WARNING: You might notice lots of wrong grammar and typographical errors and I am sorry for that. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!
Zein's Point of View
"Zein, wake up."
I shifted my position, ignoring whoever was squeezing my cheeks. I was about to shout in anger when the jerk pulled my comforter away.
I opened my eyes, and I was the one who ended up gaping when I saw who the poker‑faced man staring at me was.
Shit! I forgot!
"Psh." He wore an annoyed expression.
"What are you doing here?" I almost covered my face with a pillow so he would not see how I looked.
Damn it! I almost forgot! We were here at the condo he bought for the two of us, so we would not have to travel far every day, especially since the school we would be attending was nearby.
"To wake you up," he said, already turning his back on me. "Get dressed and have breakfast," he added before finally leaving my room.
I hurried to the mirror to check how I looked.
OH. MY. GOD! I looked like a mess.
I frowned when I glanced at the wall clock. It was only six in the morning, and our classes did not begin until eight. I had forgotten, I was living with the president.
It seemed my sleep would be disturbed every day, considering I shared a space with someone who treated every second as valuable.
"Hurry up!" he shouted from outside, as if he already knew I had not started moving.
I stretched briefly before taking a towel and heading into the bathroom. I closed my eyes as the cold water poured over me, sending a chill through my body.
Today marked our first day as college students, and unfortunately, we were attending the same school. I enrolled in the HRM program, while he chose Business Management to help Raze oversee the company their father had left behind.
The president was far wealthier than I was, and I had a feeling that this would not work in my favor.
After drying my hair, I stepped out of the room. I found Ace sitting on the sofa, watching cartoons. His gaze shifted toward me with small smile forming on his lips.
"You look beautiful this morning."
I wanted to frown, but I could not. His words made me smile despite myself. What an early remark to make. My irritation toward him faded, all because of that smile.
Damn his smile.
"Breakfast is ready," he said, guiding me toward the kitchen.
I closed my eyes when a familiar aroma reached me, instantly making my stomach ache with hunger. "Adobo?" I exclaimed happily as I sat down at once.
He served me rice and the dish, and I ate without hesitation. I could feel his eyes on me, but I paid no attention. I was hungry, and I had no time to be self-conscious.
"Slow down."
I glanced at him, chewing more carefully. I suddenly felt embarrassed. He was far more composed than I was.
After we finished eating, we returned to the sofa and talked about the things I should and should not do. Seriously, I am no longer a child.
"Here," he said as he handed me the cellphone he had bought.
When I saw the casing, I felt an urge to be embarrassed. "Don't be shy," he said with a hint of teasing. "You love Dora, right?" he added.
"Yes, but, damn it! You didn't have to buy me a Dora casing!" I shouted, making him laugh.
He raised his own phone. "I am your Boots," he said. His casing was a monkey.
I pouted. Didn't he know how flustering that was? He did not let me stand alone.
"You are Dora, and I am your Boots. Therefore, you are not allowed to go on an adventure without me by your side."
"Fine, but you really look like a monkey."
His eyes narrowed, and I knew he was serious, with no time for jokes. It was awkward, I joked, but I was the only one who laughed. My killjoy boyfriend.
"I am dead serious, Zein."
"All right," I said in surrender.
I turned on the phone he had given me. The wallpaper was still set to default, and there was only one number saved in the contact list.
Darling: 09********
"That's my number," he said. "I don't have yours yet," he added, prompting me to look at him.
I raised an eyebrow. Hadn't he saved it already? "Then save it," I said, handing him my phone, but he only looked at it.
He pouted. "Text me," he said. "There's already a load on it," he added.
"All right."
"It should say 'I love you.'"
I laughed and, as he instructed, sent him a message that read I love you. His phone beeped, and he showed me the screen.
"I love you, too."
After that, we left the building and headed straight for the parking lot.
"We're going home together," he reminded me again as he drove.
I simply nodded and turned on the radio. By coincidence, the song If You Are Not the One began to play.
I closed my eyes when Supremo sang along to it. It felt as though all the memories from yesterday had returned, everything seemed so recent, as if it had only just happened.
"The BM Building is far from the HRM Building!"
"I know."
"Then let me go on my own. You'll end up going out of your way."
He rolled his eyes. I shook my head when I realized he was already late. We had enjoyed talking so much that we lost track of time, and it did not seem to bother him at all.
We stopped walking when a grinning man blocked our path. I did not know why, but his smile gave me a bad feeling.
"You two are late."
"And we are aware of that," Ace replied indifferently.
The man frowned, clearly irritated by Ace's attitude. But who was he, anyway? Why had he stopped us? We were already late, and because of him, we would be even later.
"I am Cedric Lastimosa, the President of the Supreme Student Council."
Neither Ace nor I showed any interest. We did not care who he was, even if he happened to be the president of this school.
"Excuse us," Ace said. "My girlfriend is late."
He pulled me away from President Cedric, who was calling after us. "He acts like trash," he commented.
I could not help but laugh. Ace had once been the president of a school that was far from ordinary, and comparing him to that man was an insult to Ace Craige.
We stopped in front of Room 321. The door was already closed, so I knew their class had begun.
"I'm fine."
Ace studied me for a moment, as if examining every angle of my face. He let out a sigh.
"You are driving me insane," he said irritably as he ran a hand through his hair. I could only watch him in silence.
Sometimes, I truly did not understand him,or rather, more often than not, he was confusing and unreadable.
"You're going to be late," I said.
"Zein, is it okay if I shift to—"
"Ace!"
"All right, just kidding, darling," he said quickly. I was surprised when he pulled me into a hug. "I'm just afraid," he admitted. "I'm afraid of being far from you. You can be reckless sometimes."
Annoyed, I pushed him away. He laughed. "Well, see you later," he said.
When he disappeared from sight, I knocked on the door. I was not reprimanded since it was only the first day, so I simply introduced myself in front of the class before taking a seat beside Vanessa.
"Why are you late?" she asked.
"Because we're late," I replied indifferently as I took out my notebook and began writing.
"Did you and Ace do something?"
I paused to think. "Yes, we ate," I answered.
"What did you eat?"
I did not reply. I knew the conversation would lead nowhere. Whatever she was thinking was not true. I knew how her mind worked.
"What course is Jerome taking?" I asked instead.
"Civil Engineering, same as Dave."
I nodded. "Matt is also taking Business Management, like Ace," I added.
Mia, on the other hand, was in America to study there. She did not want to go because she would be far from us, but she had no choice. Dave convinced her, and despite her reluctance, she left with her parents.
After a few subjects, it was finally break time. Vanessa excused herself to look for Jerome, and since there were many cafeterias around, we would probably not meet again.
I scanned the area, and my attention was immediately caught by a man with a blank expression while a woman kept pestering him.
I narrowed my eyes and walked toward them. "Is there a problem?" I asked.
Ace quickly walked over to me and took my hand. I raised an eyebrow at the woman who was pouting while staring at our joined hands.
I smirked and looped my arm around Ace's. "What do you need from my boyfriend?" I asked.
I did not know why, but I caught her rolling her eyes when I said that, and honestly, I was holding myself back from snapping at her.
"Never mind," she said.
She turned her back on us and walked away. I puffed my cheeks and raised an eyebrow at Supremo.
"She's been forcing me to join the Dance Club," he explained.
"Do you want to?" I asked irritably.
"No—"
"Then why didn't you tell her straight out that you don't want to?"
He slipped an arm around my shoulders. "Don't be jealous. Come on, I'm hungry," he said, urging me along.
I stopped making a fuss because I knew Supremo would never trade me for someone like that. Honestly, it felt like comparing gold to mud, and yes, I was the gold.
"How is it?" Ace suddenly asked.
I paused mid-bite before answering. "Nothing special," I said briefly and continued eating.
The university was large, so there were many students, like now, when all the seats were already occupied.
"Because I wasn't there," he said.
I raised an eyebrow, but he only replied with a grin. "Wasn't it?" he added.
I just shrugged. This man was really full of himself. Still, a part of what he said was true. Nothing ever felt special when we were not together. Was that bad? I hoped not.
"May I?"
Ace and I looked up to see President Cedric, smiling as he held a tray of food. There was one empty seat beside us.
"No—"
"Sure," I said, cutting Ace off as he shot me a look.
He pulled my chair closer to him, leaving a wide space between Cedric and me.
"I don't eat people," Cedric said with a laugh, directing the comment at Ace.
"I know, but I do."
Cedric froze, his brows knitting together. I subtly nudged Ace with my elbow, signaling him to tone it down. I did not want us making enemies on our very first day, especially not the president of the Student Council.
"Fatty food, huh?" Cedric commented, eyeing Ace's meal.
I stayed silent, knowing that Ace hated being meddled with more than anything. And this guy was just—ugh. I had done everything to keep things from escalating, but it seemed this stranger was asking for trouble himself.
Wrong move, Cedric.
"I'm not a goat, unlike you, dude," Ace said.
"I'm not a goa—"
"Then a cow? Sorry, my mistake."
"Ace!" I grabbed his arm. He was completely unaware that the man in front of us was already on the verge of exploding with anger.
Ace raised his spoonful of food to my mouth. "Darling…" I quickly ate it, just to make him stop.
I heard Cedric clear his throat softly, which made me look at him, apparently, I was the only one who did.
"So, you are?" he asked.
"Zein, and this is Ace—"
"Her boyfriend," Ace cut in, wrapping an arm around me.
Cedric nodded. I noticed he had not touched his food at all. He had probably lost his appetite after the exchange with Ace.
"Zein? Nice name. It suits you, babe."
Uh oh.
"Are you stupid?" Ace snapped, his voice edged with a clear threat. "Didn't you hear her name? Don't ever call her that." He narrowed his eyes. "I'm Ace, but if you interfere with us again, you can call me Devil, and I'll give you hell."
Supremo stood up and pulled me away from there.
I guessed studying at this school would not be easy, not because of the professors, but because of students like us. Cedric was already at the top of the list. I could not even blame Supremo if he ever lost his temper completely.
Still, compared to what we had gone through before, this was nothing. We would survive this.
It was already afternoon, yet Supremo still had not shown up. He said we would meet at the waiting shed, but he was nowhere to be found. I was the only one there, practically being eaten alive by mosquitoes.
"Ate…"
I looked at the child standing in front of me.
"What is it?" I asked.
"The man said your boyfriend already went home," the child relayed.
I frowned at his words. Supremo would never leave without me, and he would never go home alone. I knew him too well. So why?
He had not even sent a text.
"Who said that?" I asked the child.
She pointed to a man wearing a cap. He must have noticed us looking at him because he quickly got into his car and sped away.
Weird.
—
Ace's Point of View
It was frustrating that our professor dismissed us late. Zein was already waiting. I almost ran all the way to the waiting shed.
I knew she would still be there. We had promised to always go home together. If she finished first, she would wait at the shed, are and if I did, I would wait there as well.
Her classes had ended earlier; she had even texted me about it.
I frowned when I saw that the place was empty. It was impossible for her to have left. I had told her to wait for me.
I decided to stay for a few minutes, thinking she might have stopped somewhere or bought something. But half an hour passed, and she still did not appear. I finally decided to call her.
I bit my lip when she did not answer. I called several more times, but there was still no response.
Damn it. She was making me worry.
I ran to the parking lot and got my car. Maybe she had left first, tired of waiting because I took too long, but I knew Zein. She would never do that.
As I drove, I could not stop thinking of all the possible reasons for her absence, possibilities that only made the unease in my chest grow heavier.
I pressed my temples firmly, trying to calm myself.
I ran up the stairs, ignoring the elevator entirely. By the time I reached our condo, I was out of breath.
The lights were already on. Was she here? I hurried to the kitchen and found Zein cooking.
I let out a relieved breath.
"I told you to wait for me!" I said, my voice tinged with irritation, surprising her—she hadn't even noticed I'd arrived. She turned to face me, eyebrows furrowed.
"We have an agreement!" I added firmly.
She raised an eyebrow and blinked at me, still holding the ladle in her right hand.
"What are you talking about?! You were the one who told me to go home!" she shouted, exasperated. "I've been waiting! Where have you been?!"
I didn't know why, but I suddenly hugged her. Perhaps it was because I had been so worried when I found no one waiting for me, and she hadn't answered my calls.
I felt my hand tremble as I realized she was gripping me tightly.
"Who said I should go home? Damn it! What is this now?"
"S-Supremo…"
"I love you, Zein."