“What is love?”

I stared at the person who took away my paper [1]. That jerk sat on a near vacant seat while grinning.

They said that there weren’t any teacher around because of an urgent meeting. But we weren’t allowed to leave so here we are, doing our own trip [2] in life. And it looks like I’m the trip of this guy again.

“Hoy, give it back.”

“Love is blind?” Then he looked at me with his brow raised, “You’re so corny.” Yet he was still able to give me a smile?

“You’re just jealous of my letter, eh [3].” I tried to retrieve my paper, “Give it back!”

“No!” He shouted. He smiled and then messed up my hair. I’ve almost went insane when I noticed he was writing on my paper.

“Hoy, don’t you dare mess with it!” I still tried to s.n.a.t.c.h my paper but he’s too strong. It took him a few couple of minutes before giving my paper back.

“You s.h.i.t!” I said as I whacked his shoulder, “You messed my beautiful letter!”

He just went on laughing and laughing while I was feeling downhearted for my paper.

“Those two are so sweet, oh.”

I glanced at Troy, a pal of Nate, whose seat was in front of mine in our cla.s.s" seating position. I looked at him badly. So bad, that we can already start a funeral for him tomorrow.

“Aye okay, I won’t look anymore.” He smilingly said as he gave a peace sign and then stood up to leave.

When I shifted my gaze back to Nate, his grin was actually so wide.  My forehead creased because his one hand was holding both of my hands, and even if I struggle to escape, his grip was too tight.

“Let me go, one...” I warned.

“You should read the end.” Using his lips, he pointed towards the end of the paper.

 [What is love? It’s Dan Nathaniel Moises Manio  :D]

With a wrinkled forehead, I looked at Nate and noticed that he brought his face near mine. I viewed his eyes quickly and s.h.i.t. This is why I don’t want to look at his eyes eh [4], it’s much more beautiful than mine.

I’m just gonna cry. Hashtag [5] insecurities.

He was smiling when he whispered, “I love you.”

My brain has still not absorbed what he said when he kissed my cheek. I was still stunned when he suddenly ran and took off the hair tie that holds my hair.

“Boom! Girly [6] has been stunned!”

I looked at Toto, another pal of Nate, whose laughingly shouting. That’s when I realized that most of our cla.s.smates where smilingly looking at me.

I glared at Nate, “Give me back my hair tie!”

Nate strolled to the door of the room while he is playing with my hair tie in his hands, “I don’t want to!”

“You’re dead to me!” My eyes looking at him turned fierce.

“Run, Boyet [7]!” I heard the shout of Jek, another pal of Nate, who’s laughing already.

Why am I in cla.s.s with all of Nate’s pals and gang? Life is so unfair.

I ran outside the room. I gripped my waist-long hair because it was already hindering me too much.

“Catch me~” he shouted as if singing.

I can’t help myself from smiling at his silliness. Feeling his in a beach [8]! “Silly! Give me back my hair tie !”

He stopped running when he realized that I"m not chasing him anymore. He frowned.

“Why aren’t you chasing me?”

Annoying, it doesn’t fit! He’s so tall, and he’s doing that [9]? “You’re still acting cute? It’s annoying.” I said, laughing.

He widened his eyes at me and even held his chest as if he’s feeling hurt. He frowned even more as I continue laughing hard due to the distorted look on his face.

“You are too much, I’m already in pain. As if you didn’t answer me-”

“Don’t remind me.”

I went near him and took my hair tie to fix my hair.

“Bu-”

We stay stilled at the corridor when someone shouted.

“Hi, Papa [10]Art!”

Our gaze shifted towards the shrill voice of the girl who’s not that familiar for me. It looks like she came from the lower batch. And she’s so cute because she’s small, fair, and with headband that has a ribbon that was so big. She was with all smiles while looking at the stairs and there he went into my vision, the Emotionless Guy.

Even if he"s unfriendly to everyone, Emotionless Guy was still the center of attention whenever he was walking. He ignored that girl as he just continued walking. I noticed that he was being followed by the eyes of most of the people in the corridor, along with the girls hanging around the door of the room. His celebrity fame in this school is so strong.

I really don’t care. I had only glanced and would have removed my gaze when our eyes met each other.

s.h.i.t. Scary. His stares are so sharp. So deadly. So scary.

Emotionless guy had pa.s.sed us by as if it was nothing. I stood back when Nate put his face near mine.

“I noticed that look you gave Emotionless, ah. Your crush?”

I raised my eyebrows at him, “Over my dead and s.e.xy body, ha?”

“Whuszh... What was that, Ianne? The signal whuszh... Is weak,” he laughingly said, “I whuszh... Don’t hear anything whuszh [11]...” [12]

“You’re mean!”

“At least handsome.” He raised his eyebrows as he answered.

I frowned, “Seriously?” I sa.s.sily said.

He laughed as he put his hand atop my head, “Yes, I’m handsome.”

“What was that, Nate?” I copied him, “The signal is weak here, and I didn"t hear anything!”

I laughed. I’m always so funny.

“Get ready to run.” He runs towards me and automatically, I also run away from him when...

BOINK! BOINK! BOINK!

“Sorry!” I was shocked at the books that fell. When I glanced over –I’m so dead po [13].  RIP, Janine Anne Santos. You will be missed. Because the one I b.u.mped into was Emotionless Guy, “S-sorry, I didn’t mean it po.”

We stared at each other.

I felt something beat –wait, it’s my heart.

He looked at me using his cheeky eyes. No emotion. I was scared by the look he"s giving that’s why I wasn’t able to help him in picking up.

At his gaze, the whole place became serious as the good vibes disappeared. The noises faded. Happiness. Everything. As if he took away all the joyful memories with the straight face of his appearance.

“Uy, Ianne.”

I glanced at Nate when he touched my shoulder.

After Emotionless Guy fetched his books, he looked at me again hence I stepped back. He appeared like a man-eating human. So scary!

“Sorry for this child’s silliness, ah.”

Nate said as he put his hand atop my head. Both of us were looking at Emotionless Guy but he didn"t reply. He just walked pa.s.s us like nothing happened.

Nate and I both stay stilled and quiet. As if there was a mental prayer meeting in our minds because of the moment of silence.

“I got nervous there, ah.” Nate scratches his neck.

Whew! So it wasn’t only me who got nervous on the presence of Emotionless Guy. Good.

Emotionless Guy continued to walk. I got shocked when this idiot beside me put an arm over my shoulder.

“Let’s enter the room, Babe.”

I grimaced, “Babe?”

“Oh why, you don’t like it? We need terms of endearment already; we had been together for one we-”

“Shhh!” I covered his mouth and gave him a serious look, “Stop.”

Nate smiled. He grabbed me by the hair and even looked like he was threatening to take away my hair tie.

“Just try to take it away.” I warned.

His eyes narrowed and I got shocked when he kissed my hand that was covering his mouth.

Ewwww!

I pushed his face away from me while I was wiping my hand. He just laughed and put his arms over my shoulder so we can go out as it’s already time to leave.

***

From the time I got it wrong to talk to Nate, we always go home together, like now. According to him, it’s a must for us to go out together as he might get rape and needs someone to save him.

He’s really in a blast.

He bought me a Frostee ice cream for free at the canteen before we left school. He kept on talking and talking about lot of things and he kept on saying that’s he’s handsome.

We were walking while talking when we saw a girl and a boy holding hands. The girl was wearing a uniform from a different school, while the boy had large clothes and a baston.

Kuya [14] would have been so cool if only he wasn’t holding that glittery fluffy pink shoulder bag of his girlfriend.

“Do you know the reason why I said yes to you, Nate?” I asked. Using my lower lip I pointed towards the two that we would be pa.s.sing by.

“Because you don’t dress like that.”

He laughed at my words, “How about you, do you know why I courted you?”

“Why?”

“Cause your bag is not like that! So Fluffy!”

Both of us laughed at our own silliness until we got ahead of the couple who were looking at us.

We just laughed until I noticed something from his side nearing him. I shouted crazily like I was frightened out of my mind.

“N-Nate!” As I pointed out to what was coming.

When he glanced back, it was already too late.

He was. .h.i.t.