Affection (GXG)

Chp. 12: Sidney Marion

Sidney's POV:

It has been a few days since I departed here in the Philippines. It has also been a few days that this certain person keeps on lingering in my head even though it has been a long time since I have denied what I felt about her.

I was an exchange student in Canada until my Aunt Mae died, the one who takes care of me while I was there. I had no other choice but to fly back here and change schools. I had to take backloads according to the administrator, which is acceptable because curriculums are quite different here.

I impatiently waited for my brother to finish dressing up. It's already 7 in the morning and our classes start at 7:30. Great, I'll be late on my first day because my brother is taking too long to wear his uniform.

"Ok na ako! Let's go!" 

He sped to the doorway which made him trip a few times. I suppressed a laugh but remained unbothered.

Now that we're in the car, I was thinking about what language I should use when I started taking classes. I mean, my English is fluent but my Tagalog...it's a bit off but I can still understand a few words.

"Alam mo naman yung classroom mo diba?" 

I nodded and we both left the car. We went on our separate ways and saw Marcus walk to where his friends were standing. There she is, standing next to the e's really fond of. Last night's event came back rushing to me as I walk into the hallway.

Marcus and I never talked about it again and he apologized because he was just drunk. I can't blame him though, I should have said something to Adel. Of course, me being the coward, I hesitated.

I sighed and entered my classroom where I was greeted by the loud voices of my classmates. Everything suddenly felt familiar, which is the reason why I am smiling a little right now. The moment I walked to the middle of the room, all of them suddenly went quiet and swiftly stood up.

"Goodmorning, ma'am." They said in unison which made me internally laugh. Do they really think that I am a professor here?

"Oh, I'm not the professor..." I shyly said and sat at the available chair, but what surprised me the most was the person sitting next to the available one, it was the girl Adel was always with. How lucky...

Ignoring the gossip from everyone, I cleared my throat and sat on the chair. The girl noticed me and her face went into full shock, as if like this is the first time we'd met. I remember that day during Marcus' game, this girl looked at me so coldly like I was stealing Adel from her. It's not like she's hers, to begin with.

But now, her face just remained shocked.

"Is there something wrong?" I innocently asked.

"U-uh, no." She removed her eyes from me and went to the professor who is now in front of the whole class.

"Right, before I start, I would like all of you to know that you have a new block mate. Miss, please briefly introduce yourself." That's all that the professor said and gave me a kind smile.

I politely nodded and walked in front of the class.

"Goodmorning, everyone. I'm Sidney Marion, fresh from Canada and I'm expecting to have good companionship with all of you. Thanks." 

The whole class even clapped and cheered which made me feel shy for a little bit.

"Oh, tingnan niyo? Maybe all of you should learn to speak in English like Miss Marion here." The professor looked at me and the whole class cheered again.

After that, the professor started to open a lesson. I spent most of my time writing notes in my notebook like what I normally do back in Canada. About my seatmate? Well, she kept on spacing out.

After 2 hours of lecture, we were finally dismissed for recess. I picked up my bag and made my way to the cafeteria without waiting for my seatmate because surely she has somewhere else to go.

I bought a snack and walked around the campus for a little bit before settling on their field area. 

I inhaled the fresh air of freshly cut grass. I used to represent our school in football back when I was in elementary school, but I stopped because right after I graduated from 6th grade, my parents transferred me abroad.

I ate my snack as the memories I used to have with Adel and her friends kept flooding back to me which made my heart feel warm.

"Hey, I was looking for you."

With a mouthful of bread, I turned my head to the owner of the voice.

"Adel? What are you doing here?" My voice came out muffled but I guess she got it due to that sweet smile of hers I am seeing right now.

"Can't I admire the field too? I mean, we both used to play football for our school."

Did she remember?