1 Chapter 1: Into New Territory

It all started when Ricky Matyag went to school on his first day of high school, after the summer break ended. Ricky was a kind-hearted and well-behaved student. He was always well-liked by his teachers, parents, and peers. Despite that, he was socially naive and awkward. Thrice in his life as an elementary student, he was elected as the class president. But,a shadow of uncertainty stood behind him as he steps into a new school. The idea of being surrounded by total strangers who acted savagely terrifies him.

As he stepped into the classroom, the scene came before him. Groups of rowdy students who sit on tables and talk, laugh, and sing loudly was just one percent of what he saw. The rest were on their mobile phones either playing games or browsing social media. His literal nightmare just came true. He quietly sat on the corner beside a table occupied by an indifferent company.

When the clock struck seven, a girl about 12 years of age, came running in and tapped a sleepy Ricky and asked, "Kuya, am I late". "Uhh, no miss. Not yet. Class starts at 7:15", Ricky replied. The girl breathed a sigh of relief and expressed her gratitude. The boy smiled at her as she occupied the chair beside him while they quietly waited for the bell to ring for their first subject.

The advisor, Ms Paras as everyone calls her, called every student to introduce themselves one by one. Among the students that introduced themselves is a 13 year old extroverted class clown named Iñigo Lapez, his best friend Joshua Quelon, who usually becomes the butt of the joke due to his ignorance and lack of focus, a girl named Wendy Abrema, the sleepyhead, and Iñigo's girlfriend Fritz Layla, the extremely talkative one. The girl who sits beside Ricky stood up and introduced herself as Nicole Sasha Manalo. When Ricky stood up, eyes rested upon the new student as he nervously introduced himself.