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High-School Graduation

For the past four years, I woke up early and stayed up all night studying for finals, all leading to this moment. It felt like today would never happen, but here I am,

standing on the precipice of a new chapter. The past seemed like a relentless cycle of early mornings and sleepless nights, each day blending into the next with the singular purpose of reaching this milestone: graduation.

My phone buzzes on my vanity, pulling my attention from my mirror. Without looking down, I slide the notification and open FaceTime.

“Are you riding with us?” Hazel asks as she makes an ‘O’ with her mouth while putting on mascara in her vanity mirror.

“No, I told you already I’m riding with Jett.”

“Kadin, it’s our last day of high school; the three of us have to go together.”

“Sorry,” I say, not waiving from my convictions. Jett and I have walked onto campus together on the first and the last day of school since kindergarten, and today is no different. I’m not going to change my mind. “I’ll see you and Olivia at our normal meeting spot.”

“Ugh!” she growls into the phone. “You’re impossible.” “Why aren’t you driving with Hayes?” I can’t help but to

ask. It’s a simple question, but it’s loaded for me.

“I am. He’s picking Olivia and me up. Why are you asking about Hayes?” Irritation laces her question.

“It just means we’re finally (almost)out of high school, and maybe it’s time you and Hayes stop playing games.”

“I have to go.”

That’s all I get before she blows me a kiss and hangs up. I stare at the blank screen, a smile tugging at my lips. Classic Hazel, constantly dodging anything that has to do with Hayes Emmerson. I can’t help but wonder if she’ll admit just how much she’s always loved him. They’ve both been my best friends forever and yet, here we all are, stuck in this weird limbo where they blissfully deny their feelings for each other. And me? I’ve always loved Jett – probably more than I should. But I’ll never say it. I can’t say anything now; after all this time, it would ruin everything. So, I keep it to myself, watching him fall for someone else, knowing I’ll never be the

one for him. It’s easier this way…

There’s a honk outside my house, and I run downstairs, jumping to the landing and skipping the last two stairs.

“You’re going to break your damn ankle one day doing that, and you won’t be able to play soccer.” My mom scolds me.

I love soccer, but I wonder if she loves it more than I do.

I kiss her on the cheek. “Last day. I’ll see you when I get home.” “Remember, after graduation, we’re all going to dinner together.” When my mom says we’re all going to dinner, that means Hazel and her parents, Olivia and her parents along with her twin brothers, my parents and four siblings, Jett and his parents, and Hayes’s family. It’s excessive with at least twenty people.

“Yeah, I know. The five of us are coming straight from graduation, so we’ll meet you there. You’re acting like I won’t see you after graduation for pictures,” I tease, rolling my eyes with a playful grin.

“Oh yeah, I guess I forgot that part,” my mom says, a hint of nostalgia in her voice.

I dash down the few steps of our walkway and then look back up at her. She’s still stood at the door, leaning against the frame, watching me with a mix of pride and bittersweet emotions flickering across her face.

“Mom, I’ll see you later, okay?” I say with a grin before jumping into the passenger seat of Jett’s car, feeling the familiar rush of excitement.

While the door is still open, Jett leans across me and shouts, “Good morning, Mrs. Johnston!”

“Call me Roxanne!” she calls back, a smile breaking through her wistfulness.

And with that, Jett and I drive away, the car humming with the same energy that has carried us through the past few years of high school. The sun continues rising, casting a golden glow over the neighborhood as we head toward the final chapter of high school.

“Are you excited?” I ask, turning in my seat to face Jett. “For graduation? For high school to be done? Or to play

football in Texas?”He glances at me with his goofy grin. His words are light, but they always carry an effortless charm that makes him the center of attention. I watch him for a moment, feeling that familiar frustration bubble up. How does he not see it? I’ve been by his side through everything, his highs,

his lows and every moment in between. Yet, somehow, I’m invisible in the crowd of people who adore him. Maybe that’s the problem. I’ve been too familiar for too long, and he’ll never notice what’s right in front of him.

“Any, all of the above, I guess?” One of these days, I’ll muster the courage to tell him how I feel. But for now, I’ll keep playing the part of the supportive best friend, hoping that someday, he’ll look past five-year-old Kadin standing at the bus stop with her mom or seven-year-old Kadin with messy hair throwing him the football for hours until the streetlights came on.

“Yes, yes, and yes.” He pauses, his eyes lighting up with excitement. “Wait, was that everything? I feel like I’m forgetting something.”

I make my best effort to let him off the hook. “Okay, I get it. You’re excited.”

We stop at a red light, and he faces me, his dimple on full display. “Kadin, college is going to be amazing. I’m going to get drafted; you’ll get scouted to play soccer in some European county, and our dreams will finally come true.”

I just smile back at him because he’s right; that’s all we’ve ever wanted. I play soccer in Europe, and he plays football here in the States, but there’s still a part of me that wonders if I would give up soccer to stay here with him if he ever asked me to.

• • •

As I walk across the stage to receive my diploma, a mix of excitement and trepidation bubbles inside me. The end of high school is not just an end but a beginning—a fresh start in the uncharted territory of college life. The future stretches out before me like an open road filled with endless possibilities and unknown challenges.

I look out into the crowd and spot my parents and their best friends, their faces beaming with pride. My heart swells with a mixture of gratitude and nervous anticipation. This is the beginning of our next chapter, and I can’t help but wonder what lies ahead.

The sun shines brightly on this pivotal day, casting its signature golden glow over the ceremony. The air is filled with the hum of excitement, and the scent of freshly cut grass mingles with the perfume of blooming flowers. As my classmates and I toss our caps into the air, a surge of exhilaration sweeps over me. This is it. The moment we’ve all been waiting for.

But as I step off the stage, diploma in hand, a thought lingers in the back of my mind: What comes next? College looms on the horizon, a daunting and exhilarating prospect. New faces, new challenges, new everything. The familiar routine of high school is behind me, and ahead lies a world of possibilities.

Will our fivesome always be as tight as we are now? Will Hayes and Hazel end up married or hate each other? Who will Jett marry, and will I like her? I’ve got to like her because I can’t imagine a future without Jett being part of it. Will I play professional soccer, and will Jett play professional football? There are so many unknowns as we walk into the next phase of life.

I take a deep breath, savoring the mix of fear and excitement that churns within me. Today marks the end of one chapter and the beginning of another. And I can’t wait to see where this new journey will take me.