☯ M E I R . A M O S . M A G G I D ☯ @Salsa Verde
"I remember Meir. He took a lot of shit from the gals, and I guess I didn't help much, but at least I didn't say or do anything nasty to him. We did speak every now and then about every day stuff, you know, school shit. He was a bit stiff, I guess. I hope he has loosed up a bit now."
"Are you aware of what he is doing now?"
"No, what?"
"He is a professor at MIT."
"Really? Sexy."

☯ W I L L I A M . B I S H O P ☯ @Gisk
"Oh yeah, I know Billy. I follow him on Insta. He's such a handsome boy, and talented, so how could you not get wobbly feet around him? I think he follows me as well, but we haven't really talked at all. He was sort of my guilty pleasure back then, the only reason to go to those stupid shows the school put on."

☠ ☯ S A R A . Z H O U ☯ ☠ @banjoanjo
"Oh boy, yeah, I've got some apologizing to do here, that's for sure. I remember that I had some issues with, ehm, how to put this—what I was attracted to at the time. And, there were rumors going around about this chick that made her a punching bag for me, for whatever fucking reason I don't even remember. Anyway, she was already being picked on for the accent and everything, so I guess I thought it was open season or whatever. I think she hates my guts, obviously, but I intend to fix that."
"Did you dislike her?"
"I guess I did back then, but I don't now."

⚜ ☯ J A C K . D A N I E L . W I L K E R S O N ☯ ⚜ @nodogs
"Ah, JD, of course, I remember. Let me tell you, I used to dump so much shit about the gals on her, ESPECIALLY before big parties, that the fallout was fucking hilarious. I was definitely the Joker, or maybe Harley Quinn, of my old gang. I could just as easily shit on them as I could anyone else, they all did the same anyway, so it wasn't a crime or something. Anyway, JD, she helped me with all that mischief—cool chick and fine as fuck."

☯ O L E A N D E R . O K O N E D O ☯@Aeolian
"I don't think I know who this is. Or, maybe, perhaps I've seen him, obviously, but I can't say I ever interacted with him. Who is he?"
"Nice guy, didn't appear to run in any particular circles."
"Huh, okay. It'll be nice to meet him, then. Hopefully, he doesn't hate my ass just by rumors."

⚜ ☮ M A R C O . V A L E N S I ☮ ⚜ @udonoodles
"Marco! I definitely know him. I guess I had a thing for some of the artsy guys back then. That kind of expression is somewhat connected to fashion, imagery, and mood found in social media, so maybe it's not an awful stretch to say that I enjoy it. Anyway, I remember that I decided to 'protect' this guy from the gals or any other asshole that wanted to shit on him. If I told him what kind of nasty stuff he dodged because of me, his mind would fucking blow to pieces. Then, he sort of faded out of view and disappeared. What happened to him?"
"It was a medical condition that slowed him down to a halt."
"Huh, that's too bad. I probably would've helped him out if he had asked."

☯ D A N T E . I B A R R A ☯ @Laertes
"Ah, yes, I know who this is. The gals were all over this guy for, well, not being a 'real' guy. The whole rainbow movement wasn't super big back then, especially not in Delton of all places. A lot of people were sneaking around with their sexualities, myself included. When I heard about Dante, I sort of stopped even being present when the gals gave him shit. I remember that I gave him a 'pass' on several occasions. I got some shit for it, instead, but I figure I could take it better than he would have. Did it ever get to him? Is he still who he is meant to be?
"It didn't, and he's doing well."
"Cool, glad to hear that."

☠ ☯ S A M U E L . S A B I S T O N ☯ ☠ @Rockette
"Ah, man, the gals gave this guy the full fucking nine yards of hard-hitting shit. The worst part is that I was in on it, too—no excuses this time. He was that loner fat kid, pretty much the stereotype you'd find in any High School movie. I feel really shitty about it now, though. So, yeah, tons of apologizing to do. I hope I can make it up to him, somehow."
"You probably won't recognize him now."
"Oh yeah? He lost the weight, then?"
"That and more. I won't spoil it for you."

☠ ☯ T R Y S T A N . K I E L . Z A R A G O Z A . S A L A Z A R ☯ ☠ @The Man Emperor
"Yup, I got some apologizing to do here as well. The gals were on this guy, me as well to some degree. I didn't follow up on the race shit the gals gave him, but just being there and condoning it was bad enough. Either way, I hope he can forgive me somehow."
"Do you remember Jason Williamson?"
Natalie burst into an uncontrollable chuckle. "Yes, I do. What about him?
"You should ask Trystan about that incident on the field."
"Trystan did that?!"
"I won't spoil it for you, so just ask him."
"Shit, my man. I definitely will. That fucking spectacle was the most hilarious shit ever saw."

♥ ☮ ⚜ M E L A N I E . C A V I L L ⚜ ☮ ♥@Benzaiten
"So, here we are, at the end, and perhaps the most interesting person on the list."
"You sure did your homework."
"Describe what Melanie is to you."
"An old flame, definitely. I probably wouldn't have said that back then, but that's how I see it now, for sure."
"Did you have any contact with her after Ritman?"
"Not really, no. I thought about her every now and then, but something always got in the way of checking up on her."
"Why is she special?"
"Well, we were one hell of a team, partners in crime."
"Describe what that means."
"Obviously, I wasn't the greatest student back then. I wasn't dumb or anything, I just didn't give a fuck about, you know, school and grades. Anyway, I got in the habit of forcing someone to do my essays or just paying them money. Now, Mel was at the opposite end of this same coin. She actually didn't mind by doing school stuff and certainly didn't care about being paid to do it. Anyway, then it sort of bled into group projects and shit, too. Mel just wanted to do everything by herself because everyone else just fucked everything up for her. I didn't want to do anything at all, so she just did everything and then filled me in on whatever I needed to know for the presentation to work. It was definitely a win-win situation. Eventually, I told the gals to leave Mel alone because of this arrangement."
"Interesting. But there was something more to it, was it not?"
"You know about that, too, do you?"
"It makes her special, does it not?"
"It certainly does. Well, we had a thing for each other. It grew over the course of our criminal escapades, and then it ended with a bit of rolling in the hay a few days before graduating."
"Is it fair to say that you are excited to see her again?"
"Yes, I suppose it is." Natalie blushed.

⚜ M E I R . A M O S . M A G G I D ⚜ @Salsa Verde
“Meir Amos Maggid. I remember how he was picked on by the bullies back in the old days, just like me. I stood up for him a few times, too. I was glad for him when we graduated, because that meant he won’t have to deal with those… ‘people’ again. I’ve always felt concerned, though, and I would ask him how he’s doing over the years. After all, Meir is one of the few people in school I genuinely liked. I like to think that we were friends back then, though I guess we have been very busy with our respective careers. Success is a double edged sword.”

☯ W I L L I A M . B I S H O P ☯ @Gisk
“Billy! I remember him. A talented music person, though the messages of the songs that his band makes are, eh, let’s just say my parents will go insane if they hear it. Anyway, other than that, he is quite likeable, so much in fact I wouldn’t mind it if he tried to drag me around with conversation. Never got to talk to him much, though.”

♥ S A R A . Z H O U ♥ @banjoanjo

“I recall Sara being made fun of because she wasn't from around here. Seeing it happen to her kind of hurt me in the inside because I know what it feels to be ostracized for not fitting in, to be told to "return to Asia" or something like that. I kept telling them agents of chaos to piss off from Sara's general vicinity, and she was always appreciative. Maybe that is why I tried learning a bit of Chinese back then… oh, don't give me that look. You know there's no chance."

☯ J A C K . D A N I E L . W I L K E R S O N ☯ @nodogs
"Jack Daniel. I have not conversed with her other than in official capacities, such as in group projects, but she appeared to me as lazy and doesn't give a damn about the world. Though she's the one who organised this whole reunion thing, so perhaps there has been a change?"

☯ S A M U E L . S A B I S T O N ☯ @Rockette
"Yet another kid I remember to be a subject of bullying. I never got to speak with him much, though. Not that I didn't want to. It's just that we always had a different path, and our roads never crossed. I heard he was very troubled, but I hope things have gotten better by now."

☯ M A R C O . V A L E N S I . ☯ @udonoodles
"Marco Valensi. We never got to speak much, as our interests were quite, ah, different. I believe he kept his distance back then, but I feel bad for him when he started attending less due to his condition."

☯ D A N T E . I B A R R A ☯ @Laertes
"When it was known that Dante had concluded on what his identity was, I knew I couldn't openly associate with him. Not because I dislike him, no; it was because my less than tolerant relatives are nosy and would start talking about it until the entire clan in both the States and the Philippines knew about it. But I heard he has his own company now so… great?"

⚜ M E L A N I E . C A V I L L ⚜ @Benzaiten
"Melanie. Oh yeah, we used to play in the Dungeons and Dragons club, and we'd talk and joke quite a lot as we created some fun shenanigans in the game's plot. You should have seen how weird the story could get. Ehem, anyway, Melanie was athletic, highly intelligent, and quite nice. She's just great."

☠ N A T A L I E . M I L L E R ☠ @Prisk
"They say that the company you keep speaks a lot about you. Well, it was Natalie's clique of demons that called me all those slurs and stuff back then. She didn't do much herself, but the fact that she willfully associated with them is… something. And yes, I'm still malding about it to this day."

☯ O L E A N D E R . O B E K U N O D O ☯ @Aeolian
"You know, it feels like he's always avoiding me. I think he's scared of me, or something. Was it something I did? I didn't do anything to him, and I heard he's a decent fellow so it's not like I'd do… something."

☮ M E L A N I E . C A V I L L ☮ @Benzaiten
An intellectual after his own heart. Mel was another of his microcosm group of friends. Seemed like it was easier to be friends with your competition than anyone else. Mel understood him and Sara even if her background was a little more rustic. It actually was a nice change of pace for Meir since he was used to the suburbs and cityscape whenever he visited his mother. He always wanted to be closer friends to her in the same vein as Sara, but he was clumsy and didn't know how. A second chance showed itself when the both of them attended MIT. It made things easier in a new city and school. The schism arose once more when they split career fields, again his actions to save the friendship didn't match his actions. A regret he aims to mend.

⚜ ☯ W I L L I A M . B I S H O P ☯ ⚜ @Gisk
Meir and William were never really close, instead they were always close in proximity. They had the same classes as many of the kids in Ritman did. William was a slight bright spot in an otherwise montonous career between being bullied and constantly studying. Why? Mostly because his sense of humor and title of class clown always promised a good laugh. Meir always rehearsed in head a thousand times over what he would say if Billy ever pulled him into one of his promotions of the introvert. Alas he never got the chance, but admired his ability to throw limelight on otherwise wallflowers.

♫ S A R A . Z H O U♫ @banjoanjo
Oh Sara, what's not to say about her? She was brilliant, talented, and beautiful. It was weird for Meir to have friends, especially one that was a girl. He often got ridiculed about being her boyfriend. Regardless, she was an amazing friend and academic rival. He felt like having her made sure that he was as sharp as he needed to be in order to stay at the top. Their friendship ran deep, to the point that he was over her house almost everyday after school. Not that he couldn't invite her over to his, it was just easier. Her parents taught him how to use chopsticks, try new foods, and began his gateway to learning languages by teaching him Mandarin. Mostly the basics, but he took it a bit to the extreme. The two were mostly inseparable, except for when they graduated. Sadly for the two, their communication fizzled out.

⚜ ☯ J A C K . D A N I E L . W I L K E R S O N ☯ ⚜ @nodogs
Meir was one of Jack's biggest fans despite never letting them or anyone know that. He admired how she was a chameleon, someone who could blend in with any group she got swept into. What was more interesting though, was her ability to completely detach herself from that group and move out without even an inch of regret or remorse. His father always told him you outlive the people you meet, Jack was the embodiment of that. He was glad that their interactions were nothing but organic, she didn't expect anything nor feel pity for him. It was neutral. Most of their interactions boiled down to him tutoring her anyways, she had a habit of ghosting school work just as much as she did social cliques.

⚜ O L E A N D E R . O K O N E D O ⚜@Aeolian
A hero, or at least, Meir's hero. No on had ever stood up for him, to the point they were willing to eat a punch for him. To be fair, Oleander might have been the inspiration that drove his transformation in college. Someone selfless and willing to give a voice to those who were robbed of one. It was hard for Meir to translate his admiration for him from savior to friend. And so he simply retreated back into his shell and stuck to what he knew best and that was tutoring. An honest extension of friendship outside the walls of the library would have gone a long way for the both of them.

☯ M A R C O . V A L E N S I ☯ @udonoodles
Marco was essentially Marco Polo, but through the exploration of music. He was definitely a prodigy that could easily be seen making it all the way to Julliard. However, this meant nothing in terms of their relations. Music and Math barely went together unless you count those dumb little kid shows that needed a song for anything educational. Being on the complete opposite ends of the spectrum didn't allot them many opportunities at friendship. Rather, Meir would eat his lunch near the music rooms during lunch since it was empty save for the melodies escaping from the white keys of Marco's genius. Meir felt misplaced guilt when he saw Marco come in a wheelchair or crutches after disappearing for weeks on end.

⚜☮ D A N T E . I B A R R A ⚜☮ @Laertes
Another one for the motely crew of nerdy rejects. There was power in numbers and it was nice having a male friend to add to the mix. Meir never really saw the point of making fun of someone's background, since it was harder to know two languages to the one. Dante was someone who he could play PC games with and actually helped him build his first rig. Although, it was using all 32 gbs of ram to run excel and word more than anything. Their friendship hit peaks and troughs when he started to play guitar and become more involved with his band. Meir attempted to see some shows, but it hurt his ears and he stood in the back hugging his $10 water.

♥ ☠ N A T A L I E . M I L L E R ☠ ♥ @Prisk
Ah the fabled Natalie Miller. One of the plastics. The queen bee surrounded by all her workers and subjects. Like any good high school story, Meir had a one sided crush on her from the start of freshman year. There was absolutely no basis for it except for her looks. This crush lived up to its name, because once he started to get bullied to the moon and back by her friends, her silent association killed any feeling he had previously harbored. She wasn't a bad apple, but she was certainly spoiled by being around them.

☯ S A M U E L . S A B I S T O N ☯ @Rockette
Samuel just reminded him of Allison Reynolds from The Breakfast Club, without the shitty 180 they did on her character, a crime really. He was dark, edgy, and a brooding character that put off a lot of people just by the look of him. Meir had no issue with him and thought the look was pretty cool. He never paid any of the rumors any mind and instead just hoped he could get the help he needed. Then again, guidance counselors cared more about themselves than actually helping students.

⚜ T R Y S T A N . K I E L . Z A R A G O Z A . S A L A Z A R ⚜ @The Man Emperor
Trystan was cool, deserved way better than the laxative treatment. He was made of the same substance as Oleander. Someone who he didn't expect to stand up for Meir either. They hung out a few times after their encounters with the jocks and plastics. Again Meir was functionally inept at friendships that didn't start when he was 5 like he had with Sara. On his last trip to the Philippines he thought of Trystan, wondering what it must have been like to make that massive move to the states, all to be bullied by some shitheads.