Jeff, who was completely unprepared, was struck across the face with a loud slap.
The hit landed so cleanly that a red handprint immediately formed on his cheek. Snapped out of his daze, his anger surged.
Without thinking, he forcefully pushed the girl off his abdomen, no longer willing to be treated like a criminal for something he did not intend to do on his own accord.
Caught by surprise, the girl had no time to react as she was pushed off and landed hard on the floor, her butt hitting first.
"Ahhh!" she yelped in pain.
Jeff quickly stood up, his face flushed with anger. He touched his cheek, which still burned from the sting of the slap.
"Damn, that hurts... you crazy girl," he cursed silently in his heart, his patience nearly at its limit.
Looking down at the girl who was still on the floor, Jeff decided he had had enough.
His voice was sharp with anger as he said, "You are like a wild animal, if you weren’t a girl, I would’ve fought back."
The girl snorted in response, her glare was cold and filled with disgust.
"Oh yeah? If you’re not a coward, then hit me. If you can’t even stand up to a girl, are you saying you could take on a man? Don’t make me laugh," she snapped, her tone full of scorn.
Jeff gnashed his teeth, forcing himself to stay calm. He mentally applied his programming skill, trying to debug his thoughts and stabilize his emotions.
It wasn’t very effective, but it was just enough to keep his mind to calm down and focus.
"You know what, arguing with a crazy girl like you would just ruin my day," he said with a heavy sigh, turning away in frustration.
Since his day was already ruined.
As Jeff walked up the stairs, leaving the girl behind on the floor, her face turned bright red with fury.
Being called crazy, especially in front of her face, was something she had never experienced before.
"Stop right... Aww!" she cried out as she tried to stand, only to stumble and fall again.
Her butt throbbed in pain, and she winced as she gently caressed it, trying to soothe the aching.
"Just you wait. Don’t think I’ll let you get away after taking advantage of me," she swore inwardly, her eyes burning with humiliation and rage.
Meanwhile, Jeff had already entered the classroom. Mrs. Eve was no longer there, having apparently left just before his arrival.
As he proceeded to his seat, he noticed all of his classmates staring at him.
Some looked curious, a few of those were suspicious, he could clearly feel the weight of their gazes.
Seeing the looks directed at him, Jeff couldn’t help but wonder why everyone was staring.
Quickening his pace, he slipped into his seat, trying to act normal.
But as Mark, Lester, and Andre continued to eye him intently, he started to feel increasingly self-conscious.
"Is there something on my face?" he thought, glancing down at himself, unsure what could be drawing so much attention.
"Why are you looking at me like that?" Jeff finally asked, no longer able to take the stares.
"Did you slip? Haha!" Andre burst out in laugther.
Quickly followed by Lester and Mark, who tried, but failed, to hold back their chuckles.
Jeff’s brow twitched, "Can you just spill it out already!" he snapped, his voice edged with frustration.
He was already having a rough morning thanks to that unreasonable girl, and now being laughed at for no clear reason only added fuel to his irritation.
"Ahh, here look at this," Andre said as he opened his bag and pulled out a small hand mirror, leaving Jeff, Mark, and Lester completely dumbfounded.
"You carry a mirror every time you go to school?" Lester asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Of course," Andre replied, shaking his head slowly with a disappointed click of his tongue, as if Lester had just failed a life lesson.
"If you can’t see your own beauty, how do you expect to attract girls? This is exactly why you’ve only had one girlfriend," he said, shooting a smug glance at Lester.
Lester, hearing this, was left speechless for a moment, "I have one girlfriend because I’m loyal. I’m not a wild guy like you," he replied.
"Loyal?" Andre raised an eyebrow and scoffed.
"Bro, that’s just another word for having no options. Don’t act noble just because nobody’s applying."
Jeff and Mark burst into laughter as Andre continued to chuckle, still patting Lester on the shoulder with that same a look of pity, as if offering condolences instead of advice.
"You’re really shameless," Lester muttered, shaking his head.
"I don’t even know what kind of mind you’ve developed."
His tone was one of total defeat, knowing there was no winning against Andre’s twisted logic.
"Haha, here Jeff, why don’t you take a look so you can see the magic," Andre said, still amused.
Jeff took the mirror, and as his reflection came into view, then his expression froze.
A bright red palm print was clearly visible on his cheek it was swollen, and impossible to miss. He gripped the handle of the mirror tightly, his jaw clenching.
"That girl is really cruel. It left a mark..." he muttered inwardly.
His face burning with shame and embarrassment, "No wonder they were all looking at me"
"Haha, now you’ve seen it. So who was it? The girl who slapped you, tell me," Andre asked eagerly.
"How do you even know it was a girl?" Jeff replied, with a furrow brows.
"If it wasn’t a girl, what then? A guy? Please, if it were a guy, you’d be sitting here with a black eye and a broken cheek, not a red slap mark. So what did you do to earn that?" Andre responded.
He leaned in, clearly waiting for the juicy details.
"Yeah, I’m curious too. Did you do something bad?" Lester asked, leaning in.
"Did you molest someone, and that was your reward?" Mark asked, his tone indicates was the case.
Jeff turned and gave Mark a flat, odd look, "If I wanted to molest someone, I would’ve started with you three," he growled.
"Gay," the three of them said in perfect unison, without missing a beat.
"But seriously, what happened?" Lester asked, this time with genuine curiosity.
Jeff, seeing the way they all looked at him filled with eagerness finally gave in and told them what happened.
How he had accidentally looked up, and worse, how he’d accidentally groped the girl’s breast when they fell. The latest_epɪ_sodes are on_the novel※fire.net
The moment he finished, the three of them stared at him in stunned silence.
It was like something straight out of a novel or one of those over-the-top anime scenes, ridiculous, embarrassing, and almost too absurd to be real.
"Then I was right. It really was a reward," Mark said with a loud laugh, clearly making fun of him.
"Damn, what luck! Was the girl beautiful?" Andre exclaimed, slapping the table in frustration.
It should have been him, not Jeff at least in his mind.
Jeff, seeing Andre’s expression, could hardly believe it, "Seriously?" he thought.
"Being slapped and humiliated is now considered lucky? Andre must really be mentally retarded," he said to himself.
"Well, if we’re talking about beauty," Jeff finally said, "she’s on the same level as Ariana." he finished.
The room went quiet for a moment. That alone was enough to make the others sit up straight.
Ariana was already considered top-tier in their eyes, but there was actually someone comparable to that?
"What did you say!" Andre shouted, loud enough to make the entire class glance in their direction.
Realizing he had drawn too much attention, he quickly calmed himself and lowered his voice, though his eyes were still intense.
"You... you..." he stammered, eyes slightly red.
Jeff, seeing the seriousness on Andre’s face, briefly wondered if he had unknowingly crossed a line, had he messed with someone he shouldn’t have?
Then Andre continued, voice trembling, "Why didn’t you take me with you to experience it!"
Tears slid down his cheeks, not from sadness, but from pure envy.
Jeff, hearing Andre’s overly dramatic outburst, couldn’t stop himself, he smacked the back of Andre’s head without hesitation.
"Idiot," he muttered.
Perfectly annoyed that he had actually worried something serious was going on.
With that slap, the mood shifted back to normal. The group settled down and turned to something much more serious.
Gaming and the wild stories they had from back home. Laughter soon filled the space between them as they shared exaggerated tales and inside jokes.
As the afternoon rolled on, more teachers came in, focusing on key pointers for the upcoming exams.
Finally, the last subject of the day arrived, the one Jeff hated the most.
Last Subject: Pagbasa at Pagsusuri ng Iba’t Ibang Teksto Tungo sa Pananaliksik
"Good afternoon, everyone. I have a good proposition that you need to hear, but first, take a seat," Teacher Annie said as she entered the classroom.
She was short in stature, almost petite. Despite her small frame, she was well-known for her sharp intellect and teaching skill, especially in Filipino.
Unfortunately for Jeff, that was still a problem.
No matter how well she explained, he struggled to fully grasp the subject, finding it difficult to follow the nuances of the language.
Though Jeff was Filipino, he struggled to comprehend the subject.
It wasn’t the language itself he had trouble with, it was the deep analysis, complex idioms, and literary layers that often left him confused.
While others grasped meaning through cultural intuition and strong language foundation, Jeff often found himself lost in abstract interpretations and flowery prose.
"Well then, now that exams are nearing, I propose a debate between the girls and the boys. So, who’s in?" Teacher Annie announced with a cheerful smile.
The class sat in silence at first, unsure how to respond. Students exchanged glances, from the unexpected proposal.
"Those who win especially for those who participated will be exempted from the final exam," Teacher Annie added.
"Ohhhhhh!" the boys erupted, excitement rushing through them like a wave.
The dull afternoon suddenly became electric.
"Yayyyy!" the girls shouted right after, their competitive spirits instantly ignited.
Seeing the drastic shift in energy, Teacher Annie stood at the front, momentarily dumbfounded by the sudden chaos.
She shook her head lightly, a smile tugging at her lips, and focused herself once more.
"Well then, since none of you are against it, this debate will consist of five boys and five girls arguing their points," Teacher Annie continued, her was bright.
"This won’t be a formal debate. And each participant will be given two minutes to present their argument. Then, someone from the opposing side will be given two minutes to respond and support their own stance."
"After that, the interpellation will begin. You will be given about three minutes to question the opposing side, and then they will do the same."
"For me well..." she cut off with her hand on her jaw.
"I will act as the moderator for this debate," she added with a nod.
"And do not be disheartened if you are not selected. Just observing can be a valuable learning experience," Annie said, offering a reassuring smile to her students.
Not realizing it, the others were actually ecstatic that they would not be joining the debate as representatives. Sad? Why would they be sad?
Still, there was a hint of disappointment, as not being chosen also meant they would not be exempted from the final exam.
"Well, for those who do did participate, the side that wins will receive an additional 20 points on the final exam. So, if your current score is 10 and you add 20, you’ll get a perfect score," Annie said, causing the students to cheer at the unexpected news.
Seeing them so excited, Annie felt satisfied with the result.
"Alright then, those who will be the leaders of the girls’ side and the boys’ side, please come to the center so we can choose the topic for our debate," she said as she took a small glass bottle with paper slips inside from her shoulder bag.