PHILLIPS ACADEMY: THREE HEIRS ONE HEART

3

Strange. Peculiar. Interesting. As I gazed at every other strange individual in this room, I could not help but look forward to what’s about to happen in this class.

Of course, I haven’t forgotten about that strange woman, Edith, who confronted me about Alvin. What the hell is she so mad about? Anyway, I luckily arrived on time, a minute before the class started to be exact.

A few minutes later, our professor entered the room. A man of familiar face came in. To make matters more interesting, the entire class actually looked at him in awe, even the professor. I saw him a few moments ago inside the limo with Ms. Josephine and the dark-haired pretty man.

“Good day everyone, I’m sorry I was a bit late.” He said so shyly with a charming smile on his face. He’s slender yet toned; he has sharp features, green eyes, ash-blonde hair, heart-shaped pink lips; he’s also really tall. God! He stared at me. That gaze, oozing with familiarity. A cute guy in plain white tees and sweat pants, God! I love the number of cute guys I see in this school.

“It’s okay, Mr. Karl,” the professor said with a smile on his face. Wait! That name’s familiar. Of course! Oh God! Is he Karl Phillips? Well, it makes sense why everyone’s in awe just of his presence - also, the professor’s vibe literally lit up. The professor added, “Just find a seat you’re comfortable with and we’ll start.”

There are only sixteen students in the class, Karl included. I was sitting in the last row, left corner. There’s a vacant seat next to mine. Shoot! I think he’s going to sit next to me!

I felt like the time slowed down as he slowly walked in my direction. It wasn’t just me, but everyone else was captured by his charm. After every step, there’s a rush of excitement going through my veins.

He reached the seat. That scent. Reminds me of someone. Yes! Alvin! These brothers are something else. Why are they so attractive? Shoot! He stared at me again. He smiled. His lips are so moist, Gayle! Get a hold of yourself! Wait! What’s up with his eyes? I could not notice from afar, but now, why is it so empty? I mean, he's smiling and, but I don’t feel like it's genuine.

“Hi.” He spoke in a soft voice. His voice register reminds me of someone. Who could it be? I zoned out yet again, when he started leaning on me. I don’t feel the social butterfly energy in him, but he’s got his older brother’s charm for sure. “Are you okay, miss”, he added while still leaning up close to me.

“Oh. Uhm. Yeah. I’m good.” I stutteringly invoiced yet again. I’m thinking of asking him about his brother, but that would be weird. He might think I’m only talking to him because of his name and his brothers. So, what am I going to do? Why do I suck at socializing? Moreover, he replied with nothing but a smile and the class eventually started.

Per usual, the professor introduced us to the basic concepts of cinematography. Although personally, not to brag, I already do quite a lot about it myself. It’s about understanding the essence of a scenery, highlighting the visuals which are essential to making a good shot. For example, a Point of View shot of myself would be perfect in capturing the stunning visuals of Karl - Oh God! Why am I focusing on him? Well. It’s not like he’s going to know. Here I am gaslighting myself as usual.

Karl looks way young due to his sharp features. I assume he’s the same age as me, yet he looks like he was fifteen years old or something. He’s adorable, more like a giant baby. Lol!

As I was busy thinking about Karl, I suddenly heard the voice of the professor calling my name, “Where is Ms. Gayle Riley?” He said, I stood and suddenly became the center of attention as everyone in the room suddenly looked at me. I took a glimpse at the side and, oh my goodness! I caught Karl staring at me. His blank yet curious stare, partnered with his innocent face, really makes me nervous, not going to lie. The professor then asked me, “You look like you’re zoning out, Ms. Riley, are you okay?”

“Definitely sir, I was just a bit overwhelmed I guess.”

“Overwhelmed about something else? Or overwhelmed because you’re next to Mr. Phillips?” The professor said before the class erupted in laughter. Good grievance! Even Karl giggled. What am I going to say? I’m straight up panicking.

“N. No sir. It’s not like that,” I countered, who am I fooling? Of course, I’m kind of overwhelmed by the presence of Karl – I mean who would not be? “It’s just my first day in the academy and I have to admit, I’m a bit nervous.”

“You don’t have to be nervous, Ms. Riley. The academy has a lot to offer to everyone, so receive it with an open mind and you’ll be fine.” I don’t know what the professor meant by that, but what he said reminded me of my father. My dad always told me to leave my comfort zone by taking a risk and I'd grow. The professor followed up by asking me, “Now, Ms. Riley. I have a question. What makes you think is the true essence of cinematography?”

I took a deep breath and denoted, “cinematography has the ability to reinforce narrative. It’s story-telling on its own that does not require any dialogue to be effective.” I told the professor the principles of cinematography while the class stared at me. I know, I’m definitely proud of myself. I’m trying to be a show-off and desperate or something, but I do want to get Karl’s impression. And by the looks of it, I think I succeeded because he was smiling at me the whole time.

Before the lesson ended, the professor tasked us to make a short-form video that tells a story without having any dialogue. And as the universe dictates, the task is by pair. There are sixteen students in the room and I’m next to Karl, so the odds are in my favor. We became a pair.

The professor left us early to give us enough time to discuss our plans for the task. My classmates faced their respective partners, so did I and Karl. Shush! Am I blushing? I hope he doesn’t find me weird or awkward.

“Hi again. So… uhm, what do you want?” He said to me first with a voice so charming. Oh, my goodness, this is so intoxicating.

“Huh? What do you mean? What do I want?”

“Uhm…the task. What do you want to do?”

“Oh. Okay. I’ll get my notebook. Let’s write down ideas.” I said to him. I don’t want to be awkward, but why am I like this? Why am I panicking? I’m even slightly shaking. Shoot! I dropped my pen.

One. Two. Three. It happened so quickly. We both tried to catch it and we ended up touching each other’s hand. “Sorry,” he told me before letting my hands go and picking up my pen and giving it to me. It’s not even a big deal, but I felt the rush of oxytocin in my system. It felt so romantic I cringed at myself.

Moving on, we talked for a bit about our ideas, but my next class is up, so we just agreed to talk about it later when we’re available. After that, we all left the room and went took a break. I went on my own to the cafeteria, because I prefer to be alone most of the time. Again, I have to admit, I still could not process what just happened. Why am I like this?

Just a bit of background about myself. Aside from having no friends, I also don’t have any experience when it comes to love. I had a crush on a few people before, but I never really thought of dating them. I guess I’m weird, I like the idea of flirting but that’s it. I never wanted to engage. Don’t judge me. There’s a guy that asked me out three years ago. It was one date and we did well. I’m eighteen years old and yet, I never experienced a lot of firsts. I’m not victimizing myself, trust me, I love myself and my small world. But, at times, I can’t even hide the fact that I do want to try having relationships – realistically, I’m just scared because I don’t want to die a virgin. So why am I telling all this? Because today, my s****l drive hit its peak not once, but twice in a matter of hours. First, when I met Alvin; second, when I met Karl. I don’t know. It’s really weird because I have never felt anything like this before. The funny thing is that they’re brothers. Anyway, I guess I have to eat for now. My head is all messed up. I can’t handle it anymore.

-TO BE CONTINUED-