Stela came out of the bathroom with her eyes still red and swollen. Mia and Vera immediately went over to her and held the girl's hands tightly. Stela only gazed forlornly at her two new friends. She couldn't bring herself to speak, too ashamed of what had happened today.
"Feel a little better?" Mia asked.
Stela nodded, and Mia and Vera smiled. They wanted so badly to ask about the truth behind the photo. But this was Stela's right. They didn't want to force her. To them, who Stela had been before didn't matter now. It would only matter if Stela herself decided it did.
"The bell rang. Wanna head back?"
Again, Stela could only nod. The thanks sitting on the tip of her tongue never made it out. Her arms and legs were still weak and trembling. Stela tried to smile at Mia and Vera so they wouldn't worry anymore.
The walk to the classroom felt incredibly long. Stela kept looking right and left, making sure no students were staring at her. The middle hallway was quiet because every class was in session.
"Excuse us, Mr. Dani. Sorry, we were just in the bathroom."
Mia asked Mr. Dani for permission to come in. Vera and Stela followed behind her. Stela could feel the students' disgusted stares. She swallowed before sitting at her desk. She became even more frightened when the eyes of her classmates followed her everywhere she went.
"What are you all staring at?!" Vera shouted, slamming her hand on the desk.
Some of the students flinched at the girl's loud voice, while others clicked their tongues dismissively. Mia quickly pulled Vera down into her seat to listen to Mr. Dani's explanation, while Stela turned and smiled at her.
"What's going on, Vera?" the teacher asked as he adjusted his glasses.
"Nothing, sir. Sorry."
Vera raised her hand as if she were about to punch the boys in front of her when they started acting up. Luckily, Mr. Dani was already focused on the whiteboard. The students in her class teased Stela by showing her Squad's post and winking. Vera was furious at the way they looked at Stela as if she were a slut.
"It's okay, Ver. I'm fine."
Stela kept her head down throughout the lesson. She didn't want to look up because she was afraid of making eye contact with her classmates. The girl shook her head over and over as negative thoughts took control. All the shouting and insults from the past returned to her memory and spun around in her head.
"I knew it, ma'am. She wouldn't have transferred schools if everything had been fine."
"Where did the Squad kids get this photo?"
"Besides, none of this is necessarily what they're accusing her of. She could've just been at a party that happened to look like a bar, right?"
"Someone commented that the bar in the photo is the biggest bar in Tangerang. It's also on the police's list of places being investigated for selling girls. Before that comment appeared, things weren't nearly this bad."
"Who was it, ma'am?"
"I don't know. They commented using a fake account."
Teo pricked up his ears and recorded the conversation between the teachers as they gossiped. It was already lunchtime, so it was no surprise that they had gathered to exchange opinions as usual. The man pretended to eat his packed lunch and wore earphones that weren't connected to his phone.
Teo sent the recording to Sanas. Since that morning, the woman had been bombarding him with the same questions. How was the school? How was Stela doing? Teo had almost forgotten that he was Sanas's fiancé, not her spy. He actually wanted to go to that special student's class, but his own work was still piling up.
Sanshine Even you teachers can't do anything.
Teo was a little annoyed by Sanas's message. He felt cornered, as if he wasn't helping at all. Still, what Sanas had said wasn't entirely wrong. Whoever it was, tracking down a fake account would be difficult. As for the Squad admin, even the counseling office had no idea who was behind it.
Teo quickly left the teachers' room and headed for the school's back garden. He made sure to bring his food and phone. He walked quickly so no other teachers would stop him with questions.
"Hello!"
Teo smiled when Sanas answered his call. The man glanced behind him to make sure no one had followed him. He needed to talk to Sanas; texting wasn't enough. The tone and way the words were read would ruin the mood.
"I heard the principal already talked to the counselor. It looks like Stela's going to be called in after this. They need to clear this up with her directly. There are too many armchair interpreters in the comments, and they aren't listening to our PR team. The Instagram admin hasn't taken the post down, and they're ignoring all the messages from the teachers here, too."
"I hope you can resolve this soon. Not because I want Stela's past to stay hidden, but because this isn't good for her mental health, and it isn't good for our plan either, Yo."
Teo let out a heavy sigh. As a teacher, he understood Stela's condition very well. He was sure the girl was being consumed by fear, panic, and disgust all at once.
"What about your side? Any progress?"
"Ramon managed to prove what he said. There's no evidence of violence against the victims. They're clean. There was no abuse, Yo."
"How is that possible?"
The cafeteria was always crowded. Students jostled one another as they lined up to order food. Vera tugged on Loen's ear while he waited in line for meatball soup.
"Hey! Mom already told you not to eat meat yet. You're so bad," the girl scolded.
Dean and R, who were sitting and waiting for Loen, burst out laughing at the sight. Mia came over and sat on one of the empty benches. Dean and R immediately looked at her seriously.
"It's empty, right? The other side's full," she said.
Loen walked over in a towering rage. He sat down irritably without looking at Dean or R. Vera also sat beside Mia and glared sharply at Loen.
"You two knew Loen was sick. Why did you just let him do that?"
"Loen bought it for me, not for himself," Dean explained.
Vera covered her mouth in disbelief. She immediately went over to Loen. Mia laughed at her friend's expression. Dean and R exchanged glances and laughed too.
"Sorry, sis. I misunderstood."
"That's why you ask first instead of randomly pulling people's ears. Besides, I know my limits," the frowning boy explained.
Vera quickly took her twin's hand. Mia and Dean could only shake their heads, while R focused on the girl who was standing frozen in place.
"What's wrong with your friend?" R asked, pointing toward Stela.
Mia and Vera turned around. They hadn't thought Stela would come to the cafeteria. Before they could stand up to approach her, the girl had already run away. R instinctively rose from his seat.
"What's up, bro?" Dean asked.
"I'm going after her."
"Hey, just leave her alone." Loen stopped him.
"No. Girls are supposed to run, and guys are supposed to chase them."
R immediately took off after Stela. The four students left behind exchanged glances and leaned their heads together. Then they whispered among themselves.
"Did your friend get possessed?" Mia asked quietly.
"Your friend is the one who possessed mine."
Meanwhile, elsewhere, Stela never imagined that a single photo could make her the center of attention. Everyone stared at her and held up their phones, as if they were talking about and insulting her in the comments. The girl hurried back to class and grabbed her bag.
"Wait, where are you going?"
Stela kept walking, ignoring the call. She quickened her pace and put on her favorite hat. The girl put in her earphones and turned up the music.
"Stop!"
Stela's hand was yanked from behind. She immediately shook it off and tried to run. But R's grip was too strong. Stela tried several times to pull free, but she couldn't.
"Let go!"
R shook his head and stared intently at Stela. Her eyes filled with tears as R's grip hurt her wrist. Running out of options, Stela bit his hand.
"Ow!!"
Stela ran the moment R let go. The boy was still busy groaning in pain. R stomped his foot as the girl escaped him. The bell signaling the start of class had rung, so he immediately went back to class, with no intention of skipping just to chase Stela. He needed time, he thought.
@hgxgrid She's such a slut. @bamsbang Wow, Immersion finally has a slut too. And she's hot. @tiararizky What's the point of being pretty when she's already been groped? @hukikia Must be nice being her. She just got here and she's already famous. @jasafollowers We sell likes and followers, sis. @meeras They hang out at Hugos bar, bro. Don't tell me she's FRS too. @kulookul What's FRS, @meeras? @bintangkejora If someone from FRS looks like her, she must be expensive. How much, sweetheart @stelenastar? @bvlnbin Then she must be innocent, right? Can the people who've been yapping this whole time shut up?
Stela threw her phone. Tears streamed down her face as more comments and direct messages flooded into her account. The girl tangled her fingers in her hair and yanked at it. She took a pair of scissors from the nightstand and stared at herself in the mirror for what felt like the hundredth time. Stela drew a deep breath and cut her hair again. Now, her crown fell no farther than her neck.
Her phone kept ringing. A call from Sanas lit up the screen. The girl immediately pressed the red button and shut off her phone.
Stela trudged to the bathroom. She climbed into the bathtub without taking off her clothes. She submerged her face for a few moments and reflected on her mistakes.
There was no clear reason to live, she thought.