September 22 (Sunday)
9:56 PM
The digital chat room of the KSU TAYTAY BEED 1-A main group lit up in a state of sudden, localized panic.
The catalyst was an administrative ambush previously dropped by Dr. Manazaki regarding a mandatory Monday morning flag ceremony. The sudden directive clashed violently with their established academic timeline. The Class Treasurer, Lindsey Soliko, was the first to deploy a verification check, recalling Mr. Brackin's words from their last meeting that their preliminary topics were cleared until the actual exam on Wednesday.
Lindsey Soliko: "No class us tom, right?"
The 29-year-old class veteran, Reo Bairo, immediately confirmed Lindsey's intel. But the confirmation only fueled the confusion regarding the morning deployment.
Alpha Agane: "But… we have to go to school early, are we really required to attend 😭😭"
The geographical reality hit the Talim Island commuter the hardest. For the islanders, an early morning assembly wasn't just an inconvenience; it was a maritime logistical nightmare.
Aprille Bolente: "Do we really need to, besh? So we can leave the island much earlier."
Reo stepped in, deploying a surprisingly blunt rebuttal to short-circuit Aprille's overthinking loop.
Reo Bairo: "Just sleep. Pls enough @Aprille Bolente."
It was a sudden, flawlessly executed command. Aprille simply dropped a laugh reaction on Reo's message, the tension breaking.
And then, the Apex Strategist started moving the chess pieces. Jiro Sanata broke his usual observer status to drop a cold, factual observation into the chat.
Jiro Sanata: "This flag ceremony has been going on for weeks eh."
Yet, Alpha was still trapped in a loop of institutional fear, desperately seeking confirmation if Dr. Manazaki's "attendance check" mandate was absolute. Reo countered by explaining that the official, assigned flag ceremony hosting for BEEd 1-A wasn't scheduled until the following year, theoretically granting them immunity for tomorrow.
Aprille was still hesitating. If the mandate was real, the Island Trio would have to wake up at 4:00 AM just to catch the earliest motorbancas in the dark.
The decisive strike finally came from the working student. Mona Patori, operating on pure, exhaustion-driven logic, dropped the bitter reality of the commuting student right into the chat.
Mona Patori: "It's such a waste of money to spend on commute and time just to go to school for the flag ceremony, is that really necessary?"
Reo backed her up, establishing the final consensus.
Reo Bairo: "I don't know, but I feel like it's not. Cuz we don't have classes. Even if we do have classes, we don't need to go at 7:15 just to do the flag ceremony if our class is at 2pm."
The logic was undeniable. The entire cohort silently nodded behind their screens. The unspoken agreement was forged: Do not attend the flag ceremony.
10:02 PM
While the main chat settled down, a different strategic briefing was happening in the exclusive Peepeeps group chat.
Jiro delivered the raw, unfiltered truth of the campus operations, implying the massive gap between department schedules and campus-wide decrees.
Jiro Sanata: "Well… it was the Campus Director who always announces that everyone must attend the flag ceremony tomorrow… regardless of your schedule."
At that exact moment, somewhere in the deep Taytay suburbs, the environment was completely dark. The narrow streets were illuminated only by sparse, towering LED lights and the faint glow from residential gates.
Niewi Voeliè was currently executing a frantic, high-speed run. She was clutching her phone in one hand and her newly replaced, hand-written learning materials in the other, desperately sprinting toward the house of her assigned NSTP tutee.
When Jiro's message pinged, she slowed down to a jog, gasping for air as she typed her reply. She ranted about the absolute absurdity of traveling to the campus at dawn just to stand in a line. She even ironically thanked Dr. Manazaki for actually giving them a heads-up, directly comparing him to their elusive Elite Educator, Mr. Jimmy Brackin, who hadn't said a single word about the event.
The Tall Muse, Mira Palida, instantly intercepted the comparison.
Mira Palida: "Wut is ur problem with Jimmy? BWHAHAHAHAHA."
It was a known, lowkey dynamic that Mira harbored a slight crush on their polished, professional adviser. Niewi joked back, typing breathlessly that she had a lot of problems with him, before pocketing her phone and resuming her sprint to her tutee's house.
The strategic alignment in the circle finally finalized. Niewi, Ivyn, and Mira resolved to attend the ceremony just to be safe. Meanwhile, both Jiro and Mona firmly locked in their decision to skip.
In a completely different household, Ivyn was conducting a highly optimized version of her LTS tutoring requirement. She had assigned her sister's twin daughters a simple coloring and drawing activity. It was a flawless tactical move—quick, easy to supervise, and simple to document for her weekly journal.
Mona dropped one final, brutal assessment on the morning deployment.
Mona Patori: "Maybe I'll just make an excuse if needed, crap, we don't even have class at that sched eh. Plus, who'd be dumb enough to spend that expensive commute just to show up for the flag ceremony and nothing else."
The logic finally breached the defenses of the other three girls. The plan shifted. They universally agreed to initiate a tactical evasion. The official alibi: body pain and phantom illnesses resulting from their swimming activity the day before.
With the evasion secured, Mona went to sleep early, completely bypassing her own LTS requirement for the night.
September 23 (Monday)
7:45 AM
KSU Taytay Gymnasium
The morning sun filtered through the open-air layout of the campus gymnasium. The facility was sparsely populated, with students standing in neat, rigid rows. It was a visual clash of factions—the majority were CON students looking immaculate in their pristine white uniforms, dotted by a few sophomore COE students wearing the signature, uneven shades of blue.
The ceremony was stuck in the buffering phase. Campus staff members were still untangling speaker wires, adjusting the wooden podium, and executing heavy feedback tests on the large speakers with wireless microphones.
At the back of the formation, the heavyweights of the campus administration had gathered. The COE and CON Deans, Dr. Manazaki, and the Campus Director stood watch, holding printed memorandums. On the stage, a squad of BSN 2-B officers stood at attention, mentally reviewing their oaths, prayers, and hymns.
But amidst the sea of white and blue, not a single soul from BEEd 1-A could be found.
They were ghosts.
Back in the digital realm of the KSU TAYTAY BEED 1-A group chat, the Commander successfully lifted the remaining anxiety from her sleeping cohort.
Hidy Medona: "Good morning @everyone, no need since our class (supposedly) starts at 2 pm. But we don't have class today in History as per Sir Jimmy, and the flag ceremony is only for those classes that have 7 am sched."
The decree was absolute. No attendance required, and no afternoon classes. It was a massive, unexpected stamina recovery. The cohort was granted double the time to sleep, rest, and mentally prepare for their impending RPH preliminary examinations on Wednesday.
9:24 AM
Hours after the flag ceremony concluded, Hidy dropped a critical piece of intelligence into the group chat.
She forwarded a clipped screenshot of her private conversation with the COE Dean. Hidy had respectfully deployed a diplomatic defense, explaining that her section couldn't attend the ceremony because their academic schedule was completely empty for the day, neutralizing any need to travel to the campus.
The Dean had acknowledged the logic, granting them official amnesty.
But the real core detail of the screenshot was in the Dean's follow-up message. Because the system had unceremoniously removed Mr. Casto from their Saturday PE 1 block, the Dean suggested a structural fix: BEEd 1-A could merge with the Nursing department's PE 1 class, which was scheduled every Thursday.
Hidy immediately laid the parameters out for the class.
Hidy Medona: "Hi @everyone. Is it okay for you guys our PE is on Thursday. So we can go home early on Saturday."
The Vice President, Princess Cleria, instantly initiated a mass tagging protocol, urging everyone to react and lock in their votes so Hidy could return a final confirmation to the Dean.
But the 29-year-old Lore Master spotted the economic trap hidden within the schedule shift. Traveling to the campus on a Thursday just for a single, two-hour PE class was a massive drain on their commuting funds, mimicking the exact same financial inefficiency they currently suffered on Mondays and Wednesdays.
Reo suggested that Hidy negotiate for alternative time slots. Hidy acknowledged the logic and sent the counter-proposal to the Dean, initiating another waiting sequence.
10:17 AM
While the schedule was being debated, Hidy pivoted to their next major requirement on the BEED 1 UPDATES channel. She announced a mandatory online assembly scheduled for 7:00 PM that evening to map out the logistics for their massive Culminating Activity—tackling funds, venues, costumes, props, and role assignments.
By 11:30 AM, Hidy deployed the official PE 1 schedule poll. Option 1: THURSDAY 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM. Option 2: MONDAY or WEDNESDAY 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM.
The voting momentum heavily favored Option 2, consolidating their classes to save on fare. Hidy noted that the Dean was waiting for the final verdict by noon.
1:21 PM
Despite the complete absence of scheduled classes, two rogue elements of BEEd 1-A had infiltrated the campus grounds.
Cicille Masha, wearing her complete KSU COE blue uniform, and Niewi Voeliè, keeping a low profile in a black shirt and denim pants, were hanging out on a low-level steel bench along the open-air walkway. Right behind them stood the unsettling, makeshift barricade that separated the college grounds from the screaming energy of the elementary school.
They were casually chatting when a familiar figure caught their attention in the distance.
Through the open gaps of the gymnasium, they spotted Mr. Edwardo Casto. He was actively running drills, teaching his PE class to a platoon of Nursing students in pristine white shirts and pajamas.
"Uy, Sir Casto oh," Niewi muttered, pointing a finger toward the court.
"Oh, right… He is with nursing, noh?" Cicille confirmed, tracking his movements.
"Ugh, it is so unfair for us that they removed him from our course eh… It pisses me off," Niewi grumbled, her frustration spiking at the sheer inefficiency of the institution's roster management.
Seeing their favorite chill instructor exiled to another department triggered Niewi's stealth operation. She smoothly pulled out her phone, zoomed in past the concrete pillars, and captured a secret photo of Mr. Casto casually engaging with the Nursing faction.
She deployed the image straight into the Peepeeps group chat, alerting the circle and actively trying to hook Ivyn into joining them on campus.
After securing the visual intel, Niewi and Cicille executed their primary objective. They ascended the stairs to the third floor, navigating straight to the campus Library. They had registered their data last Monday, and it was time to claim their credentials.
They approached the front desk. The librarian pulled out a small cardboard box filled with freshly laminated, high-gloss Library ID cards. She methodically searched through the stack until she located Niewi and Cicille's names.
Before handing the IDs over, the librarian executed the system verification protocol. She aimed a barcode reader at the back of the cards.
Ping.
A nearby monitor instantly flashed their data, and an automated, digital voice announced: "Welcome to the KSU Library." It was a rare, flawlessly functioning piece of campus technology that actively logged their entry timestamps.
The librarian handed over the cards, instructing them that upon every future entry, they had to independently scan their barcodes at the small terminal beside the door. Furthermore, the cards required physical re-validation every new semester via a small validity sticker applied to the back.
The girls thanked her, pocketed their new credentials, and claimed a quiet table in the reading room to utilize the facility's air-conditioning and review for their impending RPH preliminary exam.
6:57 PM
The digital sun began to set, and Hidy dropped a section-wide broadcast.
The Culminating Activity online assembly was pushed back to 8:00 PM. But to ensure maximum attendance, she dropped a massive teaser: she had acquired "good news" for the entire cohort.
The strategy worked too well. Reo, Cristel, and Mira instantly swarmed the chat, aggressively demanding that Hidy leak the spoilers. The Commander held her ground, maintaining the suspense.
As the evening deepened, the cohort began their dinner preparations. Hidy checked the room's status, asking if everyone had finished eating. The responses were a tactical mess—Lindsey admitted her rice wasn't even cooked yet, while Mira shamelessly declared she would just eat her dinner on-camera during the meeting to maintain her stamina.
Hidy sighed at the logistical chaos but booted up her laptop anyway, generating the Google Meet link and deploying it at exactly 8:07 PM.
The vanguard members joined the digital lobby early, waiting for the stragglers to connect. By 8:20 PM, the assembly officially commenced.
The first major hurdle was the practice venue. Finding neutral ground that was geographically fair for both the Taytay mainlanders and the Binangonan factions was critical. They calculated the travel distances and locked in Angono as the optimal halfway point. They would have to pool funds to rent covered courts there, while utilizing the free campus grounds whenever possible.
Next was the thematic direction. Hidy proposed High School Musical, and the concept was instantly met with universal approval.
To streamline the role assignments, Princess Cleria deployed a shareable Google Docs link directly into the chat.
They moved to the budget breakdown, specifically targeting the "Refreshments" committee—which basically meant securing bottled water and snacks for their guest evaluators and professors.
Right in the middle of a crucial budget calculation, Hidy's audio cut out. Her screen froze, and her profile vanished from the grid.
System crash. Her laptop had completely died.
The assembly fell into sudden silence before Hidy re-emerged minutes later via her smartphone, dropping a brand-new meeting link and forcing the entire 35-student roster to migrate to a new digital room.
As the meeting resumed, the Google Doc transformed into a chaotic battlefield. The internal circle group chats—Reo's, Cristel's, Deanne's, Aprille's, and Jiro's—were firing off rapid, frantic messages as classmates aggressively scrambled to claim the easiest or most suitable activity slots before they filled up.
Amidst the frantic typing, the cohort suddenly realized Hidy had completely bypassed her promised "good news." The chat box flooded with demands for the reveal.
Hidy finally dropped the bombshell.
Through her relentless negotiations with the COE Dean, they had successfully secured their preferred roster change. Mr. Edwardo Casto was officially back as their PE 1 instructor. The final compromise moved their PE block to Thursdays, and because Mr. Shono would be absent this weekend, their Saturday schedule was completely wiped clean.
The digital room erupted in celebration. The beloved chill instructor had returned to their lives.
The meeting successfully concluded at 10:26 PM.
The finalized class roster for the Culminating Activity was locked in:
Production Number and Final Show: All BEEd 1-A (Theme: High School Musical)
Painting: Hidy, Mekayla, Deanne, Anila, Rechele, Cristel, Princess, Alpha, Jesper, Jachie, Lindsey, Sherline, and Jerline
Drawing: Jiyah
Architecture: None
Photography: Niewi, Mira, Jiro, Princess
Music: Anila, Hidy, and Aprille
Dance: Cristy, Francine, Reo, Hurd, Jayter, Aira, Anila, Brittany, Rechele, Jachie, Nica, and Jiyah
Poetry: Mekayla, Mona, Cosma, and Zherel
Drama: Deanne, Hurd, Reo, Francine, Cristy, Jayter, Aira, Niewi, Mira, Ivyn, Cicille, Anila, Cristel, Gracie, Tiffany, Brittany, and Sayra.
The administrative roles were also distributed. The event would be hosted by Hidy, Princess, Reo, Jesper, and Gracie. Program and invitation layouts were assigned to Anila, Cristel, Cosma, and Niewi. The massive stage design team consisted of Francine, Nica, Tiffany, Rechele, Jachie, Deanne, Mona, Aira, Cicille, and Jiyah. Accommodation duties—handling heavy lifting and logistics—fell to all four boys (Jiro, Jesper, Jayter, Hurd) alongside the Island Trio (Aprille, Windy, Princess). Nica was assigned as the Letter Maker, Lindsey as Documentation, Mekayla as Narrative, and Aprille for Sounds and Technical support (utilizing her laptop and the campus PIO org). Only six brave souls volunteered for the Refreshments committee.
10:50 PM
The massive logistical planning was over. It was supposed to be the start of a quiet, restful night.
But the digital peace was violently shattered.
A notification popped up in the abandoned, archival group chat: COF - BEEd 1A.
It was Cosma Ibana. She broke the days of heavy silence with a direct, confrontational strike.
Cosma Ibana: "How are you guys? And how did you decide without me?"
The message hung in the chat like a loaded weapon. The fracture that had silently split their circle was finally being dragged into the light.
Mira Palida didn't back down. She met the confrontation head-on.
Mira Palida: "Wait Cosma. Do you want to know what joke I said?"
The late-night conversation rapidly devolved into a tense, unfiltered exchange of raw emotions. Cosma finally laid her hidden reason bare, revealing that she had been deeply offended by the "tomboy" jokes Mira and Niewi had been making in the back row days ago.
Mira and Niewi immediately launched a defense, clarifying the massive misunderstanding. They explained they were referencing a specific TikTok video they had found, and the jokes were playfully aimed at Cicille's aesthetic, having absolutely nothing to do with Cosma or her partner.
Ivyn jumped into the fray, pointing out that despite the misunderstanding, Cosma had actively chosen to avoid them and freeze them out without seeking any clarification.
But Cosma's defensive walls were too high. Driven by her insecurities, she unleashed a barrage of long, heavy paragraphs. She dropped numerous allegations, speculating on their hidden intentions and insisting that Mira couldn't possibly prove the true context of their laughter.
Sensing the logic failing against pure emotion, Niewi executed a different tactical approach. She dug into their shared history.
She gently reminded Cosma that they were from the exact same batch back in Grade 12. Niewi recalled always seeing Cosma around Section B. She reminded her of the vulnerable days during the KSU Taytay admission process back in May, when Niewi had specifically approached Cosma because she was a familiar face, asking her for guidance on the entrance exam requirements, which ultimately forged their initial friendship.
The nostalgia tactic hit its mark. The aggressive tone of Cosma's messages slightly wavered, a hint of guilt bleeding through her words. But her pride remained intact, and she continued to deny the core fault of the fracture.
Realizing the negotiation had reached a permanent stalemate and the group could not be restored, the final action was taken.
Mira Palida and Ivyn Giron didn't type another word.
Mira Palida left the group.Ivyn Giron left the group.
The automated chat messages flashed on the screen, delivering an absolute, deafening silence. The hidden reason was finally spoken, and the original circle was permanently severed.
END OF THE HIDDEN REASON