THE PRESIDENTIAL SON (English)

Chapter 1: THE FIRST MEETING

(AYA)

GOLDEN CROSS INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL is one of the most elite schools in the country. It was located at the heart of a luxurious Eco-City, miles away from the country’s capital. The school does not follow the national curriculum. Instead, they adopt the standards of Cambridge International Examinations.

Founded fourteen years ago by the Suarez family, it is a school that only admits the sons and daughters of the wealthiest clans. That or you must come from the most influential and most powerful families to be accepted. 

Every year though, they accept scholarship students. The screening process is very thorough that only twenty to thirty applicants get accepted out of thousands. 

I am one of the scholarship students of my batch. I was accepted not only because of my high score on the entrance examination but also because I am a promising athlete. 

It so happened that during the time of my application, Golden Cross International School was planning to expand its name by joining sports competitions not only locally but also abroad. I am an amazing volleyball player if I say so myself. Volleyball is a sport rising in popularity and I know it was one of the reasons why I got in. 

I promised myself that I will not waste the opportunity. You see, I came from a middle-class family. I am an only child and my parents have high hopes for my future. That is why I do my one hundred percent both in studying and in volleyball. In return, I got a fair amount of popularity. I am not worshiped by students the way they do to the elites in our school but I get enough respect and admiration so as not to get touched by bullies. And let me tell you, there are a lot of those in Golden Cross, bullies I mean. 

I am now in my last year in Senior High and I plan to keep my school life as normal and peaceful as possible. The College Division of Golden Cross already contacted me, telling me that they want to give me an athletic scholarship too. I just need to make it through the next few months and I will finally graduate from senior high school unscathed. 

If only today didn’t happen. If only I didn’t come to school earlier than usual. Then my school life could have gone according to my plans. 

It is Monday, flag ceremony day for Golden Cross. It is also the time when the high ranking officials of the school give their speech. All the students in school love the weekly morning ceremony because of someone. Except me. I usually come to school later every Monday to avoid the ceremony. I was never a fan of the morning ceremony. Most of all, I was never a fan of the person the whole school wanted to see. 

I get away with it because I always make volleyball solo practice as an excuse to lock myself inside the sports gym. As the ace and captain of the team, the teachers think I am really doing extra practice in the morning. I know lying is bad but no one notices if I was really on the gym or not anyway. Everyone is focused on one person during Monday mornings. It is a time dedicated to the king of Golden Cross International School. 

But that morning I wake up hours earlier than usual. I get up from bed when I heard loud shouting from outside my bedroom. It was followed by the sound of broken glasses and plates. 

“You son of a b***h! I hate you so much! God, I hate you!” 

My heart ached and my stomach clenched in panic when I heard the familiar shrill voice of my mother. I quickly go out of my room and run down the stairs. I flinch when I heard my father’s loud curse. 

“Stop being paranoid! I’m not cheating on you. For God’s sake, I overwork myself to give you and our daughter a good life! What more do you want from me?!” 

My mother sobs. “Liar. You have always been a liar Ken.” 

I stop at the foot of the stairs. I hold on to the railing tightly as I stare at the entrance to our kitchen. I don’t even dare to go there and see the mess that is my parents. My mother’s cries echoed on the ground floor of our two-floored apartment. 

“If you really hate me, then we should just break up, Mia.”

I close my eyes when my father said that. It is not the first time their fights ended with that sentence. 

“No. I will not let my daughter get laughed at for having a broken family,” my mom answers in a strong and determined voice. 

I bit my lower lip so hard I almost taste blood. 

[We have been a broken family for years now, mom. You just don’t want to admit it.]

I hear my father’s frustrated sigh followed by his nearing footsteps. He will go out of the kitchen now and I honestly don’t have the energy to face him. I quickly but quietly go back to the second floor.

I make it to my room without my father noticing me. A few minutes later I hear him enter my parent’s bedroom. Then another ten minutes or so when my mother follows him. 

“They fight every day but still sleep together afterward as if nothing happened. I don’t understand,” I whisper and sigh. There is no way I can go back to sleep so I just take a bath and wear my school uniform. With my huge gym bag on my shoulder, I go to school without my parents noticing.  

           I REALIZE that it actually feels good to go to school earlier than everyone. I get out of the service van the school provides for the scholarship students without anyone looking back at me in a funny way. There is still no line of expensive cars going in and out of the gate to drop off students. The whole campus is still quiet. The only sign of life is in the open-spaced school ground where the utility staff and a couple of teachers are starting to set-up the sound system for the Monday ceremony. 

           I am about to go to the school gym when one teacher notices me. “Miss Sagara!” I stop and look at Mrs. Morgan, my class adviser. “Going to volleyball practice?” she asks with a smile on her face.

           I smile back though I slightly feel guilty that my adviser thinks I always practice every Monday morning. “Yes, ma’am.”

           “You are really working hard, huh? I heard your team got into that youth league with other teams from different countries. The pressure must be weighing on your shoulder.” 

           I shook my head but still smiling. “I actually enjoy the pressure and I know my teammates are all hyped for it too.” 

           “That’s good to hear. Oh, by the way before you go to the gym could I ask for a favor? Can you please go to Miss Anderson’s office? You know her, right?”

           I nod. Miss Anderson is a beautiful woman in her early twenties. She just became part of Golden Cross’s faculty this school year, literally just five months ago. “The new adviser for the student council?”

           “Yes, that’s her. She still hasn’t given me the printed program schedule for this morning. The school organizations’ building is just next to the gym so can you just tell her to come over here? She’s not answering her cellphone.” 

           “Okay. I’ll go to her office,” I answer. 

           Mrs. Morgan looks happy to hear that. She pats my arm. “You really are such a good girl, Aya. Thank you and good luck with your practice this morning!” After that, my teacher quickly went back to what she was doing before I arrived. 

           I continue to walk until I reach the building that houses all the school organization offices. The student council is on the fourth floor. Each officer has their own office there as well as their org adviser. I am taking deep breaths as I climb the stairs. 

Honestly, I try to steer away from the student council officers as much as I can. They intimidate me. Yes, all of them were voted by the whole student body but that doesn’t mean they are an approachable bunch. 

It is too quiet when I arrive on the fourth floor. All the doors are closed and no sign of life everywhere. It makes me wonder if Miss Anderson is really in her office. But when I get into the door I notice that it is slightly open. Then I hear a muffled and whispering sound from inside. It seems like the teacher is not alone.

I’m about to knock when I hear a feminine giggle. It was followed by the sounds unfamiliar to me. Is that ruffling of clothes? I don’t know why but I suddenly feel nervous and embarrass. All I know is that miss Anderson is not alone. 

I think I should turn around and go. But if the teacher doesn’t show herself to my class advisor, I will get in trouble. So I take a deep breath, hold the doorknob, and push the door to open it a little wider. 

I stop and my eyes widen when I see the scene inside the office. Miss Anderson is sitting on top of her table, her back on the door. A man is standing in front of her, too close that she probably has to spread her legs wide to accommodate his tall and wide frame. His hands are on the table’s surface on each side of her while her arms are around his neck. 

Horror washes over me when I realize that they were doing something… inappropriate and naughty. But that is not the only reason why I am surprised to the point that it feels like my feet are nailed to the ground. It is the fact that the man in miss Anderson’s arms is a senior student. Not just a student but the president of the student council, billionaire’s heir, presidential son, and the current king of Golden Cross International School: Trei Daniels. 

Run, Aya. You have to run before he notices you – 

I stop breathing when Trei suddenly looks up. Our eyes meet. He doesn’t even look surprised. My stomach clenches painfully when I realize that he knows about my presence, probably even before I widened the opening of the door. 

Yet he doesn’t make an effort to get away from miss Anderson who seems to be still oblivious of me.

“Trei,” the teacher murmurs. Her head moves, giving me more view of Trei. I gasp quietly when I see that his school uniform is unbuttoned and miss Anderson is kissing his neck and chest! It was the weird sound I heard a while ago. 

He must have seen my terrified and scandalized expression because of the amusement that flashes in his eyes. The corner of his lips goes up in a smirk. A cold shiver runs down my spine. Then without breaking our eye contact he leans down and presses his lips at the side of miss Anderson’s head. Then he whispers to her ear, “You are needed for the opening ceremony, remember? Go now before someone comes here to get you. You don’t want somebody to know how a wicked woman you are right?”

My eyes widen again and I let go of the doorknob as if it is on fire. He knows why I am here. I blink and look away from him when miss Anderson laughed huskily. She looks up at Trei and says, “Not as wicked as you, mister student council president. They don’t know the real you.”

I move back and wince when I made a sound. The teacher gasps and straightens. Does she finally notice that I am there? Am I ready to be caught by her too? 

No. So I side-step away from the door as quietly as I can. I don’t know why I did it but I look up at Trei. Our gazes meet again for a few seconds before I turn around and almost run away from that floor and out of the building. Even when I get inside the gym, I can still see his eyes staring straight at me. 

I might be wrong but I think I saw recognition and resentment in his eyes. I’m probably just assuming things, right? Because though I know Trei Daniels – everyone in Golden Cross does – he doesn’t know me. So why did he look at me as if he hated me? As if I am his mortal enemy?