My Prince, My mate

4. Happy accidents

“NAT, HAVE YOU SEEN THE BOOK I borrowed from you?” Carmelita was overturning everything on her side of the room. Her desk was a mess. Her books were scattered on top of each other in disarray, along with her notes. Papers stacked neatly earlier were now all over the floor. She was getting frustrated already.

The mere fact that she lost something did not sit well in Carmelita’s stomach. She was too smart and organized for it to happen. She sat on her chair with her head leaning on both of her palms. She looked at the desk. Going through every memory she had, she tried to recall where she saw the book.

She flicked her tongue upon remembering something. However, she already checked her bag, but it wasn’t there. “Ugh! What’s the point of having this sharp memory when I cannot even find a damn book? Meirda!” she cursed herself.

“What is all this?” Natalia had her hands crossed as she stood beside her. She looked like an angry mother, ready to burst at her. “Here, I found it by the window, soaking in the afternoon sun.” She gave Carmelita the hardbound book she was looking for. It had gold lettering of the title and author on its spine. What Carmelita was looking for was that specific book with the yellow paper she used as a bookmark.

“I must have left it there earlier. Thanks.” She hugged Natalia and checked the inside of the book. “Yup, this is it, Nat.” She smiled at her.

“Is this the lewd book I finished reading last week?” Natalia whispered to her.

“Yes, this is it. Oh, it is amazing! The descriptions and the images. No wonder you were able to finish it faster than our assigned novels.” Carmelita giggled at the prohibited book.

“Oh, shut up! You are making progress yourself. Tell me, do you have these back in your place?” Natalia motioned for the pose the heroine did in the book. She stood there with pouted lips while her body arched in an S shape, extenuating every curve she had.

“Duh! What do you think about my town? We have those, but in the confines of the hacienda,” Carmelita said with pride. Their hacienda was a vast place owned by her grandfather. It was tilled for farming. It was where her mother lived before marrying her father.

“I am going to attend a get-together in a while. Do you want to come? There will be loads of men in the restaurant,” Natalia asked as she sat beside Carmelita. She was wearing a dark-toned blouse with puffed shoulders paired with a long skirt. It was a perfect fit for her slender body. The blouse itself accentuated her upper body, while her skirt made her look taller than usual, hiding her high-heeled shoes.

“Pass. You’re just going to flirt with boys. I’d rather read books in the library than waste my time getting to know men. I can’t marry.” Carmelita always had that pessimistic view about the world, even when she was a child. People would tend to praise the good things while she pointed out all the negative ones.

“It doesn’t hurt, you know. At least you get to practice mingling with them, so when you find a husband, you are more knowledgeable,” Natalia quipped. She wasn’t smart like her, but she knew her way around people.

“Nah! I can read those in the books. I don’t mind the silence. Besides, my future husband and I can learn to talk to each other as we grow older,” Carmelita said with absolute certainty. Besides, she was waiting for her soulmate and didn’t want to flirt around. It might give the wrong impression.

“Suit yourself. I will get going then. Those carriages won’t wait for me.” Natalia stood up and walked towards the door. Before going out, she reached for her cape, which was hanging on the coat rack beside the door. It was a bit chilly outside, even though the sun was glaring.

“Let’s go together. I want to get immersed in the book. The library is a better place than this messy desk.” Carmelita took her coat and wore it. She was looking forward to a quiet afternoon. After all, students were either in the pubs and restaurants getting drunk or cooped up in the dormitories.

They both checked their space in the dorm one more time before going out of their rooms. She locked the door and kept her key inside her bag. “If ever you get back early, can you accompany me to that new restaurant outside the campus?” Carmelita showed her puppy eyes to Natalia. She knew she couldn’t resist it.

“Yeah, I don’t mind. Although, don’t get your hopes up. I intend to put this new dress to good use today.” Natalia wiggled her eyebrow to get the message across without saying anything.

“Ew! Just go.” Carmelita pushed Natalia towards the gate of the campus as she walked towards the library. The last few leaves started to fall from the trees. Even the ground began to accumulate snow.

She was glad she bought a new set of dresses. It wasn’t about the cold, but the appearance she had to keep up. After staying there for months, she noticed people were very particular about clothes and the variety of rules associated with them.

Students started to notice her oblivious behavior toward cold temperatures. Some even stared at her for wearing summer-style dresses at the start of winter. Getting that much attention bugged Carmelita so much that she bought a suitcase full of winter dresses the following day.

She continued to walk alone, her book safely kept in the bag. The wind whistled as a strong breeze passed by her. She had to place her hands on her skirt to prevent it from getting blown upward. “Ugh! Wherever I stay, the wind always annoys the hell out of me. Why can’t it be still all year round?” she murmured to herself. When she gets home for the winter break, she must ask her grandfather Amihan to teach her how to control the wind. It was getting on her nerves.

There were fewer students walking outside of the campus grounds today, even for the weekend. The weather was unbecoming, and chills brought everyone indoors, but not her.

IT WAS SATURDAY, Sebastián’s favorite day of the week. The only day he could freely get drunk in the pubs outside campus without worrying about having classes the next day.

Most days, he had to endure drinking a couple of glasses of wine to numb his pain. No one knew about his heartbreak except for his brother, and he intended to keep it that way.

He took a sip of wine from the glass as he warmed up. It was something he did in order to bear the cold draft outside. As a child, winter was his favorite time of the year, but as the years passed, the gloomy weather crept up on him.

Now he could barely tolerate the sour mood that winter brought. He was glad he hadn’t bumped into that creepy stalker, Carmelita. His life turned upside down in her presence. She annoyed him to the bone. The way she reasoned for every action she took. She was feisty, and he did not like it one bit.

He took another glance at the mirror to check his suit and bow. When the way he looked pleased him, he got his pomade from the drawer of the desk beside the mirror. He applied a small amount all over his hair and combed it back, giving it volume. Then he parted his hair on the left side.

“There, all set. Time to party!” He smiled at his reflection.

He walked toward the window to check if it was closed. After making sure that the lock was in place, he went to his desk to turn off the lamp.

His room was the same as everyone else’s, except that he didn’t have a roommate. Instead of two twin beds, there was only one queen-size bed. The desk on the other side of the room was full on a large table with a leather seat. He even had a two-door closet brought in. He was living in luxury and loved it.

He had a full rack of different coats because his mother was concerned he’d feel cold. This time, he used a fur-lined overcoat to keep him warm. The fur covered his neck up to the bottom of his ear, framing his jaws perfectly.

As the clock rang. He had a full hour to get to his destination. He wasn’t in a hurry, but he did like to start as soon as he could. But first, he took a book from his desk.

This was his secret weapon against his admirers. It helped him hide his face if needed. He placed the book inside his coat’s pocket, then went out.

As he approached the last few steps outside his dormitory building, a throng of ladies were waiting for him. He hid from them as much as he could with the book. He opened a random page and pretended to read it.

“Is he coming out today?” he heard one of them ask.

“You’re definitely new, are you?” another girl replied. He chuckled at them as he continued to walk. They even knew each other already. He wondered if they were all friends, given that they liked him.

“I saw him the other day and fell for his kind heart. He fed the pigeons in the fountain area. A man with good looks and a kind heart is rare these days.” The girl was gushing as she told the other one.

He kept his head low once more so as not to attract any attention.

“That’s him, Sebastián, mi amor,” one of the women said as she stood near him.

He quickly kept his book in one hand and ran as fast as he could. These women always found him, no matter what.

Even though he disliked running, he had no choice. They would throw themselves over him.

The first time it happened, three of them jumped over him and kissed his face. They even fought over who got to kiss his lips. It was ridiculous. As time went by, more admirers came, and they got fiercer.

Without hesitation, he ran towards the nearest building. He didn’t care where he went as long as he could escape his admirers.

“Why are they fond of me? I kept saying I don’t like any of them, yet they don’t give up,” he said to himself. He was safely standing behind the entrance door of the building.

As he peered into the small slit between the door and the door frame, he saw them searching for him. A couple had already gone inside the building. He kept quiet. Waiting for them to disperse in dismay.

“Hi Sebastián,” a cute girl with lots of make-up on her face, found him. “I am...” Before she could introduce herself, another woman pulled the door open and revealed him to the rest of them.

He pushed them away. With all his might, he tried to run off. However, he couldn’t. He won’t forgive himself if he hurts a woman. So he ran to the opposite side, way farther inside the building. As soon as he saw a door on the right side, he went in.

Suddenly, a librarian stared at him. “Silencio,” she said. She was in her mid-forties with a few white streaks of hair and some wrinkles in her eyes, but other than that, she was beautiful and young.

He walked further inside, making sure his footsteps were light so as not to cause any sound. The library was full of books from floor to ceiling. There were tall shelves in the middle as well.

A few empty tables at the entrance for students to use lined up. In front of the librarian’s desk, a couple of tables were unoccupied.

He took it as a sign. Maybe they won’t recognize him if he sits with her. The book he brought would be perfect as well. Maybe not, since it failed the first time, but he couldn’t know for sure.

He grabbed the chair facing the rows of shelves. With his back hidden in sight from the entrance door, he felt safe there.

“Care if I join you?” he asked if he could join the student who was immersed in her book.

“Go away,” the woman replied without lifting her head.

He couldn’t see much of her face, but he knew her voice. He quickly grabbed the book from her hands.

She stared at him as if throwing daggers into his skull. She scowled at his actions.

“Shh,” the librarian shushed them.

“Carmelita, help me. You still owe me,” he whisper-yelled at her. He was desperate. He could hear the footsteps approaching. This was his last chance to avoid them.

“I think I’ll pass. You can manage. I think you are the stalker between the two of us.” She smirked and took her book from him. Then she stood up.

He had no choice. He sat in front of her. He hoped against all hope that his stalkers wouldn’t bother to check the library.

“If you won’t help, then be a dear and stay put. I am just here for a few minutes. I will be out of your hair after that.” He sighed and opened the book randomly and tried to focus on the text, but he couldn’t.

This was the worst thing he had this week. All he craved was to get drunk and be merry for a few hours, but now he was stuck in the library with the most annoying person in the world.

The door creaked as it opened. He refused to look in that direction, but he was attentive to the sounds. The women were giggling as they went inside.

She sat back and stayed silent. Although she didn’t open her book anymore, she looked at the wall behind him instead.

“Silencio,” the librarian reminded everyone once again.

It did not deter the women from searching the library. However, the sound of their footsteps was muffled. He couldn’t determine where they were.

“This part is empty,” a girl said.

“Señora, can you please respect the library? Keep quiet or go out.” The librarian scolded her.

The door opened once again. Another set of women came in. The first group went further down the shelves. Two had passed them but didn’t bother to check.

His heart was pounding so fast that he could hardly breathe normally. The tension kept building up.

“Cariño, let’s go,” Carmelita whispered to him. She stood up and offered her hand.

“Si,” he gladly took her hand while still holding the book sideways to cover his face from the group of women.

They walked slowly so as not to attract attention. For once, he felt safe and loved as he held her. His heart still pounded, but it was different. There was some sort of rhythm to it, like a love song playing in the background.

He stared at her in confusion. Could she be?

Before he could ask her, they had already dodged the women and were outside the building.

“Goodbye, Sebastián. I have done enough for you. I hope this will be the last one.” Carmelita looked annoyed as she said those words.

“Gracias, Carmelita.” He stared into her eyes. It was full of life and hope. It drew him into her, like a moth to a flame.

“Will you take your hands off me so I can go?” she asked him.

“Oh, sorry about that.” He let go of her and hastily walked towards the campus gate when he heard women shouting at him.

“Come back, Sebastián!” they all screamed together.

He smiled as he rode into the carriage. He waved his hands at them like a prince charming in a parade.

“Oh, Carmelita, what have you done to me?” he asked himself. For a long time, his resting face was that of an oblivious person. Now, he couldn’t even stop smiling like a lunatic. This wasn’t good at all.