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Jay-jay's POV
I have a package. It came from Japan. I wanted to be happy but I don't remember buying anything online and Yuri didn't tell me anything. She's the only Japanese I know. I'm afraid to open it. But if I don't open it, I'll be late. Aries will get angry and say I'm slow. You thought she was so fast. I really believe she just sprays herself in the bathroom. Then she'll just put on perfume and wet her hair a little to make it look like she took a bath. Haha, your style is rotten. If they had told me last night that I had a package, I wouldn't have been struggling to open it now or later . In the end, I had no choice but to open it. I took the cutter from my study table and cut th rough the packaging tape. I threw it back on the table. I was still nervous as I slowly opened the box. And when I ï¬nally saw the inside. It was all bubble wrap. I scratched my head before removing it and ï¬nally seeing the real contents of the box. There was a severed head. Snorlax's head! Oh no, it was just a head . A wide pillow with a Snorlax design. I took it and removed the plastic wrap. It was so soft and so nice to hug. I approached the Snorlax that I often had next to me at night. And aced the pillow. "Look! You have a sibling!" I said and put them aside on the bed. But Snorlax quickly fell down intact away from the Snorlax head. I ï¬xed him a few times but that always happened. He didn't seem to like his big head. I just let him go and turned the box over. I checked to see if there was anything else inside but I couldn't see anything but bubble wrap. I checked the outside of the box for the engagement that had the name of the originator but only my name and address on it. "Why is the name like this?" I asked in surprise. My Queen Jasper Jean Mariano. When did my name start to have 'My Queen'? I guess it's not for me? That's why I'm the only Jasper Jean here. Maybe I made a mistake . I was about to look at the stickers but I heard Aries knocking on my bedroom door. "Quick! I'm going to be late!" He shouted. He ï¬nished sprinkling. "Yes!" I replied before putting down the box and picking up my bag. I went back to ï¬x Snorlax whole but he fell down again. He really didn't like the big head he looked like. I left the room and headed straight out of the house. I didn't even get to greet Tita because she turned to go to the kitchen. I just sighed. When I got into Aries' car, I immediately noticed his strange expression . "Why do you look like that?" I asked while adjusting my seatbelt. He grabbed the steering wheel of the car. He coughed a few times before starting the car to go to school. I can't help but feel strange because of his attitude. I feel like something bad happened yesterday while I was away or maybe I did something. I think he was spoiling our outing yesterday. We hadn't even gotten far from home when his phone rangâ€" his new phone. Since it was stuck to the dashboard, I could clearly see Ella's face on the screen. Aries answered it and since he was driving, their conversation was on speakerphone. ["Aries."] Ella started. No one to call? Baby? Babe? Love? Like that? "Ella." My sister replied. That's it? Their love was so flat. They didn't even call. When I got married again, the name was ï¬erce. Gardo or Tagpi. Sometimes Puti or Kimchi. When we were sweet, sugar or choco chips. When there was a topak, yellow ginger was enough. When we were really angry, Tangina or Punyeta would be our names. Right? It's disgusting! I listened to the couple again. Sometimes I'll give them a list of endearments. ["He's here."] Ella said lifelessly. Aries looked at me for a moment. Before answering her boyfriend who was chasing Miss Universe. It felt good to be thrown into space. "I know." My sister also answered lifelessly. ["Does he know?"] Miss Universe asked. I was getting bored with their conversation. The slowness is so annoying. Even worse than dying. No one to call, no life yet. Not even a little sweetness! Is this really a boyfriend? "I don't know. I'll talk to you later. I'm driving." My sister Horoscope said. She must not have predicted the fate of the two of them well that's why she was so sluggish. She must have brought bad luck. ["Aries, I love you."] Oh wow! It took a long time for the other one to answer her. She even coughed a few times. "I know." My chubby sister said and hung up the phone. I wanted to laugh out loud. Aries is also rude sometimes. She was told 'i love you' and that was the only answer. She's also an idiot! "Your love is sweet, isn't it?" I teased him but I didn't get an answer from him so I just turned away. I wasn't in the mood. The stars in the sky must not be in a good position. He didn't predict good fortune today. When I arrived at school, I immediately noticed the number of students lined up on the road. It seemed like an artist had passed by. The largest number of girls and even other year levels surrounded the main building of our year level. What was wrong? Aries parked the car. When I took off my seatbelt, I immediately noticed that he hadn't unlocked the car. I looked at him with surprise . "Aries, the lock." I said but he stayed where he was. "Don't come in for now." He said softly. My face lit up. "That's okay. But you'll be the one to talk to Kuya." My smile disappeared when I noticed his seriousness. I was starting to get scared by his attitude. Even though I didn't think about it, I noticed that something was wrong with the conversation he and Miss Universe were having. "W-why?" He shook his head and took out his cellphone to dial but he had already unlocked the car. He motioned for me to get out before putting the cellphone to my ear. I did so and looked at him with a frown inside. My hunch wasn't really good. I was about to walk away when I noticed a beautiful car parked near our spot. Beautiful! New to my eyes and the owner was obviously rich. The kind who could afford to pay for school and only pay a few cents for it . I was about to approach to take a look but I heard someone calling me . I turned around and saw Yuri smiling at me sparingly. "President!" I greeted him and his smile disappeared. "Are you leaving the club?" I teased him. Shunga Lovers Club "Jay, eh." He said annoyed and I burst out laughing. I couldn't stop teasing him yesterday after confronting the red-haired woman. He didn't want to admit it but it looked like he was hurt . My chest felt a pinch when I thought about that thing yesterday. I feel like I'm going to lose a leg. I don't like the idea of her liking someone else. It sounds greedy, but Yuri is also important to me. I can't love her the way she does me , but I can still appreciate her. But if I make her jealous, she won't be happy. That's her right after all the suffering she's caused me. I also want to see her love and be loved. "Why? What a shame. You didn't take her name. Then you pulled it out." I teased her. She scratched her head. "I didn't mean to." "But she's beautiful, no pores." I said and ran my hands over my face. "And her hair is too long. And she's Japanese too â€"." "Jay." There was a hint of resentment in her voice. "Please stop." "Hala! Why?" "I won't look for someone else just to trade you." She blushed slightly. "I-I only want to love you." I stared at her face. She scratched her eyebrows while looking away. "You look like a tomato when you blush, don't you?" I said and he blushed even more . I laughed a little and pointed at his face. " You only did that after you saw that girl yesterday." He sighed and shook his head. We walked together to our classroom. There were still a lot of students scattered around. They were talking about something I couldn't understand. "He's really handsome!" "He's more handsome now!" "Dad said he has rights to their company!" "Just a kid, at least one." I scratched my head. Whoever they were talking about, I knew it was a new creature. They were talking about something I'd never heard of before. Maybe an actor. "Is there a shooting here? Which actor are they talking about?" I asked Yuri. He stopped for a moment and looked at me as if I had said something wrong. "Haven't you heard?" He asked. "Which one?" I asked back. "There's a shooting?" His eyes were slightly sad before forcing a smile. He just shook his head before returning to walking as if I hadn't asked him anything. I immediately chased after him. "Hey! I'm asking you." My voice was ï¬lled with annoyance. "You! You just saw someone I was going to replace act like thatâ€"." I couldn't ï¬nish what I was going to say because of his sudden hug. The gossiping students we met immediately looked at us . "Please stop mentioning her." He pleaded. "I feel like you're pushing me." I could eel the weight in his voice as if he was about to cry. I couldn't help but be startled by his action. We used to tease each other about these kinds of things but he's only become sensitive now. "S-okay. No more. I was just kidding." I replied while patting his back. His hug tightened even more. I felt like he was going to cry at any moment . So even though we were openly gossiping, I still hugged him tightly. I accepted my favorite topic of gossip. "Yuri..." I called out to him. "If there's a problem, you'll tell me , right? Whatever you're carrying there, share it." I heard his soft laugh because of what I said. Even if it was just that way, I could reduce what he was carrying. Even if it was just a simple joke, I could make him feel better. "T-thank you Jay. I'll never regret loving you." He whispered before ï¬nally letting go. He took a deep breath before washing his face with his hand. He smiled before inviting me to continue walking. I nodded and joined him in walking again. Every now and then, I would punch him lightly on the arm and he would reciprocate by slapping my hair. Before we could get to the door of the room, he suddenly blew my hair in front of my face. I thought about just ignoring it and continuing like that. I continued to sit in my place without greeting or looking at the Snakes. It was noticeable how quiet they were. Not like what I usually get. I left it alone because maybe they were still sleepy. Why does it look like someone is sitting in Kei-kwanan's place? I just ï¬xed my hair and then my things. Maybe it was just one of those Ulopongs. I know they don't sit there even if he's not there and he won't know. Maybe he just trippedâ€" wait! Why am I thinking about his bench or place? I don't care! I took my notebook and looked to see if there was anything missing from my notes. I was too lazy to write the lesson for two of our subjects. I faced David and was about to wake him up butâ€"he was awake! I even blinked at him. It was surprising! Really shocking! I even touched my chest and gave him a surprising reaction. "Are you awake? What happened?" I asked him. He looked at me and smiled slightly. "You're belittling me." "Surprising. Am I going to mass?" I teased him. He laughed slightly and shook his head. "No need. You might get burned." Wow, nice return. I winced at him. "Peram notes." I said while extending my hand. He slightly looked back. "You don't want to borrow notes from them." "Oh! I wouldn't expect anything from that. Josh and Eman are greedy." I replied and still didn't remove my outstretched hand. They are the only ones who write diligently. That's why they are greedy. Kit should be too, that's why she prioritizes flirting. David turned around again and grinned. He shook his head before taking his notes and handing them to me. I knew his lettering was in Arabic but there was nothing I could do. It was better than having nothing copied, it was okay. I was writing quietly even though I felt like something was really wrong. I looked at Ci across from me and she was surprisingly quiet. She just smiled almost showing her gums then gestured with her index ï¬nger behind us. My forehead wrinkled but I chose to ignore her. I couldn't help but be irritated. Something was really wrong! Something was really wrong! They didn't make noise like they used to. They didn't make a fuss or ask for food and most of all I felt like someone was staring at me. "It's been a while since you turned around." I heard someone whisper. "Don't be fussy. You might be heard." Someone else replied. I had a strong feeling that I was tripping again . They wouldn't get anything out of me and I wouldn't turn around. They would die just waiting for me to turn around. I just continued writing until Sir Alvin arrived. He had already arranged his seat. Since I was almost ï¬nished, I still continued what I was doing. I knew Sir would understand because we also had to catch up on lessons. He was the one who told us that it was okay to do the lessons we didn't do in his class. "Complete." Sir began. We are always complete. Just don't count the ones in London who were probably with the ones who fell down the bridge. "Attendance." Sir said and started calling. The only thing I don't understand about Sir's attendance is why my name is included with the boys' names. I'm not isolated like in other sections. Sir has also made me a man. What, sir? Are you a cobra too? "Mariano?" He called me. "Present." I answered without looking at him. I noticed Sir's momentary pause. I looked up and noticed the smile on his lips. It disappeared immediately and he continued calling. What kind of trip did Sir have? It was like he was tripping me too. "Mercado." Sir called Drew. "Present." Isn't it? My name is really lined up with their names. It's no longer separated like the natural list of male and female names. "Peñaflor." "Present." "Peralta." "P-present." I looked at Ci for a moment but he quickly bowed and played with his ï¬ngers. He was obviously restless. "Ramos." "Present." He yawned while saying "look back." I ignored him and continued writing. What was wrong with that look? Do they know if the person has a stiff neck. After all, will they answer if the person's neck breaks? Why do they have to look? Who are they looking at?! "Rivera." "Present." "We can shout to get them to look." I heard them whisper. "Call him, tell him there's dirt behind him." The other one answered. Not that I wanted to listen to their conversation. I just couldn't help it because their whispering was getting louder. "Venites." "Present." I had just ï¬nished copying David's notes. I put it away and was about to give it back to him when I noticed the faint giggling of the Ulopongs. It was as if they were waiting for an announcement on television. Waiting for the lottery number or the winner of the Beauty Pageant crown. Crazy people. "Welcome back." Sir said, stopping me. "Watson." I blinked. The words that came out of Sir's mouth literally slowed down. His voice got louder because of how slow it was. And if I could just rewind it, I would just to hear what he said properly. Watson ? Watson? Emma Watson? Watson pharmacy? Watson building? Is this a person? Animal? Place? Apple? Stupid? Crazy? Is this a Taratando? A cobra? What Watson? Because it seems impossible. It can't possibly happen. It's really blurry. Even blurry than floodwater. This is a joke! That's right! Sir is also tripping me up. This is a big joke. Now that it's clear to me that he's also a big cobra. Maybe that's why he became a teacher here because they're alike. Amazing! Maybe they'll look at me if I turn around. They'll tease me if I manage to turn around. They'll think I missed him like they always say. Then they'll tease me until I get angry. Okay! Don't look back! You won't understand me! But everything I said and my theory upon turning around and Sir's words completely disappeared because of a voice that answered all my thoughts. Deep and big. There was a slight change but it was clear to me. I knew he was the one who answered.... "Present." I held my pen tightly. Even though I didn't want to, my body and neck moved on their own accord. I turned around as they wanted. I even heard them applaud and cheer. But I ignored all that just to conï¬rm if what I heard was correct. He was leaning back in his chair with both arms across his chest . He was looking straight at me as if he had been waiting for me for a while. He tilted his head slightly and a small smile appeared on his lips. It felt like his heart was going to explode from the mixed emotions. I wanted to slap myself hard just to know if this was a dream or if he was really in front of me. The King of Cobras was in front of me.