CHAPTER 3

Sunny

I scared myself for nothing. I can now enter the school without any problems. I should not have gotten scared and tried to talk to or help him first. I ran away and thought wrongly of him.

"Are you okay now?" I asked him.

He nodded. "Want to see where he bit me?" he asked, about to pull his polo up.

"No need. I just wanted to know if you were okay." I answered immediately, with my hands waving forcefully. "I am sorry about last night." I added.

"I am okay. I have to go every week to the hospital for now." he answered while sitting in his chair.

That must be painful. Just thinking of a dog biting me already scared the hell out of me. Imagine how many injections he had to go through. I will cry if that happens to me. I will cry. No lies.

"Sorry for thinking badly of you. I planned to avoid you for the whole year, thinking you might eat me too." I said, apologizing.

Although our generation today is very advanced, and those kinds of things do not exist today, I cannot help but think that there might be things that are still unexplainable.

My grandmother once told me there was something like that in our province before. All I could do was think about it and judge him. That made me a bad classmate.

"It is okay. I explained to you what happened that night and asked for you not to avoid and be scared of me because you thought I was something that could harm people," he replied. "You even did not bother to help me, huh? Instead of helping me, you ran away. Thank you very much for your help." He added, mocking me.

"Sorry!" I apologized again and bowed to him. "Who would be able to think right when it is already night and I saw something I should not have seen in the first place? I am very sorry about that." I added. "How can you bite the dog back too? May I see your teeth?" I asked out of curiosity.

Was he able to scratch the dog with his teeth? It's impossible, right?

His eyes rolled at me. "Really?" he asked. "Here?" he added and showed his white teeth as if he was a model for toothpaste.

His teeth do not have any pointed teeth, like vampires or what. I should clear my doubts.

"Let us head to our room now." he said and stood up, leaving me behind.

"Look at you leaving me behind." I told him and followed him.

He is undoubtedly grumpy. He will make his students cry soon. I am sad for them already. I stopped complaining when my phone vibrated.

"Good afternoon, Jake!" I greeted.

"Are you in school already?" Jake asked on the other line.

"I am. How about you?" I asked back.

"I just got into university. I called because I might not be able to fetch you after class. I am sorry." he answered with a sad tone.

"Do not worry. It is okay, and I know you are busy. Finish them all early so that you guys won't have a problem in the future. You can do it. Good luck!" I cheered.

"Thank you! I have got to go now. I love you!" he replied before ending the call.

Kyaah! How sweet of him.

"Oho! Look at this Bitch smiling widely as soon as she enters our classroom!" Shiela yelled. "Was it your boyfriend?" she added.

I nodded shyly while I was walking toward my chair. I look at Steven, who is reading our book. What a brainy fellow we have. Instead of communicating with our classmates, he is busy reading.

"Have you talked to Steven?" I whispered to Shiela.

She shook her head violently. "I don't like him now. He is too serious. He is not friendly either. Making him my boyfriend will tire me out." Shiela explained.

I nodded, agreeing with what she had said. Before our professor came, our President had the honor of checking our daily attendance and any other deadlines we had.

We indeed have a good and responsible president!

"Okay, class! Write in front of one of Jose Rizal's plays. One girl and one boy," Mrs. Daquioag said. "Shall our new student answer for the boys and Sunny? You are clearly avoiding my eyes." Mrs. Daquioag said.

Am I too obvious? I should have looked at her instead. I do not know any of Jose Rizal's plays.

"Move already and write one," Mrs. Daquioag said. "Your professor already tackled this lesson before."

Yes, they did, but it has been so many years already that I don't remember anything about them.

"Excuse me, Mrs. Daquioag. May you please sign this paper for a few seconds?" One of the student councils said.

"Steven, help me," I whispered. "I do not know anything!"

"Don't want to." he answered, not even batting me an eye.

"Please! I will treat you anything after this," I told him. "Don't you know our motto? I told you about it last day!"

"You got the guts to do that?" he asked.

"Please!"

He sighed. "Por Telefono." he answered.

I quickly wrote it on the board.

"Thank you." I whispered before going back to our seats.

"Did he tell you the answer?" said Shiela, who was whispering beside me.

I nodded. "Luckily, he helped me." I answered back, whispering.

I thought he was not going to help me. If he did not, I would definitely be mad at him. I have got the right to get mad at him. I toured him, and he should know how to help back, right?

After our class, Shiela and I were about to go out of our room when I heard Steven call my name.

"What is it?" I asked.

"I helped you a while ago. Why does it feel like you do not want to help me now?" he answered.

"It is not that I do not want to help you, duh!" I replied. "What can I do for you, Sir?" I asked.

"I forgot where the library is. Please guide me." he answered.

"Can't I just tell you where and how to get there?" I asked again.

He shook his head. "Go with him. I will go first." Shiela said and escaped immediately.

"Shiela! Please wait for me! What a good brat she is." I said out of anger and looked at Steven.

"What?" he asked, raising his eyebrow at me. "Is it against your will?"

"It is not like that. Let's go. I will lead you to the library," I answered and walked towards our library. "It is already dark, and you still want to go to the library? You should go there tomorrow when it is still daylight." I complained.

"There is something I need to read for our thesis." he answered.

"I get that you are a genius, but you should sometimes rest, okay? Rest your mind and eyes! Don't you find it tiring?" I asked.

"Lazy people find it tiring." Steven replied, clearly mocking me back.

"Nye, nye. Hail to the genius Steven!" I said, putting my hands up and down as if praising him.

When we got to the library, the librarian was packing her stuff already.

"Go quickly." The librarian said.

I almost ran out of fear for the librarian. I don't get why they are so grumpy. Can they get nicer?

"Ahh!" I said out of pain.

"Stupid." Steven commented while looking at me.

"Thank you for helping me," I told him sarcastically. "You should have told me I was about to crash with this book stand!" I told him, whispering.

The librarian might scold me later for yelling. "It's the cost of overthinking." he explained as he came to a halt near the section where he needed to look for the book he wanted to borrow.

"Can you be nicer too? How will you make friends when you are so grumpy? You are still young to be like that, don't you know that." I scoffed at him.

"I don't need friends." he answered monotonously.

"You don't need friends when here you are asking for help. So, what do you think of me?" I asked.

"A classmate, are you an idiot?" he replied.

I rolled my eyes at him. "You are the idiot between the two of us. It is too common that we are classmates, duh!" I answered. "If you need help, you will turn to your friends and ask them. Who would like to help you when you called me an idiot and stupid a while ago." I added.

"So, you want to be friends with me?" He asked, and that took me aback.

"If you don't like it, then I don't like it either. Why would I push myself for someone who does not like me in the first place? Classmates must be friends in the first place, not enemies." I replied.

Steven surely knows how to boil my blood pressure. I wanted to smack him hard right now.

"Okay, let's be friends." he said.

That surprised me. "You sure about that?" I asked back.

He nodded. "You don't like it? I can take that back." he replied.

"Will you be nicer to me? I can't really take your attitude." I asked again.

"You are scared of me?" he asked back.

I motioned to him with my hands, showing a little sign. "It feels like you are one of our strict professors. I can't help but be scared, and you're going to make your student cry in the future." I answered.

"I did not say I would take the teaching method in the future. I don't like kids," he answered. "Let's go." he added, bringing two books.

"Why did you even take this course?" I asked.

He took the teaching course when he did not want to teach. Is he too bored in his life?

"I will get different work after this. I just need a diploma." he answered.

"Why does it feel like you are taking the course as if it is too easy? I can't help but get mad at your answer?" I told him.

"It is because you are stupid." he answered casually, making me angrily kick him.

Luckily, he got away from my sudden kick, or else it would have been my time to laugh hard at him.

"You are too short-tempered." he commented.

"You make me annoyed with your genius-like answer." I answered.

When we got to the librarian, she looked at me with penetrating eyes.

"Sorry, Ma'am. I crashed at the book stand." I said, lying with my head low to avoid her eyes.

"Look at your way properly next time. May I get your library card?" The librarian said and asked Steven.

"I am a transferee. May I use her ID since we are classmates?" he answered.

"Okay, give me your ID," the librarian told me. I immediately got my wallet to hand her my library ID. "Make sure to give it back clean and as good as what you borrowed." the librarian reminded us.

After that, we walked out of the library. There are no students around either. It was already night, yet this genius beside me still wanted to borrow.

"Are you scared? You are walking too fast." Steven asked.

"Don't you know that ghosts are wandering inside this university, yet you wanted to walk calmly as if it were daylight." I answered.

"There are no ghosts. You are old, yet you still believe in those kinds of paranormal things." he said.

"Let's just walk faster, okay—ahhh!" I yelled when I heard someone shout.

I pulled Steven as fast as I could. I could hear big laughter from the other side of the hallway. I looked back and saw a bunch of students.

"You damn idiots! I will kill you tomorrow when it is daylight! Ready yourselves!" I yelled at them.

"Why to bother killing them tomorrow when they are there already?" he answered. "Scared?" He mocked again.

"I will just do it tomorrow! Remember their faces, okay?" I answered and pulled him out of the building as fast as thunder.

I will never go here if it is in the evening!