4 CHAPTER 2

"Are you already standing there?" Shocked i said open the door and saw Ashton leaning against the door jamb of the condo unit. He was in uniform and had both hands in his pockets.

"What do you think?" He said without emotion and stared at me. I couldn’t help but roll my eyes as well because of his patience.

"I didn't tell you to pick me up." I simply promise. "Momma! I'm leaving!" I shouted to say goodbye to momma.

I was about to close the door but i saw mama quickly running from the kitchen with the lunch box and tumbler. "You kid, take it oh! You didn't eat yesterday maybe what will your mom said-" Momma stopped speaking when she saw Ashton next to me. "Oh, you have someone with you."

Ashton smiled sparingly and nodded. "I'm Ashton. Clare's boyfriend."

My eyes widened as i looked at Ashton with a sly smile. When i turned my gaze to Momma she was just silently watching me, her gaze balanced. "Mom! Uhh, he was just joking. Haha. This is just my bestfriend." I smiled broadly and put my arm around Ashton. I simply pinched him on the side and noticed his slight grin.

Momma nodded. "Is that so. It's a pity, its a handsome child. I'm Maria. Just call me Momma."

I want to open up where i stand now and just swallow me because of what Momma said. Gradually, i removed my grip on Ashton out of embarrassment.

Ashton took momma's hand and kissed the back of her palm so she laughed.

"Momma, we're leaving. Bye. Love you." I said grabbing the lunchbox and tumbler at the same time and dragging Ashton to the elevator. I put what i was carrying in the bag then stared at Ashton.

"Why did you say you're my boyfriend?" I raised an eyebrow question.

"It's true." He grinned and approached me. Instead of backing away, i punched him hard. Fortunately, we were the only ones on the elevator.

"I'm just your pretend girlfriend and it's just at school!"

"Whatever."

~

The rumors started again as Ashton and u entered the gate together. We held hands as we walked and almost all the students we passed looked at us and then whispered.

I just bowed down because of their deadly looks while Ashton had no emotion so i was very nervous. He's so intimidating and his blue eyes is very cold.

I admit that i was scared of him a bit. Especially when he looks at you in the eyes, and you're going to be intimidated the way he looks.

Ashton walked straight into the room while we were still holding hands.

I thought you were knocking on the closed door but he just kicked you immediately and no one came in even though Professor Misika was already standing in front. Our biological teacher.

"You two are late!" The teacher's eyes widened and pointed at the two of us. I nodded but i could see in my peripheral vision Ashton's cold gaze on our teacher.

"We're not late. You're just too early." He said and still having no emotions. The teacher grabbed the white board as if her legs softened for no apparent reason and just nodded at us so Ashton pulled me back to sit down.

Not in my previous seat at the very back if not in the front. I was confused because i could feel the looks of the students but that disappeared when Ashton tightened his grip on my hand, when i looked at him he just gave me a ghostly smile so i looked away. Why is he cold?

"Since you two are late, stand up, if you don't answer my questions, i will lower your grades." Suddenly the professor said so i immediately stood up, my grades could not go down, i might lose my scholarship and i would have more difficulty.

Ashton just stood up lazily. "I told you we're not late. You're just too early."

The professor raised an eyebrow at Ashton even though the surprise was obvious on his face. "Mr. Monterial-"

"Questions." When Ashton interrupted what prof.

"Mr. Monterial, answer this question," Ashton just looked at the teacher reluctantly and to my surprise he even stared at it! "What is the human heart?"

"Myogenic Heart."

"Explain his answer, Ms. Santos." My eyes widen. I thought Ashton first. Why would i suddenly answer. I thought for a while but it wasn't long before the teacher spoke. "See you didn't even know-"

"Heart are of several types. In some invertebrates the heart is simulated by the nervous system to do it's work. Such heart are called neurogenic hearts. The human heart is Myogenic. For example, it receives the stimuli from contraction from the muscular node called sinu-auricular node or pace maker." I cut him off. Ashton and i looked at each other and he suddenly gave me a small smirk.

"Okay next question, who is known as the father of zoology?" He asked the two of us again. For the second time Ashton and I looked at each other and seemed to understand each other. Like, what the hell? Her question is more like gradeschool.

"Aristotle." We answer together.

"Spermology is a study of?"

"Seed." I answer quickly. I even saw Ashton's eyebrow rise so i barely smiled. So it's a race of answer, huh?

"Animal without red blood cells?"

"Earthworms." Ashton said. I was blown away, he preceded me there.

"Chambered heart occurs in?"

"Cockroach." We answer together.

"The energy released by one gram of glucose is?"

"4 kcal." I was about to open my lips to speak but he preceded me immediately.

"The corner of the cells of collenchyma tissue in plant are thickened due to deposition of?"

"Cellulose and pectin." I answer immediately.

"The phenomenon of summer sleep by animals is called?"

"Estivation." Ashton's immediate response.

"Bone deformities occur due to the excess intake of?"

"Fluorine." He answered again so my snout went down again. He always is!

"Last question," the professor said with a sly smile on his lips. "How to reproduce a baby in humans?"

My eyes widened at the question of prof. I turned to Ashton but i didn't realize that his face was close to mine so our noses hit.

My heart! It's beats so many times per second now. "Your turn." He whispered so i could smell his fragrant breath. Lavender and roses. He suddenly sat down so i looked at the professor who was just smiling at me and waiting for my answer.

"I-it's uhmm-uh ... f-fertilization: A sperm and an egg form a zygote." I said and bit my lower lip.

"Explain." The professor said again so my face turned red. Really need an explanation? I took a deep breath and looked hard at him. Anyway, why should i be ashamed if that's normal.

"During sexual intercourse, some sperm ejaculated from the male penis swim up through the female vagina and uterus toward an oocyte or egg cell floating in one of the uterine tubes. The sperm and the egg are gametes."

"Very good. Now take your seat." I quickly sat down next to the disrespectful Ashton.

"That was epic." He said coldly. "You explain it perfectly. I wonder if you want to try it huh? My sperm on you're egg cell floating in one of the uterine tubes. We're gametes." He said and move closer to me. His smirking. My face flushed and I felt embarrassed because of what he whispered.

In great annoyance i reached her thigh underneath and pinched it firmly. He jumped up and held my pinched hand with both hands but i pressed harder.

Gametes huh!

He bit his lower lip hard and closed his eyes as he felt my painful pinch.

Good for you! There is more when gametes!

~

Another day of entrance as a Clare. Unlike the previous days when Ashton picked me up, now he didn't go home and just texted that he couldn't pick me up because he and his friends were going somewhere.

As soon as i entered the gate, evil looks immediately appeared on me. I just gasped. They're just like that every day so I'm getting used to it.

I also know that the day will come when they will no longer notice me and they will just leave me just like nobody.

I was distracted when suddenly someone walked up to me. I looked at it and immediately parted with the unknown man smiling at me now.

"Hi Miss." He said and put his arm around me again. I immediately shrugged and removed his arm that was holding me.

"I don't know you so back off." I said with no emotion and cold voice.

He just grinned annoyingly then his eyes widened and shook his nape. "I'm sorry. I thought it was my sister." He said and started running.

His weird. He called me ‘miss’ but he thought u was his sister. Maybe it's addict or maybe her sister's name is Miss.

As i walked into the room, the students whispered and laughed again at what i heard, only louder now.

I just bowed out of shame. Somehow i was hurt by what they said. I'm not doing anything wrong to them but it's bad if it's insulting.

'Nerd!'

'Fat!'

'Manang!'

'Ugly!'

I bowed even more. I walk faster so that i would not hear their insults.

I immediately opened the door of the room and was thankful that there was no prof in front of me.

I was about to sit in the back when suddenly someone pulled the chair so i sat on the floor. Laughter filled the room i was in.

I lowered my hand and ignored them. I decided to go out first because i could no longer ignore their habits.

I opened the door again but i didn't expect the cold water to come out of me. I hugged myself, i thought it was over but after the cold water a lot of flour poured on me.

They are all laughing, mocking, and bullying me. Even though my heart was full of anger i did not cry. I showed no emotion and ignored their pointless bullying.

I ran up the stairs even though there were still students sitting there and laughing at me.

I should have taken only three steps down but i saw the foot block and i was ready to go.

I avoided there but not at whoever was behind me and without saying a word pushed me so i fell down the stairs.

I winced as I couldn't move my left arm. I built it so that the impact would not be strong but i could not move it.

Although the body ached I chose to stand up and quickly ran into the garden unoccupied.

I sat under a big tree where i also hid the day i eavesdropped to what Ashton and the were talking and when i become his pretend girlfriend.

I closed my eyes and asked Ashton to be here to defend me. I wish he was here to protect me, but nothing.

I took off my bag which was already wet and had flour but I saw a large piece of paper glued to it.

'Feel free to bully this fat ugly nerd'

That's the exact words written in this fucking paper. I irritatedly crumpled the paper and shoot it to the grass.

I wiped my face with the handkerchief found in the bag. I stood up and peered at the gate where a guard was guarding.

Exactly there was a car coming in so the gate was wide open so i took advantage and ran quickly to get out.

I even heard the whistling and shouting of the guard but i ignored it and quickly rode the tricycle to get home.

~

I opened the door of the unit but my eyes widened at who was opening up to me.

I would have closed the door so that they could not see me but at the same time they turned their attention to my behavior.

"Crystalline!" Mommy screamed and immediately ran towards me. He hugged me tightly even though i was full of flour.

"What the hell happened to you ?! Who did that?!" Daddy shouted angrily and clenched his fist so i bowed my head. I don't want them to see me like this.

"Who did this?" Mommy asked calmly but the anger was obvious in her eyes.

I was about to speak when Mama Maria came out of the kitchen. "Oh god! What happened to you?"

I 'm doomed.

"Dad-uhmm, it's nothing-"

"Nothing? You say nothing but look at you!"

I just bowed and didn't speak. "At school?" Mommy asked so i just nodded.

"MU has a CCTV cameras all over. The one who made it will pay." Daddy said authoritatively and pulled out his cellphone and just let me stop him.

"Dad, no. Please, it's okay. I'm okay."

"You're okay? Look at you're arms!" Mommy said hysterically as she moved my left arm that I could no longer feel.

"I'll miss it, Crystalline. But when it happens again, I'll tell everyone that you're the heiress of that school." Dad said, i just nodded.

Yeah, right. I'm the soon owner of that school. Maixity University. Maixity is named after our surname. Crystalline Demonise Xai Maixity, the daughter of Damon Maixity and Craytal Xai Maixity, the owner of that school.

We're rich. We owns Malls, Condominiums, and schools. But that's not all, because there is something worse ...