02x31: Farewells and Revelations

Sr. Leo is leaving the batch while Joel finally reveals his crush.

FAREWELLS AND REVELATIONS

 

     The competition that Saturday was sad and lonely since it was an individual competition. Afterwards, he teleported to SM Southmall where the Freshmen were watching a stageplay of a Filipino classic, Florante at Laura.

     The play was already over, though, and he spent the rest of the time searching the mall for Janella. He stuck to his promise of no powers and didn’t find her until she was on her way home.

 

Jumping to Tuesday, it was technically back to normal, except for Sr. Edmond, who was still mad.

      TLE was boring as usual. CCF was interesting as usual. Austin overheard Janella talking about how she’s over her other crush. Their current status, he didn’t know.

     There were rumors going around that Sr. Leo was moving up to the third year level, leaving them behind. It was because the AP teacher of the third years was unavailable. It was still a rumor, however.

     Later that day, during AP Time, their “fears” were confirmed.

     “Sr. Leo! I sit true that you’re moving up?” Mary asked.

     “Well, actually…” Sr. Leo said, for some reason, it was hurting him. It was almost like he genuinely cared for the section.

     “Yes, the rumors are true, I am moving up.”

     “BUT WHY?” Mary asked loudly.

     “Well, first of all, there are no available teachers for the third years. None of the other AP teachers are available. I’m the only one who can fill in the spot of Third Year AP Teacher.”

     “But�"“ Mary started again. It was odd since Mary was Sr. Leo’s number one victim in his tease marathons during class.

     “Look, I will still be your AP teacher until Friday and I will still be your adviser.”

     Almost everyone put on a sad face when Sr. Leo said “adviser”. Sr. Leo noticed this immediately.

     “Look, Bukidnon, I know what happened between you and Sr. Edmond. I already tried to talk to him but he’s too mad at this class.

     “I don’t know why you would disrespect him. He’s trying his best to teach you guys. He’s also your adviser, in times of trouble, he would be your lawyer.”

     “We tried everything,” Alecz said.

     “Well, look, maybe over time, this will subside but as for now, just behave in his class, maybe try apologizing again after a while.”

     Sr. Leo resumed with his class. Even if Sr. Leo was a mean, annoying, leader in the Intrams, there was still a relatively unexplainable melancholic aura now that he’s leaving.

    

The week got worse when in hit Wednesday. Sr. Edmond had calmed down that day, so it wasn’t that bad. When they were lining up after recess, Austin learned a new possibility. For one, Joel was acting extra weird.

     He fell in line when Janella, Danie, Joel, and Ernst were talking.

     “You know, Joel,” Janella said. “You changed after you told me your crush.”

     “Yeah, but not to me,” Ernst said.

     “Shut up, Ernst,” Joel said.

     Joel’s hair was up again. He was starting to become a Jelo archetype since Dave was no longer an a*****e.

     “Hey, I see you finally found out his crush,” Austin told Janella.

     “Yeah, I guess so,” Janella said awkwardly.

     “HIS CRUSH IS IN BUKIDNON AND RHYMES WITH PATELLA!” Danie said.

     At this point, it wasn’t even a possibility but a probable certainty. Once again, three words entered his mind: “What. The. ****?”

     During Math class, Sr. Edmond told Austin to drop by their faculty center later on.

     During lunch, there was a name going around. It was Mike Hawke.

     “Mike Hawke is awesome,” Jianne said to Roey. They laughed.

     “Hey, who’s this Mike guy?” Ernst said. Joel was not with them.

     “Oh, we do not know who Mike is. Thou shalt refer to him by his full name,’ Pocholo said.

     “Okay, then, who is Mike Hawke?” Ernst asked.

     “He’s your friend down below. Some people call him ‘Johnson’ or ‘Long John’ but you can also call him ‘Mr. Happy’,” Michael said.

     “Wait, Ernst is not friends with him. He doesn’t have one,” Jianne said.

     “Duly noted, my intelligent comrade,” Michael said.

     “WHO IS MIKE HAWKE?!” Ernst asked desperately.

     “Oh, I get it,” Austin said before laughing out loud.  

     Ernst was frantically trying to find the answer to this essential life question.

     “Why don’t you say this?” Pocholo said, writing down on his palm and putting it in front of Ernst.”

     “ ‘I love talking to Mike Hawke. I talk to Mike Hawke all the time.’ What’s that supposed to mean?”

     Everyone who got the joke was in stitches, laughing at Ernst. Austin saw Joel, alone, under their mango tree. He wanted to end his intrigue, once and for all.

     He went to him and sat beside him.

     “Joel, I think it’s time for a personal talk. One on One. Best Friend on Best Friend.”

     “Sure.”

     “I don’t need you to put your hand on the Good Book and swear an oath. I trust you with my life. I have a question, all you have to do is answer it.”

     “Okay.”

     Joel’s one-word replies were not helping.

     “Do you�"“ Austin was nervous. “�" have a crush�"“ He was preparing himself for the highly probable answer from this guy he trusts so much. “�"on Janella Deabanico?”

     Silence. It was deafening. It pierced the silence barrier so hard that what was left was noise. Silence broke silence. Minutes felt like hours. Seconds felt like forever. Finally, he opened his mouth. He uttered another one-word reply.

     There it was. He wasn’t that surprised. He, for some reason, laughed.

     “Haha… I remember what you said about her in the first quarter. That’s character development.”

     To think of it, Joel wasn’t like what he was in the first two quarters. He was more serious. He was always like this, even in third grade.

     “AUSTIN!!! I GET IT! MIKE HAWKE, IT’S�"“

     “Not now, Ernst!”

     “Mike Hawke, haha, that’s fantastic. Nice�" NICE ONE GUYS!” Ernst said while laughing at his own misfortune.

     Austin went to Sr. Edmond’s faculty center. He just gave him a certificate stating that he got a second in the MTAP Elimination tests.

 

Thursday was ZL Day. Most of the day was dull except for Scrabble club. It was great because Janella was the president of the Scrabble Club thanks to Maan, who was also in the Scrabble Club. This was good since it would be easier to tease Ernst.

     They always played three player scrabble between him, Ernst, and Johan. There were only two rules. If you beat Ernst, you win. If Ernst beats you, you still win.

     In the end, Austin was actually beaten by Ernst. Ernst reacted to this by saying, “I beat Austin, but I still lost.”

 

The fast passing of the week was mostly attributed to Sr. Leo’s inevitable departure. Bukidnon threw a farewell party that afternoon during Sr. Leo’s period. It was also the last period.

     “I appreciate the effort but I can’t have this party. I have to finish this final lesson for you guys,” he said.

     “Come on, sir. It’s okay. This is our last AP time together,” Alecz said.

     “Okay, fine, but if Ms. Emily doesn’t discuss this, it’s not going to be my fault.”

     “Sir, that’s okay.”

     Sr. Leo played the music on his laptop and they ate the cake and ice cream. It was the most bittersweet party so far.

     Bam had extracted a bloody wound from inside his mouth and he showed it to Aubrey. She almost threw up. The other girls weren’t that sensitive.

     After a while, it was time for Sr. Leo’s final speech. This was it, this was goodbye.

     “Now, I really appreciate the effort you guys put in this party but, once again, it will be a big disadvantage for you

     "Now, I want to talk about Sr. Edmond again. How are you guys with him?”

     Everyone remained silent. Sr. Edmond still hadn’t forgiven them.

     “I see… Well, the thing is, now that I’m gone, Sr. Edmond is your only defense. I tried to talk to him again. He’s still pretty mad.

     “Me, well, you won’t have too much problems from me from now on, I just smile and ignore my problems, I encourage you to do the same but not regarding Sr. Edmond, of course. Have you guys tried apologizing again?”

     “No,” they said.

     “I see. Anyway, changing topic for a while, all I want to leave with you is for you to try your best in all your subjects. I might not be your full-time co-adviser anymore but I’ll still be visiting now and then. If you ever need me, I’m just in the faculty area. I’ll always be there for you, Bukidnon.

     “You know, Bukidnon, out of all the sections I’ve handled, you are the first section to do something like this for me and for that, this section is really special to me.”

     Some students, mostly girls, maybe Ernst but Austin couldn’t see, started to tear up. He couldn’t believe it, Sr. Leo was showing a side which we all needed to see. He never showed this side before.

     “I can safely say that this section is also the most memorable to me. Now saying that, let me go back to Sr. Edmond for a while.

     “Remember, in this school, there are ranks. You are still students, and we are your teachers. Likewise, you should treat your teachers with respect. Even though Sr. Edmond might be the same height as you�"“

     Some of the crying students chuckled and smiled at this relatively out-of-place joke. Austin was still trying to comprehend what was going on. This person was the same person who had quote, unquote, tortured them during the cheering practices.

     “�"but he is still your teacher and you must still treat him likewise. Do you understand?”

     “Yes, Sir Leo…” Bukidnon said, drowned in sniffles and tears.

     “Now, can you please stop crying? I’ll still be there for you guys.”

     Obviously, the answer was no.

     “Look, I’ll make a promise. When your batch reaches third year, I will be your AP teacher.”

     This put a smile on some of their faces.

     RIING!!

     Here it was, the final five minutes with Sir Leo-John S. Busito of school year 2009-2010 in AP class. Austin had finally comprehended what was going on. Yes, it was sad. Nearly all the girls were sobbing.

     “Okay, Bukidnon. I guess it’s nearly time. Let’s stand up.”

     They prayed for a safe trip home and it was time.

     “Goodbye, Bukidnon.”

     “Good bye and thank you, Sir Leo…”

     As Sir Leo exited the classroom, a few of the girls hugged him and he was glued to his spot. Janella was one of the girls with tears in their eyes. She didn’t hug but she did say a final goodbye. The boys just left, Austin included. He was still shocked by the events that had transpired. He had even prevented his regular mannerism of raising his eyebrows and emphasizing a certain word. Austin went back to the hotel and that was that.

 

The next week was dull and boring. Ms. Emily had taken over Sr. Leo’s place and she was pretty much less than welcome here but eventually, Bukidnon learned to accept her.

     Joel wasn’t acting too different towards Austin but they didn’t talk that much. He was also not making any moves. The ridicule directed at him was still the same.

     Austin’s first MTAP Team Competition was on Friday, which was Teachers’ Day, which was also the unofficial celebration for Valentine’s Day in Seton. Sadly, Austin was not going to be there.

     He bought some chocolates for Janella, he was going to go extra early that day. 

     Thursday night, Austin knocked on her door.

     “On my way,” she said.

     She opened the door.

     “Hey there.”

     “Austin, come in…”

     Austin went in and sat down in one of the chairs.

     “Want some drinks? Orange Soda?”

     “Aw, jeez. No, please. Maybe in a month, I’ll drink Orange Soda again.”

     “Oh, ok. What brings you here this lovely Thursday night?”

     “Oh, I just wanted to tell you that I won’t be here tomorrow.”

     “Why?”

     “Math Competition. Me, Lui, and Maan.”

     “Oh…”

     “I’m gonna miss you, you know. I just wanted to tell you so you wouldn’t be so surprised when I’m not there tomorrow.”

     “Oh, thanks.”

     “Well, that’s pretty much it.”

     Janella seemed sad now. Austin noticed this.

     “Hey,” he said. “Cheer up, come on, for me…”

     Austin smiled at her. She smiled back, although faintly.

     “Okay, see ya soon then. Good night.”

     “Good Night too.”

     On Austin’s way out, she called him again. He turned around.

     “Yeah?”

     “Good luck tomorrow. Bring home the gold!”

     “Sure thing! Haha… Good night.”

     “Good night.”

     She closed the door and Austin walked away. He thought to himself, “I’ll win it for you, Janella…”

     He went in the elevator and went back to his floor. He lied down and got a good night’s rest for tomorrow. His dreams that night, however, were less than pleasant…