I took a deep breath as I stared at my new school.

Crest International University

Grade 11 na ako ngayon at napagdesisyonan ko na lumipat na sa Manila para magaral. Si Weslie at Mateo naman ay sa Angeles pa rin nagaaral.

I wanted to move on and let go of my feelings for Mateo but seeing him everyday would make that impossible. So I decided to stay away from them for a while. I kinda believe in the saying "out of sight, out of mind".  Plus, I really needed a new environment.

"Nervous?"

Napalingon ako nang marinig ang pamilyar na boses mula sa likod ko. "Zen!" I called, relieved kasi feel ko maliligaw ako 'pag magisa ako.

I decided to enroll in the same school as Zen para may kasama ako. I also heard na laging nananalo sa competitions ang school at top quality and education dito kaya naconvince ko sila mama na ilipat ako rito kahit na medyo malayo.

He chuckled and messed my hair. "Morning, you don't know the way to your classroom 'no? Hays, you'd be so lost without me,"

"Yung buhok ko!" I slapped his hand away and fixed my hair. Grabe yung effort ko na ayusin ang buhok ko tapos guguluhin lang niya!

I was really excited kasi the school doesn't require uniforms so you can basically wear whatever you want as long as pasok sa dress code. I was wearing a white knitted cardigan, brown trousers, white shoes, and a white backpack. Zen on the other hand, wore a white long sleeve polo that was tucked in and the sleeves were folded 'till the elbow, black pants, black shoes, and a black backpack.

He just laughed and grabbed the handle of my bag, dragging me along with him as we entered the campus. I really felt like a country bumpkin kasi manghang-mangha talaga ako sa school. And everyone looked like they came out of a movie or something! Zen asked someone for directions and walked with me until we reached my classroom. "Pumasok ka na, magsstart na ang klase maya-maya. Sabay tayong maglunch and umuwi mamaya? Let's roam around the campus,"

I nodded, "Saan yung classroom mo?"

"Right next to yours," Tinuro niya yung room na katabi ng room ko.

He took STEM while I took HUMSS kaya hindi kami magkaklase.

"Okay, see you later," I waved him goodbye and entered the room. Napatigil ako nang makita ko ang itsura ng classroom. What the fudge!! Bakit ang ganda?! It really looked like those classrooms sa mga kdrama at manhwa. Dapat pala lumipat na ako noon pa!

I snapped out of my daze when I heard someone clear their throat behind me. Napalingon ako at napaawang ang mga labi ko kasi oh my God! Ang ganda niya! Mukha talaga siyang model o artista!! She had long auburn wavy hair and blue eyes. I bet european siya, I just don't know which country talaga.

"Excuse me, could you please move aside?" She said with a polite smile on her face.

I flinched when I noticed that there was a line outside and I was blocking the way. I immediately moved and let them pass. And holy moly, everyone looked so attractive! Some even smiled or winked at me! Oh my God! Kung alam ko lang na itong school na to  ay factory pala ng mga gwapo at maganda edi sana lumipat na ako noon pa!

After kong mag fangirl sa utak ko, umupo na ako sa isang bakanteng upuan sa bandang gitna. I froze when I noticed that I sat next to the auburn girl from earlier.

She noticed me staring at her so she smiled and offered her hand. "Oh hey, I'm Clea Sloane, it's so nice to meet you,"

"Esmeray Cortez," I replied, accepting her hand. "You look so pretty. And oh my god your hair is so cool, did you dye it?" I couldn't help but blurt out.

She laughed. "Nope, I'm a natural redhead from Ireland. I haven't seen you around before. Are you new here?"

I nodded. "Yeah, from Pampanga,"

Her polite smile was replaced with excitement. "OMG!! Really?! I heard the food's really good there! I really wanna go there soon but I don't really know how to commute and I don't have that much friends here,"

"I can help you! I know a bunch of good restaurants there! You should really try the sisig and also the tocino!" I answered enthusiastically.

We talked for a bit and as it turned out she was super nice and we had a lot in common! Our love for food is one! We kept talking until the teacher entered and the class started. Wala naman masyadong gagawin ngayon since first day palang naman.

We were already in the middle of the second class when a guy just barged in from the back door. In fairness, kahit late siya ang gwapo pa rin niya. He looked like a kpop idol! Nakapoker face lang siya and he gave of this cool aura. I hated how I couldn't take my eyes of him and how I watched his every move.

He just casually walked towards a vacant seat as if he wasn't late and for some reason, no one gave a damn! Culture shock! God, I wish I had his confidence. Kung ako siguro yun baka sa hapon na ako pumasok dahil sa sobrang hiya. I could never just barge in during class.

I flinched when he caught me staring and I felt the heat rise up to my face. Lumingon siya sa direksyon ko at kumunot ang noo niya. Tinitigan niya ako pabalik at para kaming mga tanga na nags-staring contest. Hindi ko alam kung ilang segundo na ang lumipas pero hindi ko pa rin magawang umiwas ng tingin. He tilted his head and raised one of his brows before rolling his eyes and finally looking away.

That was when I realized that I was holding my breath the entire time. Sh*t. Kahit gwapo siya hindi ko tanggap na ang nakasulat sa cause of death ko ay "this idiot saw a hot guy and forgot how to breathe and just died".  He may be gorgeous but I refuse to drop dead

Huminga ako ng malalim at nagfocus ulit sa sinasabi ng teacher. For the rest of the class, I fought the urge to look anywhere else except the board cause I would definitely see my hot classmates and I'd end of simping again. Kahit maraming gwapo sa paligid ko I still refuse to let myself fail a single subject. I can fall for them romantically pero never akong babagsak sa acads para sa kanila.

Lumipas ang oras at dumating na rin sa wakas ang lunch. Ewan ko ba kung bakit pero wala kaming recess!! Like, just why????? I was ranting to Clea about the whole recess thing while we were on our way to the cafeteria and she gave me a mini tour of the campus at the same time.

"You know you can eat during class, right? No one really cares about whatever you do as long as you don't disturb anyone," Clea explained.

"Bakit di mo naman sinabi agad?! Akala ko mamamatay na yata ako sa gutom kanina!" She just stared at me with a confused look on her face. Nanlaki ang mga mata ko nang marealize na kailangan ko nga palang magenglish kasi foreigners ang mga schoolmates ko. "I said, why didn't you tell me sooner? I thought I was gonna die from hunger."

"Ahh, well you didn't really ask so I assumed you knew." She answered, finally understanding what I said. "Sorry, I don't really understand tagalog since I just moved here last year,"

"Really? Are you here for good? What brought you to the Philippines?" I asked curiosly while we were lining up sa cafeteria. Hindi siya agad sumagot kaya tumingin ako sa kaniya. She had this expression on her face that I couldn't read. "You don't have to answer if you don't want to," I hurriedly said.

She shook her head and smiled a little. "It's fine. I guess you can say that I needed a new environment and a break. I just really wanted to get my mind off something. But I plan to go back to Ireland when I'm fully okay,"

Although she was smiling, the look in her eyes tells me that she remembered a bittersweet memory and it seemed like she missed something----or someone. Mabilis kong iniba ang topic dahil parang medyo sensitive topic ang Ireland. We just talked about random things until we finally got our food and walked to an empty table in a corner and sat. 

We were busy eating and talking when a familiar guy caught my eye. It was Zen. He was holding a tray of food while standing in the middle of the cafeteria and looked like may hinahanap siya. Then I remembered something. Crap! We were supposed to eat together. I quickly asked Clea if I could invite him to our table and she agreed.

"Zen!" I called. Lumingon siya sa direksyon ko at mabilis na lumapit. I introduced Clea and Zen to each other and we all ate together. Strangely, it didn't feel awkward at all and we got along pretty well.

The rest of the day went by in a flash and suddenly, I was walking to my condo. Nung malaman ng mga magulang ko na plano kong magaral sa Manila, at first they didn't approve. May point din naman sila kasi malayo at delikado rin na pumunta ako at tumira sa Manila magisa. But eventually, they supported me. Nagulat nalang ako binilhan na pala ako ng condo malapit sa school.

"You've changed,"  Zen randomly said while we were walking side by side. I was in the sidewalk while he was near the road side. I always found that small gesture of his sweet.

Naguguluhan akong tumingin kay Zen. "What do you mean?"

He shrugged. "Ewan, siguro kasi sanay ako na palagi kitang nakikitang umiiyak o stressed. I rarely see you smile or laugh so medyo nakakapanibago. You just seem so happy and lively ever since we stepped into Manila. And that's a good thing. You should really smile more, you look way prettier when you smile."

I couldn't help but grin. He was right. I also noticed that I feel happier these past few days. Ever since I moved to Manila last week, madalas na akong tumatawa and lumalabas yung masayahin at madaldal side ko that I didn't even know I had.

"You're right. But I don't think I really changed. I'm still me. I think it's the environment that changed. I guess you can say na baka hindi ko lang malabas yung side na to dati 'cause you know the whole Mateo and Weslie thing plus yung pressure and all that. Pero ngayon, I feel like a bird that was set free from a dark cage," I told him honestly while grinning from ear to ear. 

I looked up to admire the sky and it's beautiful blue color and white fluffy clouds. I saw birds freely flying in the air. I just smiled and enjoyed the moment. I noticed an airplane in the sky and excitedly called Arczen.

I turned around and pointed at the airplane. "Zen!! Look!! There's an airplane!"

He was a few steps away from me and his hands were in his pockets. He had this small smile on his face and I couldn't decipher the look in his eyes but one thing was certain. We were both happy.

I grabbed his sleeves and started tugging it like a kid. "Zen!! Tignan mo yung airplane! Dali! Aalis na siya!!"

He chuckled and patted my head. "Yes, yes, I can see it,"