The Possibility Of You And Me

CHAPTER 18: ANDREA

After the second period, Sophie and I decided to go to the school's main canteen for a snack. I couldn't get the incident in Dr. Ramirez's class out of my mind. It's like I feel guilty for being the reason why Dr. De Leon suddenly approached him.

I also didn't notice that Dela Rea entered the second period. He wasn't in the Philippine Politics and Governance subject, and I'm sure because he's one of the faces I remember from my classmates. I don't know why, but every time I think of him, I feel frustrated. That guy is so rude as if he wasn't taught proper manners by his parents.

Sophie just sat in front of me and placed two servings of baked macaroni and two glasses of iced tea on the black tray.

"There, it's my treat. Don't worry about paying." Sophie said with a smile.

My eyes widened, and I felt a bit embarrassed by what she said. We had just met and she already wanted to treat me. I wasn't comfortable because I'm not used to being treated even by people I've known for a long time.

"Don't, Sophie. It's not your birthday, you don't have to treat me." I replied and reached for my shoulder bag to get my wallet.

"I insist, friend. Just this once. It's to show my appreciation for accepting me not only as your classmate but also as your friend." Sophie insisted.

"You don't have to do this, Sophie. I would accept you as my classmate or friend even without this." I said, feeling the heat rise to my cheeks because I wasn't uncomfortable being treated. I quickly took out a crisp one-hundred peso bill from my wallet and handed it to her to pay for the food.

"No, I'm treating you. It would hurt me if you don't accept it as a sign of accepting my friendship." She insisted, still smiling at me.

"But..."

"No 'buts' or 'however,' okay?" She insisted.

"It's just embarrassing, you know? We've only just met and you want to treat me already." I reasoned with her.

"That's fine. Don't worry, next time, you can treat me instead. Is that okay with you?" She asked.

"Okay then, if that's what you want, I'll treat you next time," I said to her.

"Deal?"

"Deal." I agreed.

Sophie is kind, although she's a bit playful, maybe because she's still young. She told me that she just turned fifteen last month. She skipped a grade and was brought to third grade, but she didn't finish third grade because she got sick and almost died. Sophie didn't mention what illness she had, and I didn't ask. What's important to me is that I'm happy to have met her on the first day of class.

I started eating the baked macaroni that Sophie treated me to. I was too hungry to even check if it tasted good. The iced tea was a bit bland, probably because the ice melted completely.

I could hardly finish my meal because Sophie kept talking non-stop about various things. I often pretended to listen to her so she wouldn't get upset with me. Sometimes, I got annoyed by her high-pitched voice, so I pretended to have a phone call.

"...yes, Mom, I'm fine here, and our teachers are just having orientations for their subjects," I said, pretending to be on the phone with my stepmother.

Sophie just looked at me, waiting for me to finish my pretend phone call. She tapped her nose while waiting for me to finish using my cell phone.

"...yes, mom. I'll be out by 5 pm later." I continued pretending to talk to my mom on the phone.

I almost screamed in surprise and dropped my phone when it suddenly rang. Oh no, Sophie would find out that I wasn't talking to anyone. I quickly picked up my phone from the concrete floor. I didn't know if Sophie would get mad at me for getting caught.