CHAPTER 17 | The Other Line
It was past noon and Bella was in the headmaster’s office, sitting uncomfortably on a couch while feeling the chills from the room’s air conditioner. She knew that she was going to have a bowl of scolding served in a silver platter for lunch. She wondered what she had done this time to deserve a visit in the headmaster’s office. She had only been in her grandfather’s office thrice, today being her fourth time. Out of all three visits, all were because she did something which had upset her grandfather. There was no doubt that today’s visit would be because of the same reason.
As Bella pondered on what mistake she did, the door to the office opened with a sliding noise. Sevrio walked in with a frown and sat on a single-person couch across Bella, a table between them. His gaze was stern and his hawk-like eyes were sharp and cold as he glanced at his granddaughter. He raised an eyebrow at her, waiting for her to say something first.
“Good afternoon, headmaster,” Bella greeted with not much enthusiasm as she expected.
“Your explanation better be as good as you think this afternoon is,” Sevrio replied and tossed a red folder on the table between them.
Bella reached for it and opened the folder. She was not surprised at all. She figured that Seth would have told him everything. The folder in her hands was Axel’s profile which contained the basic and personal information about his existence. Bella kept a straight face as she lowered the folder down on the table. She faced her grandfather who was already looking straight at her with an austere look.
“What’s your relationship with this rogue?” He asked impatiently.
Bella crossed her legs and leaned on the couch’s backrest. “Nothing.”
“Nothing?” Sevrio repeated in a thunderous voice. “Then why on earth were you seen hanging out with him?”
“Correction, I wasn’t hanging out with him. I was simply assisting a lost wolf around town,” she countered calmly. “Is that so wrong, headmaster?”
“Yes, it is!” Sevrio slammed his palms on the table. “Because you shouldn’t be anywhere near a rogue! Why were you showing a trespasser around town? I bet you don’t have any good reason why.”
“Correction, the rogue wasn’t a trespasser. He has a permit for visit.” Bella crossed her arms as she spoke. “Isn’t that reason good enough? I’m pretty sure it’s allowed by our laws to let rogues visit a particular town as long as they have permits.”
“Stop covering up for him,” Sevrio said in a cold tone. “Sure, he can roam freely in this town as long as he has his permit with him. But, why did you have to be the one there? You were supposed to be with Seth that night.”
“I was,” she answered casually. “Didn’t he tell you?”
“He did and he also told me that he saw you with that rogue twice!” Sevrio exclaimed, the nerves on the side of his neck popping out. “The second time being in our residence! Tell me, Bella, what scheme are you planning with that rogue? Are going to strike a rebellion like your father did? I’m telling you this instance; I’m not letting that happen!”
Bella stared at him in disbelief. He’s got quite the imagination, she thought. Though, she did not expect that Seth saw them that night.
“Is that what you think?” Bella asked in amusement. Sevrio, on the other hand, was not amused at all. It was not the reaction he wanted.
“Why else would he be in our home?!” He yelled. “Was that a part of showing him around our village?”
Suddenly, Bella remembered something important.
“Look, grandpa. He happened to pass by,” she explained. “Mr. de Lima is his uncle and our house is only a few blocks away from his residence. Didn’t you know that? Haven’t you read that in his profile? For sure, I did. He told me that he was visiting Mr. de Lima, too. If it isn’t stated here –” she pointed at the red folder, “– then, I’ll tell you that he was the talkative type.”
Sevrio froze for a moment and couldn’t speak up. He knew that his granddaughter had a point this time and her stand seemed believable. Though, he still couldn’t tell if she was lying or telling the truth.
“Right, I recognize him too.” Sevrio looked up and matched her cold gaze. “He told me everything. Does dad know? That you banished his beta and best friend’s family?”
“How dare you!” Sevrio exclaimed as he stood up and pointed his forefinger at Bella, then to the door. “Leave! We’ll talk at home later. I’m not done with you.”
Bella stood up and bowed her head. “Good day, headmaster.” She left her grandfather’s office without another word and walked her way to the ladies’ room.
Her heart was pounding fast. She almost got caught. She figured that Seth might have told her grandfather everything way too soon since Sevrio hadn’t mentioned anything about the incident she, Axel, and Seth had by the school gate this morning. Seth may pass that on to the headmaster later, so, Bella thought she would prepare another lie just in case.
As Bella passed by the cafeteria on her way to the ladies’ room, a voice she decided to hate called her name.
“Bella, wait up!” Seth called her and she turned around to face him. “Have you had lunch yet?”
She stared at him in disbelief. “Yes, I already had lunch with the headmaster. I’ve had scolding as my main course and a bunch of yelling for dessert. The air in the headmaster’s office was way nicer than the cafeteria’s. Maybe I should have lunch there often,” she said sarcastically, her face smiling as she waited for Seth to respond.
Seth’s face turned sour. He didn’t expect that kind of answer from Bella. He didn’t expect that her grandfather would scold her so early.
“I’m sorry,” he muttered, his head downcast. “I had to tell him. I didn’t like that rogue around you. I don’t want you to like him.”
“Do you think I’m easy?” Bella asked him, her face serious. “Do you think I’ll let some rogue ruin my life? Do you think I’m that stupid?”
Seth looked up to her, surprised. Inwardly, he felt relieved after hearing those words.
“So, you two don’t have a thing for each other? You don’t like him? He has no chance on you?” he asked all at once. He was happy deep inside.
Bella hesitated for a moment, but shook her head in the end. “The answer to all three is a no. I’ll accept your apology, but please don’t meddle with my business in the future.”
Bella turned her back and walked past him. She didn’t bother waiting for Seth’s response and made her way to the ladies’ room. Seth smiled in satisfaction as he watched Bella’s back disappear into a hallway. It was good enough for him to know that Bella had no feelings whatsoever for Axel. However, Bella though to herself – ‘do I not really like him?’
The ladies’ room was empty when Bella got inside. She closed the door and locked it. She stared at herself in the mirror as she washed her hands on the sink. “No,” she said as she reached for a napkin to wipe her hands dry. “I don’t like him.”
Bella walked into the farthest cubicle and sat on the toilet cover. She got her phone out of the pocket of her skirt and scrolled on her phonebook. She pressed on the profile of ‘Not A Prince, But Still Charming’ and clicked on the call icon. Her phone buzzed; the other line was still ringing. No one picked up. Bella’s phone stopped buzzing after a minute of connecting to the other line. Impatient, she called again and the other line picked up almost immediately. She placed the phone closer to her ear.
“Why didn’t you pick up on the first call?” Bella asked; the other line was silent, so, she continued to speak. “What are you doing right now? Are you busy?”
“Is it a woman? Who is it? Who is it? Shut up, shut up. Let me handle this.” The responses from the other line were said almost at the same time. Bella noticed that none of the voices belonged to Axel. The voices did sound familiar to her, though.
“Axel?” Bella asked after the other line was silent again. “Are you there?”
“Oh, hi, Axel isn’t here at the moment,” a baritone voice asked. “May I know who’s calling?”
“By any chance,” a gruff voice said. “Are you his girlfriend?”
Bella hesitated for a moment. “Yes, I am.”
“Axel has a girlfriend?” a younger orotund voice asked in disbelief. A mixture of three deep and rough voices laughed in unison.
“May I speak to Axel?” Bella asked, ignoring their laughter.
A throaty voice answered, “He’s sleeping right now. We shouldn’t wake him up. Actually, he has a gu–”
“Hey, why would you tell her that?”
“We can’t tell her.”
“Don’t tell her.”
“What is it?” Bella interrupted. She was starting to think that something bad happened. She also figured already that the guys on the other line were the ones she helped to escape back in de Lima’s place.
“If you have something to tell him, we can pass it on to him when he wakes up,” the baritone voice said.
“Tell him to prepare a visiting permit. You guys should have one, too,” she said. “Also, tell him to wait for me at the convenience store nearest to my academy. I’ll be there by four-thirty.”
“Okay.”
“Copy that.”
“Anything else?”
The campus bell rang, indicating that lunch break was over. Bella got out of the cubicle and stared at herself in the mirror as she moved the phone close to her lips. She smiled at her reflection as she tucked some loosed hair strands behind her ear.
“Tell him to be careful, too,” she added.