Bet You Won't Fall For Me

Who's That Man?

Jade had barely stepped into the faculty office when the familiar noise of shuffling papers, ringing phones, and last-minute grade submissions greeted her.

Even after the charity event and all the holiday festivities, work didn’t stop. The teachers were busy wrapping up their tasks—finalizing grades, compiling reports, and making sure everything was in order before the break. The office buzzed with activity, some teachers hunched over their desks furiously encoding, while others were chatting over coffee, relieved that the most stressful part of the school year was almost over.

Jade sighed as she placed her bag on her desk. She had planned to keep her head down and focus on finishing her work, but, of course, that wasn’t going to happen.

“Uy, Jade,” (Hey, Jade,) came a voice from the other side of the room.

She looked up to see Miss Cathy, one of the more enthusiastic (read: nosy) teachers in the department, making her way toward her with a sly grin. Jade already knew what was coming.

“I heard you had a date last night,” Cathy teased, pulling up a chair next to her desk. “Swerte mo naman! Pasko na, may kasamang gwapo!” (You’re so lucky! It’s Christmas, and you have a handsome date!)

Jade blinked. “What?”

“Don’t play innocent! Someone saw you out last night, and hindi lang basta ‘out’ ha. Sa beach pa!” (And not just anywhere—at the beach!) Cathy wiggled her brows.

Jade felt heat creep up her neck. Of course, people had seen them. This was exactly why she never wanted to be involved in anything remotely romantic—people in this office loved gossip.

“It wasn’t a date,” Jade said flatly, turning back to her laptop. “And whoever told you that should mind their own business.”

But Cathy just chuckled. “Eh ano yun? Nagtutour lang kayo sa beach?” (Oh really? So you were just sightseeing at the beach?)

Then another teacher chimed in, her eyes twinkling with mischief.

“Teka, teka. Yung kasama mo kagabi, siya rin ba yung bachelor sa Christmas event? Ano nga ulit pangalan nun? Andrew? Andres? André?” (Wait, wait. The guy you were with last night… was he the same bachelor from the Christmas event? What was his name again? Andrew? Andres? André?)

Several teachers perked up at the mention of André Young.

“Diyos ko, Jade. Ang tangkad, ang kisig. Tapos yung katawan? Yung mukha? Ang ganda! Lalo na yung mata niya, tapos may accent pa! Parang leading man sa pelikula!” (My God, Jade. So tall, so fine. And that body? That face? Gorgeous! Especially his eyes! And that accent? He’s like a movie star!)

One of the older teachers fanned herself dramatically. “Nakakalaglag-panty ‘yung itsura nun. ‘Pag ako may ganyang ka-date, ‘di ko na kailangan ng hapunan. Mabubusog na ako kakatingin lang.” (His looks alone could make panties drop. If I had a date like that, I wouldn’t even need dinner. I’d be full just looking at him.)

Jade groaned, her face burning. “Ma’am naman!”

Just then, another voice cut in.

“Am I missing something?”

Jade turned, her frown immediately disappearing at the sight of her best friend, Daniella Tiu—or Dani—standing by the door with a knowing smirk.

“Dani!” Jade exclaimed, standing up to hug her. “You’re back! How’s Tito Rey?”

Dani returned the hug, laughing. “Thank God, he’s fine now. The operation went well, and he’s recovering fast. Mom’s still fussing over him, though. She won’t even let him make coffee by himself.”

Daniella Tiu was the kind of person who looked like she belonged on a magazine cover rather than in a classroom. With her perfectly curled brown hair, porcelain skin, and chinita eyes, she always turned heads. She had no Filipino blood—both her parents were Chinese—but they had lived in the Philippines long before she was born, so she was fluent in the language, curses included.

Most people assumed she became a teacher because it was her dream, but in truth, Dani only took up teaching because of Jade. She never really saw herself in the profession at first, but as time passed, she started loving it—and turned out to be really good at it, too.

She and Jade had been inseparable since elementary school.

“Soulmate,” Dani would joke. “If neither of us gets married, we’ll just date each other.”

But deep down, she was like a sister to Jade—her loud, dramatic, and overly perceptive sister.

And right now, Dani was looking at her like she could see every single thought running through her head.

“I was gone for one week, and now there’s gossip about you?” Dani grinned as she sat on Jade’s desk. “What did I miss?”

“Nothing,” Jade muttered, glaring at Miss Cathy, who was still grinning.

Before Dani could interrogate her further, another distraction arrived—Apple, one of their younger colleagues, practically skipping toward them with a suspiciously giddy energy.

Jade’s eyes narrowed the moment she saw her.

First, Apple was too cheerful.

Second, this was the same person who had given her number to André without informing her—as if she were playing cupid.

Jade crossed her arms. “Why do you look like that?”

Apple just giggled. “Like what?”

“Like you know something I don’t.”

“Oh, I don’t know anything,” Apple said dramatically, but her eyes were practically sparkling with mischief. “I just have a feeling that love is in the air~”

Jade groaned. “Not you too.”

Dani raised an eyebrow. “Wait. Love? What exactly happened while I was gone?”

“Nothing happened,” Jade insisted, but it was too late.

Her coworkers had smelled blood in the water.

Within minutes, the faculty office turned into a battleground of teasing remarks.

“So may lalaki pala talaga!” (So there really is a guy!)

“Jade, naman! Ang tahimik mo pero may tinatago ka pala.” (Jade! You’re so quiet, but you’ve been hiding something!)

“Bakit hindi mo kami in-invite sa date mo?” (Why didn’t you invite us to your date?)

Jade could barely keep up. She covered her face with her hands. “Why are you all like this?”

“Because this is new information!” Dani said, laughing. “I leave for one week, and you’re suddenly the star of a romantic mystery. Who is he?”

“No one!”

But Apple was already humming the wedding march under her breath.

Jade groaned. I am never going out again.

Then, as if the universe wasn’t already out to get her, a voice interrupted the chaos.

“Ma’am Jade…”

She looked up. One of the students who was still in school today stood by the door, looking hesitant.

Jade frowned. “Yes?”

The student glanced at the group of teachers before saying, “Somebody’s looking for you.”

Jade sighed. “If this is another joke—”

“It’s not.”

Jade tilted her head. “Who is it?”

The student hesitated before answering.

“André Young daw.” (André Young, they said.)

The entire faculty office went silent.

Jade’s heart did something strange in her chest.

And from the way her workmates gasped, she knew she was never going to hear the end of this.