Margin of Error

Chapter Twenty-Four

That's when Mira scoffed loudly. "Oh, please. Everyone knows what happened. You can't erase the past."

The tension was thick enough to choke on. Students nearby started slowing down, whispering.

And that's when I realized, Professor Castro was standing a few feet away, holding her enrollment papers, talking to three other women. She looked like she had just frozen mid-conversation, eyes locked on us.

Her friends, glamorous in their business-casual outfits, followed her gaze.

"Who's that?" Miss Sky asked, her voice low but curious.

"Trouble, from the look of it," Miss Lovi said, arching a brow.

Miss Stephanie tilted her head. "Your student?"

Professor Castro didn't answer right away. I could feel her eyes on me, but I couldn't tell if it was anger, confusion, or something else entirely.

Rena stepped closer to me like a shield. "If you have nothing better to say, Mira, then just walk away."

But Mira only smirked again, her gaze flicking briefly toward Professor Castro. "Oh, I think I've said enough." She turned and walked off like she'd just won something.

The moment she was gone, I let out a breath I didn't realize I'd been holding. My friends were still glaring in her direction, muttering curses under their breath.

From the corner of my eye, I saw Professor Castro's friends giving her questioning looks. She excused herself from them and started walking toward me, slowly, deliberately while my stomach dropped.

Professor Castro stopped just a few feet from me. "Miss Cruz," she said in that calm-but-sharp tone she used in class. "May I have a word?"

My friends immediately tensed, looking at me like do you want us to come?
I shook my head. "Sige, sandali lang."

She led me toward one of the shaded corners near the guidance office, away from the main crowd but not far enough that her friends and mine couldn't see us. I could even spot Miss Sky pretending to scroll on her phone while clearly listening, and Rena was doing the same in reverse.

When we stopped, she crossed her arms. "Care to explain what that was all about?"

"Wala po 'yon, Miss," I said quickly, forcing a small smile. "Just old issues."

Her brows furrowed. "Old issues that seem to have a very personal sting, from the way you looked back there."

I swallowed hard, avoiding her gaze. "It's nothing worth talking about."

Her voice lowered, but it was still firm. "You don't look like someone dealing with 'nothing,' Miss Cruz."

I sighed, glancing briefly toward my friends who were pretending not to watch. "She's just someone from my past. Someone I'd rather not see again."

"That much is obvious," she said, her eyes narrowing slightly. "But why does she think she can talk to you like that? What happened?"

I shifted my weight, fingers tightening around my enrollment form. "I'd rather not—"

"Deahyah." Her tone softened unexpectedly. "I'm asking because I want to understand. You don't have to give me details, but I need to know if you're okay."

That made me look at her. "I'm fine," I lied.

For a moment, she just studied me, her expression unreadable. Then she said quietly, "You don't seem fine. And whoever she is, she clearly knows how to push your buttons."

I forced a small laugh, hoping it would end the conversation. "You're reading too much into it again, Miss. It's really nothing."

From where we stood, I could hear Miss Lovi murmur to Miss Sky, "Definitely not nothing." And on the other side, Irish whispered, "Oh my God, Miss Eliza looks like she's about to interrogate her."

Professor Castro finally let out a slow sigh. "Alright. I won't push. For now."
Her eyes lingered on me for a second longer before she stepped back, her heels clicking against the pavement as she returned to her friends.

I stayed frozen in place for a beat, feeling both relieved and unsettled.

The moment Professor Castro walked away, Rena practically dragged me back toward the benches where the rest of my friends were.

"Hoy!" Jin exclaimed, eyes wide. "What was that?!"

"Grabe, you two looked like you were in some teleserye confrontation," Jerm added, leaning in like I was about to spill the juiciest tea.

Irish crossed her arms. "I swear, I almost marched there kanina. Kung tingin ko sinisigawan ka na niya, sumugod na ako."

I chuckled dryly. "Relax. Wala naman siyang ginawa. She just asked."

"About Mira?" Yvonne asked flatly.

That made me stop in my tracks. "...You heard?"

Angel raised a brow. "Uh, hello? The entire row heard her say 'who is she.' We may not have the exact chismis, but it doesn't take a genius."

Rena leaned forward, lowering her voice. "You good, Dea? Alam mo naman, we've got your back. Kahit sinong Mira o kung sinuman 'yan, di niya pwedeng basta-basta..." She trailed off, clearly trying to hold back her own temper.

"I'm fine," I said, but the tone came out sharper than I intended.

They all exchanged looks. Yvonne sighed. "There it is again that wall."

"What wall?" I asked defensively.

"The one you build when you don't want us to see you hurting," Angel said gently.

Jerm snorted. "Deah, we've known you for years. You can't fool us. We were there when Mira—"

"Stop." My voice cut through, making them all go quiet. "I said I'm fine. Can we just move on?"

For a second, nobody spoke. Then Rena finally nodded, though her eyes were still sharp. "Fine. But just so you know, if she tries anything, it's all of us against her. And I mean it."

I forced a smile, trying to shake off the heaviness. "Yeah, yeah. Noted."

Still, even as they started joking about where to eat after enrollment, I could feel the weight of their eyes on me like they knew I was seconds away from shattering but were giving me the space to hold myself together.