“Mom? Itsuki? No…. Noooooo!” Aiden cried as he watched the car his mother and younger brother was in, being engulfed by flames, as his father, flanked by his assistant stood by and watched behind him.
“Stupid woman...” Aiden’s father, Carlos quipped as his assistant got her phone out to report the incident. “That’s what happens when you dare question my authority!” Carlos continued.
“This is your fault… This all your fault!” Aiden raised his voice, still on his knees as he closed both his fists, his tears dropping on the pavement.
“What was that boy!?” Carlos raised his voice, as he glared at his son.
“You killed mother and Itsuki! THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!” Aiden screamed at the top of his lungs before he lunged towards his father, intending to land a blow. His father who was 182cm tall, and stocky, easily stopped his 9-year old son’s attempted punch. Carlos easily blocked his son’s fist with his left hand and grabbed Aiden by the collar with his right.
“You stupid, ungrateful child!” Carlos responded as he lifted his eldest son with his right hand. “Your mother’s defiance and stupidity run in your veins! I shall have you taught how to be a proper member of the Labrador family!” Carlos said as he threw his son down on the pavement, his assistant giving a worried look as she talked with the police on her cellphone.
Aiden was down on the pavement, blood dripping from his forehead, his arms and legs scratched from the impact. The 9-year old slowly tried to stand back up, his legs and arms shaking due to the anger he was feeling, and his injuries.
“Sir, the police, and the fire department are heading this way” Carlos’ assistant Maya informed her boss.
“Let’s get out of here, the press would have a field day if they spot us here, let the driver know we’re heading back” Carlos ordered as he turned his back from his son.
“That family name be damned” Aiden said, wiping the blood dripping from his forehead as he stood back up, “I HATE YOU!” Aiden added before he started running towards the burning wreckage of the car.
“Maya! After him!” Carlos ordered as Maya placed her phone back in her pocket as she tried to run after the young boy. It proved difficult for Maya, given that she was wearing a business suit, and heels. Aiden ran past the burning wreck when the car suddenly exploded, the boy’s silhouette being engulfed in flames.
“BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!”
The alarm clock on Aiden’s cellphone rang and buzzed on his bedside table. Aiden opened his eyes, grabbing his cellphone from his bedside table – 08/15/22, 6:00 AM. Aiden got up, sitting on the side of his bed before placing his cellphone back where it was. He gave a quick sigh before he got out of bed and headed to the bathroom to brush his teeth and take a shower.
As Aiden got out of the bathroom, his phone started ringing. “Who could be calling so early in the morning?” He walked calmly towards where his phone was and looked at the caller ID.
“Aurea Gutierrez”
Aiden quickly answered the phone as soon as he realized who was calling.
“Aiden, are you out of bed?” The person on the other line asked.
“Yes, I just finished showering” Aiden responded as he dried his hair with a towel.
“Good, today’s the first day of classes, and the inaugural batch of international students from our International Exchange Program will have their orientation today, as Student Council President, and by extension, the President of the International Student Organization, I’m expecting you to be there”
“That’s too troublesome” Aiden complained, “Why do I have to? Can I just ask my Vice Presidents?”
“You’re the head of multiple organizations on campus, plus you’re the Student Council President, you’re the perfect student candidate to handle this. We could use the exposure too, since this is the first time the university is admitting international students on campus, I’m sure your fans would help us with our launch’s social media presence”
Aiden gave out a sigh, “It’s going to be a drag dealing with them again this year”
Aurea gave out a chuckle on the other line, “Well, it’s bound to happen anyways, a good-looking boy like you would attract a number of followers, you have more IG and Twitter followers than the university has”
“Are you sure you’re the Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs?”
“Yes, I am, and as such, I’m ordering you to be at the orientation today” Vice Chancellor Gutierrez pressed Aiden on the matter.
“Do I have a choice?” Aiden reluctantly agreed, “How many students are we expecting?”
“I can’t remember at the top of my head, but I forwarded the information to your Vice President at the Student Council, Grace should have the list prepped by now”
“Right, well, I guess I’ll see you at orientation then”
“That you will, also, careful with your fans, I heard they’ll be waiting for you at the main gate today” Vice Chancellor Gutierrez warned as she gave out a laugh.
“How do you kn-“ before Aiden could ask, the Vice Chancellor already hung up “She always does that”.
Aiden gave out a huge sigh, he placed his phone down on the bedside table before walking towards the window, opening the curtains, giving him a view of Quezon City.
“First day of classes and it’s going to be a pain in the ass” Aiden commented before he walked towards his closet to get ready.
Mount Juliet University is a private university based in Quezon City, Philippines. The university is well known for its Law, Political Science, International Relations, Economics, Architecture, and Engineering programs, they are also well known in the field of athletics, as their sports team has won multiple national championships for several years in a row. The university also has a prestigious research laboratory which is not only well known nationwide but is also recognized on the international level.
While the university is known in several areas, it was lagging compared to other universities in terms of international student admissions. It was not until the previous academic year that the board of directors and the university administration decided to launch the Mount Juliet International Exchange Program in order to diversify their student body and become competitive with other universities.
It was already 6:45 AM when Aiden finished getting ready, he grabbed his phone and sent a message on LINE to his Vice President, Grace Manalo.
“Grace, how many international students are we expecting today?” Aiden sent before the sound of knocking came from his front door. Aiden placed his phone in his pocket before walking towards his door. As he opened it, his best friend, Mingyu Park shoved a sandwich on his face.
Mingyu Park has been Aiden’s friend since his last year in middle school, Mingyu is a member of the MJU Volleyball team, even though he’s an athlete he’s also quite skilled at playing the guitar, and a member of the newly created International Student Organization, serving as Vice President. He is known to chase after “hot” girls around campus. Mingyu is 181cm tall, has black hair, which he dyed light brown, piercings on both his ears, and quite an outgoing personality. Mingyu is mixed Filipino Korean, so he has a fair complexion. While he is considerably handsome, his pervy attitude usually turns off the girls he chases after. Still, he’s quite popular with girls on campus. He calls Aiden his best friend, but this can be considered one-sided as Aiden never explicitly acknowledges it, though he doesn’t seem bothered by it either. Mingyu majors in International Relations.
“I bet you’re going to skip breakfast again, so I brought you something today” Mingyu said before Aiden could even react. Aiden snatched the bag where the sandwich was in and threw it inside, landing on top of the dining table.
“Good Morning to you too” Aiden responded without any expression.
“Cold as always” Mingyu smiled before entering his friend’s home, and sitting on the dining room chair, opening the bag of sandwich.
“I don’t know why you just barge in into people’s home unannounced” Aiden commented as he closed the door.
“There’s always an exception to Mr. Ikemen’s best friend” Mingyu said as he took a bite out of the sandwich that Aiden threw earlier.
Aiden glared at Mingyu, “I hate that nickname”
“You should be used to it by now, all your fans at the university calls you that, it’s basically your unofficial title, in addition to your other titles I might add”
Aiden sighed, before pulling out the chair right next to Mingyu, pulling his phone out as well, “Why bother bringing me a sandwich if you’re going to eat it anyways?” Aiden looking at Mingyu who was enjoying the sandwich that was supposedly his.
“Knowing you, it’ll probably go to waste, you don’t eat anything before lunch time anyways” Mingyu quipped, “Although, I’m surprised you’re up early, you usually open your door and still have bed hair”
“If you knew that, why bother bringing a sandwich in the first place? We’ve known each other for years, you should have given up trying to make me eat something in the morning” Aiden answered, “I just happen to wake up early, nothing wrong with that”
Mingyu started laughing, nearly choking on the sandwich he was eating “You know my motto Ne-“
Before Mingyu could say his motto, Aiden cut him off “Never give up – I know, I practically hear it everyday”
“Ping-pong!” Mingyu congratulated his best friend, “What time did you even sleep?”
“4:30”
“You know, that’s a really bad habit, you don’t sleep properly, you don’t eat breakfast, and whenever you do eat, it’s not much, you’re going to-”
“Die early? You’ve been saying that since Middle School, yet here I am” Aiden said as he cut off Mingyu mid-sentence for the second time.
“You know me too well!” Mingyu laughed before taking another bite from the sandwich, “Also, what’s with that expression, it’s early in the morning and you seem to be in a bad mood”
“The Vice Chancellor called, she pretty much ordered me to be at orientation today” Aiden complained as his phone vibrated.
“What orientation?” Mingyu asked with a confused expression, as he got up and walked towards Aiden’s fridge to grab some orange juice.
“The International Student Orientation” Aiden replied as he looked at his phone. “Shouldn’t you know that? I mean you’re the Vice President of ISO” Aiden added as she replied to Grace’s message.
“We have a total of 200 international students coming, the orientation will be at the student center’s auditorium at 10:00 AM. DON’T BE LATE!” Grace’s message read.
Aiden gave out another sigh, “It’s going to be a huge pain in the ass” Aiden typed before sending his reply.
“Are there any hot girls? I’ve always wanted to date a foreigner” Mingyu asked as he sat back down where he was sitting, sipping on the carton of juice he grabbed from Aiden’s fridge.
“Don’t ask me, don’t know, don’t care” Aiden coldly replied before his phone vibrated again, “Besides, you’re practically a foreigner too”
“Coming from my half-Japanese friend here” Mingyu asked before taking another sip, “Who are you messaging anyways”
“Grace” Aiden responded as he messaged his Vice President back.
“Grace!? From the Student Council!?” Mingyu said with a huge grin on his face, “She’s pretty hot, don’t you think? Right? Right?” Mingyu excitedly said, pressing his best friend to agree with him.
“You’re an additional pain in the ass, stop pestering me” Aiden once again replied coldly, “You always get so excited when you talk about girls, maybe you should focus more on your studies for a change”
“But girls are the best topic to have! Makes your blood run quickly!” Mingyu excitedly proclaimed before another knock came from the front door.
“Another nuisance...” Aiden whispered as Mingyu got up to answer the door.
“WHAT ARE YOU GUYS DOING!? WE’LL MISS THE TRAIN AT THIS RATE!” a loud voice came from the door as Mingyu opened it.
“Good Morning beau-” Mingyu tried greeting the other person, before taking a punch at the abdomen. The other person walked in, walking pass by Mingyu who was somewhat in pain.
“You’re loud as usual” Aiden said without even looking who it was, “Calm down a bit”.
“Calm down!? Both of you know that it’s the first day of classes, there’s going to be tons of people at the train station if we don’t hurry up!”
“That’s one hell of a good morning Katrina” Mingyu said as he closed the door and walked towards where he was sitting earlier, “It’s too early to be this hot headed”
“It’s because both of you are so laid back! Both of you have no sense of time! A smart good-looking sloth and a pervy athlete, I don’t even know how I ended up being friends with the both of you!”
“You probably couldn’t resist my handsome face, Aiden just happened to be a consolation since we’re already friends” Mingyu teased before Katrina turned to him, giving him a death stare.
“Say that again?” Katrina asked sarcastically.
“I said you probably couldn’t re-“ Mingyu answered back, knowing that it would infuriate her. Katrina slapped him on the head before Mingyu could even finish.
Aiden just sighed at his two friends that were arguing beside him, still messaging Grace on LINE.
Katrina Tolentino. Aiden’s friend since their first year in high school, typically a hot head, but is seriously diligent and smart – always ranking within the top 5 in her class. She has a knack for being punctual and is an expert in time management. She’s the student council’s comptroller, a member of the debate club, and the International Student Organization – serving as the Chief of Staff. Katrina is about 152cm tall, long black hair that she always ties in a ponytail, slim and always looks professional. Katrina is the voice of reason and rationality, given that Aiden and Mingyu slacks most of the time. Katrina double majors in Finance and Economics.
Katrina let out a huge sigh, before sitting down on the other chair next to Mingyu, and in front of Aiden, who was still fixated on his phone.
“Why are you sitting down? Didn’t you just give us a long lecture about being late?” Mingyu said.
“What’s the point, you two aren’t going to move any faster anyways, it’s a waste of time and energy” Katrina replied, seemingly giving up on making the other two hurry up.
“If you already know that, why waste that energy shouting and arguing” Aiden responded without even looking at Katrina.
“Yeah! Yeah!” Mingyu agreed, nodding his head as he took a sip of his orange juice.
“I guess you’re right” Katrina reluctantly agreed, crossing both her arms, “So, did something happen?” Katrina turned to face Mingyu.
“The Vice Chancellor called him earlier” Mingyu responded.
“Ah, figures. I could tell with that expression. I’m guessing it’s about the orientation”
“It’s-“
Aiden was about to reply when Katrina and Mingyu finished it for him in tandem “a pain the ass”
“Yeah, we know” Mingyu and Katrina said at the same time. Aiden only raised an eyebrow, seemingly impressed that the two could finish his words in tandem.
“So how long are we sitting here for?” Katrina asked as she took her phone out.
“Give it a few more minutes” Mingyu answered back as he took his phone out too. Aiden as usual was expressionless and quiet. Mingyu’s phone suddenly vibrated indicating that he received a message.
“Hey, Aaron and Jasper said they’ll wait for us at the station” Mingyu announced as he read the message he received.
“They’re early today” Katrina commented as she opened her Instagram.
“They said they want to check out the new girls from the first batch of international students” Mingyu added before getting excited again “ Now why didn’t I think of that!?”
“I swear to God, that’s all you’re interested in” Katrina responded with a sigh as she scrolled through her Instagram feed, “I can’t believe you’re ISO’s Vice President”
Aiden placed his phone on the table, and got up, heading towards his bedroom. Katrina and Mingyu just continued with their own business. Aiden entered his bedroom, grabbed his laptop, iPad, notebook, a pen and mechanical pencil, his wallet and his university ID card and placed them in his bag. He moved across the room, unplugging his iPod from the charger and grabbing his earphones in the drawer below where his iPod had been charging. While Aiden was in his bedroom, his phone started vibrating and making notification sounds like crazy.
“There it goes” Mingyu commented as he kept texting on his phone.
“Aiden is going to be pissed again” Katrina added as she closed her Instagram and moved to her Facebook.
Aiden came out of his bedroom, earphones in his ears, walked towards the bookshelf next to his television and pulled the book “Leviathan” by Thomas Hobbes. Mingyu tilted his head up and looked at where Aiden was, seeing him wearing his headphones, he started flicking his fingers at Katrina to signal her that they were about to head out. Katrina and Mingyu got up, with Katrina walking towards the door, and Mingyu cantering towards the fridge to grab another carton of orange juice.
Aiden headed back to the kitchen to grab his phone, noticing all the notifications, he silenced his phone and just raised his right brow. Katrina opened the door and walked out, Aiden behind her, with Mingyu the last to leave.
Aiden lived on the 30th floor of the condominium he was staying at, and so the trio had to take the elevator down to the lobby. It’s a 10-minute walk from Aiden’s condominium to the train station, and a 25-minute ride to get to the MJU Station. The elevator that the trio was riding is what Mingyu calls the “Exclusive Express Elevator”, since the top floor where Aiden lives was considered exclusive, they were given the perks of having an elevator that doesn’t stop at any other floors, and just heads straight down to the lobby.
“Man, I love using this elevator, it takes forever using the regular elevator to get to Aiden’s floor” Mingyu commented who was standing in front of the elevator controls, with Katrina standing on his right.
Aiden was behind the two, leaning his back against the elevator wall, listening to music, while staring out blankly, both hands in his pockets – his usual stance in the elevator.
“I’ll be honest I like this too; too bad we can only use the regular elevators going up” Katrina followed up on Mingyu’s comment. The elevator ride was merely a minute long, and as soon as they exited the elevator, they could see at least a dozen residents getting off the other elevators heading towards the condominium’s door. Most were students from different schools and grades, some were workers.
The trio started walking towards the station, in the same formation as they were at in the elevator - Mingyu to Aiden’s left, and Katrina to his right, this time however, Aiden was in front. Aiden is usually expressionless, and doesn’t talk much, he prefers to listen to his music and pretty much shuts out everything around him when his earphones are on. Although he shuts out everything around him, Aiden has very sharp senses, which allows him to avoid hitting other people or objects along the way.
“There’s so many people out this morning” Mingyu complained as he tried to catch up with Aiden, who is known to walk fast, although he does it without looking like he’s in a hurry.
“This is what I’ve been telling you all” Katrina shot back as she tried to catch up with Aiden. With the speed Aiden was walking, they reached the train station in around half the time it normally takes. As they neared the station, Mingyu with his height, easily spots Jasper and Aaron, waiting at the entrance. Mingyu ran towards them, passing by Aiden to greet their other friends.
Jasper Hernandez is another one of Aiden’s friend from high school. He’s also in the Volleyball team with Mingyu. Jasper is an active member of the Karate Club and plays the bass in a band with Aaron. Jasper is also in the International Student Organization as the Treasurer. Jasper is about 180cm tall, has black hair, with his left ear pierced. Like Mingyu, he’s quite popular with the girls, although he has more restraint compared to Mingyu in chasing girls. He tends to be shy when approached by girls and get flustered easily. Like Katrina, Jasper is smart and always ranks high in his class. He is very meticulous and is borderline perfectionist. Jasper majors in Political Science
Aaron Keeling another friend of Aiden’s from high school. Aaron is the soccer team’s captain. Aaron plays the drums in the band he and Jasper is in, he is also the sergeant-at-arms in the student council, and Public Relations officer for the International Student Organization. Aaron is a Filipino-American with a quarter Thai from his Father’s side. He is 179cm tall, natural brown hair, 2 piercings on his right ear, and one on the left. He also has a piercing on his left brow. Like Mingyu and Jasper, he is also popular with the girls. Unlike Jasper and Mingyu, he doesn’t actively chase girls, but is usually dragged by Jasper and Mingyu in their mischiefs. Although not as smart as Katrina and Jasper, he still makes it within the top 10 of his class. His lack of smarts compared to Katrina and Jasper; he makes up with hard work and dedication. Aaron Majors in Linguistics.
“Oh, you guys made it” Aaron greeted as Mingyu approached, with Aiden and Katrina following him from behind.
“Sorry for the wait, you know how Aiden is” Mingyu responded with a fist bump to Aaron and then Jasper, “So what’s the dirt on the new girls?” Mingyu inquired.
“Oh man, I heard they were smoking hot!” Jasper answered as Aiden walked past them heading straight inside the train station.
“Aiden looks like he’s in a bad mood” Aaron commented as Katrina approached.
“Katrina you okay?” Jasper asked Katrina who was already catching her breath.
“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine” Katrina answered as she waved her hand around catching her breath.
“So? what happened to Aiden?” Aaron asked again. Mingyu and Katrina both looked at Aaron and in tandem, yet again said, “Vice Chancellor called”
Aaron and Jasper looked at each other and in tandem replied, “Figures”.
“Guys, we need to go, Aiden is already inside” Katrina reminded the boys before walking in the station.
“Shit!” The guys said at the same time before running after Katrina inside the station. As Katrina expected, the train station was full. It was rush hour, and it was made worse by the fact that it’s the first day of classes, elementary kids and lower were with their parents, doubling the number of people that are usually in the station at the time.
Katrina, Mingyu, Jasper and Aaron barely made it inside the same train car that Aiden rode on. As the four caught their breathe, Aiden, in his usual self, was listening to music, his back against the wall of the train close to the door, staring blankly out the window.
During the train ride to MJU, people on the train – both girls and boys – were looking and taking sneak pictures of Aiden. A testament to his good looks and the attraction he was getting. This occurs daily, and Aiden learned how to ignore them. Mingyu, Katrina, Jasper and Aaron always stick close to Aiden, in case any fan or admirers try to rush him. While it may seem like Aiden usually gets the spotlight, the three guys also get the same attention, yet again from both girls and boys. Unlike Aiden though, Mingyu, Jasper and Aaron tend to interact with their admirers. Unsurprisingly, out of the three, Mingyu enjoys the attention the most - though he doesn’t gloat about it - he’s more open to taking selfies with his admirers and sometimes asking for the hottest girls’ LINE or Kakao. Jasper and Aaron doesn’t mind to a certain degree but doesn’t go as far as what Mingyu does.
It was already 7:45 AM when Aiden’s group got to MJU Station. It would usually take another 5 minutes or so to get to the university from the station. As they exited the station, Katrina’s phone started buzzing and a notification sound rang. Katrina quickly pulled her phone out as they walked towards the university. Their formation is different when everyone was present. Jasper and Aaron walks in front of Aiden – Jasper to the left and Aaron to the right. Mingyu and Katrina is positioned where they were while walking to the station earlier.
“Oh fuck!” Katrina suddenly slipped out a cuss word, grabbing Mingyu, Jasper, and Aaron’s attention.
“What is it?” Aaron asked as he continued walking, being careful that Aiden doesn’t overtake him.
“Aiden’s Fan Club’s President just went live on Facebook; his fans are waiting at the front gate!” Katrina exclaimed, “This is bad, there’s more of them since last semester”
“If they spot me or Aaron, they’ll know Aiden is coming” Jasper responded.
“The regular distraction won’t work if the crowd is that large” Mingyu added as he looked at Katrina.
“Guys….” Jasper called out, grabbing the other three’s attention, “Look…”
The other three looked up, and the street leading to the university was basically lined with students with their phones out taking a video and/or pictures of Aiden as he walked by.
“Uh-oh…” Katrina uttered in a worried tone, “It seems like his fans know he’s already coming”
“What do we do!? We won’t be able to handle a large crowd with just the four of us” Mingyu reacted. But just as they were about to reach the main gate, sounds of explosions suddenly echoed throughout campus. Everyone’s attention was suddenly directed towards the sky, the four stopped in their tracks, apparently there were fireworks coming from inside the campus – not the fancy ones but something that makes a loud boom that could get everyone’s attention. The display lasted for at least 2 minutes, during which Katrina thought of using this opportunity to run for the campus via a different route while everyone was distracted, as she looked forward, she noticed that Aiden has disappeared.
“Wa-wait... What?” Katrina uttered in a confused tone, “Aiden’s gone?”
“What!?” Mingyu cried, catching Jasper, and Aaron’s attention as the other three looked at where Aiden was earlier, “Where did he go?” Jasper asked, confused, just as Katrina was.
A few moments later, the fireworks stopped, and everyone’s attention turned back to Aiden’s group, who was at that point was totally lost and confused. The students as well realized what was going on and everyone went to use their cellphone.
Mingyu, Katrina, Jasper and Aaron’s cellphone started buzzing and making notification sounds simultaneously. Katrina turned her attention to Facebook, where Aiden’s Fan Club’s President started announcing to Aiden’s fan base that Aiden disappeared, quickly deducing that Aiden might have slipped through their welcome group. Mingyu focused on Instagram where people were using the hashtag #FindAiden. Jasper and Aaron focused their attention on Twitter, where it was lit up with the same hashtag as the one on Instagram.
“Let’s head inside using the west entrance” Katrina suggested to the other three, breaking their concentration on their phones. “Knowing Aiden, he’s probably inside the university”
“The west entrance? That’s on the other side of MJU station!” Mingyu complained.
“If you rather get smothered by Aiden’s fans, be my guest, but I’m heading the other way” Katrina countered, as Jasper and Aaron nodded their heads in agreement. “Right, let’s go”
Mingyu sighed as he followed the other three. The students lined up on the street soon started dispersing, heading towards the front entrance.
Inside the campus, Aiden was making his way – discreetly – towards the Student Council Office located in the student center, dead smack in the middle of the university. Aiden has been in the hide-and-seek game with his fans long enough to know that if he’s seen by any student wearing a black and blue armband on campus, information would be posted on social media about his whereabouts and his fans would stampede towards him.
The student center was located across from the Administration building, unfortunately for Aiden, there were a group of his fans waiting in front of the student center’s main entrance. Going around to the side entrance or even the back entrance would risk him getting spotted. Luckily for him, there was another way into the student center, a tunnel under the Administration Building that connects it to the student center that’s mostly used by faculty, and staff. The only catch was a keycard was needed to access the tunnel.
“Such a pain in the ass” Aiden told himself as he spotted a group of his fans in front of the student center. He quickly backtracked and entered the Administration Building’s side entrance, away from the eyes of his fans who also has eyes in the Administration Building’s front entrance. The side entrance that Aiden took is also for faculty and staff only, but his ID card – complements of Vice Chancellor Gutierrez – was given access privilege to enter the Administration Building’s side and back entrances, unfortunately access to the tunnel entrance and other areas in the Administration Building was not part of that arrangement.
Upon entering the Administration Building, Aiden was wise enough to remove his earphones and place it in his pocket. As he navigated the interior of the building, he was greeted by several faculty and staff, Aiden greeted back albeit with a nod to acknowledge them. Aiden immediately took the stairway down to the basement, hoping that he could catch a faculty or staff opening the door and slipping in before the door closes. When Aiden reached the basement level, he noticed that there were barely any university personnel to be seen, he knew that if he couldn’t get into that tunnel, he would have to risk it and take his chances going into the student center topside – which was basically suicide for Aiden.
As he turned towards the hallway that led to the tunnel, he noticed a silhouette standing in front of the entrance. He continued walking towards the tunnel, and as he got closer, he recognized the person standing by the tunnel doors, Aiden snorted slowing his walking as he neared the entrance.
“Took you long enough” Vice Chancellor Gutierrez greeted Aiden as she slid her employee card on the card reader, opening the tunnel doors.
Dr. Aurea Gutierrez, Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs of Mount Juliet University. Aiden’s guardian and mentor. Vice Chancellor Gutierrez is the second highest person in the university, and she is slated to become Chancellor should Chancellor Gazmin retires. Vice Chancellor Gutierrez stands at 169 cm, has black hair lined with grey hairs, and sports a bob cut. Although smaller than Aiden in stature, she commands authority and great respect within the campus community. She always wears high heels and a business professional attire. The Mount Juliet International Exchange Program is one of her direct reports.
“I ran into some troublesome bunch” Aiden replied as he and Vice Chancellor Gutierrez walked into the tunnel that leads to the student center.
“I’ve got to hand it to your fans, they’re extremely tenacious, and resourceful” Vice Chancellor Gutierrez commented on Aiden’s Fanbase.
“They’re annoying and a nuisance” Aiden coldly replied, as he kept his eyes locked in front of him.
“I heard that your fanbase has begun accepting boys within their ranks, it’s not a surprise though, we do have a sizeable amount of the LGBTQ+ community here on campus”
“That makes it even more annoying”
“Are you a homophobe?” Vice Chancellor Gutierrez asked, mixing it with a teasing tone.
“Of course not. The girls are troublesome enough, if you add the LGBTQ+ in the mix, it would be a whole different level of annoyance” Aiden responded, his expression staying the same.
“By the way” Aiden continued, as he stopped walking, “I should thank you for that firework stunt of yours, I have to admit, the was quite creative for an old hag” Aiden raised his right brow, impressed by the creativity of his mentor.
“I figured you could use a hand, your fanbase did grow exponentially, I imagine your friends would have a hard time protecting you under those circumstances” Vice Chancellor Gutierrez replied.
“Friends huh?” Aiden responded, his tone seems unconvinced, before he started walking again.
“Also, I’m only 45 Aiden, I’m not exactly an old hag – yet” Vice Chancellor Gutierrez responded to the “Old Hag” comment lightly slapping the back of Aiden’s head.
“How are you adjusting at your place?” Vice Chancellor Gutierrez asked, opening another topic of discussion.
“It’s quiet and peaceful. A little too big for my tastes, but it’s comfortable” Aiden replied, his expression still the same after being slapped at the back of his head. Under normal circumstances, Aiden would have snapped if it was a different person who hit him – the only exception to that rule was his mentor.
“I’m glad you’re comfortable at where you’re at, you should invite more of your friends at your place it might break that cold personality of yours”
“Not a chance” Aiden sternly replied.
“I figured you would say that” Vice Chancellor Gutierrez responded as she looked at Aiden, focusing her stare at the scar on his forehead, although not visible from a far, one could tell and notice it at a closer distance.
“I had another dream” Aiden confided, “About the accident”
The Vice Chancellor stopped, just as they were nearing the doors leading to the student center. “You haven’t had that dream for years now, why all of the sudden?”
“I don’t know” Aiden replied in a softened tone, “Maybe because it’s almost been 10 years. The anniversary is coming up in a few months”
“Has it been that long? It has hasn’t it?” Vice Chancellor Gutierrez’s tone changed as well, her eyes and expression turned into sadness, her gaze focused on the floor.
There were a few seconds of silence, an eerie silence which was broken by the Vice Chancellor, “Should I get in touch with Dr. Lee?”
“No. It’s fine. I’m fine.” Aiden replied, returning to his colder tone.
“Alright. If something happens, anything at all, contact me immediately, okay?” Vice Chancellor Gutierrez responded in a reassuring and comforting tone, before walking the few steps towards the door.
As the Vice Chancellor opened the door, two people were standing outside, seemingly waiting for the two to arrive. Although they were talking just a few feet from the door, the people outside the door couldn’t hear their discussion, since the doors were basically fire doors, they were thick enough that their conversation stayed within the tunnel.
“Vice Chancellor, Aiden” a female voice called out as Vice Chancellor Gutierrez and Aiden emerged from the tunnel.
“Grace, Moira, punctual as usual, as expected from the Vice President and Chief of Staff of the Student Council” Vice Chancellor Gutierrez said as she looked at the young ladies waiting outside the doors.
“Aiden, I have the list of the international students that would be arriving for the orientation” Grace reported as he handed a folder to Aiden.
“We’ve also received word that one of the students from Thailand has their flight delayed and won’t be coming in until later in the morning, from what I understand is that he’ll make it to the orientation though” Moira, the Student Council Chief of staff reported to both Aiden and the Vice Chancellor.
Moira Sato. The diligent and resourceful Chief of Staff of the Student Council, she works as the gatekeeper to Aiden, the Student Council President, filtering out any information and reports and organizing them in order of importance and priority that would be submitted to Aiden for review. Moira oversees the work of all Student Council Members, attention to detail and organized thinking ensures that the Student Council works in the most efficient and effective way. Moira is the closest person to Aiden outside of Aiden’s squad, and mainly acts as his personal assistant in matters related to the Student Council. Moira is half Japanese and half Filipino, much like Aiden. Moira stands at 152cm, has black hair going down to her shoulders. Aside from her duties as Chief of Staff of the Student Council, she is also part of the Track Team, and a member of the Delta Gamma Sorority. Moira sees Grace as her rival at the Student Council. She Majors in Communications.
Grace Manalo. The stern by-the book Vice President of the Student Council, although her responsibilities closely align with Moira, she usually carries more responsibilities, carrying the slack left by Aiden. Although left with more responsibility than needed, she doesn’t seem to mind and always follows Aiden’s orders and instructions to the letter without question. She never complains about picking up Aiden’s slack which sparked a rumor within the Student Council members that she may have a crush on Aiden. Her stern approach to leadership sometimes scares off other Student Council members and the Freshman Council, but her work ethic and performance seems to earn her the respect of other Student Council members. Grace Manalo is pure Filipino. Grace stands at 157cm, has black medium length hair, and has a piercing on her left cartilage. Aside from her duties to the Student Council she is also part of the music club and the debate club along with Kristina. Grace sees Moira as her rival at the Student Council. She Majors in Marketing.
“Right, well, I’m heading towards the auditorium to check on the preparations. I also have a meeting with the Chancellor in an hour. I’ll leave the rest to the Student Council” The Vice Chancellor said as she walked towards the other direction, “Oh, and Aiden. Don’t be late” The Vice Chancellor added before walking off.
“Right” Aiden responded giving off a yawn. His VP and CoS still standing in front of him.
“Where are the other Student Council Members?” Aiden inquired.
“Kobe and Angela are in the Student Council Office, the only ones not here yet are Katrina and Aaron” Moira reported before Grace interjected, “Aiden, there’s still an issue with the informational brochures, we still haven’t finished packing them. Also, we’re getting reports that some students are converging outside the International House”
“I need coffee” Aiden said as he took out his earphones and placed them in his ears, walking towards the Student Council Office on the 3rd floor of the building. Moira and Grace followed along, “Moira, get Katrina and Aaron here ASAP. Grace send word to Cadet-Major Del Rosario to deploy two ROTC companies and have them posted for crowd control detail in front of the International House” Aiden ordered as he walked off, leaving Moira and Grace behind.
“Same old cold expression” Moira quipped as she took her cellphone out, sending a message to Aaron and Katrina to hurry and head to the Student Council room.
“You should be used to it right now; he’s been like that since Freshman year” Grace added as she typed orders for Cadet-Major Del Rosario to deploy 2 ROTC companies to the International House.
“Right, well, I guess that cold and mysterious personality of his is what attracts his fanbase” Moira responded as she sent her message out.
“Yeah. I’ll be honest with you, I was shocked when he won the Student Council Presidency by 92%, he didn’t even campaign or do anything – the power of his fanbase” Grace added as she sent her message as well, “We should head to the Student Council room”
At the same time Mingyu, Katrina, Jasper, and Aaron just entered the university. Since most of the students are concentrated at the main entrance of the university, there was barely any people on the university’s west side, making it easier for the squad to get inside.
“I wonder where Aiden went?” Mingyu asked as he and the squad walked towards the center of the university.
“I’m pretty sure he’s already at the Student Council room” Katrina replied as she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket, accompanied by a notification sound. Katrina stopped for a moment to read the message on LINE.
“Is it the Aiden Guardians?” Jasper asked as he stopped to look at Katrina.
“No, it’s actually from Moira. She wants me and Aaron to head to the Student Council room ASAP” Katrina responded, as she replies to Moira’s message.
“You’re being summoned” Mingyu added, as he crossed his arms, “Did she say anything about Aiden?”
“It seems like Aiden is already at the Student Council room” Aaron answered back, as he reads the same message from Moira that was sent to Katrina.
“As expected, Aiden moves quickly and quietly like that” Jasper said, looking at Mingyu who was standing beside Aaron.
“Right, Aaron and I will head to the Student Council room, what are guys planning to do now?” Katrina asked Jasper and Mingyu.
Mingyu suddenly jumped out of excitement, “Jasper and I will head out to check ou- I... I mean survey the area for any AG’s (Aiden Guardians)”
“We are? But Aiden’s alr-” Jasper asked in a confused tone before Mingyu placed his right arm around Jasper’s shoulders.
“YES, WE ARE” Mingyu emphasized as he gave a quick wink at Jasper.
“Ohhh, right...” Jasper agreed, seemingly understanding Mingyu’s signal.
“Good luck getting close to the International House you two.” Katrina said, seeing through Mingyu’s poor attempt of deception.
“What do you mean?” Aaron asked.
“Look” Katrina said, tilting her head towards her right, pointing towards the column of ROTC cadets marching towards the International House, led by Cadet-Major Amy Del Rosario.
The three guys looked on as the column marched passed by them, shattering Mingyu’s plans of getting close to the International House to check out the girls.
“I’m guessing some students had the same plan as you” Katrina said, looking at Mingyu.
Mingyu responded with a forced smile as he scratched the back of his head, looking vulnerable as Katrina saw through his plans.
“Katrina, we need to go” Aaron reminded Katrina, before the two headed off towards the student center.
“Jasper, keep a close eye on Mingyu!” Katrina asked as she and Aaron walked off, Jasper responding with a thumbs up.
“What do you want to do now? Jasper turned to Mingyu.
“Well, it’s pointless now, if the ROTC has been deployed, there’s no way we’ll get close to the International House now, we might as well just grab some breakfast, c’mon Jasper” Mingyu replied, as he walked towards the cafeteria, Jasper following suit.
In the Student Council room, Moira and Grace entered, startling Kobe and Angela, who were busy working on the informational brochures that was going to be used for the orientation.
Kobe San Miguel. The Student Council’s Treasurer, he carries the responsibilities of reviewing and approving the budget for all the clubs and organization on campus before being presented to Aiden to be signed-off and officially approved. Kobe has a mixed American Father and Filipino mother, he stands at about 184cm, has dark curly hair which he keeps on a man bun. In addition to his role as Treasurer for the Student Council he’s also part of the Basketball Team, playing the position of point guard, he plays American Football as a hobby and is one of the bass players in Aaron and Jasper’s band. Kobe also has a knack for computers and is very skilled at video editing. Kobe is what Katrina describes as the very definition of “Tall, Dark, and Handsome”. Like Mingyu, he’s popular with the girls on campus. Kobe majors in computer science.
Angela Dela Cruz. The Student Council’s Public Relations Officer, her main responsibility is to provide updates to the university about Student Council projects, activities, and events. She also manages the council’s social media accounts and oversees information dissemination on campus. Unlike the other Student Council members, she doesn’t have any other extracurricular activity other than the Student Council. She’s a skilled web developer, photo editor, and computer programmer. She is also skilled at playing the piano and the violin. Angela is pure Filipino, she stands at 173cm, her hair medium length, is naturally black, but has dyed it dark reddish. Angela majors in computer science and web design.
“Where’s Aiden?” Angela asked the two officers that came in.
“What do you mean? Is he not in his office?” Moira asked, looking confused.
“He hasn’t been here” Kobe said as he continued prepping the brochures, “I figured he wasn’t going to be here today”
“You’ve got to be kidding me” Moira exclaimed in disbelief, “It’s orientation day too”
“He probably bailed, no use in searching for him now, we don’t have the time nor people to waste to search for Aiden, we need to finish this now before the orientation” Grace said as she walked over where Kobe and Angela are, getting ready to assist.
“You’re right” Moira concurred, “Katrina and Aaron should be here too in a few minutes”
Moira walked towards the conference table at the middle of the room, pulled out a chair and got her phone out. “I’ll send out a mass message to any available students to help us with this, I may tap the Aiden Guardians to help locate our runaway President”
“I rather you hold that, Aiden has multiple hidden spots here in the university, it’ll be impossible to find him. It’s almost 8:00 AM as well, some students would be heading to class soon.” Grace countered as she helped Kobe and Angela with the brochures.
After Moira sent out the message on the Student Council System GC on LINE, the radio on the other side of the room activated, receiving transmission from Cadet-Major Del Rosario who was ordered to secure the International House’s perimeter.
“Cadet-Major Del Rosario to Student Council room, please respond, over” Cadet-Major Del Rosario’s voice echoed in the room, coming from the radio.
Cadet-Major Amy Del Rosario. Commanding officer of the 1st and 2nd Mount Juliet University ROTC Companies, part of the 1st Mount Juliet University ROTC Battalion, and attached to the Mount Juliet University ROTC Brigade. Out of all the Cadet-Majors in the MJU ROTC Brigade, Cadet-Major Del Rosario directly works with the MJU Student Council. While the Student Council can requisition up to 80% of the entirety of the MJU ROTC Brigade for university related activities, Cadet-Major Del Rosario was personally chosen by the Student Council President to serve under the Student Council. Although by the book by nature like Grace, she is flexible and can improvise depending on the situation, although stern given her position and rank, she genuinely cares about the men and women under her command. Amy is full Filipino, born into a military family hence her reason for joining the MJU ROTC. She stands at 178cm tall, has long black hair that she always wears in a bun. She majors in philosophy and military science.
“Moira” Grace called out, gesturing at Moira to go ahead and answer the radio.
Grabbing the radio from the charging port, Moira responded “This is Chief of Staff Sato, go ahead Cadet-Major, over”
“Ma’am, we’re moving to secure the International House’s perimeter, what are our orders? Over.” Cadet-Major Del Rosario radioed in.
“Grace?” Moira looked at Grace, awaiting instructions on what to order the ROTC companies.
“I’ll leave it to you Moira” Grace replied as she continued prepping brochures.
“Right” Moira acknowledged before radioing Cadet-Major Del Rosario back, “Cadet-Major, secure the area and don’t let any non-international students near the International House, set up a cordon and assume crowd control operations, maximum tolerance. Over”
“Roger that, will secure the area and set up the cordon. Switching over to crowd control operations, Del Rosario copies, over and out” Cadet-Major Del Rosario radioed back, acknowledging her orders.
Suddenly, a yawn was heard in the radio frequency being used by Moira and Cadet-Major Del Rosario.
“What was that?” Cadet-Major Del Rosario unconsciously asked, as her message went through the communications channel.
“Good work, Amy, Moira. Let me know if there are any changes in the situation, this is Aiden. Going on radio silence, over and out” Aiden radioed in, thanking Moira and Amy before cutting off communications.
“Aiden! Where are you?” Moira radioed, getting the attention of Grace, Kobe and Angela, but the only response that was heard was static.
“Just let him be” Grace said as she resumed her work on the brochures. Moira gave a loud sigh as she clipped the radio on her jeans and walked towards the rest of the Student Council Members to help. As she walked towards the rest of the council members, Katrina and Aaron walked in the room.
“You guys made it” Kobe greeted Katrina and Aaron, “We could use a hand here”
“Where’s Aiden?” Katrina asked as she placed her bag on top of the conference table.
“The usual” Grace answered back, without looking at Katrina.
“I see. Come on Aaron, let’s help them get this done” Katrina acknowledged as she called on Aaron to help with the brochures.
As the rest of the Student Council Members rushed to get the brochures ready. Aiden was sitting under a tree just outside of the student center. The spot is perfectly hidden from outside view as there were hedges, at least 2 meters tall, obstructing any view from the outside. This was one of Aiden’s hiding spots, and one of his favorite ones. The shade offered by the tree, plus the natural curtains allowed for him to read his book in peace, while listening to his music. There is, however, a small gap in-between the hedge that could potentially allow someone to squeeze through if they were slim enough, but it’s perfectly hidden from the outside by overgrown vines and leaves. It’s close to impossible to find unless someone was searching for it. This was a fact that only the grounds keepers and Aiden knew, so the latter wasn’t worried too much about it.
By this time, the two ROTC companies under Cadet-Major Del Rosario has completed cordoning off the International House, most students who wanted to get a glimpse of the international students were at least 500 feet way from the entrance. From the gazebo outside, which acted as Cadet-Major Del Rosario’s field HQ, she could see some of the international students peeking out from their windows, seemingly amazed, or anxious at their presence outside their resident hall.
Her focus towards the International House was broken when one of her cadets approached and handed her the latest situation report. As soon as she finished reading the report, she grabbed the radio that was clipped on her camo pants.
“Cadet-Major Del Rosario to Student Council room, please come in, over”
“Go ahead Cadet-Major. This is Chief of Staff Sato, over”
“Ma’am, I’ve just received reports about more students converging outside the cordon. We’ve also confirmed reports of the Hunters on site, how copy, over”
“The Hunters are there already? If they stream a live video of this, the crowds will swell even more. What’s your assessment on this? Over”
“Ma’am, we currently have enough personnel to continue crowd control operations, if the numbers grow even more, we may need reinforcements to augment my cadets, over”
“Copy that, stand by Cadet-Major while we assess the situation, keep us updated on any changes in your area of operations, over”
“Yes ma’am, understood, Del Rosario, over and out”
Back in the Student Council room, Moira gathered everyone on the conference table to discuss about the situation at the International House. While it’s a common occurrence at Mount Juliet University to have large crowds of people gather in one area – Aiden’s Fanbase, is a good example – the international students were a whole different situation altogether. While it was expected that students all over campus would come to the International House to see the newly admitted students in their university, the scale of which they were converging were unexpected.
“Alright, right now there are students converging in front of the International House. According to Amy, at this point in time she can handle the crowds with what she has, but she may need some reinforcements soon to control the crowds if it keeps growing larger than what it is now” Moira explained to the rest of the Student Council members, as they all nodded their heads in acknowledgement of the situation.
“I can reach out to ROTC Command to have 4 more companies standing by just in case the crowds do get larger” Grace replied, “We could deploy 2 companies to help with crowd control, and deploy the remaining 2 companies during the international students’ procession towards the student center”
“Also, the Hunters are active in the area” Moira added as Grace finished proposing her plan of action. Everyone turned to Moira, as if surprised with the presence of the Hunters.
“If the Hunters are in the area, that would be the deciding factor whether the crowds will swell or not” Katrina responded to Moira’s revelation, “I recommend we reach out to the Hunters and request that they assist us with controlling the crowd influx”
“Agreed” Grace concurred before continuing, “Angela, can you prepare a university-wide announcement?”
“I can, what’s the subject?” Angela inquired as to the contents of the announcement.
“Make an announcement on the PA system telling the students not to converge too much in front of the International House, and to not block the procession route. They can watch on the sidelines, but in no circumstance, they are to disrupt the procession” Grace ordered Angela as the latter started writing down her announcement draft on a pad paper.
“Also” Katrina interjected, “Reach out to the Hunters and see if they could announce this through their social media channels, we may be able to amplify our message”
“That’s a good idea” Moira agreed as she nodded her head.
“Kobe and I will go ahead and start moving these brochures to the Auditorium and make sure everything is ready to go as well” Aaron suggested to the rest of the council members.
“That would be helpful, thank you” Grace replied to Aaron’s suggestion with gratitude, “Also, Moira, have we heard anything about the Thai student that got held up?” Everyone, except for Moira was confused about Grace’s question.
“Wait, what Thai student?” Katrina asked.
“Oh, there’s one Thai student whose flight was cancelled, and so he’s arriving sometime before the orientation starts” Moira answered.
“That could get difficult” Katrina responded, catching everyone’s attention.
“What do you mean?” Grace asked curiously.
“He may need to directly head to the Auditorium when he gets here, it will take time for him to get settled in at the International House, and with the crowds around the International House….” Katrina explained, her voice fading at the end of her sentence.
“Is something wrong? You kind of stopped there?” Moira asked out of curiosity. Katrina was holding her thumb to her lips. There was a silence in the Student Council room before Katrina spoke again.
“What’s the name of the student? Do we have his information on file?” Katrina suddenly asked, quickly changing the topic.
“We should have the complete list, right Grace?” Moira responded as she turned her head towards Grace.
“Give me a sec” Grace said, as she rolled her chair towards the charging station behind where she was sitting, grabbing one of the laptops that were charging. She turned it on, entering her credentials into the laptop to access the international student list through the Student Council Database.
“Why is this relevant?” Kobe suddenly asked, “Why is it relevant, Katrina?” Moira followed up.
“I just have a gut feeling” Katrina responded, still on her stance that she was in before.
“Draft is finished” Angela announced as she placed her pen on the top of the table, before sliding the draft towards Moira. As Moira reviewed the draft announcement that Angela wrote, Grace announced to the group that she found who the student in question was.
“Thapthim Nontanakorn” Grace said to the group, slightly butchering the pronunciation, “ Do you know him Katrina?”
“No, but I really have a bad gut feeling…” Katrina replied, “Hey, let me borrow that” Katrina said, before pulling the laptop from Grace who was sitting across from her. Katrina immediately started going through the student’s information. As Katrina went through the information on the laptop, Moira approved the draft that Angela wrote.
“Angela, go ahead and announce this. Message the Hunters first before you make the announcement, tell them to go ahead and share this on their social media channels” Moira said as she returned the pad to Angela, “Grace, I think we should go ahead and message ROTC Command for the additional reinforcements, I’ll relay this to Amy”
“Alright” Grace replied as she took her phone out and started typing her message.
Moira, grabbed the clipped radio on her jeans, and radioed Cadet-Major Del Rosario, “Student Council room to Cadet-Major Del Rosario, come in, over”
“This is Cadet-Major Del Rosario, go ahead Student Council room, over”
“We’re sending orders to ROTC Command to have 4 companies deployed. We’ll send 2 companies over to reinforce you if the crowds get too large for your cadets to handle, we’ll deploy the other 2 companies to assist with the procession, over”
“Copy that, appreciate the assist Student Council room, Del Rosario out, over”
After Moira informed Amy about the additional reinforcements, Grace also finished sending her message to ROTC Command, Angela meanwhile, was getting ready to stand up to get her announcement ready when Katrina slipped out a cuss word – “Fuck”. This caught everyone’s attention, causing everyone to stop whatever they were doing.
Katrina has her right hand covering her mouth, seemingly shocked or surprised. Out of curiosity, Aaron, who was sitting next to Katrina leaned over to look at what shocked his friend. After peeking, all he could say was – “Shit”.
Katrina quickly attached the projector cord into the laptop, projecting whatever it was that shocked her into the projector screen at the end of the conference table. Shocking Grace, Moira, and Angela as well. Kobe caught on what was happening seconds later.
It was already 9:20 AM, and the Student Council members hurriedly scrambled after what Katrina projected. As the members of the Student Council scrambled, Angela prepped the PA system to make a university-wide announcement - informing the student body not to converge in front of the International House and block the procession route for the international students. Aaron and Kobe started rolling out the carts with the information brochures, while Grace, Moira and Katrina ran out of the room in a hurry.
Aiden was halfway through with his book when he decided to look at the file folder that Grace handed him earlier. He skimmed through the 20-page file, moving to the end that had the breakdown of the number of International Students. There was a total of 200 international students admitted through the International Exchange Program, 50 from North and South America, 50 from Oceania, 50 from Europe and 50 From Asia. After reviewing the file, Aiden placed the folder on the ground beside where he was sitting, putting his phone on top of it to prevent it from being blown away. Still sitting on the grass, Aiden closed his book, and laid it on his lap. He leaned his back and his head on the bark of the tree, and dozed off, still wearing his earphones in his ear.
In front of the International House, where most of the students gather to wait and see the international students, Mingyu and Jasper mingled amongst the crowd to find the perfect spot to see the hot girls that they have been wanting to see. A few meters from the Gazebo where Cadet-Major Del Rosario had setup her field HQ, there was a medium sized tree, that gave the perfect view of the front entrance to the International House. Mingyu and Jasper decided to climb the tree to have the high ground and give them the perfect scouting position.
“Are you sure this is safe?” Jasper asked Mingyu, a little nervous about what they were doing.
“We’ll be fine, I do this all the time!” Mingyu responded confidently as he opened Jasper’s bag and took out two small binoculars, giving one to Jasper. As Mingyu focused on the International House, Jasper for some reason turned his attention towards the Gazebo that housed the ROTC field HQ.
“Hey, hey, Mingyu” Jasper said as he tapped Mingyu’s back, still looking through his binoculars.
“What?” Mingyu responded, a little irritated.
“Isn’t that Grace?” Jasper said, as he focused his attention on the Gazebo
“Grace? Student Council Grace?” Mingyu asked for confirmation.
“Yeah, isn’t that Grace over there at the Gazebo?” Jasper continued as Mingyu redirected his sights from the International House towards the Gazebo where Jasper was looking at.
“It is Grace, what is she doing down there?” Mingyu said as he focused on the Gazebo as well.
“I don’t know, she seems flustered about something” Jasper responded as he tried to zoom in on the Gazebo. He could see Grace talking with Amy, looking distraught about something. The conversation lasted for about a minute before Grace, together with Amy and four other Cadets in the Gazebo started running towards the east entrance of the university.
As Grace, Cadet-Major Del Rosario, and the four other cadets ran towards the east entrance, a few members of the Hunters noticed this and decided to follow them. Jasper, who was following what was happening kept his eyes on what was going on until Grace’s group disappeared into the distance.
“What is going on?” Jasper commented as he took the binoculars off his eyes. Confused about what was going on with Grace and the ROTC cadets.
Inside the International House, Thai exchange student Rathavit “Ball” Pattaya was on his phone talking with someone in Thai. “When will you get here?” Ball asked as his suitemate, Chatchawee “Bank” Chungwatana listened on.
“We’re about to head out for orientation, will you make it in time?” Ball asked, as the other person on the line responded.
“Well, I guess we’ll see you when you get here then” Ball responded before hanging up.
“What did he say?” Bank asked.
“He said they’re 15 minutes away” Ball replied before putting his phone in his pocket.
Just as Ball and Bank were talking, the International House PA system announced that it was time for all the international students to gather at the main lobby of the International House in preparation for the procession towards the student center for the orientation. At the same time, the four ROTC companies that were requested by Grace arrived outside of the International House.
With Cadet-Major Del Rosario leaving her post, overall command of the brigade-sized ROTC cadets outside the International House fell under Cadet-Major Alexis Montanillo. As they arrived, they immediately formed a human barricade that extended up to the entrance of the student center, at least 800 feet way from the International House.
Cadet-Major Alexis Montanillo. Commanding officer of the 3rd and 4th Mount Juliet University ROTC Companies, part of the 2nd Mount Juliet University ROTC Battalion, and attached to the Mount Juliet University ROTC Brigade. Cadet-Major Montanillo is one of Amy’s peers in the ROTC, he was recently promoted to his current rank after his seniors graduated last semester, and the crowd control operation was his first assignment after taking command of the 3rd and 4th MJU ROTC companies. Alexis is full Filipino. He stands at 181cm tall, has short black hair. He majors in military science.
Back at the east entrance, Katrina was waiting patiently at the gate, when Grace, Amy, and the four cadets met up with her. Unbeknownst to them, the Hunters that followed them were hiding from a distance, taking pictures and videos of the unusual behavior they were exhibiting.
“Grace!” Katrina shouted as she saw Grace and company running towards her.
“Is he here yet?” Grace asked as she caught her breathe.
“Not yet, they should be here soon though” Katrina replied as her phone started ringing. She immediately answered it without looking at the caller ID.
“Moira?” Katrina said on the phone. “Yeah, it’s me, I just got the driver’s number and called, they should be meeting up with you all soon, they’re almost there” Moira said on the other line before hanging up. Just as she ended the call, a black university SUV pulled up in front of them.
The passenger side window opened, and the driver looked at Katrina, “Are you here for the student?”
“Yes, we are” Katrina responded as the driver turned his head towards the back of the car and nodded. The back-passenger door facing Katrina and the others opened and the Thai student Thapthim Nontanakorn stepped out. Katrina and Grace were taken aback on how he different he looked from his picture on file. He was about 182cm, slim, medium length black hair, with fair complexion and supple skin.
“You’re Mr. Thapthim Nontanakorn, correct?” Katrina asked for confirmation.
“Yes, I ‘am. You can call me Min, that should be easier to pronounce” Min responded in perfect English, which took Katrina and Grace by surprise.
“Wow, your English is pretty good” Grace said with amazement.
“Oh, yeah. I went to High School in Iowa in the United States” Min replied, “So, I heard from the driver that there was a change of plans?”
“Yes” Katrina interjected, “We don’t have time to explain, you can leave your stuff in the car, the driver will bring it to the International House, but you need to come with us right now” Katrina said in urgency as everyone present flanked Min.
Amy was at the very front, and behind her are two of her cadets, behind them was Min, situated in the middle, to his left was Katrina, and to his right was Grace, and the other two cadets behind them. But before they could start walking, Grace’s and Katrina’s phone vibrated accompanied by the notification sound. They quickly pulled their phones out and saw that the Hunters that had followed them had taken a picture of Min and are being live-streamed.
“Grace!” Katrina cried as Grace gave the order to move. As they ran past the Hunters that were taking the live video, Amy started getting communications from her radio. She pulled it from her camo pants and radioed back, the speaker was loud enough for everyone to hear what was being said.
“Cadet-Major Del Rosario, this is Cadet-Major Montanillo, we have reports of a large breakaway group from the crowds in front of the International House moving towards the east entrance”
“Numbers!?”
“Close to 80 students!”
“What’s the sit-rep over there!?”
“Procession is starting to move; it should be completed in about 20 minutes”
“Roger that, maintain formations, we’ll link up with you in a little bit with HVI (High Valued Individual), Del Rosario out”
“We seem to have a huge problem” Amy said as she turned her head towards Grace and Katrina.
“So, it seems” Grace responded, with Katrina nodding her head.
“So, what’s actually going on?” Min interrupted as they cantered towards the student center.
“We’ll explain later, right now we need to get you to the student center” Katrina replied. As soon as she finished talking, a large group of students suddenly appeared in front of them.
“Take Min, and go, we’ll hold them here!” Amy told Katrina and Grace as she and her cadets attempted to slow down the students going after them. Katrina and Grace pulled Min with them and entered the Humanities building to their left. As they emerged on the other side of the Humanities Building, another group of students found them. The trio ran a little further until they had the back of the student center in sight. Before they could get closer to their destination, another group of students appeared, while smaller in numbers compared to the previous ones, it would undoubtedly be enough to swamp the three of them.
“You two go on ahead” Grace said as she stopped on her tracks, “I’ll buy you time”
“But-” Katrina hesitated, before Grace answered back, “We can’t allow them to get Min, it would be bad for the university if reports of our students rushing a new international student gets out – go!”
Katrina and Min continued, leaving Grace to deal with the students. As they got close to the back of the student center, they were found yet again by another group of students. Katrina and Min ran towards a hedged area behind the student center. As soon as they got close to the hedges, Katrina stopped moving.
“What are you doing?” Min asked, confused to why Katrina stopped.
“I’ll hold them off, you get to the student center” Katrina replied, “Follow the hedges and it should lead you to a side entrance. You’ll be safe there”
Min reluctantly followed Katrina’s instructions. As soon as Min started following the hedges, he saw a group of students walking from the other direction in front of him. These students, however, were not the same as the ones chasing after them, rather they were some random students that happened to be walking by. Of course, Min didn’t know the difference and so he tried to hide from them. He leaned his back on the hedge to try to hide himself, however, as he leaned on the hedge, it gave way and caused Min to fall on his back into the other side. The vines and leaves then returned to their previous position, hiding the small gap between the hedge where Min fell through.
Min gave out a sigh of relief as he started getting himself up. His uniform had several small tears on it, parts of his uniform was covered with dirt as well. As he got up, he patted himself down to get the dirt off. As he was doing this, the corner of his right eye caught a silhouette sitting down on the grass, he turned to his right and saw a guy he deduced to be around his age, sleeping under a tree with headphones on. Seeing him as someone that could help him to get to where he needed to go, he approached him. As Min got closer, he tried calling out “Excuse me-” but did not notice the stone brick in front of him causing him to trip and fall towards the sleeping guy.
He managed to prevent himself from completely falling on the guy, holding on to the bark of the tree. He then realized his face was an inch away from the guy’s face, and the position they were in resembled a “Kabedon”. As this happened, Aiden opened his eyes slowly.
