12

As he joked around, the guy closed her mouth. "Guess," he said.

"OK, what's going on. Who is this?" she said, growing irritated.

"You have to guess, or I'm not going to open them," he explained.

"All right, give me a hint," she said.

He said, "Simple, your childhood crush."

"Wait, I had two childhood crushes, and I'm not sure if you're one of them," Alyssa said, pausing to think. "One was Kuya Angelo Cole, and the other was Kuya Andrew Lucas. Hmm, I'm guessing by your warm, soft hands, a deep, mature voice, and you're tall, is it Kuya Angelo?" she inquires.

"You're right! It's me," he exclaimed as he opened her eyes.

She slowly opened her eyes and turned to face him, asking, "Kuya Angelo, what are you doing here? I thought you were on a business trip to Japan," as she tightly hugged him.

"I had to see you, when they said they'll cancel early about the trip and I got a call from my boss that there was a major problem with our company here," Angelo joked as he explained.

"Ahh, so that's why," Alyssa explains, "but visitors aren't allowed in during class hours, so how did you get in?"

"I have my ways, and besides, I used to be a student here, so the guards and teachers are familiar with me," he explained.

Clydesdale was watching them from afar, envious and curious, as they were talking and laughing about their childhood memories. While asking, he tapped Jordan on the shoulder.

"Jordan, do you see what I see?" Clydesdale asks, his brows raised and his eyes rolling.

Jordan inquires, "Who are you looking at? Because all I see is a tall, handsome, business man standing next to Alyssa," she adds, describing Angelo.

"Yes, that one. Tsk, he isn't that handsome. I'm more handsome than he is" He said, while complaining.

Jordan teased, nudging Clydesdale's elbow, "Looks like someone jealous."

"I'm not jealous, okay," Clydesdale said, rolling his eyes. "Besides, I have a girlfriend. So, what if Alyssa is with another guy? It's not like I'm the only guy she likes."

"Nagseselos nga," Jordan murmured.

"What did you say?" Clydesdale inquires, his brow furrowed.

Jordan laughed awkwardly and said, "Oh, nothing."

While they were conversing in the corridor, Alyssa and Angelo noticed them and approached.

"Hey, guys," Alyssa said as she linked her arms around Angelo. "I'd like you to meet someone, he's very special to me. Say hello kuya."

"Hello, my name is Angelo Cole, and it's great to meet you," Angelo said.

"Hello po, my name is Jordan San Pedro, and I'm a friend of Alyssa's. It's nice meeting you as well," Jordan says politely as he shakes his hand.

"I'm Clydesdale Lawrence, and I'm also Alyssa's friend and crush," Clydesdale said, clutching Angelo's hand and glaring at him intensely. "I'm not interested in meeting you," he murmured.

When Clydesdale said crush loudly, Alyssa smacks his shoulder. "Just ignore him Kuya, he's not actually my crush. He's such a joker haha," Alyssa laughs awkwardly while pushing Clydesdale.

"Why are you denying that you don't have a crush on me?" he enquired. "When Kuya Angelo arrived, you suddenly didn't have a crush on me anymore," he grumbled.

While awkwardly laughing, Alyssa whispered, "Let's not discuss this right now."

"What, it's true. From the moment he walked in, all eyes were on him. What about me?" he grumbled, his arms crossed.

As he moved between them, Angelo inquired, "Is everything alright guys?"

"Everything is fine," Alyssa said, feigning a smile while glaring at Clydesdale.

Clydesdale rolled his eyes and said coldly, "I gotta go," as he walked away with his hands in his pockets.

"What was that all about?" Angelo inquired, puzzled. "Does he act like this all of the time?"

"No, this is the first time I've ever seen him act like this," Alyssa shrugged.

"It was nice meeting you Kuya Angelo," Jordan said, "but I better follow him before he gets lost," he smiled and waved as he walked away.

Still in the corridors:

"Well, that was interesting," Angelo said, puzzled. "You have such interesting friends here, Alyssa," he chuckled.

"Don't worry about them; they don't usually act like this, especially Clydesdale; I've never seen him act like this before; what's wrong with him?" Alyssa wondered.

"I don't mind at all, and they appear to be very nice people," Angelo said politely, smiling.

"Thank you, and oh, I still have one more class, where should you stay for a while?" Alyssa asks.

"I'll just hang out at the library until your class is over; in the meantime, let me take you to your class, and after your class is over, we could go get some ice cream," Angelo suggested.

She smiled as she asked, "Cool, you still have my number? After class, I could text you and we could have that ice cream after such a long day," she said.

He smiled and said, "Yeah, I still have your contact here." He added, "Sure, thing."

"Oh, we're here," Alyssa said as she was about to open the door when she noticed her classmates and friends peering in. "Here is my classroom," Alyssa said, smiling awkwardly. "Please, ignore my classmates. It's just marites, it's better if you leave, our teacher will be here soon. I'll just text you when our class is over, okay," she said as she gently pushed Angelo and waved.

"All right, then. I'll see you later, cupcake," he teased as he walked away.

She entered the room after he had left, all eyes on her. "Everyone seems weird today," she murmured. Her friends and the popular girls surrounded her as she walked to her seat.

"Who was that guy, Alyssa? Was he your boyfriend?" Immaculate inquired.

Alyssa responded calmly, "That guy was my childhood crush, and no, he isn't my boyfriend."

"Can I have him if he isn't your boyfriend?" Angelyn Dana asks, her voice stagy. (The most popular girl)

"I don't think he's ready for a commitment yet," Alyssa said, rolling her eyes. "Besides, he's not into girls who don't study and have a stagy manner."

"The audacity!" Angelyn exclaimed as she stumped her feet. "Fine, he's not even my type anyway," she said as she flipped her hair and walked away.

"Wait, Angelyn. I'd like to ask her as well, how old is he?" Juliebeth politely inquired. (Second most popular girl)

"I guess he's 26, but I'm not sure," Alyssa pondered as she shrugged.

Angelyn asks, arms crossed, "What are you guys doing? Get back here or you're out of the group."

"Wait, one more thing: does he have a job?" Julie Pearl inquires as she inspects her nails. (#3 most popular girl)

She replied, "Yes, he does have a job."

Angelyn yelled angrily, "No more questions for you two, get back here now!"

"All right, since no one asked the most important question, what's his name?" Lory asked as she approached Alyssa's desk, her hands raised.

"His name is-" Alyssa was about to respond, "Clydesdale! Clydesdale just!" when Jordan burst in, gasping for air after running.

"Is something wrong with Jordan?" Jelyn inquires, concerned.

"It's Clydesdale! He was just hit by a car!" Jordan exclaimed, his voice panicked.

"What!" exclaimed Alyssa as she stood up from her chair. "Where is he now? What hospital is he in? Is he okay?" she inquired, her voice concerned as she took Jordan's shirt.

"Woah, easy there. He's in the hospital right now, getting treated in the emergency room at Medical La Meissa, and yes, he's fine," Jordan explained as he let go of Alyssa's hands.

"Oh, thank goodness," Alyssa sighed, "we should go see him right away," she said as she began to gather her belongings.

Immaculate grabs Alyssa and tells her to come to a halt; Alyssa looks at Immaculate, puzzled, and says, "What? We have to go see him."

"I know you want to see him right away, but we have a class in an hour," Immaculate said calmly. "We can visit after our class is over, okay?"