Inclusivity

Where would different cultures cross? Would it be in one place? Somewhere in the middle of nowhere? Maybe just behind technology. Probably by the sea. Who knows but for the students of this college, some learn, adapt. Their food, customs, clothing, characteristics— it's fun to try.

The quiet chirping of the birds, wind breezing through the campus, and the bell rang for the last time this semester. It was the last day of uni, everyone finally can rest and enjoy the summer, well, that’s if you don’t go to summer classes. The hallways became lively with chatter from classmates of Blue International College. Everyone is planning for their last day shenanigans; some plan to go home immediately, some want to stay too. The campus boasts international success with academics, which is why many international students attend. The current academic year sees their biggest international student population with 45%, yet it feels like home never left them. That goes for Kelly Hollis.

“Pardon me!” She speeds through the hallway, seemingly trying to chase a deadline. Like Usain Bolt bolting through the halls.

“Hey, no running down the halls, miss!” The roaming school guardian gives her a stern warning. She immediately walks and catches her breath while walking towards her destination. Never a moment for her to be taught a lesson about slowing down. Not long after, she arrives… It was the Education Department. Her eyes filled with determination to submit, takes a deep breath, once more. She knocks thrice then enters.

“Is Ms. Mercado here by any chance?” She asks politely.

“Ah, Ms. Hollis, she’s on a call,” The student assistant replied. Both glanced at the window to look, and indeed, she was on the phone, looking more serious. “Why don’t you take a seat?” Kelly takes a seat and behaves… with her knee bouncing up and down. It looked normal in the sight of the student assistant, but Kelly’s thoughts ran wild.

“How will I greet her? Will she be mad? Should I apologize? How are my friends? Are they good? How about Canada? Are they at peace? What about my family?” So many thoughts went through her head that she didn’t hear the student assistant.

“Oy? Ms. Hollis? Ms. Mercado is done…” Slowly but surely, Kelly came back to her senses.

“Huh?” Looking confused as her head looked at different subjects, she finally submitted her requirement. “Here, Ma'am. I apologize if I submit late.”

“No worries, dear.” Ms. Mercado smiles. “Enjoy summer!”
Kelly exits the department with a smile on her face. Before she could even set off for the gate, a familiar voice captured her.

“Hey, don’t go without me…” High-pitched. Loud. Attention seeking. That’s Eugenio Papa. The noisiest guy on the campus. Some say he's noisier than the cars outside. Well, for Kelly, she finds it his charm. “Remember that we have a hangout…” She completely forgot about the hangout planned.

“Oh my, I almost dropped it.” Her shock was genuine, and she felt bad. “Where are we going anyway?”

“You don’t remember?” Eugenio asks her as they walk towards the exits. “We agreed at my place.”

“Really?” Kelly says suspiciously. She may be very adventurous with her extreme trips, but nothing makes her suspect more than a guy saying that his home is the stop. “Well, if anything, the other girls are there, right?”

“Of course they are!” He says with excitement. “Along with the two heavy drinkers.”

“Ugh, them again?” There she goes again with that expression. “The last time we had a hangout, they didn’t even leave some beer for me.” Eugenio laughed loudly as they walked by the sidewalk, heading towards his place. The orange sky kisses their eyes, the congested traffic jam during rush hour, and the lights are lit up.

“You know, our freshman year went by quickly.” Eugenio became sentimental. He is reminiscing about the ups and downs of their group.

“Oh, save that for later, you…”

“Hehe, yeah yeah…” Not long after, they arrived at the rusty gate. The house is the ancestral kind, passed down from generations. It feels like home for everyone. Air breezes through the gate and the house. Wooden floors from the Spanish era feels its history, though they went through several renovations.

“We’re here!” Eugenio says with pride. Kelly is still amazed by the house— the group had visits once in a while. “I know that look, you miss it, don’t you?”

“Of course!” She replies enthusiastically. “I’d rather live here than the rented place.”

“Okay, that’s out of pocket.”
“What?” Kelly looks confused. “I’m just saying…” As they were about to enter the house, in the corner of Eugenio’s eyes, he saw two glamorous ladies. One timid, but stands out with her fashion. The other, like Kelly, is very outgoing.

“Kelly, wait.”

“Hmm? Oh!” Kelly notices the girls. “Aka! Trinity!”

“Yahho!” That's Aka Tanaka. As she greets Kelly first, the smile beams on her face

“‘Sup!” That's Trinity Dela Santos. She follows her greeting. Both attend the same course, Public Administration. Often leading them to debates. Kelly hugs them; however, she notices something between them.

“Uh, Kelly?” Trinity noticed something off with Kelly’s stare. It went for another second. Until she finally asks.

“Did you two debate coming here?” Kelly raises one eyebrow with a look of curiosity. The two girls laughed it off, thinking it was no big deal. Eugenio steps in with no hesitation.

“Would it be nice to see them have a live debate right now?”

“Do you want to?” Trinity asks him with sarcasm. Confidence boosts her ego.

“You don't want to?”

“Eh?”

“I mean, you would lose anyway…” Eugenio teases her, leading to her being furious. He loves to do so much that it became another episode for the rest.

“What did you say—” And that’s when she reaches for his head and rubs it so hard. Eugenio, feeling the wrath, couldn’t escape with her arms. It may look small, but she is strong— grew up doing many heavy lifts. Aka and Kelly couldn’t help but giggle as they watched the scene unfold.

“Don’t worry, Kelly…” Aka says with a cute tone. She tugs Kelly’s shirt towards her. Kelly goes down, leans in, and Aka whispers. “The debate was about whether or not she should say it.” Kelly’s eyes lit up for a bit. It was when she realised that it could happen anytime. As she was about to ask why, two well-dressed gentlemen approached them from the corner of Don Francisco Street.

“Are they fighting again?” The first man said in an English accent.

“Don’t mind them, Oliver… It’s very entertaining.” A thick German accent cuts through the comedic tension. That was Gregory Muller. They arrived at the scene but completely ignored Trinity and Eugenio.

“Oy, you’re just gonna leave me here—” Eugenio couldn’t finish his sentence as Trinity headlocks him so hard, his head may pop off. “Ah! Trinity!” Just a couple of inches away from the turmoil, the two gentlemen greet the two other ladies.

“Good evening, to you two.” That's Oliver Brandons. As someone who grew up in a well-mannered family, he reaches for Kelly’s hand, to which she humorously slaps away.

“Ugh, stop that, Oliver.” Her eyes rolled in the direction of Aka, where she giggled. “And you, Gregory, could you give him a lecture on not flirting with every lady he sees?”

“I tried, but he just…”

“Oh, don’t be so petty.” Oliver cuts him off. “I, for one, am amazing at how to interact with everyone possible.”

“I’m charging you with harassment.” Aka with an unexpected punchline. “Alright, yamete kudasai~” She approaches the ongoing turmoil of the two, as she doesn’t want to hear any more sentence shenanigans. Oliver, on the other hand, finds it charming that he is smiling oddly. Kelly and Gregory see it and are weirded out.

“Are you seeing this?” Gregory asks.

“You know, I really think he likes Aka.”

“I don't!" Oliver somehow heard Kelly replying. “You two really jump to conclusions, aren’t ya’” His gentleman-like mannerisms dropped that the two were startled. It’s not every day they see him like that.

“Why? It’s kind of obvious.” Kelly replies, continuing to tease him for her. As the two go on for an argument— Gregory trying to hold him back with a laugh, the previous turmoil of Trinity and Eugenio was resolved. However, for Aka, she did hear what Kelly said. She doesn’t know if it was real or not. A faint smile could be seen, but that’s all there is to it.

“Okay, I think we should head inside,” Eugenio says to the rest, whilst holding onto his neck. Thin lines of smoke can be seen from his head as a result of the rubbing. The rest agreed and headed into the house, straight to Eugenio’s bedroom. It was very spacious. Enough to fit them all. The soda’s open, the rustle of the chips, some food from the leftovers was heated ahead of time, and they can’t forget about the beer. The six enjoyed their time with the food and each other’s company. Nothing really can beat camaraderie. As the full moon waddled into the window scene and the night breeze entered the wooden shutters, the conversation was lively.

“Any plans for the summer?” Eugenio asks them. It may be a common question, but inside, he doesn’t want to see them go for two to three months.

“I’m visiting my parents back in Japan,” Aka says.

“Same…” Kelly, Oliver, and Gregory agreed. Seems like the plan really is to come home and come back after a few months.

“Oh…” Eugenio felt down when he heard the answers. Everyone looked at each other and subtly smiled.

“Hey,” Gregory puts his arm around Eugenio. “We’ll be back… You’re too attached, you know.” Everyone cracked up a little hearing it.

“I’ll return with flowers here,” Oliver says, with a proud look of an Englishman.

“You know I’m not dead, right?” Eugenio replies.

“What? I’ll steal some from the backyard.”

“Good luck with immigration.”

As everyone was smiling at the humour, Trinity watched them with a smile. A glass of beer in her hand, raised on the level of everyone else. Her eyes notice one man only. As she was about to say something internally, someone scooted over silently to her side. Gentle, delicate, like you wouldn’t notice the person is finally beside you.

“Trinity?”

“Oh, Aka..”

“Are you thinking about him again?” She looks at her, looking concerned. “...or are you looking at him now?”

“No, no. That’s not it, Aka…” Her face is partially red. She panics as to how much of her redness she can handle. Aka giggles, looking at her.

“Trinity…” Aka goes behind, fixing her hair. “Take your time, it may come…”

“How I wish it won’t be loud when he hears it.”