Chapter 35: Chapter 35

Sunny

We are now having our examination, our last day of midterm exams for the first semester. We did our best to review, and I hope we can all pass this.

Before the midterm exam happened, we all had a study session after our class. We all shared our strategies on how to remember the pointers and all. We exchange our notes and study for two to three hours. I am confident with my answers now. I cannot help but smile after seeing the test papers. We all learned them with the help of one and only Steven, the brainy.

He helped us with the pointers. He did! In all of our subjects, just like what we did in our prelim exam. It is no wonder he could answer the question when he is studying hard. This made us motivated to study hard. If we ever fail the test, I think we will disappoint him.

And about Steven too, we've watched a lot of movies already. Months passed, and we almost watched the latest drama we knew. We even watched a famous drama before. He even goes to our house to watch drama with my family.

Yes, that's how addicted he is now. We also went to different places like museums and amusement parks. We also went with Shiela altogether, and we watched movies and all. It was fun, super. However, I am now receiving teasing from my family and classmates. They are teasing me with Steven, saying we are always together, and many more.

They were right, though. I find Steven's company good. I feel safe and happy. I am comfortable and was able to tell or share with him everything I could share. I cannot stop comparing Jake to Steven. After all, Jake and I were not able to do what we are doing now except for going out on dates.

We go out and bond for the first few months. After that, Jake became busy with academics, as did I. That is why we pushed our dates and just focused on what we should do now. I thought it was only normal because studies are important and we can date sooner or later. I did not know it was slowly drifting us apart. To the point, Jake cheated behind my back and fooled me because no one knows how many months he did that.

While I am going out with Steven, I cannot help but ask, why can we do this? Even though we are busy in school, we still manage to go out and watch movies or dramas. It feels like we have a lot of time to do them. But why couldn't Jake and I do this before?

I have a fault too. I never dared to talk it out with him. Maybe we could still be able to fix our relationship. I was scared that we might end up fighting like what always happened.

"Okay, time is up. You can now pass your papers to your front." Our adviser said.

We quietly handed our papers in front of us. Our adviser fixed our papers before putting them in a folder.

"Since our exams are over, you have two days to rest and wind up. I know you did your best and made sure to answer the exams with all your might. Next week, we will know your scores. Have fun, and take care on your way home!" She said happily.

"Thank you, Ma’am!"

"Bye!"

"The exams are now over!" Marco yelled.

"I think I aced the midterm exams. Is this something to celebrate?" I heard Gino asking his seatmate.

"Me too! We will pass altogether!"

And we are now screaming in our room. We hugged each other and said we did well in our exams. "We did great, Sunny. Let's keep on fighting until we graduate!" Shiela said as we hugged each other.

"We really should! I love you!" I replied and hugged her tight before breaking our hug.

"Guys! Do you want to go out tomorrow?" Our president asked. We stopped talking and turned to him. "I know we stayed up late for a week to review. Maybe, if you guys want, we can go and have fun." he recommended.

"Let's swim?" Gino suggested. "I can ask my parents to have a reservation where our family used to go." He added.

We all turn ourselves around and look at him. After what happened in Jake's department, Gino became more open about his family and many things that he had never done before.

"Uhh, I am just suggesting. Why are you looking at me as if I did something wrong?" He asked us, with confusion showing in his eyes.

"Do you know how much it is? Maybe some of us would not be able to afford it. We should also ask how much per head and for the cottage." The vice seconded.

Gino shook his head. "No, no. I am not talking about that. My treat." He said.

"Then there is no need to find money―wait what?!" Philip asked, raising his voice.

"Are you sure about it, Gino? We are thirty-plus." I asked, almost stuttering.

"You rich, rich man?" Justin commented.

Gino laughed. "We are kind of rich, rich man." He replied, which made us laugh. "I trust you guys. Let me treat you this way." He added.

The small laugh became loud. We are all jumping from happiness.

"Let’s all calm down first!” The president yelled and tried to calm us down. "Let's go back to our chairs for now. We should talk about this while we are here." He added.

As our president said, we went back to our chairs and waited for him to talk. "Okay, since we have the place already, let's just talk about the food and how we can get there―"

The president stopped talking when Gino raised his hands again. "Do not worry about it either. There are a lot of restaurants there so we can eat there. They also have a bus that we can use. I suggest that we meet at the entrance. The bus will fetch us all here." Gino suggested it again.

"Gino! It feels like we do not know you at all! How rich are you?!" Sam asked.

"Right! The other day, you were asking for my food, and now you are the one who is treating us?" Bentley added.

I guess there are many things we do not know about Gino.

"I recommend grilling him on our vacation days!" Our vice commented.

We all nodded our heads, agreeing with what our vice had said.

"So, everything is covered by our one and only, Gino. Since we have four days of vacation, we can carry out our plan on Saturday. Two days and one night. So that we can rest on Sunday and be ready to begin finals on Monday. Is it okay with you guys?" Pres asked.

"Yes, pres!"

"Pack what you need to pack. Do not forget to ask for permission from your parents," He announced. "To be sure, we also need your parent's permission. I want you to make a video asking for permission from your parents. You can text or call me if they refuse to let one of you go. I will be the one to talk to them. Are we clear?" He added.

"Yes, Pres!"

"The best president of all!"

"I hope your dinner dishes are yummy!"

Our president is the best. No one can deny that.

"Then see you on Saturday! Rest for now, and let's party on Saturday! Go home safely and do not forget the attendance at home safely and sound!" He added.

"Yes, Pres!"

Although the police have gotten one of the criminals, we must still be careful. As Steven said, he may not be the only one. Our president constantly monitored our class to see if we got home safely. We are sending pictures of ourselves in our group chat.

"Let's go." Steven told us.

"Steven, did you also jump a while ago?" Shiela suddenly asked.

"Jump?" Steven asked back, confused by Shiela's question.

Shiela pointed out our classroom. "Here. A while ago, we screamed and jumped in happiness. Did you scream and jump as well?" She explained, making her question more understandable.

"I did not scream a while ago, but I jumped." He replied.

"You jumped? How many times did you jump?" I asked, joining the conversation.

"Twice. Why are you guys asking about it?" He now asked us to return the question and portion.

"I just want to know your reaction. You are like a robot." Shiela replied. That made me laugh.

I raised my arms, nodding in agreement. "I second that." I added.

Steven shot a glare at Shiela and me before walking away, leaving the two of us behind. "He got mad, Sunny." Shiela laughed.

We followed him quickly. "Sorry!" I told him and looked into his eyes. He did not look at me. I pouted. "Shiela, you told him that. Say sorry." I told Shiela.

Shiela taps Steven's arms. "Sorry, Steven. It is just I found you one. You rarely react and seem to be the calm one. But I can tell you now that you are not a robot. There are a lot of things you have improved already." Shiela told Steven.

"I agree. I told you about that last day, right? You changed a lot." I added.

"Saying good things would not make me feel good now. Stop trying. I am not mad either." He replied.

"You are not mad, but you left us behind a while ago?" Shiela and I asked.

"Nevermind." He simply said.

On our way, all we did was bother Steven. We even tried to tickle him and learned that it did not work on him. I also just learned that people still do not get affected if we tickle them. How cool is he?

After we sent Shiela home, I tried to start a conversation with Steven, but he never replied. He just answered me with a nod.

"I will go now." He said that and walked away after that.

"Take care on your way! Chat with me when you get home!" I yelled.

I quickly fished my phone out and tried to dial Shiela's number.

"Hel―"

"Shiela, he is really mad!" I interrupted her.

"Ha? What? Steven?" She asked on the other line.

I nodded. "He is. After we sent you home, he never talked to me at all. It is your fault. You made him mad!" I told her.

But why is he mad at me too? I can hear Shiela laughing on the other line. "He is not a robot now. He knows how to get mad. I will chat with him later." She said.

"Tell me how it goes, okay?" I asked.

"I will, and will do. I need to attend our Zoom meeting in a few minutes. I will talk to you later." Shiela replied.

"Okay!" I said and ended the call.

I quickly went to my messenger and messaged him. I was bombarding him about why he got mad at me. I sent a voice message saying sorry and sending a lot of gifs I could send him. I stopped when my mom called me to have dinner.

After dinner and washing the dishes, I looked at my phone to see if he had texted back, but he had just seen my messages. I instantly texted Mavin to know if he was at home already.

Instead of a message, he called me back. "Mavin, are you home already?" I asked straight to the point.

"I am. Why?" He asked back.

"Is Steven at home?"

Mavin paused for a moment. "Wait. I just got home. I will go to his room and see." He replied and then heard his footsteps.

I patiently waited. I can hear him knocking on Steven's door. "Steven, you here already?" He asked and knocked again.

"What?" Steven replied on the other line.

"He is here," Mavin told me. "You can't reach him?" He asked.

"He is mad at me." I complain.

Mavin laughed at the other line. "Mad at you? Why? What happened?" He asked, still laughing.

"Shiela told him he was like a robot, then walked off. We already said sorry, and he told us he was not mad but did not talk to me after that. He is not replying to my message too!" I shared.

Mavin laughed again. "I can't believe he knows how to sulk now." He said.

"Let's not make him madder. Stop laughing. Do you want him to ignore you too?" I warned him.

"Do not worry. I'm used to it," He replied. "But I can't help you with that." He added.

"What should I do?" I asked, trying to ask for help. "I was not the one who teased him first. Why is he also mad at me?" I kept on asking.

He replied, "Because you nodded or any simple gesture that you agreed with Shiela's words."

I pouted. "I nodded!" I said as I lay on my bed. "Would he ignore me for too long?"

"Knowing him, he would," Mavin replied, which made me sad. "Let him get mad for now. He will just talk to you if he is good already." He added.

I guess we are not going to watch it tonight.