Yia and Elya

Chapter Six

"Enjoy your day, guys," Ate Anda said before leaving us at the gate. The school was big, but thankfully our classroom was in the main building."Ah, let's head to the classroom. Or do you want to have a tour of our campus first?" I asked Elya."Maybe we should head to our classroom to avoid being late if we go on a tour," she replied. She had a point, so we started walking towards the classroom. Our classmates greeted us noisily as we entered. "Hey, bruhaaa," Nally greeted me. She had been my classmate since elementary school but stopped in surprise when she saw that I had someone with me. "Oh, a transferee?" she asked.

"Yup, she's Elya. Elya, meet Nally, our ugly classmate," I said, smiling at Nally's remark.

"Hi, Elya. Your name is quite unique," Nally said.

"Actually, my real name is Eliyassa, but I prefer Elya for short," Elya mentioned.

"Even more unique," Nally commented.

"Where do you want to sit? It's a free choice of seats here," I interrupted their conversation.

"You can let Yia sit next to you since there's a vacant seat beside you. She doesn't like sitting next to someone and prefers having her seat for her bag," Nally said.

"Hey, don't say that. It's not that I don't want to sit next to them; they don't want to sit next to me," I clarified.

"Why wouldn't they want to sit next to you? You tend to swing your bag around," Nally joked.

"They're just being annoying. And I would never do that to Elya. Don't believe her," I told them, looking at Elya, who smiled in response. I stepped on Nally's foot before we headed to our seats.

"Babe, do you want—hi there," Uno said, sitting in front of me, trying to act charming when he noticed Elya.

"Newbie? Transferee? Hi, I'm Uno, and it means I'm single," he extended his hand to Elya for a handshake. I quickly grabbed his hand and squeezed it tightly.

"No one asked," I said with a smile, causing him pain. Uno was a playboy, though he had good looks. He thought he was something special.

"Why? Are you jealous, babe?" he asked me.

"Are you stupid? Are you made of gold? Your head is full of hot air," I replied.

"But seriously, I'm Uno, Yia's boyfriend," he said.

"Don't believe him; he's just fooling around. Stop making her uncomfortable, Uno," I said.

"I'm Elya," she smiled.

I nudged Uno in the back and whispered to him, "Decide what you want in life, idiot." He winced in pain and whispered, "Fine, you're not someone to joke with." I let him go and focused on the teacher, who had entered the classroom to start the class. Elya introduced herself, and after that, the class began. Before the break, the teacher assigned me to give Elya a tour of the school.

"Shall we buy some snacks first?" I asked."Sure," she replied, smiling. We walked towards the cafeteria, passing by the mini-garden that I used to take care of. "I planted that," I said. "It's impressive that everything survived, though it's now the responsibility of lower-year students."You like gardening?" Elya asked."Not really. It was just an activity, but I enjoyed it," I replied.

She smiled at my answers, and I couldn't help but feel delighted. "Is there a limit to your responses?" I asked her.

"I'm just a bit shy," she said.

"I can be your friend. Don't be shy around me. Once you get to know me, your shyness will fade away," I reassured her.

"Hehe," she giggled.

After buying our snacks, we went straight to the rooftop. "It's the easiest thing to do when giving a tour—take them to a high place," I said.

"Genius. It's beautiful up here," she replied.

"I know, right?" I pointed out the different buildings and which grade levels and colleges were housed in each one. From up there, we could see the gym, pool area, library building, and school cafe.

"I knew you'd be here," a familiar voice came from the rooftop exit.

"What are you doing here, Henry?" I asked when he approached and handed me a Yakult.

"Just making sure my bestie is eating well," he replied.

"Thanks," I said, touched by Henry's thoughtfulness. He was one of my best friends and my ideal man—tall, well-mannered, strong, talented at singing and dancing, and, of course, handsome. But we were best friends, just like Nally and I, and also Thyler and Sky. Yeah, the five of us had been close friends since junior high school, and Henry and I were on the same wavelength.

My imagination about Henry was interrupted when Elya offered me some croissants. "I don't want them anymore," she said shyly. I smiled at her hesitant question. Last night, I had been contemplating whether my attraction to her was just a phase or something more, and now I confirmed that it wasn't just a phase.

"Sure," I replied.

Before I could take a bite, Henry messed up my hair and said, "Pig, I'm leaving first," and then he ran down. He was such a pig. I looked at Elya, who seemed to find our interaction amusing.

"After the whole class, let's go to the library because it's near the dean's office," I suggested.

"Uhmm, what are we doing here?" Elya asked as we entered the library.

"We're waiting for my dad," I replied. "We'll ride in his car on the way back. Ate Anda messaged me that she couldn't pick us up. Do you want to commute?"

"Up to you, but let's not. It might be a hassle," she said.

"Yup," I agreed.

I observed Elya as she read, but I quickly looked away when she caught me staring. My dad peeked into the library and saw me. I immediately ran towards him, and Elya followed.

"We're coming with you," I said.

"I peeked because I wanted to see if you were my new neighbor's daughter," my dad asked.

"Yes, sir," Elya replied.

"Just call me Tito Gerald," my dad said.

"Yes, Tito Gerald," Elya replied.

"Great, now you'll be my youngest daughter's new friend. You two will get along well. Enjoy your high school days here at the university. It's a fun place. I couldn't make it to your house blessing, and I usually stay at school from Friday to Sunday," my dad said.

"That's alright," Elya said.

"By the way, has Alyia already given you a tour?" my dad asked.

"Yes," Elya replied.

"Ah, I knew you'd be up on the rooftop again," my dad teased.

I chuckled at my dad's comment, and Elya joined in with a laugh.

We arrived at the car, and this time, Elya and I started talking a bit more. My dad was quite chatty, so Elya couldn't help but join in the conversation.