High School Again: The President's Secret Lady Boss

Winter cooped up in her bedroom for the rest of the day.

She took time to internalize her conversation with August earlier. That was the first she ever saw him wear his heart on his sleeves for her. She did not intend to make him feel that way, though - she was merely putting her distance and minding her own business.

'But perhaps, that's enough of that.'

As Winter thought about that, she lowered her head and cast down her gaze.

She is sitting on top of her bed while hugging her knees close to her chest for the entire time. Right at that moment, she is back to those days she feels so afraid and insecure. Although it will be a good thing if her relationship with August changes, she fears she will trust too much again.

Contrary to what Marcellus and George claimed earlier, she is not that gullible. Deciding to work together with someone she barely knows is not an act of trusting too much. Rather, she is simply making bets and testing things. She couldn't possibly believe in people that easily when all she got in return after doing so in her previous life were pains and losses.  

'Only when you lost someone will you realize how much that person meant...' she continued to ponder while bathing in the dimness and silence of her bedroom.

'August was probably affected by how I was treating him lately - much more than I could imagine, I guess. He did become a lot nosier and inquisitive than before. I thought he was only weirded out because I was acting out of character. I'd always been the obedient one, after all. Now, I've become quite rebellious.'    

Winter knows that everyone deserves a second chance. 

Apart from her fears and lack of trust, she had no reason to deny August the opportunity to change. This might be for the better as well. She does want to form relationships with other people - it is kind of hypocritical of her to not resolve the one she has with her own sibling. 

And with that, Winter decided to join August for breakfast on the next morning.

---

"You're... not going straight to school today?"

As Winter expected, August was stupefied.

He was cooking eggs and bacons when she suddenly walked in and settled down at their dining table. For the first several seconds, he's too busy with what he's doing that he didn't notice her. Only when he turned around to get his plate did he see her sitting there and watching him the whole time.

He almost dropped his plate out of surprise.

"There's still time. I'm always early, anyway. I'll eat breakfast," Winter simply said while August only continued staring down at her in surprise and disbelief. 

"Oh... Then... Do you want some eggs and bacon too?"

She nods in response.

Without further ado, he goes and cooks another batch. The silence that layers over them from that point on is not the awkward kind - instead, it's of perfect calm. Both of them know that they should be saying something, but they have a quiet agreement to put it aside in the meantime. And so, they stay that way for the next minutes to come.

That's until August finally finishes cooking and joins Winter at the dining table.

"How's school?" he started once more while he watched her dig in.

"I'm doing fine. There are no problems," she replied and glanced at him.

"On the day after tomorrow, I'll be leaving work earlier than usual."

"I see. What's up?"

"Nothing. I just want to pick you up after school. Is that okay?"

She comes to a still for a second there, not seeing that coming.

Although he had averted his gaze away, she could see that he looked expectant. There's the fear of receiving her rejection as well. If he continues acting that sheepish yet eager, she can't possibly find it in herself to turn his offer down.   

"Okay. You can pick me up."

When Winter finally gave her answer, August seemed to brighten up a little.

He is even smiling for the slightest bit. It was almost like that made him a lot happier than she thought. Him beaming like that is already a rarity, after all. What's more, he looked very pleased.

Perhaps, Winter did the right choice to give August a second chance.

---

Ace didn't know what to expect that morning.

When he went to school, everything seemed normal. There are the usual greetings and chit-chats. He would engage in conversations, talk about anything under the sun, and kid around with his friends. It's just his daily routine of living his life - except it's not really what it seems at all.

This day in particular had been getting on his nerves.

And that's because he still didn't know how he would face a certain classmate of his.

'Winter is already aware that I've been lying to everyone this entire time. I've been using my mother's maiden name. And because my step father doesn't give a damn about me, anyway, it's alright for me to hide my identity.'

While still in the middle of chatting around with his friends, he kept thinking about ways on how to approach that particular topic.

Ace remembered how shocked Winter was when she found out the truth. That wasn't part of his plan, but because he was not aware that Marcellus was looking for her as well, it couldn't be helped that Violet informed him. As for why George knew about him too, that's probably because of their far-reaching, wide-ranging network. 

He couldn't undo what had been done, though. He just chose to think that what really mattered was that they were able to save her.   

"Hey, Ace! You here with us, dude...?" Xander called out to Ace, making him snap out of his thoughts.

"Seems like Winter here wants to speak with you."

Too caught up in his contemplation, he failed to notice that Winter was already standing in front of him.

Everyone present inside the classroom falls in silence at once. They are all looking in their direction at the moment, anticipating what will happen next. It's not everyday that they get to see this scene, after all. Since she doesn't approach anyone that often, she's also rarely ever seen initiating a conversation with him out of all people.  

He really couldn't careless about that, though. All that mattered to him at that point was the girl in front of him.

"Can I talk with you for a minute...?" Winter asked Ace, still looking as enigmatic as ever.

"Alone."

Xander and the others in his group react astonished to this. That's when a round of chatters broke out among their classmates, questioning what's up with that sudden request of hers. Some are even starting to assume that she's going to confess to him. Maxine and Courtney are also watching at the side - flabbergasted like everyone else.  

Ace, on the other hand, doesn't know how to answer.

This is not what he expected - not her nonchalance towards the attention she's receiving nor the way she straight up asked him without a second thought.

"Uhhhhh... Sure," was what Ace just lamely replied in the end, letting Winter take the lead from that second on.

The whole place becomes noisier right then - some teased them by whistling and cooing while others were too dumbfounded to even say anything.  

She remained insouciant through it all while he only followed her. There's no use going against such a crowd. All they can do is stay away as much as possible. And with that, they end up finding themselves on the school's rooftop.  

"Hey, uhhhhh... I guess you wanted to ask about that one from yesterday..." Ace started a little hesitantly, rubbing the back of his neck all the while.

"I could've explained it to you if Mr. Lexington didn't take you out of there in a haste."

"It's alright. Both us must have needed some time to internalize everything that happened, anyway..." Winter trailed off before reaching in and pulling something out of her skirts pocket.

"Besides, I want to express my gratitude to you first of all. The explanation could wait."

Much to his surprise, she got him a guitar pick with the logo of his favorite music band.

For a good presentation, she even put it inside a small, white box with a green ribbon on it. He is as taken aback by the present as he is nonplussed that she is actually paying attention to him this whole time - she knows about his favorite music band. Considering that it's only yesterday, she must've been in a rush to buy it too.

"I-I... You really don't have to..." he faltered, feeling too flattered to even respond properly.

"Thank you for this."

Winter finds Ace blushing and beaming right then, which makes her eyes widen for a bit. He appears bashful all of the sudden. It kind of reminds her how August acted earlier that morning.

'What a refreshing sight.. These dudes sure know how to be timid every once in a while.'