MY GANGSTER PROTECTOR ✔

CHAPTER 13 - His Past

Dara's POV

"FIGHT! FIGHT!"

"Where?!"

"Quick! Let's watch!"

I immediately backed away and ran to the stairs. Avoiding gang brawls has become my daily exercise. It has been an automatic reflex for me to bolt to another direction if I hear any commotion and I believe I'm already getting good at it.

As I reached the upper floor, I slowed my pace and breathed a sigh of relief. Safe! I smiled triumphantly and walked in the hallway while tightly hugging my books. The days in InterSAT are unpredictable, to say the least. But I think I'm getting the hang of it.

As I was walking a different route towards my next class, my mind wandered to the events that happened last Friday. I've been replaying it in my head a hundred times that it now seems surreal. Did Jiro kiss my shoulder that night? It's quite unlikely but I saw him and I felt it! Or perhaps I accidentally moved my shoulder and since his lips were conveniently situated behind my shoulder, he accidentally kissed it? Gah! I don't know! If it was not accidental, then what does that mean? I've been searching 'kiss on shoulder' via google and it only contaminated my mind. It was a landmine of perverted anecdotes.

I haven't seen Jiro during the weekend since he has a part-time job on both the automobile repair shop and hardware store. I guess it's a good thing because I was able to think things over. Heaven knows what might have happened if I see him a day before that 'incident'.

I'm still mulling over things as I was nearing my classroom and just my luck, another brawl happened and I was in the middle of the chaos so I had nowhere to run. I hugged my books tightly and pressed myself against the wall, wincing a little when I heard someone grunt from pain. I was trying to calculate in which direction to dash to evade this pack of demons when someone pushed me aside, making me yelp in surprise.

Oh no! My books went flying in every direction and I immediately knelt to retrieve them. I was having a hard time grabbing my things since the ongoing brawl is in full throttle and extending my hand will increase my chance of getting stepped over. Oddly, the hallway became eerily quiet and the movements around me stopped. The students who were fighting were all moving away and the others were staring at something. I followed their gaze and that's when I saw Jiro standing in the middle of the hallway with his arms across his chest, glaring at all the punks who were raising hell earlier.

Ack! He's here! I hurriedly grabbed my scattered books on the floor in panic but when I was about to reach for the last book, a hand with a dragon tattoo retrieved it. Of course, I knew who it was.

Without uttering a word, Jiro helped me up and gave me my book. I tried to meet his eyes but it unnerves me. To be honest, after what happened last Friday, I pictured us getting a bit closer when we meet each other at school. I mean, even if the kiss is just figment of my imagination, he did hug me from behind to keep me warm. That's something, right? But being in front of him right now reminded me of the invisible line between us that, I'm quite certain, he will never cross.

My heart almost stopped when he moved, only to realize that he's already walking away. I turned around and watched as he slowly walked without glancing back. And just like that, he's gone.

***

Picaro found him on the rooftop, his eyes scanning the school ground but his mind is obviously elsewhere. He approached their leader and stood beside him, roaming his gaze around although, as expected, there is nothing to see. The students were walking to their respective classrooms, some running and some walking gingerly. There are those who were huddled in groups while others are alone. There's really nothing to see, except...