave a small wave.
Gabriela rushed to give Emerson a big hug, one that my sister returned graciously. Easton watched idly as the girls greeted each other, and I noticed Gabi’s eyes linger on his for an awkward second. Easton gave her an unsure, lopsided smile and she returned it with a sharp, uncool nod.
Their weird interaction made me raise a brow, but I chalked it up to being nothing more than Gabriela feeling to greet him the way she greeted his sister.
"Congratulations to you both," Anita's smile was supportive and proud as she spoke.
Emerson blushed. “Thank you.”
There was a silent moment between all of us. Javi looked to his family and then back at me, giving my hand a tight squeeze before letting go. "We'll give you a minute."
They walked away and left me and my siblings alone and Emerson immediately complemented me. "You and Javier are cute together. Your speech was good too."
"It was really long though," Easton said with a yawn. “I didn’t know it was possible to find that much to say about finishing high school.”
"It was supposed to be that long, but thanks. Congrats on graduating."
"You are the reason I passed math, so thank you instead." Emerson put a comforting hand on my shoulder. "Easton and I have been saving to get an apartment while he goes to community college. I know you have somewhere else to stay, but we want you to know that when we move in, you’re welcome there."
The months prior had been a rocky journey with my siblings and me. They did reach out to me, and they didn’t act like I was invisible when they saw me at school. It was awkward and unnatural at first—it would probably always be a tad uncomfortable— but it was gradually getting easier.
There were times where I could visibly see them struggling to change their attitudes. I knew it was going to be difficult for them to correct the way they've behaved and felt for their entire lives, but it stung.
It had gotten better as time went on. Now they would check up on me every week and it stopped seeming like a chore for them. They were trying and that was all that I could ask for.
"I'll keep that in mind. You're not going to college?"
Emerson shook her head with a scoff. "I barely passed high school. I want to try in the future, but for now I'll just work. I don't even know what I want to do with my life."
"Neither do I," Easton muttered. "That's why I picked a random major."
A laugh escaped my lips. "I hope that works out for you."
Easton was smiling genuinely at me, something that I rarely got to see from him. Then, his expression softened. "Mom and Dad would be so proud of you."
"You think so?"
"We know so," my sister stated. "You went through a lot this year and you still came out on top, no thanks to us. That was all you. They would be so proud."
"Just like we are…or whatever," Easton added awkwardly. I suppressed a laugh at the way tenderness was almost physically painful for him. "By the way, your friends are not-so-subtly staring at us."
I turned around and found them all grouped together facing my siblings and I. Their heads turned away in unison when I caught them. I was friends with the least stealthy people on earth.
"We won't keep you any longer," my brother told me. "We'll keep in touch, okay?"
After saying my goodbyes to the twins, I made my way over to my friends. They were pretending like they weren't stealing glances at me just a few minutes ago. They greeted me like I showed up unexpectedly, everyone booming with excitement and joy.
"Eli!" Bella called my name happily. "Your speech was amazing! I didn't know words could be so moving."
She was exaggerating, but it still made me smile.
"You can thank me," Ricky said as he puffed out his chest with pride. "I put in the work to make that speech great."
Kailey pursed her lips. "We all know that you didn't do that."
Everyone fell into laughter as Ricky rolled his eyes. He couldn’t hold back his grin, though.
"Guys, we graduated!" Paxton jumped into the air as he yelled. "The torture is finally over!"
"Until college," Bella drawled. "What's this mean for us?"
Bella and Ricky were moving to different states for college. Bella got into her dream school while Ricky just wanted to get away. They would be back for holidays, but we would go without seeing them for a long time and the thought was depressing.
Kailey was staying in state, but she was going to a college two hours away. It was a lot closer than Bella and Ricky would be, but we would still be separated. Kailey and Ricky were going to do long distance.
Paxton wasn't going to college. He also did not know what he wanted to do, and he did not believe in wasting money before he figured it out. He was taking a gap year.
I so happened to choose the college closest to where we currently lived. I wanted nothing more than to move far away at first, but after everything that had happened in the last two months, I didn't mind staying.
Since I was salutatorian the college I chose would pay for my school. It made a lot of sense to go where it was free and convenient. Plus, since Emerson, Easton, and I were making progress, a part of me didn't want to leave them. I could always move away later.
Javier was also going to the same college that I chose. It wasn't intentional, but I wouldn't lie and say that it didn't play a factor in my decision. Javi was fine staying close to home for the time being and the college was going to pay his tuition as well.
"We have all of summer to hang out," my boyfriend said as his arm slung over my shoulder. "Then we have to stay in touch and see each other during breaks."
Ricky nodded. "Simple as that."
"Simple as that," I repeated.
Eventually the others left to go find their families in the crowd of people on the football field. Javi and I went toward the exit so that we could find his parents' car, that's where they were waiting for us at.
"You know what I just realized?" Javier asked me as we walked.
"What?"
"If we ever have kids they're going to hate us. Their dads graduated high school at the top of their class and will probably again for college too. We’re gonna end up being insufferable know-it-all parents."
"Maybe just a little," I said, looping my arm through his and locking them together. "Graduating the top of the class in college? That's a little optimistic."
"I don't think so," he hummed. "When our kids need help with homework we will argue over which one of us gets to help them. Then, we'll argue over who's showing them the right and more efficient way. My way will be the better way, of course."
"You're ridiculous, Javier Cortez."
"Ridiculously in love with you, Elias Richardson."
My heart fluttered in my chest. "Jesus, Javi, how do you do that? You always say things so..."
"Effortlessly?" my boyfriend asked, his voice soft.
"Yeah, effortlessly."