Chapter 3

The lunch break came, and Itzy ran to the restroom right away to not run into Loxley and her

friends. Itzy always eats her lunch every lunch break at the restroom ever since she became

their target. Dati, ayaw niya na nagbabaon ng pagkain dahil gusto niya makasama during lunch

break sa cafeteria ang mga friends niya. Ngunit ngayong wala na siyang makakasama sa

pagkain during break time at upang iwasan ang kaniyang mga bullies, lagi na siya nagbabaon

ng pagkain at kinakain niya ito sa restroom.

Hindi alam nila Loxley, Jaxie at Ireen ang tungkol sa pagtago ni Itzy sa restroom, hindi dahil sa

wala silang pakialam dito, wala lang talaga silang ideya na purposely na iniiwasan sila ni Itzy.

Sino nga ba naman ang hindi iiwas sa bullies na katulad nila? Maliban sa pinahihiya nila ang

tao sa harap ng maraming estudyante, nananakit din sila. Sampal, sabunot sa buhok, sipa at

iba pa.

Jaxie walked into the restroom feeling relieved that she finally found a place to release the

pressure that had been building up inside her bladder. She quickly scanned the restroom to find

an available cubicle and walked towards it, taking long strides. After taking care of business,

she washed her hands and walked out of the cubicle. As she was walking towards the door, she

heard a sound coming from one of the other cubicles.

At first, she thought it was just someone else using the restroom, but then she heard a sound

that sounded like someone was chewing. Her heart started to race, and she began to feel

nervous. She had never heard anything like that before in the restroom.

Jaxie paused for a moment, trying to gather her thoughts. She wondered if she should just leave

the restroom or investigate further. Her curiosity got the best of her, and she decided to find out

what was making the noise.

She walked over to the cubicles and pushed the first door open. No one was inside. She did the

same with the next two cubicles, but still, no one was there. Jaxie was starting to get worried

and wondered if she was imagining things. She took a deep breath and pushed open the last

cubicle door.

There, sitting on the toilet, was Itzy, munching on a bag of chips. Itzy looked up, surprised, and

her cheeks bulged with chips.

"Hey!" she exclaimed, "I didn't know anyone was in here!" Jaxie breathed a sigh of relief, feeling

a little silly for being so scared, but being disgusted is evident on her face.

"J-Jaxie," Itzy said, nagulat nang makita is Jaxie. Agad niyang tinago sa kaniyang like an ang

pagkain kahit na alam niyang nahuli na siya ni Jaxie na kumakain.

"What the heck are you doing here? Dito ka talaga kumakain? So gross!" Jaxie exclaimed,

disgusted at what she found out.

Jaxie walked out of the restroom, her face twisted in disgust as she stomped her feet and made

her way towards her friends who were waiting for her outside. Her friends noticed her

expression and knew that something was wrong.

"What happened in there, Jaxie?" asked her friend, Liza.

Jaxie took a deep breath and began to explain what she had just witnessed in the restroom.

"Guys, you won't believe what I just saw," Jaxie exclaimed, still feeling disgusted.

"What happened?" asked one of her friends.

"When I was about to walk out of the restroom, I heard someone chewing, and when I checked

every cubicle, I saw someone eating their lunch inside the restroom. Can you believe it? Who

does that? It's disgusting!" Jaxie exclaimed, still in disbelief.

Loxley and Ireen looked at each other, trying to stifle their laughter. "Are you serious, Jaxie?

Someone was eating in the restroom?" asked her other friend, Ireen.

"Yes, I am serious! It was gross. I couldn't believe what I was seeing," Jaxie replied, still visibly

upset.

"Ew, that's so gross," Loxley chimed in.

"I know, right? Who does that?" Jaxie said, still feeling disgusted.

Ireen couldn't help but laugh at Jaxie's reaction. "I mean, it's not the most ideal place to have

lunch, but maybe they had no other choice," she said, trying to calm Jaxie down.

"I don't care. It's unsanitary and inappropriate. Who knows what kind of germs are in there?"

Jaxie retorted, still disgusted.

Ireen shrugged. "Well, I've heard of people eating in their car or at their desk, but eating in the

restroom is a bit extreme."

"I can't even imagine eating in the restroom. It's so unhygienic," said Loxley, crossing her arms

over her chest.

"I can't believe people do things like that. It's just so wrong," Jaxie said, crossing her arms in

front of her.

Her friends nodded in agreement, equally disgusted by the thought of someone eating in the

restroom.

"I mean, the restroom is for taking care of business, not for eating," said Loxley.

"I don't even know how someone could enjoy their food in a place like that," Ireen said,

shuddering at the thought.

"I know, right? The smells alone are enough to put you off your food," Jaxie said, wrinkling her

nose.

The conversation continued, with Jaxie and her friends discussing the incident in detail. They

couldn't understand how someone could do something so disgusting and unhygienic.

As they talked, Jaxie didn't tell them who the person she saw eating in the restroom was. It

wasn't because she did not want to, she just felt like something was stopping her to tell them

who it was. She had a clue why Itzy chose to eat there but she also wondered if Itzy were aware

of how unhygienic it was or if she simply didn't care and if she just really wanted to avoid them.

Regardless of their intentions, Jaxie knew that she would never eat in a restroom, and she

hoped that her friends felt the same way. The thought of it made her feel sick to her stomach,

and she couldn't imagine ever doing something like that.

As the conversation died down, Jaxie and her friends went back to their classrooms, still feeling

disgusted by what they had found out. They couldn't believe that someone would do something

so gross, and they hoped that they would never have to witness it again.

On the other hand, Itzy let out a relieved sigh as she finally finished the last bite of her food.

However, that feeling of satisfaction was quickly replaced by a wave of embarrassment as she

remembered the incident that had just occurred. She couldn't believe that one of her bullies

would see her eating in the restroom.

As she finished packing her lunch container into her lunch box, she couldn't help but feel a

sense of dread washing over her. She knew what was coming next - the inevitable confrontation

with her bullies. They had been making her life a living hell for a month now, taunting and

ridiculing her at every turn. It seemed like there was no escape from their cruel words and

actions.

She took a deep breath, trying to calm her nerves. She knew that she couldn't let them see how

much they were getting to her. She had to be strong, for herself if nothing else. She bit her lower

lip, a nervous habit she had developed over the years.

With one last glance in the mirror, she counted from one to five before opening the door. It was

a way to ground herself in the present moment and prepare for what was to come.

As she stepped out of the restroom, she braced herself for the worst. She expected to see her

bullies waiting for her, ready to pounce and make her life even more miserable. But to her

surprise, it wasn't them that she saw.

Standing just a few feet away was one of her bodyguards, Jace. He had just come out of the

men's restroom and was making his way to meet Laszlo, Ryker, and Linus.

Jace stopped in front of the door of the lady's restroom when he recognized her, and for a

moment, they locked eyes. While Itzy did not know what to do, her feet were nailed to the

ground, she could not move. She just stood there holding tightly her lunch box while her mouth

was half open.

As Itzy stood frozen in front of the restroom door, her heart racing with fear, she couldn't help

but wonder what Jace was thinking. Did he know why she was in there? Was he going to tell

someone? She clutched her lunch box tighter, feeling as though it was the only thing she had to

hold onto at that moment.

Jace's eyes slowly narrowed down to Itzy's hand where she was holding the lunch box. As

Jace's eyes stayed there, Itzy's grasp tightened even more.

"W-Why? What are you looking at?" she asked, her voice shaking with anxiety. She couldn't

bear the thought of someone finding out her secret, of being exposed as an outcast.

Jace shifted his gaze to her face. "Are you alright?" he asked, his voice soft and gentle.

Itzy averted her gaze, feeling as though she was about to crumble under the weight of her

emotions. She didn't want to burden anyone with her problems, but at the same time, she

longed for someone to understand.

"Why wouldn't I be?" she whispered, her voice barely above a whisper.

Jace took a step closer, and Itzy instinctively backed away. She didn't know if she could handle

anyone getting too close, not when she felt so vulnerable.

"Should I accompany you to your classroom?" Jace asked, his eyes filled with concern.

Itzy shook her head frantically, her heart racing with fear. She couldn't bear the thought of

anyone seeing her with Jace, of being judged even more harshly than she already was.

"Don't come near me. I'm fine so you don't have to worry about it," she said, her words coming

out in a rush.

She turned and walked past him, her steps quick and unsteady. As she walked away, she felt a

sense of regret washing over her. She wanted to turn back, to apologize for her harsh words

and thank Jace for his concern, but she didn't know how.

As the class started, her mind was wandering in the air. She was concerned about herself,

paano kapag biglang malaman ng mga bodyguards niya ang tungkol sa pangbubully sa kaniya

ni Loxley at ng mga kaibigan niya? Natatakot siya. Lalo na at alam niya na kapag natapos ang

araw na ito ay mag rereport ang mga bodyguards niya sa kaniyang ama tungkol sa kung anong

nangyari ngayong araw sa eskwelahan.

Naiisip ni Itzy na baka mabanggit ni Jace na nakita niya si Itzy na lumabas ng restroom na dala

ang kaniyang lunch box.

Napasabunot siya sa kaniyang buhok nang maisip iyon. Ngunit agad din niyang binitawan ang

kaniyang buhok nang may maisip at iyon ay ang sapilitan na paalisin ang kaniyang mga

bodyguards.

Kung ang ama niya ang nag hired sa kanila upang bantayan siya, gagawa siya ng paraan kung

paano sila ma-terminate sa trabaho. Kung ang apat na lalaki ay may mission na bantayan siya

at iiwas sa posibleng kapahamakan, siya naman ay may mission kung paano patatalsikin ang

mga bodyguards niya sa kani-kanilang position.

"I can do it," she said to herself, her tone full of determination. She was really scared that her

bodyguards and family would find out her secret so before that could happen, she would

eliminate them. All.