"Why aren't these guys tired of making trouble? This is just the resumption day, and they're already causing such ruckus in the school," Lisa said.
"What else can he do? His grades are terrible; he can't even write his name properly," Angela said, shaking her head in disappointment. "I just pity the poor girl. This was her first day in school, and she's already being bullied," Angela added.
==========
"This place is becoming too noisy. Does he really have nothing else to do with his life apart from causing trouble?" Jovan said with an exhausted look on his face.
"He didn't even spare a new student. He's getting worse every day," Jason said, looking at the drama unfolding behind him.
But oddly, Jovan was becoming restless. The more Gabriel kept talking to Vivian and getting closer to her, the more anxious Jovan became. He really wanted to punch the fellow. "Why am I having this weird feeling just seeing Gabriel getting close to her? I don't even know her," Jovan thought as he placed his hand on his chest. He could feel his heart racing in his chest. "But this is going to be weird if I just step in like that. I need to find an excuse," Jovan concluded. "We better deal with this, or else he's going to create a bad image for us. This is just her first day at school, and now she's going to be bullied just like that..." Jovan was not going to stand it anymore.
"Ahh... what did I hear you say? You want us to stop him?! Wow, this is the first time I'm seeing this ice cube behaving like a human being, good for you," Jason said with a teasing smile.
Jovan was becoming restless seeing Gabriel flirting and getting close to Vivian.
"Stop talking nonsense and start moving," Jovan said.
............
"Let me personally introduce myself," Gabriel said as he tugged on his collar and straightened his shirt, an action he usually did when he wanted to appear cool.
"My name is Gabriel, and I am the most popular guy in this school. I know you must have heard about me." His gaze quickly narrowed towards Jennifer. "I know this ugly parrot must have said bad things about me," Gabriel said, glaring at Jennifer. Jennifer rolled her eyes at him. "...as if."
"I am actually a nice guy, but if you do something I don't like, I may not be nice anymore," Gabriel said as he leaned a bit closer to Vivian.
Vivian's heart raced with fear. "Wa...what is he trying to do" Vivian thought as she began to shift a bit from her seat.
Seeing Vivian looking terrified "Gabriel will you stop now!" Jenifer yelled, almost tearing up.
Gabriel quickly shifted his attention to Jenifer "Shut up!, you ugly bastard" he said in annoyance and glared at Jennifer. Then shifted her gaze back to Vivian, and smiled.
"I would like to see you after school, so meet me at the school parking lot once school dismisses," Gabriel said as his hand moved towards Vivian's face, trying to shift the strand of hair that had fallen over her face.
"Grip!"
As soon as his hand was a few inches away from her, a hand came from nowhere and grabbed Gabriel's arm, preventing him from reaching Vivian's hair. Gabriel was shocked and curious at the same time, wondering who would have the nerve to grab him like that.
He quickly turned around, and his eyes met Jason's furious face. Yup, now it all made sense. Nobody else would have the guts to stop Gabriel if not the two crazy friends. Jovan was just standing behind Jason with his arms crossed. One could see the anticipation in his eyes. It seemed he was ready to tear Gabriel apart and was ready to pay Gabriel back for what he did to Fatty the other time.
Seeing that someone had stopped Gabriel, Vivian breathed in relief. She lifted her gaze and her eyes met with another pair of beautiful eyes filled with emotions, staring at her with a genuine concern.
"It him" Vivian thought in her mind.
"What are you doing?" Jason asked with a hint of rage in his voice.
"How is it your business? And when did I need to explain myself or my actions to you?" Gabriel said, a bit irritated. He tilted his head and saw Jovan standing behind Jason. "Oh... you sent your dog to stop me, huh?! You guys think I can't deal with you because you are popular in school? I will soon destroy your reputations and beat you guys to a pulp."
"I haven't settled the scores with you after you beat Fatty up last time, and you still have the guts to be running around in front of me," Jovan said with a smile on his face, but everyone around knew it wasn't a real one.
Gabriel knew very well that he couldn't afford to offend the two directly like this, or else the school would surely fall into chaos.
"Shameless thing! You are humiliating the school and bringing a bad reputation to us by trying to harass a new student," Jason said.
"Y-yo-you!!! When did I try to harass her?! I was just trying to be friends with her, and now will you let go of my hand before I lose it!!"
............
"Hmm... That's weird," Lisa said, her eyebrows furrowed in confusion as she looked around the dining hall.
Everyone in the dining hall was surprised too. Normally, Jovan and Jason never got involved with issues like this; they were always minding their own business and never got into trouble. A murmur of confusion rippled through the students.
Rachel, who was sitting alone at the very end of the hall, was staring at the whole scene with her grip tightened on her fork. "So finally, someone has been able to move you."
"Hahahaha."
She suddenly laughed like a crazy person but quickly comported herself. "Fine... but mind you, if I can't have you, no one else will," she said with tears and intense emotion brimming within her as she gritted her teeth. Her eyes narrowed and suddenly flashed with a chilling light.
..........
Sophia kept staring at Jovan. For some reason, she was totally lost in her thoughts. Her gaze was intense. It seemed she was questioning him with her gaze. "Wait! Don't tell me..." Sophia's eyes went wide. "I have been going after him since last term, and he has never shown any interest in me, and now he was willing to get into a fight for a girl he barely knew? No... no, that's not possible. He can't possibly be..."
"What is going on here!!!"
An angry voice echoed in the hall, shattering Sophia's thoughts and bringing her back to reality. Everyone flinched at the sudden loud tone. It was Mr. Benjamin, the math teacher.
Gabriel shook off Jason's hand. Jerry and Tyler, who were almost about to engage in a fight, let go of each other's collars. Fatty almost peed his pants. That voice earlier really scared the crap out of him. His face was pale and his eyes wide with fear.
"I can see that the school has been overfeeding you guys these days, if not, you people wouldn't have the guts to be pointing fingers at each other while eating. But don't worry, I will surely see to that. All of you should get back to your classes now!" Mr. Benjamin shouted in the hall, and everybody began to leave the hall one after the other while muttering under their breath.
TWO HOURS LATER
The school had dismissed, and students were already making their way towards the gate.
Sophia was walking towards a black car in the distance. This was the same car that usually brought her to school. She was walking with quick steps, and her beautiful face was clouded with annoyance and frustration. Lisa and Angela hurried behind her, bickering and blaming each other for the earlier incident.
As Sophia approached the car, a figure suddenly blocked her path, and she halted her steps. Irritation flashed in her eyes as she looked up, and it turned out to be Gabriel. A wave of frustration shot into her head, and she took a deep breath to regain her composure.
"What is it, Gabriel?" she asked, her voice already filled with annoyance. She had no time for whatever he was up to today.