ACACIA NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL
Location: Cafeteria
It was loud, crowded, and hot inside the place where students were all scrambling to be the first to get their food. No one cared about bumping or pushing others. Some even took advantage of the chaos to slip away with bread stuffed with hotdog, cheese, ham, or bacon. There were also meticulous students carefully choosing which glass had more soup or champorado. One of the longest lines was for soft drinks.
Heading toward that place was a female student with eyes glimmering slightly with tears from a yawn. If not for the hunger, she wouldn't have dragged her lazy, tired body to the cafeteria just to get food.
"Huaam! Haaah! I'm so hungry and tired."
Because of the heat, she tried to tie her long hair. Since she didn't have a ponytail holder, she simply wrapped it around and tucked it in after a few twists. She noticed eyes staring at her. When she looked up, she narrowed her beautiful eyes at the male and female students watching her. They were loitering near the cement area where trees were planted—probably because it was cooler there, given it was summer.
She gave them her trademark look—her lazy, good-for-nothing smile.
The young students blushed at that "charming" smile.
"Ophelia smiled at me! Did you see that?!"
"As if! Didn't you see? She was looking at me!"
"What's she doing here? Doesn't she usually skip going down to the cafeteria for recess?"
"Yeah! Did she run out of food at her desk? There was a lot on her table earlier!"
"You didn't hear?"
"What? Did she do something again?"
"Haha. Don't you know? Lots of people saw Ophelia outside the school gate earlier. Before classes started, she gathered all the food her admirers gave her and brought it outside."
"Huh? What for? Did she throw it away? But she always eats those snacks during class, even when the teacher is lecturing!"
"Jealous, much? If you want that kind of privilege, try becoming top one first!"
"Of course not! I idolize Ophelia! Hahaha! I'll never forget how she shut down Sir Pervert! Hahaha!"
"Right?! But what exactly did she do outside the gate?"
"Oh, we saw her giving the food away—to the street kids!"
"As expected of my Goddess! She really is the one!"
The student they were talking about walked by, mind adrift. It wasn't unusual for her to look like she was lost in thought.
She's a strange student, alright.
At first, people found her weird, but over time—even her oddness became part of her charm. They said it only added to her mysterious aura.
Ophelia finally stepped into the cafeteria. She narrowed her pretty eyes as she took in the chaos.
Her earlier tired and lazy gaze turned sharp and cold. Tilting her small, lovely face with an annoyed expression, she glanced toward the approaching guard. She walked up to him.
"Hi, Sir Arnold!"
The young guard was startled when a student greeted him. He recognized the girl—her looks were unforgettable, and more importantly, she was famous at school. He couldn't help but feel pleased that she not only knew him but addressed him as if they were long-time acquaintances.
"Yes, miss?" he asked, smiling with a respectful tone he didn't even realize he used.
"Can I borrow your lapel mic, please?" she asked sweetly.
"Huh? Why, miss?" he asked, confused. "Do you have an announcement? Here, just return it after."
"...Thank you."
"Alright, good luck, miss!"
Ophelia stood there as the guard walked away. Then, she turned her gaze back to the chaotic cafeteria.
"Whatever," she mumbled while scratching her eyebrow, and then she put on the lapel mic. She tested it, and the screeching sound stopped everyone.
"Aah! What was that?!"
"Ow! My ears!"
"Hey, what the heck?! Why are you pushing—"
All noise ceased when they heard a cold voice.
"Listen."
The cafeteria fell silent. All eyes turned to the student wearing the lapel mic. Her voice had amplified across the space. For some reason, even the vendors, kitchen staff, and cashiers stopped moving. Her authoritative tone demanded attention.
"I'm sorry, guys. Can we please line up properly? Also, no shouting and noise? It'll help reduce the heat and noise pollution." She furrowed her brows and pointed at the junk food stall.
"You. Yes, you—the girl with the Mickey Mouse headband. Go stand at the front of the line. That's it. And you, you, you… Just like that. Whoever wants to buy, please fall in line properly."
The students obediently lined up like children. A straight, organized queue formed.
Next, her sharp, increasingly impatient gaze swept across the other lines. Once the crowd settled, it became cooler and more breathable inside the once chaotic cafeteria.
"Yes, that's it. Great. Okay, we can eat now. Thank you for your cooperation."
Satisfied, she nodded and her annoyed look disappeared—replaced again with her usual easy-going expression.
She turned off the lapel mic and joined the end of the sandwich line, yawning.
"Ophelia, y—you can go ahead in front of me," offered a male student.
Since she wanted to get back and sleep in the classroom quickly—
"Wow! Thanks!" she shamelessly accepted the offer, making the boy blush. The same thing happened again and again until she reached the counter.
She's shameless, alright.
"Thank you, dear. I hope you keep buying like this! I'll give you extra," said the overly enthusiastic vendor with a grimace.
"Thanks for your hard work, Manang Glo!" she replied and then lined up for soft drinks. Once she had everything she wanted, she returned the lapel to the guard who was now standing at the cafeteria exit.
He looked dazed as he stared at her.
"Sir Arnold, thanks for lending it to me! I'll go ahead now! See you around!"
Ophelia walked back to the classroom, chewing her food, and was surprised to see more food already on her desk.
"Hi, Ophelia!" greeted her classmate Mae, her seatmate.
"Oh," she replied flatly and sat down. She started going through the food on her desk with sparkling eyes. It was perfect—she had just finished her soft drink, and now there was an even colder one sitting there.
"Oh, that hit the spot!" she exclaimed happily, drinking her Coca-Cola. She opened the letter that had been placed on top of it.
"…." Ophelia tried not to grimace. She had a feeling whoever gave the letter was still nearby.
"Hmm…" She reached into her bag for a pen and grabbed a piece of 1/4 paper to write a reply.
"What… are you doing, Ophelia?" Mae asked. Ophelia stared at her for about four seconds.
"I'm replying."
"Really?! You're not lazy today?"
Ophelia softly cleared her throat after being called lazy.
"Just for today, okay?" she said, as Mae stared in disbelief.
"Oooh~"
She ignored Mae and wrote her reply:
---
𝓓𝓮𝓪𝓻 𝓕𝓪𝓷,
First of all, thank you for the soft drinks. Second, unfortunately, I do not believe I'm a fairy, and most of all, I'm certainly not an angel. I'm pretty sure about that—because I'm a bad gurl.
- Ophelia
---
"Pfft," Mae giggled as she read the note.
"Marites," Ophelia muttered, shaking her head.
"What's 'marites'?"
"Heh. Meaning, you're nosy."
Mae pouted as she watched Ophelia eat, read, and write replies until all the food on her desk was gone and she had answered every letter.
Not once did she offer to share.
Ophelia placed the letters under her desk, knowing that her kind classmates would collect them after class.
She leaned back in her chair, gazing out the window. She watched the leaves dancing in the wind, the birds flying in the sky. In that moment—this peaceful moment—she felt a rare kind of serenity. Sitting in class with her classmates, she found herself wishing time would stop.
Ophelia let out a heavy sigh, which Mae heard.
Mae looked at her beautiful seatmate. Like the days before, Ophelia seemed lost in deep thought. She didn't know why, but whenever she looked at her—it felt like Ophelia carried such deep sadness in her back. Her eyes looked tired, like they had seen too much of life.
Even though Mae wanted to get closer to her, she felt like she'd never truly be part of Ophelia's world. She was just a seatmate. Mae smiled sadly, wanting to ask if Ophelia would accept her as a friend—but she couldn't. Because… she felt it would only push her further away.
Yes, that's who her seatmate Ophelia was.
She's kind, easy-going, and lazy.
She's always tired because of something… that no one can quite explain.
There was even a time she became the center of controversy. It came out that she had run away from home. Rumors spread that she wasn't the real daughter of the family she lived with, that she was treated like a servant, and that her stepfather had bad intentions toward her—which she exposed and had arrested.
How did she do it? She went to the police station and provided evidence of the abuse toward his wife: CCTV footage, voice recordings of his threats, and proof of his drug use.
She had him arrested and left their home. She now lives in the house of their young homeroom teacher.
Ophelia changed a lot. Before, she didn't care about her appearance. Her uniform was wrinkled, her hair messy, her shoes dirty, and her bag torn. Now, everything she owned was new.
"Did Teacher Rose buy you that bag and shoes, Ophelia?" Mae remembered asking once.
"Huh? No, I bought them. I joined some investments and bought a few stocks."
"Huh? What's that?"
Not only Mae heard it—some of our classmates too. And she showed us how she earned money using her new phone.
She's really amazing, alright.