WebNovels

Chapter 12 - Do you have a girlfriend?

By 9 AM, Philip's phone rang once more. He was preparing to head to the college building by then, checking his bag one last time.

"Hello," he answered.

"Big brother! Are you headed to your classroom right now?" A voice called out enthusiastically, practically shouting through the speaker.

Philip instinctively retracted his phone from his ear at the loud voice, wincing.

"Andrew! Why are you shouting so early in the morning? Also, we're the same age—I told you many times not to call me big brother," Philip scolded, shaking his head.

"What can I say? I'm really excited that you're here!" Andrew said sheepishly, not even responding to Philip's later question as if he hadn't heard it at all.

Andrew Thomson was Seth Thomson's only son. And although they were born in the same year, Philip was older by a few months.

So Philip would always be referred to as his older brother, much to his annoyance.

"Now tell me why you're calling me," Philip asked, getting straight to the point.

"I have many things to report to you! I enrolled in the arts and design department."

"We'll be having a combined session with your department today, so I'll see you there!" Andrew stated enthusiastically and immediately ended the call.

Philip was left completely dumbfounded, staring at his phone. He didn't even have the chance to question him or say goodbye.

He couldn't help but think that Andrew's character was an exact copy of Seth's.

His straightforwardness and loud personality were clearly traits taken directly from his father.

*Knock knock.*

"Are you ready?" William was knocking at his door.

Both Philip and Jonathan were in the e-commerce investment management department.

The hierarchical standing of the students also determined what departments they could realistically enroll in.

Elite students like Philip could enroll in whatever department they wanted without restriction. But there were also a few departments that were specifically reserved for them, like e-commerce and global trading, international finance and banking, corporate strategy and management.

The rest of the students could enroll in whatever department they wanted as well, but even then, there were departments that could only be afforded by high-class students.

Such were film production, which cost a fortune in equipment. Aviation management for its mandatory flight hours. And a few more specialized programs.

'Thinking back at his demeanor and characteristics of a civilized person, I believe Philip would be at least high class, or a middle class very close to high class at least,' Jonathan thought as they waited for Philip outside his room.

Jonathan wore an oversized shirt, baggy pants, and a sling bag to carry his books and laptop.

With his skinny frame and his bushy hair, it gave him an aesthetic sense of fashion—very art student vibes.

On the other hand, William dressed in a navy sweatshirt with his chest muscles protruding against the fabric, black trousers, and a backpack.

His hair was flipped back and tucked, exposing his forehead completely.

Showcasing his outgoing, confident personality.

After a moment of silence, Philip finally came out from his room.

He wore a crisp white polo shirt, navy tailored trousers, polished leather loafers, and a knit sweater casually draped on top.

He also put on his Rolex Datejust to complete his outfit.

His look gave off a "professional but not stuffy, comfortable for classes, but still clearly expensive quality" vibe.

"Oh, here he comes," William said, already closing the social distance between them with his casual speech, even though they'd only met this morning.

"Philip, this is Theodore," William enthusiastically introduced the young man who was standing nervously beside them.

Theodore had an average build, a nicely combed-up hairstyle, and wore a blazer that practically screamed virginity.

"He's our neighbor, second door from your room. Although he has a roommate, they aren't in the same department, so he joins us since we're all in the same department."

"Plus, his roommate had already made other friends to go with from his own department," William explained.

"You can call me Theo. Nice to meet you," Theodore greeted, putting his hand out for a handshake.

"Likewise. You can call me Philip," Philip responded, receiving him with a firm handshake.

Theodore nodded, visibly relaxing.

He was a bit intimidated at first, seeing Philip's tall stature and sharp haircut, which made him look like a rich delinquent.

But seeing Philip's polite response, he quickly changed his view of him.

This was completely understandable. With Philip's sleek French crop that almost looked like a buzz cut, combined with his naturally furrowed brows and his sharp, defined jawline, he indeed looked like a mean person at first glance.

They all headed towards the main college buildings together.

On their way, they passed by several other students from different departments.

And among them, there were many beautiful girls who wore tight jeans and short skirts, showcasing their bodies as if it was some kind of competition.

"Look at all these beauties," William said, his eyes following a group of girls.

"Man, I hope to get a girlfriend during my time in college," William said loudly after a long, dramatic sigh.

Although he wasn't to be considered ugly by any means, he was clearly the least conventionally attractive in his group.

The most attractive being Philip, excelling in all qualities—looks, fashion, and demeanor.

At second place would be Jonathan with his cool, mysterious persona playing a big part. And third being Theodore.

"Don't worry, you might get one if there are actually girls who still like muscle heads," Theodore comforted in a sarcastic manner, patting William on the shoulder.

William was the same height as Philip, but his build was immensely larger—a result of his consistent years in the gym during high school.

William glared at him and gave a playful smack to his head jokingly, to which Theodore laughed it off.

After just a week or two, they were already at the stage where they could openly tease each other without offense.

"Do you have a girlfriend?" Philip asked Theodore, amused by their interaction.

"Of course I do," Theodore said smugly, puffing out his chest.

"Liar," William gave another light smack to his head to interject his statement.

"Hehe, well, not actually," Theodore said sheepishly as he rubbed the area where he'd just been smacked.

"Don't even ask about it, Philip. This guy has a crush from high school who is also attending this institute."

"A Russian chick who is wayyy out of his league. He didn't even confess once before."

"He keeps saying stuff like they're fated to be together just because they were seated together back then and how they 'coincidentally' ended up in the same college," William gave a brief, exasperated summary, waving his hand in a whimsical manner before Theodore could utter a word in defense.

"Who is out of my league, huh? We're perfectly compatible, like a kettle and its handle!" Theodore suddenly shouted enthusiastically, his face flushing.

"Yeah, yeah, of course you are," William said, taking in his words through one ear and letting them out the other.

He'd heard this exact statement several times over the passing week and was completely fed up with it.

"Although this guy actually does have a girlfriend," William said as he pointed towards Jonathan.

Jonathan, who had been walking a bit behind them with one hand in his pocket and his other hand typing on his phone, noticed that the conversation before him had abruptly gone silent. He looked up and, seeing the gaze of his friends all landed on him, felt confused.

"Say what?" he asked dumbly, clearly not paying attention to their chatter.

"Wow, so busy chatting with your girlfriend that you didn't even have time to hang with us," William said in a jokingly upset manner, clutching his chest dramatically.

"Wha—what? No way," Jonathan showed a rigid smile and quickly slid his phone into his pocket.

Although he didn't try to keep the fact that he had a girlfriend a secret, being openly teased about it was not something his reserved personality could handle comfortably.

---

After two more minutes of walking through the campus, they'd arrived at the investment management department building.

A large three-story building with a considerably big courtyard and trees planted here and there where students could rest under their shade.

"Well, this is our stop. See you back at the dorm!" William said as he waved them off and entered the campus gate.

Jonathan and Theodore waved as well and entered behind William.

As they were walking along the pavement leading to the entrance of the building, Theodore pondered something.

"By the way, what department is Philip enrolled in?" he asked suddenly.

William paused in his step, as if a sudden sense of realization had struck him.

"I don't know," William said as he scrunched up his brows and looked up in a thinking posture.

"Now that you mention it, I did ask if he was in our department, and after he said no, I didn't think to question him further," William said, scratching his head.

Jonathan, on the other hand, was already busy on his phone again.

Silently typing without looking up. He stopped walking instinctively when the others stopped but didn't listen to their conversation, nor did he cease his typing.

"I'll just ask him when we get back," William said, shrugging his shoulders and continuing his march toward the building.

---

After a few more minutes of walking through what felt like a maze, following the signboard directions that had been planted around campus, Philip finally arrived.

**Global Trading and E-Commerce**

The large letters were sculpted onto the face of the building in elegant font.

The building was not designed like the other nearby buildings, which had a traditional concrete architectural sense to them.

This building was elevated slightly from the ground. A wide, grand staircase led to the entrance, and a large see-through automatic door would smoothly open and close whenever a person stopped before it.

The first floor was long and expansive. The second floor was only constructed halfway on top of the first floor, which added much to its modern, artistic sense.

Most of the exterior walls were covered in thick, tinted glass that could only be seen through from the inside.

These windows were layered in sections so they could be electronically powered and controlled to shut lights out completely.

Some were even specially designed to be used as presentation screens without the need for a big screen or projector.

Needless to say, the quality and facilities an elite class received could not be compared to what a normal student had access to.

The difference was astronomical.

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