"Hey, dude, what's with that face of yours? It looks like you just -" Kris asked Nice while they are walking on the way to their classroom as he stares at his friend who looks like having a bad day first thing the morning.
"It's none of your business dude, I don't have room for your teasing y' know." Nice cut him off.
He was not in the mood to talk since he was kind of irritated because his father didn't approve of his suggestion regarding the renovation of one of their hotels.
Kris just laughs at the Nice indifference towards him.
"It looks like someone was having his red day~," Kris said in a sing-song tone to tease Nice.
"Are you crazy! what red day are you talking about, you want me to punch your face?" Nice teases back, smiling at his Kris playfulness.
But that smile immediately fades away when all of a sudden a girl came, wrapping her arm into his left arm. His bright aura slowly turns black which made Kris shook his head.
Poor girl. Kris thought as he observes Nice's reaction.
"Let me go," Nice said coldly as he pushes her away.
He knew that women are fragile and should be treated carefully. That as a man he should be gentle towards them because ever since he was a kid his parents and grandparents always remind him about it. But, for him, the girl beside her right now didn't deserve to be treated like a princess, for him she's not wort for it. For him, girls shouldn't act that way towards a man.
"Why?" the girl asked, frowning. "Wanna go out with me later?" she added as her expression changed immediately to cheerful or most likely playful. "How about going to the mall or- … What's the matter Nice?" she asked when Nice suddenly pulled his arms from her grip making her lost her balance.
"Tsk. What a brat. A person who likes you was the one that I dislike and hate the most." he thought as he stares at her coldly. "Who gives you the right to hold and cling to me."
"Will you stop clinging on me and who the hell are you by the way, also I don't have time going out with you. You understand!" I told to that girl with a scary face then the girl nod and run away, with a scarred face.
The girl frowned in disappointment as she turns her back and starts walking away, stomping her feet in frustration.
Thus, Kris can't help himself from laughing as soon as the girl left.
"That was funny bro, you see that girl's face?" he said in between his laughter. "She looks like a child who saw a scary man." he continued.
"Honestly, you're really popular with girls," Kris added after his laughter died down.
"Nah." Nice flatly objected. "I hate those kinds of girls, what a flirt," he added.
That's one of the reasons why I hate girls from the very beginning, but, on the contrary not all of them. Yes, it's true that I'm popular, but hell! I don't like them especially those types of girls. On top of that, I don't see myself being committed to anyone. In these eighteen years of my life, I never thought nor picture myself being committed to someone and it may be never will.
"Hey, Kris you look happy today too," Hanz commented when they bumped into him on their way to their classroom. "Did something happen?" he asked. "Are still feeling high because finally, the girl you like was now your girl?" Hanz added, grinning.
"It's not like that!" he strongly objected that made Hanz giggle in amusement while Nice remain silent, still no reaction.
"As if I know he was just like that because of Cherry, he was courting her for god knows, eight months! And now they are official," he whispered inside his head as he took a quick glance at his friend.
"Hey, Nice, Kris good morning." James greeted them as he came towards them.
"What's good in the morning. Huh?" Nice asked in annoyance.
He was still annoyed about what happened earlier.
"Looks like someone woke up on the wrong side of his bed, right Kris?" asked Vincent as he comes out from nowhere, suddenly popping up beside them.
"Damn these scumbags making fun out of me." he thought as he hastens his pace.
His friends just giggled at his action.
"He really is," Vincent commented with a wide smile on his face. "Look at him he looks so pissed," he added.
"Would you stop pissing me!" Nice hissed to them. "You're making my day worse-" he was cut off when someone bumped into him. "Can't you look where you are going! Are you-" he shouted but he was cut off when the girl in front of him spoke in a foreign language.
"Mianhamnida." the girl murmured as she bows her head before running away as if nothing happened.
[Translation: Mianhamnida - Sorry / I'm sorry.]
Nice turn to face his friends with a confused expression. And without even saying a single word his friends immediately understood that he wants to know what does that girl have said a few seconds ago.
His friends just shrugged their shoulders as a response to him.
"Let's go we are going to be late." he just said flatly as he continues walking towards the building in front of them where their classroom is.
"But guys do you know what she said? Mi-miyan, miyan, what?" James asked.
"The hell we know!" Vincent, Kris, and Hanz shouted in chorus.
"Claude wait for me!" Nice called out to him as he saw him.
Claude was Hanz's older twin brother.
"Nice," Claude murmured as he saw them.
"Of course it's me! Is there anyone with the same name as mine here?" Nice said sarcastically, but Claude just smiles faintly at him.
Nice shrug his shoulder as he gently shook his head before placing his arms into Claude's shoulder.
Claude was really a man of few words. He was too silent compare to his twin, Hanz, they are really opposite of each other.
Meanwhile, on the other side, Kasey was torn between her nervousness and fear. She was in fear because she will spend her last year in high school in a co-ed school, fear that she needs to face one of her fears now that she choose and agree with her grandfather to enter a co-ed school instead of a girls school just like what his brother suggested. She's nervous, nervous about how and what she should expect to see and experience for the next few days and months that she will be studying in the new school.
"Kasey what are you thinking? why did you speak Korean? Do you think he would understand? Argh!, why am I thinking of it, it's already done. As if he will recognize me." Kasey's long monologue in her mind while she was busy following behind her new class adviser.
* * *
"New sitting arrangement?" Kris questioned himself when they saw what's written on their blackboard as soon as they entered their classroom.
"Oh! Look James is next to Denise!." Hanz exclaimed. "Woah~"
"The top student and the second one sitting next to each other aside from that, look! Kris is next to Cherry the fashionista in our class, looks like this new sitting arrangement will be exciting to see what will happen in the next few months, right Kris?" Hanz continued as he began to giggle. "Our lovebirds were next to each other~" he teases Kris.
While Nice was just at them until he noticed an unfamiliar name next to his name.
"Is there anything wrong Nice?" asked James, when he noticed that
"Okamoto?" Vincent murmured with a furrowed forehead as he read the surname next to Nice's surname. "It means that we had a transfer student this year, and it was Japanese," he added. "I'm looking forward to it."
His friends and classmates were all excited about the new sitting arrangement, while Nice remain stoic and no reaction can be seen on his face. It was like it was nothing to him. He and Claude have the same reaction, as soon as they read and saw what was written on the blackboard they immediately turn and walk towards the direction where they should sit next to for the rest of their school year.
"I wonder too, but let's just let it be." Hanz agreed.
"Ms. Eva is coming, go to your proper sit already." one of their classmates shouted, thus, in an instant, like a flash of lightning they immediately ran towards their desk.
"Good morning class." Ms. Eva greeted them and they greet her back too.
"I know it was so sudden to change your sitting arrangement, and I also knew that you guys already noticed that we have a new student," she announced. "And here she is, please come inside Ms. Okamoto. She came from Japan so please be nice to her." Ms. Eva continued as she introduced Kasey to her class.
While Ms. Eva was busy speaking in front of them Nice didn't bother to listen at all, all he could understand was that the new transfer student and his supposed to be seatmate was a Japanese girl.
Full of nervousness in her heart, Kasey gather all of her strength just to step inside the classroom to introduce herself to her new classmates.
"I'm nervous, I don't know who my classmates are, or if I can get along with them, or if I can make friends among them," she muttered inside her head non-stop as she stares into the new faces in front of her.
"Uhm… G-good morning everyone." she greeted despite her nervousness. "I'm Kasey Okamoto from Japan, it's pleasure to meet you all."
After her introduction, it was followed by whispers of her classmates, when a familiar face caught her attention.
"The guy from before, the one that I bumped into," she whispered.
"You!" Kasey and Nice exclaimed in chorus while pointing at each other.
"You know each other?" Ms. Eva asked, even their classmates are looking at them, questioningly.
"No ma'am, I just meet him a while ago, on my way here." Kasey immediately explained while Nice remained silent.
"I see, you can go now to your designated seat." Ms. Eva responded in relief. "It was beside Mr. Tolentino." she added.
"Huh?! Beside him? I can't. I know I hate being with boys and I'm not good with being around them, but, what can I do? That was the only vacant seat, besides that's where our adviser assigned me." Kasey argued with herself.
"Just bear with it Kasey, you already come this far. You can do it! You must be able to do it!" she convinced herself.
"Now that Ms. Okamoto already introduces herself, let us start our lecture for today." Ms. Eva announced as she turns on the projector.
"Hi, I'm Vincent, nice to meet you." Vincent greeted her with a smile as soon as she reached her designated seat.
"Hi," Kasey answered shyly, trying her best to look at him, eye to eye.
"Ok, I can do it I'm gonna be used to it soon." she chanted inside her head.
"Kasey." once again she introduced herself behind her nervousness.
"I know you already told that in front, by the way, let me introduce you to our classmates-seatmates. Here beside me is Claude then next to him was Hanz, in front of him is James, in front of me is Denise, in front of you is Kris and beside him is Cherry, and that man beside you was Nice." he said as he pointed each of them one by one.
It looks like Vincent was a good guy, so there's no need for me to be afraid of him.
"Nice?" Kasey repeated with doubt.
"Yeah, Nice was his name," Vincent confirmed.
"Mr.Vincent, are you listening?" Ms. Eva asked, her tone was like sending a warning.
"Yes, Ma'am," Vincent answered as he smiles sweetly.
Ms. Eva just sighed.
"You can continue introducing your classmates to Ms. Okamoto later after my class, but for now I want you all to pay attention and listen to our lecture for today."
"Yes, Ma'am." Kasey and Vincent respond in chorus.
"Tsk. So noisy." Nice murmured in a cold but arrogant tone that Kasey annoyed for some unknown reason.
Their class continues as the day goes on that surprisingly fun for Kasey. She was able to know the names of her classmates, she was also able to have a conversation with the girls in her class but, most of the time she was with Cherry and Denise. Unknowingly they did actually became friends. And in just a span of one day she was able to learn a lot about Cherry and Denise, including the boys and their group and even their relationships just like Cherry whose boyfriend was one of Nice's friend, Kris, even Denise whose boyfriend was James, also one of Nice friend.
By just having a conversation with them Kasey already had a lot of fun, unlike the person sitting beside her who was sleeping for almost the whole, especially during their class. He was also silent for the whole day except when he was with Vincent, he was also a kind of snob for her. That's why for her Nice's name doesn't fit for him.
Nice, what a beautiful name he has. she thought.