Chapter 1

Ersel woke up and looked at his Android phone for the time. It was 7:00AM. His first class will be starting at 10:00AM.

Today was his first day as a college student. Ersel, who was now eighteen years of age, was not sure about whether to feel nervous or excited about his first day of college.

[Yeah, right...Today is my first day in college.] Ersel thought while his eyes were still looking sleepy. [I wonder...what would college life be like? Would it be totally different from high school, wherein I graduated as class salutatorian?]

The door of his room opened. Ersel looked and saw his mother looking at him.

"Ersel, come downstairs now. Your breakfast is ready,” his mother said with her hands on her waist.

“Yes, Ma,” Ersel answered with a nod in a sleepy voice.

Ersel went downstairs and saw that his younger sister Mina was there. She was busy chatting with someone via her Android phone. To Ersel, Mina looked happy and giggling. It was as if she was chatting with a guy she has a crush on.

“Mina,” Ersel called before approaching his sister.

Mina, who was obviously surprised, switched off her phone.

“Yes, Kuya* Ersel?” she asked without looking directly at her older brother’s eyes.

“What was that? Why did you look happy when chatting with someone?” Ersel asked with a smirk.

“Oh…It’s nothing,” she answered awkwardly while trying to hold back her laughing and giggling.

“Oh, really? Then why can’t you look at me in the eyes?” Ersel asked, obviously teasing her.

"Kuya Ersel, I already said that it's nothing,” Mina answered in a slightly irritated tone.

“Okay,” Ersel said while laughing. “Let me guess...you were chatting with your crush?”

“No,” Mina replied with her cheeks blushing in embarrassment.

“Oh, now I know,” Ersel said while smirking. “Don’t worry. I won’t tell Papa or Mama about that.”

At that moment Mina looked directly at Ersel’s eyes for the first time.

“Is that a promise?” Mina asked with her cheeks still blushing.

“Yes,” Ersel declared with a nod and a smile. “You can trust me on that.”

“Great!” Mina exclaimed, then hugged her brother. “Thank you, Kuya Ersel!”

Ersel smiled and gently patted his sister’s back.

While the siblings are eating their breakfast, let us describe how Ersel looks like now.

Ersel has grown to an average height of one hundred seventy centimeters, or approximately five feet and seven inches. He has some nice muscles on his body, although he was still underweight, with his Body Mass Index (BMI) being below normal. He has what girls would describe as a cute and pretty face - with his lips being naturally pinkish, his eyes being as clear as water, his nose being naturally sharp, his hair being thick and dark as night, and his skin and complexion being fair. His arms and legs are rather thin, although they have some nice muscles. His hair was long enough to reach in the middle of his nape, and his bangs framed his beautiful face in a nice way.

After eating his breakfast and brushing his teeth, Ersel went to the bathroom to take a bath.

While bathing, Ersel suddenly remembered his childhood best friend Lino. It has been ten years since they last saw each other. He wondered if Lino was still mad at him after all these years after disappearing without a word ten years ago.

[Lino, where are you now? What are you up to? I'm quite sure that you are in college now, just like me.] Ersel thought sentimentally.

Lino’s face flashed across Ersel’s mind, with the latter vaguely remembering how the former’s face exactly looked like. It has been a long time since they last met so he cannot remember all of the details of Lino’s face. Although he remembered that Lino was crying during the first time the former met the latter, and that he was also the one to put back the smile on that face.

At that moment, an idea flashed across Ersel’s mind.

[That’s right! I could search him on Facebook!] Ersel thought in excitement.

But there was one problem: he could not remember Lino’s surname.

[What was his surname again?] Ersel thought with his mind going back to his childhood.

Ersel tried searching hard in his memories, but he still could not remember. He had always been calling Lino by the latter's first name, but the former could not remember when he had ever read or heard Lino’s surname. The fact that he could not remember the surname made Ersel feel frustrated.

[Damn it! If only I could remember his surname, I might be able to find him on Facebook or other social media sites!] Ersel thought frustratingly while wincing.

“Ersel,” a voice called out from outside the bathroom, startling him. It was his mother. “Hurry up and finish. You might be late for school if you take any longer there.”

“Okay, Ma,” Ersel replied.

Ersel realized that he must have been thinking too long and hard about Lino that he somehow lost track of the time he spent while inside the bathroom.

[Yeah, right! I have to hurry up! I can’t afford to be late in my first day of college!] Ersel thought while proceeding to bathe himself more quickly.

As soon as he was dry enough, Ersel quickly dressed up in his civilian clothes and combed his hair in front of the mirror.

[Alright! Let's do this, Ersel! We can do it!] Ersel thought before proceeding to wear his shoes and heading for the university.

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Ersel quickly went out of the train and swiped his Beep card** on the scanning machine. It was already about thirty minutes before the schedule of his class, so he ran as quickly as he could while being careful to not bump into anything or anyone.

[I have to hurry up, or I might be late! Damn it!] Ersel thought while running as fast as he could.

After several minutes of running, Ersel finally reached the campus. He has yet to find the building where his first class was. Looking at his registration card, he saw that the room number was A301.

[Okay, so it’s in Building A. Where was that building again?] Ersel thought while looking around for the aforementioned building.

Ersel had been in the campus twice before today. He searched his memories for a few moments; then in a flash, he remembered where the Building A was.

[I remember now! I have to go this way!] Ersel thought and turned his direction towards the white building about forty-five degrees to his right.

Ersel hurriedly ran towards the direction of the white building. While doing so, he accidentally bumped into a taller guy. It was a good thing that neither of them lost his balance, although both of them were surprised and backed away from each other.

“Hey!” the taller guy shouted angrily. “Be careful, please!”

“Sorry!” Ersel answered, touching his two open hands together as if praying. “I didn’t mean to.”

Ersel then looked at the guy’s face. The guy looked very handsome, with his hair styled in a sleek blow back way. There was some hair hanging out in the middle top part of his forehead and it reached near the bottom part of his forehead while also being in the shape of an arc, making his hairstyle very similar to that of Superman's. He stood at a height of about one hundred eighty five centimeters (about six feet and one inch), and Ersel could see through his clothes that the guy has a muscular body, which would indicate that he probably goes to the gym regularly. He also has brown skin, making him exactly Ersel's type.

[Wow, he’s hot!] Ersel thought while staring at the taller guy with admiration.

“Please don't do this again,” the taller guy said seriously in a deep voice while staring with a piercing glare at Ersel.

At that same instant, Ersel’s mind went back to reality.

“Oh...Understood!” Ersel replied awkwardly. “Again, I'm sorry,” Ersel declared, his eyes looking to the ground and blushing with embarrassment.

The taller guy then walked away without saying a word towards the opposite direction that Ersel was going to. Ersel looked at him as he slowly went away.

[He’s handsome, yes.] Ersel thought while following the guy with the former's own gaze. [But then...something feels weird. Why do I feel like I have met him before? Do I know him? He looks and feels vaguely familiar to me.]

Then Ersel felt his Android phone vibrate and took it out of his pocket. There was a text message from his mother.

The text message went like this: Are you in the university now?

Ersel replied: Yes, Ma. I will go to the classroom now.

Ersel's mother replied: Okay. Take care, then.

After reading his mother's message, Ersel switched off his phone and proceeded to run towards the building where his first class would be.

As Ersel went up the floors to get to the classroom for his first class, he kept on wondering who was that guy he bumped into earlier. Was he an acquaintance from his past?

[I hope I can meet him again.] Ersel thought while making a serious facial expression and thinking of that guy he bumped into earlier. [I have a strong feeling that I know him.]

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Definition of Terms

*Kuya - A Filipino word that means "older brother", and is used in addressing an older relative or non-relative in a respectful way. (Source: urbandictionary.com)

**Beep card - A smart card that is used in paying for transportation fees, especially on the trains and buses, around Metro Manila, Philippines. (Source: Wikipedia)