Jyo Akabane

SIX MONTHS AGO

"An artist who has openly displayed his love for his country and its heritage made a dress for his sister using the color scheme and design of the Philippine flag. He posted his work on social media in hopes of appreciation for his art. However, instead of praises, he received a backlash from the public and paid a 10,000 peso fine. Why do you think so?"

Everyone in the class stared blankly at Mr. Reazon's face as he dragged the discussion on despite knowing that not even one-third of the class are listening. Philippine Politics and Governance is the third among the four of our morning classes, and most of my classmate finds this subject uninteresting. However, for me, it is not. Call me a nerd, but I love everything about law and politics.

The entire class just stared at Mr. Reazon, but he patiently waited for anyone to raise their hand, despite knowing that no one is willing to answer his question.

"Class? Is there anyone who would like to answer?" Mr. Reazon asked as his eyes roamed around the room.

I was actually trying to let my classmates take the chance, but since none seemed interested, I raised a hand, making Mr. Reazon sigh.

"Alright, Miss Nase, please tell us your thoughts."

I stood up and took a deep breath before explaining. "The artist used the philippine flag as an inspiration for his design, a violation of the Republic Act No. 8491, also known as the Flag and Heraldic Code of the Philippines. Chapter 1, section 34, states that "It is prohibited to wear the flag in whole or in part as a costume or uniform." Violating this Act could mean paying a 5,000 - 20,000 peso fine or getting imprisoned for one year, or it could be both."

I immediately sat down after stating my answer, trying not to notice the silence that settled inside the classroom. Mr. Reazon stared at me with his mouth gapped, which I find super awkward.

"Oh, yeah," Mr. Reazon finally said after a few seconds and laughed while shaking his head. "Miss Nase just ended the class." he jokingly added.

I gave him a forced, fake smile as he stood straight and tucked his hands inside his pockets. "So, yeah. That's it. The artist violated the Flag and Heraldic Code of the Philippines by using the Phili---"

Mr. Reazon stopped when a guy shamelessly walked inside the classroom. He didn't even bother greeting the teacher and just walked straight to an empty seat not too far from me. Everyone watched him carelessly throwing his bag on top of his desk and sitting there without saying anything. We've been expecting him to attend his first day in Elton today, but no one has ever expected that he has the audacity to enter the class two hours late.

"What the hell?" I blurted out as I stared at him with perplexity. Not even the principal and other teachers do that. How rude of him!

"That was...rude, Mr. Akabane," Mr. Reazon commented while looking at Jyo with a fake smile.

"Gosh, the rumors are true. I wonder why Elton accepted him,"

"He is indeed a delinquent,"

"What an errant kid,"

Everyone in the class started gossiping, but Jyo seemed unbothered. The whole city knows about him since he was involved in countless troubles such as the destruction of properties and riots. He got kicked out of his previous school for assaulting his senior. He lives twenty-eight blocks from my house, and I've known him and his family since the day he and his mother moved to the neighborhood to live with his step-dad and step-sister about four years ago.

"Sorry," Jyo said without any effort to— at least— make it sound a little sincere.

"So, our new classmate just arrived. Mind if you introduce yourself in class, Jyo?" To my annoyance, Kier stood and said that. Is he trying to make another trouble by taunting the newly-arrived beast in Elton?

"Shut up," I sneered and glared at him, but the jerk just smirked at me before looking at Jyo and saying,

"It's only natural for new kids to introduce themselves, right?"

Mr. Reazon sighed and held her nape before he nodded. "Yeah. Mr. Roxas got some point. Since Mr. Akabane's here, let's all welcome him to this class," he half-heartedly agreed.

I rolled my eyes to look at Jyo and saw how he looked blankly at Kier, then said, "That would be a waste of time. Everyone in the city already knows me. What's the sense?"

"Okay, fine," Mr. Reazon gave up and then turned around. He picked up a chalk and then started writing on the board. "Since R.A. 8491 has been mentioned, let's discuss starting from section 1..."

The class continued as if nothing happened, ignoring Jyo's rudeness and everything. I didn't know how the lesson went through. All I know is that he kept talking and talking until he ran out of time. He dismissed the class after 10: 59 and left.

I observed Jyo and wondered how much of a pain in my ass he would become after a few days. And with luck's ultimate kindness, he showed me the answer just six days after.

The classroom's filled with loud noises like usual. I took advantage of the vacant time given to us by Miss Stacey to prepare for a long quiz tomorrow, not to review but read my favorite book. The SSC has been busy lately, and having a break for an hour would feel like heaven to me. It was kinda hard to focus because of the noises, but I don't have any other choice since I couldn't leave the class unattended. Everything was fine before Mary came to the classroom and called for me.

"Captain,"

My eyes darted toward the pretty girl in a red and white cheerleading uniform that suited her perfectly sculpted body. Her wavy hair is tied in a high ponytail and a white ribbon. She's Mary Claire Dinglasan, the cheerleading captain from Class 10-B and one of my friends here in Elton.

"Yes?" I asked, smiling as I closed the book I was reading.

She took a step closer to my seat, but I noticed her eyes shifted to someone from behind me, so I traced her gaze and saw Kier smiling widely like an idiot. Mary's eyes then darted to the quiet Jyo, sitting two rows on the left from me. He was looking at Mary blankly before he looked away by making himself busy with his phone.

"Mary?" I called, which brought her back to her senses.

"Oh, yeah," she said, then crossed the remaining distance to my desk. "Coach told me to get the keys to the storage room because we need to use some equipment for the rehearsal. Do you have them?"

"Yeah. You can give them back to Jacob once you guys are done with the equipment,"

"Okay. I got it," Mary replied with a smile as I hunted for the keys inside my stuffy bag.

After finding the keys, I immediately handed them to Mary, but an asshole suddenly showed up beside her, placing his arms above Mary's shoulder.

"Hey there, Mary Claire!" he said and then winked at her. "Looking good in that tight uniform, huh."