Chapter 98: The Maturity

At The Ladies' Dormitory

Jade opened the door to her dorm room and stopped walking. There was a girl taking her stuff out of the extra bed. Jade watched the girl silently while taking out a cd player and headphones. A white set of sheets was brought out, along with a green comforter. Jade watched as the girl removed the remaining items from her bag and placed them on the shelf as well. Jade stared at the stuffed animals she forged on the shelf. Is it normal to bring stuffed animals to college? Her gaze went to the girl's face, she noticed the hair cut in a short style, deep-set brown eyes, and cherry red lips. Her face looks clean. Jade stared, not sure if the girl could be considered beautiful or what. Her face is diamond-shaped with wispy bangs in the front.

The girl's eyes widened to meet her. She gave Jade a smile. Jade supposed a smile can do wonders for such a plain face. "I'm Emily, you call me Emily or just Emily."

"Emily?" Jade quarried, her gaze glinting at the girl's long dress.

Jade closed her eyes. "Ok, well Emily...where are you from?"

"It's cold somewhere." She stated, her attention returned to the box she was unpacking. Jade heard the coldness in her voice. It baffled her.

"Nice to hear." Emily looked at her coldly, "It's too cold, so I moved here."

"I'll let you know, Baguio has some of the coldest winters anywhere."

Emily sighed and took the box from the bed. Sitting down next to her desk, she whispered, "I'm sure I'll find someone to keep me warm."

Jade sighed, "Yeah, there's plenty of people around for that." She went into the sitting room behind their dorm room and took out a book she got from Hershey's collection and opened it. Going to her bed, she got down on top of the spread and wondered why a student would transfer universities at the end of the semester.

Emily opened her phone and dialed Marco Junior's number, a smile on her face. Her roommate was absorbed in whatever novel she was reading.

He picked up on the third ring. "How are you?"

"Tag, it's you." She said laughing.

"Right now, my number has changed." Just then, the dial tone was heard and Emily felt her anger begin to rise. What the hell was his deal? Why did he have to hurt her like this? What did she do to deserve this? Sighing, she threw the cell phone on the bed and went to the door.

Opening it, she stepped out the side of the dorm room, closing it behind her. She cleared her throat and walked out. She had to find a way to fix it. He doesn't have much time. She reminded the boyfriend too much before. He loved her so much, just to have this happen to her. Taking a deep breath, she whispered, "Damn it Marco Junior, get it together."

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"I think we should at-least give Marco a shot at another scholarship, coach, he's really good and we can use him on the team."

"Danny Robert, you know that scholarships are only given at the beginning of the year. It's too late for him to apply now."

"I know, but he's really good. He could actually help us get to the championship." Coach Alan Andaya looked Danny in the eyes. "I understand that, Danny, but it's out of my hands until next semester."

"Do you know who he is? Marco Gustilo Fernando?"

"I know who he is, Danny Robert Fernando. He was offered a scholarship two years ago, but turned it down. It's not that hard to remember him, considering from a town of eighteen hundred people, he was the MVP outside the district."

"Good."

"Look, take him for a practice run with the rest of the team and we'll see how he does. I can't promise he'll get a scholarship next, but I can get him ready for that."

Danny smiled, "Thanks Coach."

Danny dropped the basketball and left the building. Marco Junior flipped the cover off his phone and placed it inside the jacket hanging inside his closet. He definitely needs to change his number now. He already knew that if any of this type of activity came anywhere near Hershey, it would piss her off, thinking he was hooking up with Emily, even though that wasn't the case. Going to the fridge, he pulled out a can of soda. Going to his companion's computer, he pulled up a chair and turned on the device. Going to a yahoo website, he checked his email. There are three different messages there. One from Lalaine, her cousin, another from a job he applied for in downtown Manila and a third from the school, telling him of his full-year acceptance with full financial aid from his Billionaire father.

He sighed, at least no problem with his tuition, now, but he needs a job of his own. Sighing, he opened the email and saw the five classes he had registered for that school and found out that only three of them were covered, and with the remaining two, the total was equal to thirty thousand pesos per course. That does not include the remaining materials needed. Paper, Pencil, ball pens and a bag, and any other materials that will be added to the course once it starts. Sighing, he closed that email and went to the second, where Lalaine wrote him telling him she was in her senior year at Chicago State. She is also engaged to her boyfriend of two years now, Kyle Edwards, who is a junior. From his other correspondence, it is known that Kyle is a British guy with brown hair and hazel eyes. He is also very good at mechanics. He will get a degree in Mechanical Engineer. That was the perfect match for him. He couldn't remember what degree he was going for, which was annoying because they emailed each other a lot. He closed that one and entered the third. This is from a company in downtown Manila, which is looking for a secretary in their construction company. One person will not only do the paperwork but run and help move the construction as needed. Marco sighed, he didn't know if he wanted to go back to that. Sure the pay is great, but it's not all it's cracked up to be. He decided to take a trip to town later in the week to see what the job was like. There is no better confirmation than the company itself. He will go and talk to the manager maybe tomorrow or the day after.

Marco Junior closed his emails and manually turned off the computer. When he got up, he went back to his room and did the one thing he had to do; Study.

Danny Robert locked his car door and climbed the stairs to the guy's facilities. He grabbed the door and tried to open it. It does not move. When he peeked, he noticed that there was a buzzer in every room. He pressed Marco's, he waited a minute before he heard his voice. "How are you?"

"Marc, this is Danny, I'd like to talk to you about something."

"What's up?"

Danny ran his hands along the thick leather, "I know you didn't expect me to stand here in the cold and talk?" the buzzer sounded and Danny was ushered into the area. When he was upstairs in his dorm, Marco opened the door. They walked in together.

"What's up?" He asked as soon as he entered the house.

Marco shrugged. "Studying."

Danny laughed, "I thought you had a girlfriend?" He will tease.

"I do, he just disappeared."

"Why is it that every time I come here, he's not there?"

"Because you always seem to want to show up when she leaves."

Danny turned on. "Oh okay, guess what?"

"What?" Marco asked, going back to his desk.

"I auditioned with coach for Monday, regarding a scholarship for next season."

Marco Junior stopped where he was, facing Danny, his face full of shock. "What?"

"I said..."

"I know what you said, man, but why?"

"Well, I wanted to help you back on track Marco. I know how it is out here with no family and I see that you could be a valuable commodity to the team."

Marco frowned, "A valuable commodity? And how do you know I don't have family here?"

"Rey said that he and Hershey took the same course on Thursday morning and they talked and he found out that she was your girl. Well, the conversation went further and he told her that you don't have a family. ."

For some reason, hearing this briefing was enough to make Marco Junior very irritated. He doesn't need anyone to feel sorry for him. "I appreciate the effort Danny, but I'm perfectly capable of paying my own way through school." The words came out a little harsher than he intended, his tone. "And, if my father pays all the tuition for me, huh?"

Danny humped his shoulders, "Look man, I just thought you could use the extra cash considering your circumstances."

Marco Junior's eyes warmed to him, "What events?"

"Come on Marco, I'm not trying to give you a pity party or anything, just let you know, I know what it's like for you to be without your family."

Taking a deep breath, Marco Junior stood up, "Will you leave please?"

Danny Robert gulped and raised his hands, "Look, you don't have to be shy to ask for help when you need it."

Marco swallowed, feeling a lump in his throat. Going to the door, he opened it. Glancing Danny in the eye, he said, "I don't need your sympathy, I can do it on my own."

Danny Robert narrowed his eyes, intrigued. He never saw anyone turn down free money, especially when they needed it. "Come on Marco."

"I appreciate your help, Danny." These words are final. Danny nodded and then left the room. Marco closed the door and went to his phone, took it, he dialed Hershey's number.

Hershey is in Victoria's Secret dressing room, trying on a black silk nightgown with matching underwear and a pair of knee-high pantyhose. Sheer as usual with gold-streaked hearts going down the back of the hose, matching the gold heart embroidered on top of the rounded cups that held her breasts. The sleepwear is really nice, it tightens in the back with a strap around the neck.

Sighing, she adjusted the cups to fit the size of her breasts and smiled. It looks so good on her. Marco Junior is sure to love this. After a while, the phone in her pants rang. She felt around the dressing room to reach for the pockets. When she reached for the phone, she took it from her bag and when she saw that it was her number, a smile appeared on her lips as she said in a low voice, "Hey baby, what's up?"

"Do you and Rey have classes?" His voice seemed to warm up.

"We have a couple subjects, why?" "I don't need you telling my business Hershey." He smirked.

Hershey looked in the mirror, frowning, "What?"

"You told him I don't have family here?" Hershey shook his head in annoyance. "I didn't see any harm in saying that, just talk."

"Conversation? Hershey, do you know any of these people here?"

Hershey shrugged, "I was being friendly Marco."

"You don't know what his motives are when it comes to you."

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