Chapter 3 - Coincidences
1160 Words
The convenience store was quiet.
Only the hum of refrigerators and the occasional beep from the cashier filled the air.
Nina stood before the counter, clutching the small application form the manager had just handed her.
“So… you’ve got no work experience?” the middle-aged manager asked kindly.
She hesitated.
“…No.”
“What about the last five years?”
The question made her freeze.
“I…”
Before she could answer, another customer placed a bottle of water on the counter.
“I’ll apply too.”
Nina glanced sideways.
It was the same young man from the entrance.
The manager looked at him in surprise.
“You?”
“Yes.”
“You don’t look like someone who needs a part-time job.”
“I don’t.”
“…Then why?”
“I want one.”
The manager blinked.
“…Well…”
He shrugged.
“I guess that’s not illegal.”
Nina couldn’t help but stare.
Strange…
⸻
Outside the store…
Nina stepped onto the sidewalk with a relieved sigh.
At least she had submitted her application.
Whether she would get hired was another story.
She began walking toward the bus stop.
Behind her…
Footsteps.
Steady.
Unhurried.
After almost a minute, she looked over her shoulder.
The same man.
Walking several meters behind.
Coincidence?
She looked ahead again.
She crossed the street.
A few moments later…
He crossed too.
…That’s odd.
She turned into another road.
A quieter one.
Again…
The footsteps remained.
Her grip tightened around her bag.
Five years in prison had sharpened her instincts.
She stopped abruptly.
The footsteps stopped too.
She turned around.
The young man stood several meters away, one hand in his pocket, completely calm.
“…Are you following me?”
“No.”
“You’ve been behind me since the store.”
“I happen to be walking.”
She frowned.
“…This road only leads to the bus stop.”
“I’m taking the bus.”
She looked him up and down.
“You don’t look like someone who rides the bus.”
A faint smile tugged at the corner of his lips.
“You don’t look like someone who judges people by appearances.”
“…”
She had no comeback.
An awkward silence settled between them.
Finally…
The bus arrived.
She climbed aboard.
Without another word.
The doors began to close—
“Wait!”
The same man stepped inside just before they shut.
Nina blinked.
Seriously?
⸻
The bus was nearly full.
Only one empty seat remained.
Nina took it.
The young man stood beside her, holding the overhead strap.
Neither spoke.
The silence lasted nearly ten minutes.
Until the bus suddenly braked.
A little boy who had been standing nearby stumbled forward.
Without hesitation…
The young man caught him before he hit the floor.
“You okay?”
The boy nodded timidly.
“…Thank you, kuya.”
He simply patted the child’s head before letting go.
Nina watched quietly.
He looked intimidating.
Cold.
Almost expressionless.
Yet…
He had reacted before anyone else.
The boy’s mother smiled gratefully.
“Thank you so much.”
He merely nodded.
“No problem.”
Nina found herself smiling.
Maybe I judged him too quickly.
⸻
Three stops later…
She got off.
To her disbelief…
So did he.
She sighed loudly this time.
He pretended not to notice.
⸻
The next morning…
Nina woke early.
Today was orientation at Westbridge University.
Her first day back as a student.
At twenty-three years old.
Five years older than most first-year students.
She looked at herself in the mirror.
Simple white blouse.
Blue jeans.
A backpack her father had insisted on buying.
“…Let’s do this.”
⸻
Meanwhile…
In another part of the city…
Mark nearly dropped his phone.
Roy emerged from his room wearing the same university uniform.
“…You’re actually serious.”
Roy adjusted his sleeves.
“I told you yesterday.”
“You weren’t joking?”
“No.”
“Dude!”
Mark groaned dramatically.
“You’re making me wake up at six in the morning to attend freshman orientation?”
“I didn’t ask you to come.”
“You threatened to stop paying for my coffee.”
“I simply reminded you that your coffee budget depends on me.”
“…That’s a threat.”
Roy walked toward the door.
“Let’s go.”
Mark sighed.
“You’re rich enough to buy the university. And somehow we’re attending orientation. …I hate my life.”
⸻
Westbridge University buzzed with excitement.
Freshmen wandered around carrying maps.
Parents took pictures.
Student organizations called out to newcomers.
Nina stood near the entrance, feeling completely out of place.
Everyone looked…
Young.
Excited.
Normal.
She felt like an outsider wearing borrowed clothes.
As she searched for the Business Management building—
Someone bumped into her shoulder.
Her papers scattered across the ground.
“Oh! I’m so sorry!”
A cheerful girl quickly crouched beside her, helping gather the papers.
“I wasn’t looking where I was going.”
“It’s okay.”
The girl smiled brightly.
“I’m Chloe. Business Management.”
Nina blinked.
“…Me too.”
“Really? Looks like we’re classmates!”
Before Nina could answer—
A loud voice echoed nearby.
“ROY!”
She instinctively turned.
A group of students waved at a tall young man walking toward the registration area.
The same mysterious man from yesterday.
The one from the convenience store.
The bus.
The street.
You’ve got to be kidding me…
He walked past without looking at anyone else.
Then…
For the briefest second…
His eyes met hers.
He gave a polite nod.
Nothing more.
Nothing less.
Then continued walking.
Chloe noticed.
“You know Roy?”
“No.”
“He seems to know you.”
Nina frowned.
“I’ve only seen him twice. Actually.”
She counted silently.
“The convenience store…The bus…And now here.”
Chloe giggled.
“Maybe fate likes you.”
Nina laughed awkwardly.
“I doubt it.”
A few meters away…
Mark stared between Roy and Nina.
“…Don’t tell me.”
Roy didn’t answer.
Mark’s eyes widened.
“…She’s the reason?”
Still…
No response.
Mark groaned dramatically.
“You really enrolled in college again…For a girl?”
Roy finally looked at him.
“I enrolled because I have something to protect.”
Mark frowned.
“…Protect?”
Roy’s gaze drifted back toward Nina, who was laughing softly at something Chloe had said.
A smile.
A genuine one.
The first he had seen from her in years.
His expression softened almost imperceptibly.
“I’ll make sure no one takes that smile away again.”
He didn’t realize someone was watching him.
From the second-floor balcony.
A girl with long hair narrowed her eyes as she looked down at Nina.
Alice.
“…So that’s where you enrolled.”
Her lips slowly curved into a cold smile.
“Perfect. If prison couldn’t ruin your life…Maybe college will.”
- Writer
