Every love has a story. How you first met. Who said the first word.
Even mine does.
Seven o'clock is not the time anyone will think of falling in love. But as our worlds collided, we did just that. In a moment...
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Chapter 19
We had a vacant time after the fourth period. The faculty was having an emergency meeting about the fight that had happened yesterday involving some boys from our school and students from a nearby school.
The parents were restless about it, and we'd heard some of their arguments, since the guidance counselor's office was located right beside our classroom. We might end up having another student expelled at this rate.
During the free time, I went to the library to borrow a book for our English class. Everyone else was at the canteen or had stayed inside the classroom, mostly talking about the incident.
As I was on my way back to our room, I'd seen a familiar figure in the second-floor hallway. When our eyes met, she immediately smiled at me. "Ela! What are you doing here?"
"I borrowed a book from the library," I told Laurine, walking over to her.
"I also did that a while ago. It's for Mr. Dela Torre's class," she said.
"Same here."
She gave me a high five. "We think alike. I saw it on the syllabus that we would tackle this book in a few weeks."
"Yes," I said in agreement. "Advance reading is great."
Laurine laughed, her newly cut bangs bouncing while she bobbed her head. "You're so precious, Ela. I only borrowed it before they would check out all the copies."
"Oh," I replied, feeling a bit embarrassed.
"I wish you were in my class. I don't have any friends yet. The only one who talks to me is this one guy."
"Who?"
"Mark," she vaguely replied. "Or I think that's his name. He keeps on asking for our phone number at home."
"He must like you," I suggested.
"I think so, but I don't really like him. He's not my type," she said. Laurine was very easy to like. She had an outgoing and confident personality, and talking to boys had never been an issue for her. Her face was also eye-catching, and it was easy to be drawn into her. This was something she knew about, and she never denied it.
We started walking down the staircase. She took her time, because she was still wearing a cast on her leg and walked using a crutch. I fell in steps with her.
There were only a few students in the hall when we got down the stairs. I noticed Laurine had stopped from walking, and I followed her gaze.
You could see the field from the open window. It was empty at this hour. And since it was past noon, the sun was out, and it was very humid that you could see bright, wavy lines in the air. The electric fans in the hallway and in our classrooms made the temperature bearable for the students.
"I used to be on the track team back in my old school," she said in a quiet voice. "When I came here, I was very excited to join the track team again."
