Hello everybody! Sorry if I've been out for quite some time. School just started last June here in the Philippines and right away I've been bombarded by Reports, Assignments and the usual stuff.
But enough about that. I recently finished HuniePop and fell in love with the characters especially Aiko though I found Tiffany to be really cute (Blond isn't a natural hair color in the Philippines). And I love romance movies and literature with a"falling-in-love-with-your-childhood-friend" kind of story so I decided to combine both!
Be warned though that eventually there will be lemons in this, but as usual, I'll give them a separate chapter and upload what happens next simultaneously.
Another side note: Kyu, Venus, Momo & Celeste are humans in this story. It will also contain various couples, but the main couple will be OCxTiffany.
Now that that's out of the way, enjoy & review! I could use all the reviews and insights I can get.
DISCLAIMER:I DON'T OWN HUNIEPOP OR ITS CHARACTERS (Obviously)!
Have you ever fallen in love with your childhood friend? What was it like? Did you feel like smacking yourself head when you realized that you've grown up and hung out with the one person meant for you? I did. Listen to this story of love, second chances and forgiveness.
Date:DECEMBER 25, 2002 11:47 AM
Location:Walters Residence, Santa Rosa, California
The holiday season of '02. I remember it like it was yesterday. It was a time when you were the luckiest person in the world if you managed to get one of the first 500,000 units of the PlayStation 2 on launch day back in the turn of the millennium, my parents and I sung along to Geri Halliwell's cover of "It's Raining Men" and "Believe" by Cher and Dance Dance Revolution was still cool. It was an exciting time to be young.
I was born to a wealthy family. I wish I could say wealthy but if you saw our house you might think were just average. My dad was an astronomer and my mom is a general pediatrician. They raised me to become patient and not let our wealth get to my head. When I wanted something, they would always say:"We'll get for your birthday." or "Maybe on Christmas.". I don't know why, but it I didn't have it in me to throw a fit.
The Maye family moved into a house just across the street from us 3 days before Christmas. My parents were excited because we were going to have a new neighbor. They also had a daughter about my age. I was about 6 years old during that time. My mom invited them for dinner at my house on Christmas day, the day I first met her.
The doorbell rang, but I payed it no mind because I was struggling to land a hit against Riku in Kingdom Hearts while he just seemed to dance around Sora, the character I'm controlling.
"Dave, put the controller down for a sec. Let's go meet our neighbors!" my mom called out as she went to answer the door.
"Coming mom!" I replied. I hit the pause button then got up and ran to join her. The door opened and there they were, and her daughter. While our parents exchanged thier greetings I gently tugged on my mother's apron. It must've gotten her attention as I can feel her looking down on me though I wasn't looking up at her.
"Oh how could I forget. This is our only son, David. Say hi." she said giving me a slight push. Mrs. Maye got down on both knees so that we could see each other eye to eye.
"Uhh, h-hi ma'am. Y-you're really pretty." I said shyly. Then everyone exploded into fit of laughter.
"Aww that's really sweet of you to say that, David. You know, there's a person that I really want you to meet." she said sweetly.
"Really? Who?" I cocked my head in confusion.
"It's my daughter. Her name is Tiffany." she said as she looked behind her. Tiffany emerged from behind the protection of her mother. She's fair-skinned like her mom, ocean blue eyes and that had 2 strawberry hairclips that held her golden-blonde hair in twin-tails. I thought I wasn't looking at a girl, I was looking at an angel.
"Uhh, Hi. I'm Dave. Nice to meet you." I said with my head looking down, my hands behind behind my back and my feet pretending to kick some imaginary dust from the floor.
"Hi, uhh... I'm Tiffany. Nice to meet you Dave." she introduced herself to me.
"Aww look, our little Davey is blushing!" my mom squealed.
"N-no I'm not!" I squeaked in defense.
"Is this the first time he's ever talked to a girl?" Tiffany's mom asked. "No, but this is the first time I've seen him react like that."
When I was done with dinner I asked to be excused so I could go back to playing my game. When I got off my chair I went to Tiffany and asked, "Hey do you wanna go to the living room with me?".
"Sure! Mommy can I go?" she asked. "Of course, sweetie. Have fun you two!" Tiffany's mom said as the both of us ran to the living room.
"Wow, what's that!?" the young Blonde asked. "It's a PlayStation 2. My mom gave to me as a Christmas present." was my reply. "Aww cool!", she said.
Eventually lunch was over and everyone else joined me and Tiffany in the living room. I didn't pay attention to my mom and dad as the chatted noisily with Tiffany's mom about things I didn't understand or didn't care about at the time. At around 1:30 PM I asked if they wanted to play Dance Dance Revolution.
My mother asked me, "But Dave, are you sure you old PS1 discs will work on it?". My dad placed his hand on her shoulder and answered, "Don't worry dear, it can play PS1 games too.".
So we all played DDR until 5PM. While both my parents backed out after 3PM, Tiffany, her mom and I kept on playing and playing. It didn't matter if we were tired or if I had to make way for Tiffany if her mom outscored me or even when I played Afronova again and again just so I could nail that Afronova walk. All that mattered was that we had a great time.
Tiffany didn't have a present for me nor I her, but at that time, the mere fact that I met her was a gift in itself.
Date:JANUARY 6, 2003 8:00 AM
Location:Santa Rosa Elementary School, Santa Rosa, California
School recommenced after the first weekend of January. I was walking into front gate after my parents dropped me off before they went to work when Tiffany called me from behind.
"I didn't know you studied here!" she said excitedly.
"Me too!" I replied with the same excitement.
We went inside together and introduced her to my friends. She was very friendly and outgoing and she made friends with practically everybody in the school. Tiffany and I spent our dismissal time and weekends in my living room playing Dance Dance Revolution for hours. Then eventually we started sharing each others secret but swore not to tell them to anyone else and we eventually grew closer. My parents also got along great with Tiffany's mom. I remember hearing them one time that they had a feeling that one day were were going to get married.
Word began to spread that I got my hands on a PS2 and I became the talk of town, err, school that day. But that still didn't save me from bullying.
I've been bullied for a large part of my pre-school and elementary days. One of the reasons was my passion for video games or the fact that I was pretty overweight. Nevertheless, I was practically a punching bag and a scapegoat all rolled into one.
One time when she saw them in the act, they were saying some things that would make any 6 year-old cringe while I just kept walking. Tiffany dropped all her things and ran towards them.
"Stop it, you meanies!" she yelled as she tried desperately to separate my aggressors from me. They backed off, but not after talking shit on me.
"Hey guys, look. Dave is getting rescued by a girl!" one of them jeered. "Well this girl knows how to fight!" Tiffany spat back, brandishing her fist to prove her point.
The group ran off chuckling and cackling at the a fact that a girl managed to make them stop while I didn't even raise a hand in retaliation. "Are you okay, Dave?" she asked while inspecting my arms for bruises.
"Yeah, I'm okay Tiff'. Let's go home." I replied, not bearing to look at her for one second.
It was like that almost everyday for most of my childhood. And what made it worse is that every time I would tell my parents about this they would tell me to ignore it and brush it off "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me." some people say. But let me tell you this, the people who say that have NEVER experienced the kind of ridicule I went through.
Date:July 28, 2010 9:11 PM
As the years passed, Tiffany and I grew closer. She became a very beautiful and confident young woman while I started to put on weight as my self-esteem began to wane. Still, Tiffany never left my side just because of how I look. She would always cheer me up, sit beside me during recess and lunch and find time to play video games with me on the weekends. We even skipped our graduation ball to play Metal Gear Solid 4 on my then new PlayStation 3.
We graduated high school together just a week ago but managed to do so by the skin of my teeth because I was terrible at math, Tiffany managed to save me there.
Then one Friday, I invited her to my house but we decided not to play any games and just hang out on the roof.
"It's been so long since we've been able to hang out like this!" I sighed.
"I know, right? All those projects and homework really took up so much on our time." she said as she lied down.
"Yeah, and now we're going to high school together. I just hope we'll still have time to hang out." I smiled while gazing at the stars.
"Yeah, about that..." Tiffany's voice drifted off.
"Dave, there's something I have to tell you..." her tone became more serious. "Hmm? What's that?" I cocked my head in curiosity. She hesitated for a moment, I felt my heart beat furiously in anticipation and worry. What was she going to say?
"...I...I'm...moving...and I'm going to attend a different school." she croaked. I felt a piercing sensation in my chest. Tiffany is going to move away. Meaning we would be far away from each other and there was a possibility that we would never see each other ever again.
"When?" was all I could say.
"Next Monday." She began to shake and I could hear her trying to hold back a sob. "I really should have told sooner Dave. I'm so sorry!" she broke into tears and hugged me. I felt her tears soak my shirt as I hugged her and rubbed her back "Shhh... It's okay".
It took two hours for Tiffany to stop crying. We decided to make the most out of what could be our last two days together. We played at the nearby arcade, played baseball and went to the beach with our parents.
Date:July 31, 2010 10:28 AM
On the day she was going to move I invited her to the local park. I was waiting on a bench when I felt a hand tap my shoulder. I quickly turned around and saw Tiffany in the most beautiful sundress I've ever seen. It was baby blue with with roses printed all over it that complemented her milky white complexion and she wore a straw hat that went perfectly with her entire wardrobe.
"Dave, quit staring at me like that. It's really embarrassing." she said timidly.
"Sorry, It's just that... You look sooo pretty..." I confessed as I felt my cheeks heat up. "Really? Hehe, thanks." then her cheeks began to glow as well.
We spent the next half hour, telling jokes, cheesy pick-up lines as well as reminiscing our most embarrassing moments. Then the clock struck 11, our conversation became a little more serious. I started sharing my plans after high school and college and what I really want to do with my life and she did the same.
"You know, we could always talk online. Especially on the weekends." I said.
"Hey you're right. I'll send you my YM name later." her eyes lit up at the thought that maybe we can still see each other.
Then Tiffany's cellphone went off. She hesitated and then, "...My mom wants me back home..." she said looking down on the screen.
"Then I guess I should take you home?" I got off the bench and offered my hand. "Yeah." Tiffany took my hand.
"Thank you so much for everything, David. You've been such a great friend to Tiffany." her mom thank me.
"It's nothing, Mrs. Maye. I'm just really gonna miss her." I assured her with a smile. But in my mind I felt like I was being impaled from the inside out.
"Can I say something to Tiffany before you go." I said, trying not to sound like I was begging.
"Of course. She's in the car." so I ran towards the front of the convoy to the aforementioned car. There I saw her, hand on her chin looking very absentminded.
"Tiffany?" I knocked on the window to try and snap her out her trance. She was started, but she lowered her window.
"Dave? What is it?" she wondered.
"I'll uhh... I'll be waiting for you on YM. Okay?" I told her.
"No..." she said flatly. "...Don't just wait for me on YM. We'll be together again someday. And when we do, I'll just be like old times. I can feel it." she said as tears began to stream down her cheeks. She took both of my hands and gently rubbed her nose against my palm "So... Promise me. Promise me you'll find a way. Please?".
I took her own hands and kissed it before saying, "I will."
When Tiffany's mom was about to leave she waved at mom, dad and I before she got inside her car. Tiffany looked back at the rear view mirror, her eyes began to well up with tears. She stood in that position for several seconds until returned to seat presumably because her mother told her so. Then the car began to move. I didn't know what force compelled me to do so, but after a few seconds after the car took off, I ran after them.
"DAVID, WHERE ARE YOU GOING!" my mother yelled as I gave chase.
Fortunately Tiffany's mom wasn't driving very fast. I saw her in the passenger seat. "TIFFANY!" I yelled desperately. She must have seen me because she was holding up her hand up against the glass and I could see her mouth forming out my name.
And then suddenly, the car began to pick up speed. And the sight of Tiffany's face quickly disappeared from view.
I fell to my knees and my hears flow down my cheeks and onto the pavement in a mix of sorrow and grief.
The first 2 years of high school was the roughest period in my entire life. The verbal bullying became worse, but on top of that, my peers started punching me in the back and in the back of my head. They would also humiliate me in public and harass me online. Tiffany and I didn't chat online too much liked we promised. Mainly because Tiffany became a cheerleader and her practice always left her too exhausted.
My freshman year was brutal, but my sophomore year was the breaking point. The bullying became so bad that I contemplated and attempted suicide on two separate occasions, one via slitting my wrists and another by jumping from the top floor of the building.
The latter convinced my parents to move to transfer out. The school where I went to for my last two years of high school was alright and it was a breath of fresh air for me. But even though all the suffering I went through, I always thought of Tiffany. I'll never forget the promise I made on the day she moved away and I will find a way to be with her again.