Gabriela hung up and the bell rang.
"Where's Isabella? Does she want me to be late to the lecture room." Gabriela tried standing on her feet and her thighs hurt.
"Ah!" She groaned, maintaining her balance as she moved slowly.
She noticed Rafael and Miguel coming, and she tried to sashay to pretend that nothing was wrong with her.
"Ah! It hurts!!" She was crying inwardly but she tried to compose herself and sway her hips like she was fine.
Rafael was holding Miguel, helping him as he moved and Gabriela was so contented with it. All eyes were on Miguel.
"I heard he was attacked last night."
"Oh, so sorry Miguel."
"Miguel's hurt, what happened?"
Gabriela smirked at the two and Miguel had a firm expression.
He clenched his fist.
"That bitch. She must have told those men to attack me last night." He snarled.
"What? How could you think that way? She doesn't know where we live so...."
"Damien has suddenly become her best friend. He must have given her all the information."
"True. But what's her profit if you get hurt?" Rafael asked rhetorically.
"She thinks she's taking revenge for what I did to her. All I did was give her medicine to get rid of the allergy."
Rafael burst into laughter.
"Are you serious? What about the embarrassment you made the girl face at the cafeteria."
"I don't think that was wrong to do. I was only having fun." Rafael was shocked at his friend's unremorseful attitude.
"Well, have fun struggling to get to the lecture room." Rafael let him go and he staggered, almost falling to the ground.
"Rafael!"
"Have fun, dude!"
"Arrghhhh!!!" He roared.
"Gabriela Flores, you are going to regret it. I won't stop until you run out of this school and your dreams are shattered. You bitch!" He said with gritted teeth.
Claudia, Nadia and Sandra were running to get to the lecture room, but stopped in their tracks when they saw Miguel.
"Miguel, you look indisposed. You should have rested today and stayed away from lectures." Claudia sounded caring, walking closer to him with a seductive look.
"Um...."
"Is it true? That you were attacked last night by some strong men? That's awful! We thought you were athletic."
"Athletic doesn't mean....fighting strong men holding sticks..I'm not a boxer." Claudia wanted to touch him.
"Hands off."
"Miguel, have you found out who sent them? Do you have plans to make them pay for it?" Claudia asked.
"I'm late for the lecture, bye." He walked away, limping.
Claudia fumed.
"It was that witch, Gabriela! It was Gabriela! I know it was her!" She yelled.
~~~~
Day after day, Gabriela and Miguel walked into school wearing T-shirts that were deliberately designed to insult each other.
"Her Life Is Tied To Cayenne Pepper."
"Your Family Tree Doesn't Have Enough Branches."
"Your Family Tree Branches Are Broken And Dried."
"You Look Like An After-Surgery."
"I Want You To Leave This School."
"You'll Go Far One Day, And I Hope You Never Come Back."
"You Are Such A Menstrual Cramp."
"Your Face Makes An Onion Cry."
"You Bring Joy To Every Room You Exit."
At first, the students were shocked and amused by the passive-aggressive game the two were playing.
However, as the days went by, everyone grew accustomed to the spectacle and knew exactly what was happening.
The students had become so used to Gabriela and Miguel's antics that they barely raised an eyebrow when they saw the latest outfits.
In their Marketing lecture room, Professor Liz stood at the front, a stern expression on her face.
"Alright, students. Today we're going to start a project that will account for 50% of your grade for the semester. You'll be working in pairs to create a marketing campaign that encourages sales."
The students began to murmur and exchange glances as the professor handed out the pairings.
Isabella and Rafael were paired together, and they shared a look of excitement.
Claudia and Daniel were paired, but Claudia immediately rose her hand. "Professor, I don't want to be paired with Daniel," she protested.
The professor shot her a warning glance. "Keep quiet, Claudia. You'll work with whoever I've paired you with."
Michelle and Damien were paired, and Damien's face lit up with joy. Michelle, on the other hand, kept a straight face, her expression unreadable.
And then there were Gabriela and Miguel. As soon as the professor announced their pairing, they both erupted into a fit of rage.
"You can't pair us together!" Gabriela yelled, her face red with anger.
"Yeah, change it!" Miguel chimed in, his voice rising to match Gabriela's.
The lecture room descended into chaos as the two continued to argue. Gabriela took a step forward, her eyes flashing with anger, and it seemed like she was about to attack Miguel. The professor threw up her hands.
"That's it! You two are disrupting the class. Get out of my lecture room! If you are not working together, then forget about this project." They all fell silent.
"Fine." They sat. Professor Liz continued the pairings.
★
"Gabrielaaa!!" Damien twirled around in the hallway and Gabriela laughed.
"What's making you so happy?"
"I have all reasons to be happy, Gabriela. Michelle and I will finally be working together!"
"You live together, right? It'll be easy for you."
"But I still have that problem.....the problem of talking to her."
"Talking to her shouldn't be a problem since you're now partners."
"I guess...."
★★★
Gabriela sat in the library, engrossed in a book about business, assuming she was the only one in the quiet space. As she turned the page, her eyes wandered to a few rows away, where she spotted Michelle reading a novel. A mischievous glint appeared in Gabriela's eyes, and she quickly got up, zooming towards Michelle's table.
She plopped down in a chair nearby, determined to catch Michelle's attention. Gabriela started chewing her bubblegum loudly, making huge bubbles that popped with a loud smack. Michelle's eyes remained fixed on her book, her expression unreadable.
Undeterred, Gabriela moved closer, sitting right next to Michelle. "Michelle," she called out, but Michelle didn't flinch. Gabriela tried again, this time touching Michelle's hand, but Michelle brushed her off. "Just leave me alone," Michelle spoke up, her voice low and angry.
Gabriela didn't take the hint. Instead, she tried to cheer Michelle up. "Hey, what's that novel you're reading? Is it interesting?" Michelle's gaze didn't waver from the book, and she seemed to be considering getting up and leaving.
But Gabriela wasn't having it. She reached out and held Michelle's wrist, her grip firm.
"Sit down and listen to me," Gabriela said, her voice taking on a more serious tone. "If you do, I'll never bother you again."
Michelle's eyes flicked up, meeting Gabriela's gaze, and for a moment, the two girls locked eyes, the air thick with tension.
"Fine." They sat.
"What do you have? I'm only going to listen to you now because I know you're not one of those bullies."
"Yes." Gabriela smiled.
"Actually, I like you, and I want us to be friends."
"Friends? You like me? That's weird. Please, it's better you hate me than pretending and then break my heart later."
"Of course not, Michelle! I don't do that to people. The first day I saw you, I knew you weren't social and it'll be difficult to talk to you. I just thought I'd try it.." Gabriela told her.
"How did you know my name?"
"Um....a friend told me about you."
"Who is it?" She was stern.
"D - Damien. Damien White. He had also been trying to talk to you but you aren't letting him. But that's not why I'm here right now. I just wanna talk to you. I want you to forget about all that happened and start making friends. The time for you to have people around you is now. After college, you'll be alone. Loneliness kills, right?"
"Do you think it's easy to forget about it, huh? Damien told you everything, right? He told you how those bitches embarrassed me, huh? He told you about my messy school life. Did he add that I'll be dropping out soon?" Michelle was crying.
"Dropping out? Why?" Gabriela asked, concern etched on her face.
"I can't continue. I'm struggling. I want to enroll in a culinary school, I don't want to be an office worker. But Mr. Jackson wants me to. Did Damien tell you he's not my real dad?" Gabriela nodded.
"It's fine, Michelle. You'll continue studying here, graduate and then pursue your culinary career. You don't have to be scared of Claudia, Nadia, Sandra or any other stupid bitch around here. I'll be by your side. I'll make sure nobody touches you. Sometimes, I just wonder how Miguel could be so cruel to let them bully you like that."
"Miguel is trying to make up for what he did, but I'm not ready to forgive him yet. I can't easily forget everything he did."
"I understand you. If I were in your shoes, I wouldn't forgive such a person. I'm so happy that you and Damien are partners for the project. So what are you gonna do?" Gabriela asked in a mischievous tone.
"I'm not telling you. Plus, I'm doing the project alone."
"Alone? Professor Liz instructed that it had to be partners. I'm not bothered because I've told your scum brother to get another partner and use my name for the scoring." Michelle chuckled and Gabriela's eyes widened.
"Your smile....it's so pretty."
"Thanks. I haven't heard that in years, so it means a lot." They hugged.
"Please be safe." Gabriela broke the hug.
"And, talk to Damien. For my sake."
"Are you sure he isn't one of those bullies?"
"Have you ever seen him bullying anyone? Damien is a really nice person. You'll like him."
"Hmmmm...."
"It's time for lunch. Do you wanna sit on the same table?" Gabriela wiggled her eyebrows and she smiled again.
Wow.
"I don't know....what if Claudia sees me talking to you? What if she embarrasses you like last time? I won't be able to save you."
"I'm stronger now, that I know what she's capable of. Her mother is getting married to my dad this week. You're invited." Gabriela told her dryly.
"Are you going to let Mr. Flores get married to such a person?"
"Who am I to stop the great Mr. Alejandro from doing what he wants?" Gabriela said with emphasis.
"Claudia and Jennie will move into my dad's mansion, and they'll regret it. When I start playing my game, they won't see the end of it."
"I wish you best of luck in your 'game.' Claudia is more dangerous than you think."
"I know someone that can strip a fellow student n*ked is a wild animal. I want us to see the end of Claudia together. So join me."
"No." Michelle snapped.
Gabriela laughed.
"You're still scared of them. Join me in eating then. I'm starving."
"Why do you wear such cheap clothes? You're Mr. Jackson's daughter. It's so awful that you're not treated like one."
~~~~~~~
The final lecture was over and the students were leaving for their apartments.
Gabriela saw Damien near the lockers.
"Damien! Are you starting your project with Michelle today?"
"Yeah."
"I wish you best of luck."
"And you? Aren't you gonna come over to start yours with Miguel?"
"Miguel's gonna pay someone to work with him and my name will be on the scoring." Damien was disappointed.
"Oh no, please don't do that."
"Why? Do you expect me to work with that jerk? I hate him."
"You have to try. Professor Liz has her ways of finding out, and if she does, you'll fail."
"I won't. That aside, I spoke to Michelle today. We sat on the same table during lunch." Damien's eyes widened with joy.
"Really? I didn't see you guys. How was it?"
"It wasn't so hard to talk to her. She's still afraid of those girls. And guess what, she smiled."
"She smiled? Oh my God thats.... that's terrible. I wanted to make her smile first." He faked a frown.
"You'll have to think of something to make her smile if you wanna see how pretty her smile is."
"I badly want to."
"DAMIEN!" Miguel shouted.
"I'll call you later, bye!!" Damien left to join Miguel outside.
"Okay, bye." Gabriela was already thinking about Isabella.
"Hi Gaby." She appeared and Gabriela jolted out of fear.
"Why do you have that smile? Does it relate to your project with Rafael?" Isabella blushed.
"Don't tell me you are into that guy already."
Isabella packed her books.
"Bye, Gaby. I need to get to Rafael and start our project asap." She ran.
"It feels sad I won't be part of the project." Gabriela thought. Her eyes widened when Professor Liz appeared beside her.
"Why won't you be part of the project, Gabriela? What's the problem with you rich kids? Why do you think money buys everything? I'm not in the school of thought that money buys you results. I heard you're a very brainy person, a genius. And I want you to earn your grades with your hard work. Not just telling your partner to find someone else."
"Okay....."
"There's a cab waiting outside for you. You and Miguel will have your project done at my house. Tonight."
"What?!"