Ang Mutya Ng Section E (Book - 1) English

Keifer's POV

She is so beautiful! I still regret the day I let her go. I wish I had never agreed to let her transfer to another section. I wish she was still with me—still mine.

My fists clenched as I saw her with that man—the one she chose instead of me. Her smile was so bright, and it was clear she was happy to be with him.

Every time I see them together; I want to punch him. Aries. He stole her from me. Ella. He poisoned her mind and convinced her to throw away everything we had in our section.

If only you knew who you're being fought over for, Michael Aries Fernandez, you'd regret the day you ever set foot in this school.

Jay-Jay's POV

Hahaha!!! Here I go again! Once again, I'm heading toward the vipers' den.

I arrived in the classroom, and as usual, nothing much was happening. Keifer wasn't around either—not that I cared.

My previous class had been peaceful, and I was catching up on lessons. The "king cobra" was still missing.

Lunchtime arrived, and I knew they'd fight me for food again. I didn't feel like going to the cafeteria, so I brought myself rice and a few snacks instead.

But where should I eat?

I suddenly remembered the second floor of the building. The only problem was that the stairs were blocked by piles of stuff.

But I had no other choice.

I left the classroom and walked toward the stairs. There were so many things stacked up, but there was still just enough space to climb through.

I forced my way up, pushing through the dusty air. With every step, mosquitoes swarmed around me. Ugh, I might even get dengue up here.

Once I reached the second floor, I peeked around to check if anyone was there. Seeing no one, I sat on the stairs, took out my lunch, and ate quietly. I mulled over my lessons and—of course—wondered why their class president hadn't been showing up.

"Hey!"

"Pffftttt—damn it!" I choked on my food in shock, spitting it out.

I turned to see who had startled me—only to find Keifer, the so-called president and king of cobras.

I thought he wasn't attending today!

His usual smug face was there, and apparently, he had been hanging out on the second floor all this time. I glared at him. "You idiot…"

"Whatever," he muttered and sat down beside me. He glanced at my food. "…What are you eating?"

"Excuse me?!"

"Tsk. I'm just trying to be nice." He scoffed. "Here!"

He suddenly shouted at me, and I flinched.

Feeling a little embarrassed, I lowered my head. Maybe I had been a bit rude.

"Tsk. Fried leftovers," I muttered.

Since I hadn't cooked, I just grabbed whatever leftovers I could find—probably from breakfast or dinner.

I was surprised when he took my spoon without asking.

"Even if it's just leftovers… let me have some," he said, scooping up rice and food without hesitation.

I stared at him, dumbfounded. For someone with such an attitude, he sure ate like a normal person. He was obviously hungry, I looked, how fast he was eating.

When he finished, he handed my spoon back. He had barely taken a few bites, but it was enough.

"You're really starving, huh?"

He didn't answer. I just took a few more bites before, surprisingly, passing my food back to him.

He was stunned at first, but then he took it again.

"You're hungry too," he muttered.

And just like that, we ended up sharing food, passing the spoon back and forth.

It was a little gross—sharing utensils and all—but at this point, who cared? We were just two hungry people, and food was food.

Looking at him closely, I realized Keifer had the face of a rich kid. His skin was pale and smooth. He had always been strong, and I noticed now that his body was actually muscular. He even had an earring in his right ear—it was so small I hadn't noticed it before.

Wait… is he actually… handsome?

"Quit staring at me!"

His sudden outburst snapped me back to reality.

"I-I wasn't staring at you!" I protested, my voice high-pitched.

He smirked. "Oh? Then what were you doing?"

I felt my cheeks heat up. Why was I embarrassed over something so stupid?!

I coughed to clear my throat, trying to shake off the awkwardness. "W-why didn't you attend class earlier?" I asked, changing the subject.

"No reason. Why? Did you miss me?"

My eyes widened. What the hell?!

"Huh?! As if!"

Keifer suddenly burst out laughing. For some reason, he looked even more handsome when he laughed.

Wait. What? No. What am I thinking?!

"W-why don't you just buy food from the cafeteria?" I quickly asked, trying to steer the conversation in another direction.

"We're not allowed there."

Huh? Not allowed?

"What do you mean? Since when were students banned from the cafeteria?"

His expression darkened. "It's been a long time… We just aren't allowed there."

Without another word, he suddenly stood up and walked down the stairs.

"Hey! Wait!" I called after him.

But he ignored me, walking away like he hadn't heard a thing.

I sighed, packed up my stuff, and went back downstairs.

What was his attitude? Possessed? Bipolar? Abnormal? The power of lightning?!

I returned to the classroom, feeling like a withered vegetable. My classmates looked just as lifeless—like they hadn't eaten lunch either.

I slumped into my seat, still not seeing Keifer anywhere. Maybe he had gone home.

Just then, I remembered—I had snacks in my bag!

I pulled out my pack of chips, and in an instant, my classmates' heads turned toward me.

"Okay, okay, here!" I sighed, grabbing another pack and throwing it to them.

They dove for the snacks like wild animals, making me laugh.

Felix came up to me, pouting. "You didn't save for me?"

Feeling a little bad, I handed him a pack of Nova chips.

Thank God my Jansport bag was big enough to hold a lot of food.

I kept throwing snacks to my classmates until a loud voice suddenly interrupted us.

"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE?!"

Everyone froze.

At the doorway stood a man about Keifer's size. He had red hair, glasses, and a gym bag slung over his shoulder.

"Sakuragi's here!"

"That idiot! Hanamitchi!"

"Is he carrying something?!"

"Is he in a bad mood?!"

I glanced at Felix, who had a serious expression while looking at the man at the door—Hanamichi or Sakuragi. Wait, isn't that an anime character?

"Dear…" Felix greeted, but the man just stared at him.

He tossed his gym bag toward one of the students, who caught it and threw it behind them.

"Who's that?" he asked, his gaze locking onto me.

"S-sir... Jay-jay... The transferee," Felix answered hesitantly.

The red-haired guy looked around as if searching for someone. "Where's Keifer? Does he know about this?"

"Oh—uh…" Felix scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. "He was here yesterday."

"Keifer didn't do anything?!" he snapped, his tone filled with anger. Was my presence here really that big of a deal?

"Okay... I see," he muttered. "That explains why he still hasn't left."

His anger was obvious. What was his problem with me? What's so bad about me being here?

I narrowed my eyes. Scary. He reminded me of Keifer.

I instinctively hid behind Felix.

"Who's that?" I whispered.

"The Yuri Hanamitchi. He's our classmate too," Felix replied.

"Why is he just showing up now?"

"He was suspended… He went to the cafeteria. We're not allowed there."

Ah, right. That whole "no cafeteria" thing again.

"But why? I don't get it."

Felix chuckled. "Sorry, Jay. That's not my story to tell."

Great. Another mystery.

Just then, our teacher, Mrs. Zaragoza, walked in, cutting the conversation short.

I sighed. Someday, I would figure out what the hell was going on in this school.

"You!" he suddenly called out, pointing at me. "Why are you still here?"

I couldn't respond. He was intimidating. His presence gave off the same commanding aura as Keifer's. Were they alike?

"And why are you treating my classmates like dogs?!"

Wait—what? No, no! That's not true! I was just sharing food with them!

"N-no, I wasn't—"

"Then what were you doing?!"

"I was just giving them food," I explained.

He turned his gaze toward our classmates.

"You've been gone for a few days," one of them spoke up. "We always go without lunch when you're not here."

His expression darkened. "And Keifer didn't do anything?"

Felix sighed. "It's like you don't know him."

"Shhh," the red-haired guy muttered before walking to the back and sitting down.

And then, as if to add more mystery to the situation, that red-haired guy appeared in a dramatic scene, making me want to dig deeper into whatever was going on.

Wait… Is his hair color natural?

I wanted to ask Felix more questions, but our teacher walked in before I could.

Mrs. Zaragoza started teaching, just like before. After a while, she approached me and asked,

"Jay, have you chosen a section?"

The entire class fell silent. I turned to look at my classmates. They were staring straight ahead, their expressions unreadable but intense.

I looked back at Ma'am. "N-not yet."

"It's okay," she assured me. "But I hope you choose one before the first grading period. It'll be difficult to transfer you once testing begins."

"S-sure…"

Here we go again. Why do they keep trying to make me switch sections?

Is it because I'm a woman? But then, why do the students from Section E also want to kick me out?

Still because I'm a woman?

That's ridiculous!

I wish I were a man!