Chapter 2 Mondragon partners

Chapter 2

The next day

I was roused from sleep because I felt someone kissing the tip of my nose, so I smiled before stretching out both my arms. I was too lazy to get up, and my eyes didn't want to open just yet.

"Good morning, baby. I love you," he greeted me sweetly and kissed me on the lips.

"Good morning, too, Baba," I replied sleepily, wrapping my arms around his neck. I slowly opened one eye, and our gazes met.

"Is something missing?" he asked seriously, looking at me intently.

"I love you, too," I responded sweetly. He smelled fresh, clearly having already showered.

"Get up now. I've prepared breakfast already," he told me.

"Okay," I replied and pulled the blanket over my head, still feeling sleepy.

"Maybe you want a different kind of breakfast, Chrisian?" he teased, which made me sit up abruptly, scratching my head.

"We just finished a while ago," I retorted, getting out of bed. I stretched before heading to the bathroom to take a shower.

"I'll wait for you in the dining area. The food is ready, baby. Hurry up, or you'll be late for class," I heard him say. I nodded, even though he couldn't see me, and followed his advice since the older ones are usually right.

We finished breakfast, and as we were heading to the university, I took a deep breath because here we go again-I was feeling incredibly nervous. I didn't want to go with him, afraid that he might find out what they were doing to me at school. Baba would get angry, and they might all be expelled if he found out. This was also why I was so uneasy yesterday, because Baba didn't know about the bullying.

He opened the car door for me, but I just looked at him and didn't get out immediately, as I was scared. There were still a lot of students walking in and entering the building.

"Baba, go ahead without me," I instructed him. It was annoying because this routine was going to make me late.

"Hello, Professor Frank!" a group of students greeted him, which made him look their way. He smiled but didn't say anything.

"Go ahead, please," I told Baba again, noticing his puzzled expression.

"Don't tell me you're ashamed of me, Chrisian Rana?" he asked seriously, and I quickly shook my head. Of course not, I was proud to be his wife.

"It's not that..." I trailed off, glancing around to see if any more students were coming our way.

"Are you getting out, or do I have to carry you all the way to your classroom?" he threatened.

"You're wasting our time, baby!" he said irritably.

"Please, Baba, just go ahead, even just a little bit. Please?" I begged.

He took a deep breath, handed me his car keys, and started walking. I hurriedly got out since no students were passing by or parking their cars yet. I kept my head down while walking because Professor Lin was right in front of me. I wasn't a nerd, I just didn't like being stared at while walking, especially since they had no right to bully or hurt me.

I could smell his cologne lingering in the air, and it made me smile-I was in love, and we even used the same scent.

"Ouch!" I yelped, touching my head where an empty water bottle had been thrown and fallen right in front of me. This was exactly what I was worried about, I thought.

"Who did that to her?!" Professor Lin angrily asked the students nearby.

"NO ONE'S GOING TO ADMIT IT!" he shouted at them.

"Sorry, Professor Frank," Ella apologized. She was the instigator of everything.

"Who are you?!" he demanded angrily.

"I'm Ella Vyl Chua. My family is one of the Mondragon partners at this university," she announced smugly, which only made Frank angrier.

"This is exactly what I'm talking about," I thought. I usually just let them be because it's embarrassing-they're partners with the Mondragons, so I don't report them to Baba.

"Correction, Ms. Chua! Your family is a partner of *our* family, right? Your family is not irreplaceable to us. You are just a student here, like everyone else at this school."

"Stop bullying!" he yelled at Ella.

"Everyone!" he called out to get the attention of the other students.

"This university enforces anti-bullying policies. Now, I'm warning all of you-stop bullying, or else I will have you all expelled from this school. And I'll make sure no other school will ever accept you. Is that clear?!" he threatened the students. I thought he was done, but then he turned to me.

"We'll talk later," he said seriously before walking away. I just watched his back and shook my head.

"You're lucky Professor Frank defended you," Ella said irritably as she bumped into me while walking past. I exhaled and hung my head again. This wasn't new to me; I had gotten used to it.

I rushed to check if I was heading to the right classroom for my first subject. I walked and ran because I was really in a hurry after what happened. If only Baba had let me be, there wouldn't have been any commotion, and I wouldn't be five minutes late.

I entered the room slowly and sat in the vacant seat between Alex and Jon. Our professor, Mrs. Thomas, was another problem. It was obvious she didn't like me, and she wasn't hiding it.

"Why are you late, Reyes?" she asked me.

"Sorry, Professor. It won't happen again," I replied politely, bowing my head.

"What is Subject-Verb Agreement, Reyes?" she asked. She always asked me questions, but thankfully, I could answer them since she taught English, which was my major. I stood up confidently and answered.

"Subject-verb agreement means that a subject and its verb must both be singular or both be plural. A singular subject takes a singular verb, and a plural subject takes a plural verb," I explained at length. She didn't say anything, just nodded.

"Now, Reyes, give me an example of subject-verb agreement in a sentence and write it on the board. Also, circle the subject and the verb so your classmates can understand," she ordered. It seemed like I was the only one she knew, so I stood up and walked to the board.

"What's your example?" she asked me sternly.

"Alex walked to the store," I said briefly and wrote it on the whiteboard.

"Alex is singular," I said as I circled "Alex," "and walked is a verb," I added, circling "walked." I handed her the marker and returned to my seat.

"Very good, Reyes," she said, so I smiled, though I knew her praise wasn't sincere. She was fake.

"Hey, why were you late again?" Jon asked me.

"I couldn't catch a ride," I replied.

"That's impossible, Rana," Alexa chimed in, making me look at her. She didn't believe my excuse.

"It was Ella again, wasn't it?" she guessed.

"Just leave it," I told them, focusing back on Mrs. Thomas and her English lesson.

"Rana?" Jon called out, a bit giddy. I glanced at him. These two never really focused on their studies. They didn't need to; they were rich, after all.

"What?" I asked, annoyed.

"Alexa and I are excited for our next professor," Jon said, clearly thrilled.

"Focus, Jon. Stop acting giddy," I scolded him. His name sounded so masculine, but his behavior was far from it.

Our next subject was Philosophy, and Frank was our substitute professor. He had recently taken over as the school's president, following in his father's footsteps, and now he wanted to be dean too. He was only substituting because our professor had gone to Canada for a master's degree, and since they were cousins, Frank had been convinced to take over for a while. Baba had just finished his Ph.D. at Harvard and had only recently returned.

I glanced toward the door, and it felt like everything moved in slow motion. He was serious. This was the professor Jon and Alexa had been waiting for, and Jon was visibly excited, adjusting his posture.

"Everyone!" Frank called for our attention, and we all looked up at him. He was wearing glasses and scanned the room with a serious expression.

"Let me introduce myself to all of you," he began, and we nodded.

"I am Professor Frank Lin Mondragon. I completed my degree in Teaching Spanish, and I've been teaching here for..." He paused and scratched his eyebrow. "I think it's been almost five years now, even before I got married," he continued, raising his left hand, which bore a wedding ring. A lot of students reacted to this, including my two friends.

"After my wedding, I decided to finish my Ph.D. in Philosophy at Harvard University, and at the same time, I was also an instructor there," he informed us, looking in my direction.

"Professor, can I ask you a question?" Jon raised his hand and asked.

"Yes, Jon Peter De," Frank called on him.

"Go ahead," Frank added, which made Jon even more excited.

"I forgot what I was going to ask," Jon said as he sat back down, making me shake my head in disbelief.

"You're ridiculous. You're just embarrassing yourself," Alexa whispered to Jon, but he just rolled his eyes and continued to swoon.

"Why does he know my name?" Jon whispered to me excitedly, but I just shrugged.

"Alexa Claire Smith," Frank called on Alexa, making her stand up quickly.

"What are you whispering to your seatmate?" he scolded.

"Sorry, Prof," she apologized and glanced at Jon, who was still giddy.

Frank Lin-or my Baba- knew everything about me, from my schedule to my school friends. The only thing he didn't know was how the students acted at school and the fact that the driver didn't drop me off at the gate but a bit farther, leaving me with a five-minute walk. I'd explain it to him if he ever found out.

To Be Continued...