Chapter 7:

Sitting with my legs crossed, leaning comfortably in my seat, my hands busy typing on my laptop, I listened to our professor's lecture. The fun of our short break was over—it was back to reality, back to school.

"What? Hindi ko gets," Macy whispered to herself.

I used to think that a business course was all about learning how to build, manage, and expand businesses. No one warned me na it would be this hirap pala to the point my brain kept restarting like a faulty computer!

Sighs filled the room when our professor announced that we’d be working in groups. He divided us into four teams and assigned us a task—to create a business plan for a product that doesn’t yet exist. The actual reporting wasn’t due until tomorrow, but we had to brainstorm today.

I glanced at Macy, who was assigned to another group. She made a sad face when our eyes met, and I just let out a chuckle.

"Do you guys have any ideas? Damn, ang hirap," one of my groupmates groaned.

Markus, my blockmate in this subject, chuckled. "Non-existing product? Hmm..."

I thought for a moment before suggesting, "What about self-charging batteries or a phone that doesn’t need a charger?"

Leona let out a small laugh. "That’s implausible, Azalea."

I raised a brow a bit. "What do you mean that my suggestion is implausible? It is not naman ah?"

"Yeah, I somewhat agree. Self-charging batteries or a phone is implausible," Markus added, chuckling.

Agad akong napatingin sa kaniya. He was seated to my left, with someone in between us. When our eyes met, he let out an awkward chuckle before looking away.

"Matatanggap ko pa if not siya feasible but implausible? No, it is not" I insisted.

"If that is our product, what would it be its source of energy to charge those batteries?" Amara, the quiet one, asked.

I narrowed my eyes at her. We didn’t have a leader yet, but if we were voting, she’d have my vote. She seemed to be the only one thinking critically.

"Solar?" I replied, a little unsure.

She raised her brows, pressing her lips together before nodding. "Yeah, alright."

A smug smile spread across my face. If the smartest person in our group approved my idea, then I was on the right track. The others shook their heads in disbelief before Amara instructed us to start drafting our business plan.

As we worked, the discussion shifted to choosing a group leader. Agad kong tinaas ang kanang kamay ko.

"I vote for Amara. Who's with me?" I looked around.

Isa isa silang nag angat ng kamay kahit medyo nag aalinlangan pa ang iba. Amara simply watched as we elected her, then sighed. I clapped, celebrating our choice.

"Okay. Since I'm the group leader...I'll give you heads-up on how I lead a group," she began.

We all nodded, waiting for more.

"Ayoko kasi na bigla kayong magulat at mataranta...so as early as possible, I want you all to pass your chosen parts then send it to me directly...it can be either through my email or my messenger account" she licked her lower lip and glanced to her left, making sure everyone was paying attention.

"At...okay lang ba kung mag stay kayo dito sa school or we can go somewhere na pwedeng gawin ang drafting?" she asked.

Leona furrowed her brows and let out a chuckle. "Huh? Edi bakit mo pa sinabi na pwede naming gawin mag-isa at i-send sa'yo kung magkikita pa rin tayo?"

Amara listened to her then shook her head. “No...ngayong araw lang naman para lang naman ma supervise ko real time ang ginagawa n'yo"

"Oh, okay" I said when I finally understand her point.

See?! She was really the perfect leader for our group. She can handle different attitudes very well without sweating!

"Then after that, you can just send it to me. I'll repeat ha, as early as possible dapat since bukas ang initial reporting natin," she said.

Nang matapos ang klase ay hinintay ko pa saglit si Macy. They were still not done with their meeting. While ours ended 10 minutes before our professor dismissed the class.

"Hurry up, Macy..." I said.

I hated waiting, especially when I was starving. Macy repeated what their leader said before getting permission to leave. They even looked at me before the leader nodded.

Agad ko siyang hinatak palabas ng silid. I groaned as we walked. Macy let out a chuckle, making me glance at her.

"Si Amara pa talaga ang leader n'yo ah” she let out a chuckle..

"Why? Is that a problem?" I asked.

She shook her head. "Nah, what I mean is that she's really strict and-"

"We know. She gave us heads-up,"

"Oh," she blinked twice, surprised. "That's good. Dati kasi noong leader namin siya ay bigla nalang nag a-announce ng tamang gagawin kapag hindi nasusunod ang gusto niya,"

"You mean...sa kalagitnaan niya nasasabi kung paano siya mag lead since akala niya alam n'yo na agad ang rules niya?" I asked.

She nodded twice. "Exactly,"

Nang makarating sa cafeteria ay nilibot ng paningin namin kung saan makikita si Prius. When I spotted him sitting in a corner, I pulled Macy toward him.

"Hi, Yus" I greeted with a smile.

He glanced up from his phone, meeting my gaze with his usual bored expression. Macy sat beside me while Prius sat across from us. Without a word, he stood up and pulled out his wallet.

"Isabay mo na kami. I get the usual...how about you, Macy?" I turned to look at her.

"Hmm. I want the rice in a box teriyaki," she said.

Prius sighed deeply but nodded, not bothering to argue. I smiled at him even more, but he just shook his head and got in line.

Walang masyadong tao dahil ang ibang estudyante ay sa labas kumakain at babalik nalang kapag malapit na ang sunod na klase nila.

"Bakit naman parang wala sa mood si Prius? Did you guys have a fight or what?" Macy let out a chuckle, still staring at his back.

My brows immediately furrowed as I looked at her. I was about to use my phone to check what was happening with my social media when she asked me that question.

"What? Of course not. Ganon na talaga mukha niya ever since he was born. Boring daw kasi tayo," I said.

She let out a laugh, thinking I was joking. I wasn’t—but I did mean "tayo" half-seriously since I always managed to annoy him into showing some emotion.

Wala pang limang minuto ay nakabalik na siya bitbit ang pag kain namin. I immediately grabbed ours and started eating.

I was taking a spoonful of rice when I glanced at Macy's hand, extending her hand with a cold cash to Yus.

"No, it's okay. Huwag mo na bayaran," Yus said while eating his usual food.

"Ayoko, tanggapin mo. I don't like guys treating me when I have my own money," she still insisted on making him accept her money.

Yus shook his head as he slightly chews. "Bigay mo nalang kay Azalea,"

I nearly choked on my food before glaring at him. "You two are so funny,”

I sipped on my water bottle to clean my palate before I take another spoonful of rice.

So Dexter did not treat Macy at all if they hang out since she has her own money?

The way she insisted on making Yus accept her money, it must be true that their dates were paid by splitting the bill!

Oh, that hypocrite ex of hers...

After taking a sip of water, I turned to them. "Oh, by the way, you won’t believe this—Markus and Leona found my business idea nonsense,”

Prius let out a teasing laugh. I immediately stomped on his foot, making him groan. This man never took me seriously!

"Why? Ano ba suggestion mo?" Macy asked, and her attention was on me.

I shifted in my seat and glance at Yus to see if he was paying attention. Hinampas ko nang marahan ang kamay niya nang makitang abala na ngayon sa cellphone.

"Ouch!" he grunted.

This guy is so OA! I barely touched him!

I motioned for him to put his phone down. He sighed and put his phone down on the table, making me smile when he obliges. Then I cleared my throat since this would be a long talk full of rants.

"Our professor made us make a business plan for a not yet existing product in the market.." I trailed while looking at Yus.

He was a bit leaning forward to the table, and nodding. "And...Markus and Leona said that my suggestion is implausible because I suggested a self-charging battery or phone,"

When I glanced at Macy, her lips formed an 'O' as she nodded. "I see.."

"And? Go on," Yus said.

I rolled my eyes at him. I have already said what I am trying to prove, gusto ko nalang mahingi ang reaksyon at opinyon nila!

"So, I said na hindi naman implausible ang suggestion ko. I mean, that’s the purpose nga e! We are gonna make it plausible," I ranted.

Macy let out a laugh. "Sabaw pa ata sila. I saw Markus at the bar yesterday actually,"

Her statement made me raise my brow at her. Markus? At the bar? "So, you mean you were there too since you saw him?" then let out a teasing chuckle.

I saw a fleeting panic in her eyes before shaking her head. "Fine, I admit...yes, I was in the same bar with him"

"Self-charging batteries, huh? That's actually a good suggestion," Yus said after his few seconds of silence.

I nodded proudly. "I know,"

"E kaso ano naman ang source of energy? Solar?" he raised a brow at me.

"Yep. Solar. Since we're already in the advancement of technology, I know that we can create one" I said.

"Oh, that will take a lot of time, then. Since there will be a lot of trial and errors," Macy said.

I let out a sigh. "Yes, and that's actually our problem. But this would be our final requirement, right? Hindi pa agaran ang pagpapasa,"

"Oo, proposal palang naman. It's up to our professor if he will make your group pursue your idea or find an easy alternative," Macy responded.

"But I think that would be easy for them since Amara's parents are in the tech industry. You can talk to their tech workers..."

My eyes widened when realization hit me. He's right! Amara's parents are tech magnates! Kaya nag agree agad si Amara because she knows na kaya niyang gawan ng paraan!

"Oh my gosh, Yus! You’re a genius!" I exclaimed, grabbing his shoulders and shaking him.



"Hey, hey....chill," he muttered, grabbing my wrists to stop me.

Napapalakpak ako nang bumalik ako sa tamang pagkakaupo. "Finally, you said something smart today!"

Yus scoffed in disbelief, and Macy let out a laugh again.

Nagtagal pa ang usapan namin tungkol sa business plan namin nila Macy hanggang sa tumunog na ang bell. I let out a sigh, then stood up. Both of them stood up too and Yus walked away first, mentioning that someone from the annex building was looking for him. That left Macy and me heading toward the elevator together.

"That talk made me parch," I said.

Papasok na sana kami sa kakabukas lang ng elevator nang marinig niya 'yon at nagkatinginan pa kami. "Ano...bibili ba muna tayo ng tubig mo o huwag na?"

I shook my head immediately. "No, thanks, but I have a water bottle in my tote bag"

"Alright, then"

We stepped into the elevator, and when it reached our floor, I exited first. Macy followed behind, now engaged in conversation with a girl she knew who had just stepped out of her room.

Pumasok ako ng silid at agad na dumapo ang mata ko sa laptop na naka charge sa ibabaw ng professor's table.

"Oh, Azalea...quick, our professor is on his way here," Leona said when she saw me.

She was busy with her laptop, probably continuing her part. Kaso dahil may susunod na na klase ay sinarado niya na ang laptop. Our professor had a strict no-gadgets rule during his lectures—he was old school and preferred traditional note-taking.

Tumango ako at inalis sa pagkaka charge ang laptop. Just as I sat down, our professor arrived. Almost everyone was already present, so we began with a prayer before he launched into his lecture.