It was the first day of school. Isabelle Montez, Belle to her friend, is now in her sophomore year in high school. She could still remember the first time he saw Paul Santillan. She was hanging in the school bleachers with her best friends Camille and Meghan. They were talking about what they did last summer and the latest school gossips when a car stopped near where they are seated, and a tall boy stepped out. He was wearing their school uniform. Although he was skinny, he looked sturdy. He was also very cute. He saw Belle from the corner of his eyes, then looked and smiled at her.
When they got to their classroom, Belle was surprised to see the cute boy in the same classes as them. They rarely get new students in their school, so it was a real treat for them to have someone as cute as him. When he introduced himself, he said that his name is Paul and that him and his family just moved from another city so he had to transfer schools.
As the teacher asked Paul to take a seat, his eyes suddenly zoomed in on Belle. She’s clearly the most beautiful in the class, maybe even in the whole school, with her fair smooth skin, and long black hair. He smiled at her as he sat on the chair next to her. He introduced himself, and as they shook hands, they both felt electricity running through their skin.
As the days passed by, Paul noticed that a lot of the other boys in school are trying to get Belle’s attention to get her to notice them. Somehow, she doesn’t seem interested in any of them. He thought that she just wasn’t ready to be in a relationship yet since they are still young.
Thus, Paul began plotting a plan to get the most beautiful girl he's ever met to notice him. He started getting to know her by befriending Belle. Initially, he didn’t show any interest in her other than being friends. She’s also the most intelligent student in class, and he used that as a ploy to help him catch up with their classes. He asked her help to tutor him after class. He made the excuse that the curriculum in his old school was a little behind compared to their current school.
She was nice enough to help him out. Paul went on dates with some other girls in the school just to let Belle know that he wasn’t interested in her romantically. When he noticed that she started getting irritated and seemed jealous with him being with other girls, that's when he realized that she might be falling for him already. He started making his move. He brings her food, chocolates, and even flowers. He offered to walked her home after classes, which she accepted.
When he asked her out on a date, she said yes. They went to the mall, ate at a fast-food restaurant, and watched a movie. Paul held her hands at the movies, and she didn’t pull away.
From then on, they’ve always been together. Paul asked Belle to be his girlfriend. After a week, she said yes to him. From then on, they became officially boyfriend and girlfriend. They became known as the quintessential couple, and a lot of their classmates envied their relationship.
When they graduated from high school, Belle was the class valedictorian. She was accepted into the best university in the country and decided to take up a pre-law course. She has always wanted to become a lawyer. Paul decided to take up Engineering, and went to a different school than Belle.
Despite going to different schools, their relationship remained strong and stayed together as boyfriend and girlfriend. They made it a point to see each other at least once a week, and stay in touch though calls or text messages.
Despite not seeing each other everyday, their relationship grew deeper and they started becoming intimate in their sophomore year in college. Belle wanted to stay a virgin until she gets married, but Paul assured her that they are going to get married someday anyway, so they might as well do it.
They were at Belle’s dorm room, and her roommate was out. Paul came over to hang out. They were watching a movie when Paul started getting frisky. Up until that point, they’ve only kissed each other on the lips. Paul started fondling Belle all over and insisted on letting him have her v-card.
Although hesitant, Belle gave in since she already loved him at this point. It was short and not pleasurable at all for her. They’ve done it a few more times after that, and it got better and better. After they’ve had a pregnancy scare a few months after they started sleeping together, Belle started taking birth control pills and insisted that Paul always use a condom when they do it.
On her graduation day, Paul proposed marriage to Belle, and she accepted. It was the happiest day of their lives. They got married in a civil ceremony a few months after the proposal. Paul promised Belle that he would save up so they can have a more lavish wedding ceremony in the future.
Paul had to shift to a communications course after his freshman year because he couldn’t handle Engineering. He was able to graduate and get a job right away. He wanted Belle to stay at home, so she decided not to pursue going to law school, despite getting accepted in one of the country’s best universities. She didn’t mind. She had a husband to take care of, and he promised to give her everything she wants and needs.
They were able to buy a townhouse and a car with the help of Belle’s parents. Life was like a bed of roses on their first few years of marriage. Until reality caught up with them. The company that Paul had been working for shut down, and he lost his job along with the other employees. He tried to find another job but has been having a hard time. Their savings are almost depleted, and they had to ask help from their parents to just make ends meet. Belle eventually convinced Paul to let her find a job herself while he’s still looking for a new one.
This is where our story begins.