Crazy Rich Bea (JiBea fanfic)

Chapter 1

"So, Machiavelli said that as a leader, it's better to be feared than loved," Jia declared. Some of her students nodded their heads in agreement. "Why is that?"

She's a Psychology professor at NYU, and she's teaching a Political Psychology class this semester.

"Because Machiavelli viewed humans in a negative way. He thinks that humans were fickle," Seth, one of Jia's best students in the class responded. "And so is love. The results of loving someone, or in this case, 'the prince', is quite unpredictable."

"Good," Jia replied. She gave Seth an encouraging smile.

A girl raised her hands and Jia acknowledged her. "To add to that, men can instantly abandon 'the prince' if their own interests are at stake. On the other hand, results of fear is predictable. There is penalty out of fear, making it easier to keep them in line to the wishes of the political leaders."

"Well said, Jamilla. Men love at their convenience but they fear at the convenience of the prince. But personally, do you agree with Machiavelli? Would you rather be feared or loved? Does this same theory still works with how our government works today?"

Her students gave really good insights about the topic, most of them still favoring being loved that being feared. When everyone has voiced out their opinions, someone asked, "How about you, professor Morado? Would you like to be feared or be loved?"

Jia smirked at her students. "Well, you forgot the caveat there. The whole phrase says, 'Better to be feared than love... if you cannot have both.' So why choose when I can have both?" Jia winked at her students, who were too amazed to speak. The bell rang. "Alright, I'll send my presentation tonight and we'll have a short quiz next session. Bye!"

Jia fixed her things. Amidst the students going out of the room, one person walked against them. "Professor, I fear and love you at the same time," the person declared.

Jia turned around upon hearing the voice. She saw her girlfriend, Bea, holding a sunflower in her hand. She let out a shriek, before hugging her girlfriend. "You're back! I missed you!"

—

"So how's the conference, Bea?" Emily asked, but obviously, Bea and Jia are too busy with each other to hear her question. They really shouldn't have scheduled this dinner on the night of Bea's arrival after a one-week conference in Chicago. Bea and Jia are too clingy for each other. She knows that too well.

It was actually her who introduced the two of them. Jia is her long-time friend and a colleague in the Psychology department of NYU. Meanwhile, she met Bea, a professor of Economics, in one of the department meetings. Once she learned that Bea's also a gay Filipina like Jia, the matchmaker in her activated. The more she talks to Bea, the more her gut is saying that Jia and her will like each other.

However, she knows Jia doesn't want to be matched around. But Emily knows that all she just needs a perfect timing. It took a month and one difficult dataset for a survey research on Rational-Choice Theory that Jia's conducting when she finally said, "I know someone from Econ who can help us! Maybe we can ask her to help you co-write the article!"

They didn't click immediately. Emily watched as Jia and Bea fought over the data, with Jia pushing her too Psychology-focused views and Bea pushing her too Economics-focused view. It took too many late nights at the office, running and rerunning of the data, tons of e-mail exchanges, a sack of shredded paper, until Bea and Jia completed a journal article. Guess where it was published? A journal specializing on, well, the perfect fusion of Psychology and Economics--  Behavioral Economics.

Jia and Bea has been inseparable since.

"Well, of course, I am talking to my hand again," Emily mumbled which garnered the attention of the two. "The conference was okay, Heather. The speakers were great. I even had a picture with Joseph Stiglitz."

Bea and Jia just laughed. Then Bea started telling them about her trip to Chicago, until of their friends, Audrey, arrived looking all so gloomy. Audrey's husband has been hospitalized recently, and while he has already recovered, they were left with a big debt in the hospital. Audrey shared what has been happening recently.

While waiting for their order, Bea said that she'll just make a call outside.

"I don't even know what to do, guys!" Audrey exclaimed. "I know I should be strong for Raf. And I'm trying to. But it's just so hard!"

Jia and Emily both have apologetic looks in their faces.

"How can I be strong if I don't even know if we're going to be able to eat tomorrow?!" Audrey cried out. She got her phone, pressed something. "Do you know how much money I have in the bank right now? Fifty bucks!"

Audrey showed her phone to Jia. It's on her mobile application for her bank. Jia's eyes widen, then she blinked too many times.

"Like what the fuck, right?" Audrey added.

"Aud..." Jia started. "Your... your..."

Emily, confused at Jia's reaction, grabbed the phone from Emily. Then she mirrored Jia's reaction from a few moments ago.

Audrey looked at her phone. "Holy fuck," she said as she saw her screen.

Her balance was not 50 dollars. It's 50,000 dollars.

—

"Like, who could it be, right?" Jia ranted as her and Bea walked towards Jia's apartment. "Aud called her bank, and they confirmed that the deposit has been made under her name. There's no mistake in that. But the depositor doesn't want to be named. Angels must really exist."

Bea got the keys from Jia and opened her door for her, "Or, we know Audrey, she's one of the kindest soul we ever met. Maybe the universe was just paying her back for her kindness. The universe was just silently doing its course to make up for those fucked-up by the stupid capitalist system."

Jia chuckled. "An economist talking bad about capitalism? Shhhhh, your colleagues might hear and disown you."