Alexandra

The next day, I sat at my desk as if nothing happened though my arms hurt a bit. While turning my arms, I glanced at Giovanni’s vacant seat. He was absent again. Doesn’t he have plans to get serious with his studies?

My beeper rang. I dug my hand inside my denim pocket and grabbed the device. I smiled reading Marissa and Jessica’s thank you messages. “You’re cool,” I whispered.

The classroom started to fill with noisy chatters. Yet it became silent when an old man in a formal suit entered without notice. He looked like a chairman or someone from the prefect of discipline. “Good morning, freshmen. Please settle down,” he said in a hoarse, aged voice. Everyone ran to their seats and immediately fixed their selves.

“I’m looking for Ms. Alexandra Montenegro. Is she here?” I flinched as everyone pointed their fingers at me, leaving me without a choice but to raise my hand. I tried to deny their stares, although they seemed to tell me I did something awful.

Well, I already guessed what’s this fuss about. I took my things with me and went down to the lecture hall. I followed the old man who already exited the room in a rush without saying a word of goodbye to the class he disrupted. I walked behind him until we reached the disciplinary office.

When I got in, I saw Vanessa, Natalia, the other girls and jocks sitting beside each other. At the adjacent, there sat Jessica and Marissa, covered with bandages. I glanced through the whole office that seemed huge enough to accommodate lots of people. “Stand there, Ms. Montenegro,” the old man sat on the table.

At the edge, I saw his “Josefino Villarin, Prefect of Discipline” nameplate.

My wild guess was right. He’s the person-in-charge with the school’s disciplinary issues. Like he said, I stood in the middle of these people scowling at me. “I guess you already have an idea what we have to talk about, Ms. Montenegro.” I nodded without hesitation.

He added, “These people concerned already knew the consequences of their behaviors. I admit that it took me a long time to weigh my decisions here. With regards to Ms. Vanessa Gonzales, her family already knew the situation. The school granted her a reconsideration. and her actions.”

My eyes knitted after I smelled something fishy of Mr. Villarin. “Wait, does that mean the school exempted her from the punishments you’re going to give us after the incident?” Mr. Villarin nodded without hesitation. “But why, that sc- I mean these people, Ms. Gonzales, sir, bullied my friends here. They’ve been hurting us. Can’t you see the bruises we’ve got from them? Can’t you reconsider your decision, sir? Are you out of your mind?”

“No," he sputtered. "I am not insane, Ms. Montenegro. My decision is final. By the way, you seem to be a strong woman. I admired your sense of justice at your age. But your inappropriate actions made me decide to have you suspended," he said in a loud tone.

“But sir—” He stopped me with a gesture. The two girls smirked as if they liked my situation.

“This ain’t right. You did an unfair decision here, sir. That’s why these students won’t know manners." Everyone’s eyes grew wider out of a state of shock. Especially Natalia and Vanessa, who stood from their seats, crossing their arms.

“Excuse me? Did you just say I didn’t teach them manners? How dare you say those words to me?” His eyebrow raise, as he scoffs and giggles. “I didn’t expect to hear that from you, Ms. Montenegro.”

“But that’s true, sir,” I said in almost cold, monotone whisper. Villarin stood in front of me, leaning his torso forward and smirked.

“You’re a brave woman, Ms. Montenegro. I liked that … If we ever met in a different circumstance.” He clucked and breathed in some air. “Because of you telling me like that, I raise my judgment from suspension to expulsion.” I was wide-eyed, including Jessica and Marissa. They immediately stood and objected to his decision.

“No, that’s unfair, sir. You didn’t even hear, Ms. Montenegro’s side,” Jessica, the student leader by nature, said. “We’re bullied and she did what she has to do to protect us from getting hurt.”

“As simple as that?” I raised my eyebrow. “Ridiculous. You’re mad, sir. You’re as pathetic as these petty rich fools here.”He sighed and shrugged.

“Whatever, Ms. Montenegro. You have to know where to stand in this school. You’re only a freshman. Yet, you already tainted your name in San Nicholas. That’s disappointing. Well, that’s my final decision. Period.” He sat and flipped papers on top of his table. “Now, please students, leave my room. I still have a lot of things to do,” he said shooing us away.

Before everyone went off, I walked towards him and slammed my palm on top of the page. He flinched, looked at me. “What the hell, Ms. Montenegro?” he said in a high tone. I leaned my torso near him.

“You will regret this decision, sir. You don’t know the consequence of your words now, Mr. Villarin. But sooner or later, this mistake will cost your life. Remember that.”

“Is that a threat? Are you trying to give me a death threat, Ms. Montenegro?” he asked, trembling on his swivel chair. He stood, “Do you think my decision here is a joke?” He raised his tone.

“No, I didn’t say it’s a death threat. It’s not. It’s up to you how you perceive it. The fact you didn’t care about teaching justice within the corners of the school means you never did your job well."

“And that’s the fact, Mr. Josefino Villarin,” a man with a familiar voice entered out of the blue. I turned and gasped.

“Giovanni, man, what are you doing here?” the jocks greeted him, but he didn’t respond. They immediately felt embarrassed as if their confidence level plummeted in seconds.

“Giovanni?” I whispered. He looked at me in his usual cold expression on his face that doesn’t match his outfit for the day. It was too casual for a cold human like him. Loose black long-sleeve turtleneck and light blue tattered denim. If he's wearing black tux would fit better for his image.

As he moved forward heading towards my direction, Natalia held his arm. But he didn’t budge. He shrugged her off instead. “Wait, Giovanni. What are you doing here? Are you here for me?” Natalia flushed, said in a flirty tone that cringed one of the jocks and angered the other one.

“Mr. Mendiola,” Mr. Villarin stood, rubbing them together. Giovanni approached him. “What brings you here? May I help you with something?”

“You know these two women here…” He halted pointing to Natalia and Vanessa. “… doesn’t own much compared to my family, right?” Mr. Villarin, who once showed oppressing behavior before now turned into a puppy in front of this man. He nodded, faking his smiles.

He added, “I’ve been shutting my mouth from what is happening here, but it’s time to intervene.”

“What are you saying, Mr. Mendiola?” he tried too hard to control his composure in front of Giovanni. The prefect of discipline in-charge felt guilty from the way he sounded. “You know I’ve been doing my job here in your school.”

He released a loud sigh as he planted his hands inside his pockets. He maintained his sarcastic gesture to the old man, trembling in fear. “Why would our school allow someone like you?" He flicked his face down and raised to show his raised eyebrow. "You never cared about teaching justice in his students." He raised his tone. Everyone jolted, in fear. Especially when they saw his intense glare.

Mr. Villarin blinked in tremendous fright. He looked confused whether he would sit in his swivel chair or stand to lean his torso forward. Cold sweat covered his face and drops of them crawled down from his forehead. Facing down, he grabbed his handkerchief and wiped his face. Before he took his courage facing the alpha again.

“I apologize if my judgment appeared like that. Weighing the situation between two parties, they showed inappropriate actions,” he explained.

“Then why an unfair punishment?” Giovanni said in baritone. “I know my beloved woman got herself into trouble and injured these people here. But if you think about it, who provoked her to do that? Wasn’t that clear to you?”

Beloved woman?

“It is,” he responded in a forced manner.

“But—”

“But what, Mr. Villarin?” Giovanni wanted more explanation from the old man leaving everyone speechless. Even the talkative Natalia and Vanessa remained their mouths shut. Jessica and Marissa, still in pain, kept their silence. Their faces showed worry for me.

“Are you afraid these scumbags will take you out from this position?” he asked. Mr. Villarin remained his mouth closed. “Remember who hired you and who expected you to do a great job. These people?—” He paused and pointed to Vanessa and Natalia. “—They’re daughters of the members of the board. Who’s greater than them? Me, right?”

“Y-yes, Mr. Mendiola. I am completely aware your family owned the majority of the school. In fact, your family owned the school,” he added.

Wait, his family owned San Nicholas University?

“I am glad you’re aware of our influence, Mr. Villarin. Compared to these two women’s families wealth combined, they are nothing against ours. As a matter of fact, they only owned ten percent of the total shares in San Nicholas,” he turned his head and winked. My eyebrows knitted together in an instant.

“Spare my beloved woman and her friends from this shit you’re doing, Mr. Villarin.”

My eyebrows raised, pursed my lips as everyone else’s wasn’t able to keep their composure. Natalia immediately showed opposition, scoffing. Jessica and Marissa remained jaw-dropped. Mr. Villarin shook his head, trying to understand Giovanni’s declaration. “Er, let me clarify your statement, Mr. Mendiola. You mean this woman is your—”

“’Lo and behold, meet my girlfriend and future wife, Mr. Villarin,” Giovanni declared. “This woman, I mean Ms. Montenegro is your future wife, Mr. Mendiola?”

Future wife?

“Yes. And the same woman you gave expulsion now, Mr. Villarin.” The old man showed nervous chuckles. Flabbergasted, his face flushed because of the embarrassment to his actions. “You can’t do that to the woman I love. The woman whom the Mendiolas rely upon—”

He paused and looked at me straight through my eyes. “—in producing new descendants. Do you understand that?”

Descendants?

My eyebrows furrowed as Giovanni’s surprising remarks progressed. My fists clenched with his arrogance. “Fine, Mr. Mendiola. As you wish,” he said and immediately glared at me. It didn’t bother me except what stupid remarks this halfwit told him.

“Do you have further objections to my favor, Mr. Villarin?” The old man shook his head.

Afterward, Giovanni walked towards me, grabbing my hand. “And by the way, before I forgot, I have to remind you of something.”

“What’s that?” the old man asked, trembling.

“I saw everything that happened. These group bullied the three girls here. So, better give them something they deserve. Like you did to my Alexandra before I came,” Giovanni said.

“B-but, Mr. Mendiola, I—”

“Giovanni!” Natalia and Vanessa screamed altogether. “You can’t do this to us. You better know our families put this school together.”

He raised his eyebrow. “So?”

Feeling insulted, the girls scoffed and crossed their arms in sync. Giovanni turned his sight back to Mr. Villarin, who seemed to doubt his judgment. “You seemed displeased with my suggestion, Mr. Villarin?”

The old man gulped.

“Do you mind if I call the board to replace you right now?” he said, glancing to the others as well. The old man shook his head, nodding to agreeing with Giovanni’s terms. “Good. So, do your job. I don’t like people who practice this in our school. Otherwise, I can take you out in your comfortable black leather swivel chair and place somebody else there. Someone who could do their job better than you do.”

Like he’s asked, he reversed the decision and spared the three of us. Then, Giovanni grabbed my hand, exited the room. Leaving everyone in a state of shock.