Tamed By You

Chapter 2

I was walking in the school's corridor to go to my room located on the second floor of the high school building when I suddenly heard loud gasps and whispers from the students near me. I turned around and saw three girls walking down the aisle as if they owned the hallway. Mina Ferey, with her three minions, (sorry but allow me to call them that since I have no idea what their names are) were here at the building of the lower year. All eyes, including mine, are glued on them—especially boys whose eyes were about to fall out while staring intently at Mina’s unbuttoned blouse. And why none of the professors or school staff call out her provocative style of wearing a uniform? I kinda sound bitter because the last time I didn’t wear my uniform properly, the school guard confiscated my ID—noted that I just didn’t do my necktie properly.

As I was eyeing them, they kind of give the mean girls vibe. I saw some of the 7th graders who took a stolen pic of Mina. Some even went near her just to take a picture. Mina is popular not only to boys, even with the girls my age adores her. Who wouldn’t? She’s popular and beautiful. Among the crowd, she would always stand up.

But why are they here? This is not the building for 12th graders, their building is located on the left-wing. Before I can even think of the reasons why a famous 12th grader went here at the building of the lower years, I saw Mina bring out a pink and flashy tripod with a camera attached to it.

“Hi, Mina lovers! It’s me again, Mina, and welcome back to my vlog!” She introduced herself as she faced the lens of the camera on her. “Today is the first day of my class and since I love all of you, I want you to have a glance at what my school looks like! So today, we will be having a campus tour! But before we start, I would like to introduce some of my schoolmates that became close to my heart since I started schooling here!” She said as she motioned her camera to our schoolmates who she barely knows. Students, most of them are her fans, clapped, some even cheered.

Knowing the uproar and the stampede made by the students just to see Mina and hoping to have a two-second appearance on her vlog, school staff, especially teachers and professors, should be here by now.  But who would dare scold Mina Ferey if aside from being a youtube influencer with a million followers, she is also the daughter of a senator who’s one of the top sponsors of this school? I bet even the principal has no audacity to do so.

I quickly crawled up the stairs directed to where my classroom is but I am having a hard time doing it because Mina’s fans are blocking the way. I was even pushed by a girl while holding her phone to film whatever Mina’s doing. Lucky enough, I got to hold on to the stair's railing.

I breathe heavily when I successfully got out of the crowd. I was about to walk towards my room when Angelica Perry, my co-writer in the school’s newspaper appeared behind me.

“Woah, that was intense!” She said while trying to catch her breath. Just like me, she was also caught in the middle of the crowd.

“What’s up, Angel! How was your summer?” I asked when I remembered she went to Thailand for a vacation.

“Well, Thailand seems cool.” She answered uninterestingly. Maybe because she always went out of the country during summers that being there does not excite her anymore. “Anyway, we will be having a quick meeting later. The agenda is about our plans for the school newspaper this month. See you there, Sheina!” She waved her goodbye and hurriedly run in the opposite direction when she saw her professor entering their room.

I waved my goodbye and turn my back to walk to our classroom. Rein isn't here yet. I chose the seat on the second to the last row and beside the window. Right after I tossed my backpack in my chair, our professor entered.

“Good morning everyone! Stand up and we will be having a prayer before we start.” It’s Mr. Dela Cruz, our professor in religion class. The door swung open and Rein showed up. She gave me a sweet smile and quickly sat at the vacant seat beside me. 

We all abide by what Mr. Dela Criz said and after praying, he already started his class. I am in no mood to listen to his class because I don’t see any reason to do so. I am a non-believer. Because if God is real, why would He let men suffer? So that men will praise Him if He aided to their suffering? Isn’t it a manipulative act? If God is real, why did He made people unequal? Why did He let people be in the same race with different starting lines?

I really envy Angelica’s life—being able to go out of the country for a mere vacation, not thinking about how to pay the rent or how to ace every subject so that your scholarship won’t be pulled out because if not, you won’t able to go to school.

But then, most of the time, having a luxurious life means happiness is also expensive. From the kind of life I have, having the experience to travel out of town even once in my life will definitely make me happy. But if I were rich, these things would be normal and I would seek better things for it to consider as ‘happiness.’

And this is when I realized that happiness is the hardest thing to achieve in life. For me, there are two ways that lead to happiness: contentment and acceptance. It is hard to attain happiness because as human beings, we always seek betterment thus, we were never been contented. First, we want something better, and when we already got the ‘better’, we will seek for ‘best’, and later on, we will seek for the best among the best and so on. That is why they said, happiness is not on where you’ll go rather, it is where you are.

Minutes have passed and I felt sleepy. I fought it by looking at the outside of a glass window on my left side. However, the view of a well-trimmed glass of the school’s oval under a clear, blue sky and a brilliantly shining sun enticed me to close my eyes. But before my eyelids dropped, I saw a group of basketball players walking to the gymnasium. From their group, two guys were being left behind, it looks like they are talking over something. Both of them are wearing a black shirt topped with their jersey uniform. The guy with a black headband is laughing while the other one remains stoic.

I am on the second floor of our building and I can’t believe that from this distance, I can sense how rough he is. Although I can’t scan his features, I can say that he is tall, muscles on his arms are defined, he has fairer skin compared to the guy beside him who’s still laughing. They are the exact opposite of each other, one is cheerful and the other is dull. One is red, the other screams black.

“Ms. Villera.” I stopped comparing the two guys on my head when I heard Mr. Dela Cruz called me.

“Yes, sir?”

“I’m asking about your view about abortion. Anything on mind?”

I was a bit startled but I managed to quickly get back to my senses. Fortunately, I already have a personal view on this topic. “Well… sir, personally… I am a pro-choice advocator. Because, why would you bring life to this world if you don’t want to be a parent? And why would others think they have the right to what you’ll do with your life? Some pro-life advocators advocate anti-abortion because they care about the life of the unborn, but they failed to think about the welfare of the child once it was born., ‘Is she ready to be a mother?’, ‘Are they fit to be a parent?’, ‘Does the child have a parent that is financially and emotionally stable to raise him?’ These questions should also be laid because, in this irresponsible act, the one that would suffer the most is the child.” I tried hard to remain a neutral face after answering even my eyes are a bit blurry because of the unshed tears. Some of my classmates were looking intently at me, including Rein.

Criiiinggg

Luckily, the bell rang. I picked my backpack and straightly run out of the class. I went to the nearest comfort room. I put my bag at the dry part of the sink and tied my hair in a ponytail using the scrunchies that I always wear in my right hand. I pressed the faucet using my palm and splashed cold water in my face.

“Sheina!” The door slammed open and the sweaty and panting Rein showed. “Don’t worry, I won’t ask anything about what happened. I just want to let you know that you’re needed at the registrar’s office. That’s all, I got to go, I still have three remaining classes for today. Love you!” She said without pausing and gave me a quick peck on my cheeks.

That’s what I like about Rein. She knew when to butt in and when to keep silent. Lucky me, I got a friend like her. I knew her since 7th grade. His father owns a car wash business. While her mom is a housewife. She has two older brothers who both help with their business.

 Just like what Rein said, I need to go to the registrar’s office. I applied for a financial assistance program last summer, I do really hope that I passed. I wasn’t aware that it will be announced on the first day of class. Maybe Mr. Dela Cruz was going to tell me about it but I stormed out of the room and he had no choice but to ask Rein a favor.

I knock three times before entering the admin’s office. I am in luck since there’s no line at the registrar’s lane.

“Hi, good morning, I was told to go here. I am Villera, Sheina Yvette of class 10-A.”

“Hold on, I’ll check your account.” Said the girl with glasses and short hair. Based on her looks, I’m guessing that her age is close to mine. “Congrats! You passed the scholarship program. Here are the requirements in order for you to keep the scholarship for the rest of the school year.” She handed me the two-page printed paper. The first part is the receipt of my balance. There’s no need for me to pay for the tuition fee, but I still need to pay for the miscellaneous fees. It’s okay tho, I can afford to pay it since I have savings from my several part-time jobs I made last summer. The only thing that I need to do is to keep this scholarship until I graduate.

On the second page are the requirements that I need to comply with in order to not lose my scholarship. It says here that all my subjects should not be lower than 90 and my GWA should be 95 and above or I need to have a two-hour duty in the school’s premises after my class.

I am just an average type of student, meaning, I am not the type who stands out in class. Although I know that I can comply with the first requirement, I rather choose the latter. I work before I went to school, and at home, I’ll deal with my family issues. Choosing the first requirement is too risky, I may be able to do it for the first half of the year but I am not confident that I would constantly balance my GWA. Choosing to have a two-hour duty is safer. Besides, I am used to this kind of work. Last summer, I have three part-time jobs. From 6 am to10 am, I am at the Quick and Grab Café. From 1 pm to 5 pm, I worked as a delivery girl at a store that offers chicken and pizza. And from 7 pm-11 pm, I worked as an assistant at the public library nearby. It is indeed tiring but at least I got two-hour breaks interval and I have free food from my work!

“I choose to have two-hour duty after class.”

“Alright, here’s your schedule of duties from Monday-Friday.” She handed me a crosswise paper. “Lucky you! You were assigned to the gymnasium. It’s pretty boring in here.” She whispered. I knew it. She’s also a student scholar!

Monday- Wednesday- Friday (Gymnasium)

Tuesday- Thursday (Library)

“So, today would be my first day?” I asked. Ignoring what she said because honestly, I’d rather choose to be here.

“Yes, you may go to the gymnasium’s office and they will assist you.”

I politely bid my goodbye and walked out of the admin’s office.

Why am I even assigned to the gymnasium? I envy that girl, she was assigned there! Good for her, she does not need to map the floor’s court!

*******************

“Here are the garbage bags for the trashbin, mop, and other cleaning materials." Ynna, also a scholar, helped me familiarize myself with the equipment needed. "Don't worry, we won't do much since the janitors always clean this. Most of the time, we will just watch the varsity players on their training." She said while giggling and winked at me.

We went out of the 'Authorized Personel Only Room' and sat at the bench near the court. 

"They already started their training last month" She aid as we watch the basketball players in their training. "I bet these juniors are being pressured, especially that most of the players are seniors and will be graduating soon." She's pertaining to the four players who were doing push-ups while a middle-aged man is standing right in front of them.

I wandered my eyes on the players and it stopped on a guy seating near the player's bench. He is the guy I saw at my religion class earlier. Both of his elbows are resting on his knees while he is drinking a bottle of water with his right hand. His black hair looks damp because of sweat. He's wearing a black shirt on the inside, topped with their sleeveless jersey. 

Carrdon, #9

"Ohh, he's the transferee student," Ynna said as she's eyeing the guy I am also looking at. "I heard he will be the team captain for this year. Maybe he's really good knowing that their coach chose him even he's just new to the team. Plus, his family is rich, they are the owner of AKC station." My mouth turns in an 'O' shape. AKC is the top TV station in the country. If what Ynna said were true, then this Carrdon guy has a lot of connection and is rich as H!

I eyed him and studied his features. This guy is probably spoiled! Most people who grew with that class status have never experienced working hard on things they want. And yes, I am stereotyping! 

He is seating but I knew that he's tall, probably around 5'11? He is looking intently at his teammates with his dark and hooded eyes. He dropped his empty bottled water on the floor and lean at the backrest of the bench.  He motioned the back of his right hand towards his mouth and his knuckles slightly touched his lower lip. His arms have well-defined muscles which are very evident. I don't know why his simple moves are stressing me out. He looks so vigor to me... something that my soft personality can't handle.

My gentle-looking eyes went bigger when I saw that he slowly faced in my direction. Our eyes met. His right eyebrow arched a bit and I saw the thin lines that slowly formed on his forehead. Before I can continue studying his features, I felt a sudden pain at the right side of my forehead.

"Oh my... Sheina!" Ynna hysterically gasped as the ball hit the side of my head. 

As an instinct, I put my hands on where it hurts and gently massaged it.

"Miss, sorry. The ball slipped on my hands. Are you alright?" I looked up and saw a guy with a worried face.

"Dude, she was hit by a ball and you'll ask if she's alright?" I glanced at the guy behind him. He's the guy wearing a black headband earlier. "Here," he gave me a red-checkered band-aid. "put it on the small scratch in your forehead." He said with an apologetic smile as he went back inside the court and continue practicing with his teammates.

Trevon, #2

"Are you okay, Sheina?"

"Yes, Ynna. The pain is tolerable, no need to worry about it." I answered and slightly massaged the area where I was hit.

"You sure? I can get an ice bag at the clinic if you want."

"No, no. I'm totally fine... see?" I said as I stand up and show her that it wasn't a big deal. 

Ynna slightly laughed. "Alright then, they are already wrapping up, we should also start cleaning."

We were walking back to the staff's room to get some cleaning materials when my eyes caught the guy still on his seat. He is staring at me with his dark and tantalizing eyes. Before I remove my gaze on him, I saw a ghost of a smile on his face.

" Erick Trevon pats your head! Lucky you!" I returned my view of sight to Ynna and aced her with a confusing look. "The one that gave you a bandaid!" She said on a duh-tone. 

"He will be a popular artist soon! And I will be his number one fangirl!" She said as she clings her hand on mine.

Yet, she quickly withdraws her hands and looked at me with a grin on her lips. Seems like an idea pops on her head. "I'm going to clean near the locker room!" She said and hurriedly grabs a garbage bag. She excitedly waved at me and walk towards the other side of the court. 

I just hissed and rolled my eyes at her, but in a humorous way. I smiled while waving back. I was about to get the mop to clean the floor when a janitor passed through me and grabbed the mop before I can get it. "I'm the one who's going to mop. You have a petite body, this job may be hard for you. Just pick up some trash if there's any." The old janitor said and smiled.

"Thank you." I politely answered.

I grab a garbage bag and started searching for trash. Since this side of the gymnasium is perfectly clean, I went in the other direction. I saw some bottles of empty water just three meters away from the trash can. 'Seriously? Students here are very disciplined.'

While I am picking up the bottles, I heard a soft thud and an empty bottle rolled onto my feet. I looked at where it comes from and I saw the guy with jersey #9. Carrdon.

"Don't you know how to throw trash properly?" I rhetorically asked. 

See? I told you that I'm right about rich spoiled kids!

I glared at him. I don't care if he's the son of one of the richest families of this country. The H with that? He doesn't even know how to properly throw his trash! 

Yet, I was suddenly stunned when I looked directly at his dark hooded eyes. It screams arrogance. Something that says he is untouchable... unreachable... and definitely out of my league.

----------

Tamed By You

By: Joanne Cristel

©2021