Chapter 4

004_When Miss CEO meets Mr. Agriculturist

Pagpasok ni Ael sa university campus kinabukasan, ibang klase ang atmosphere kumpara sa entrance exam day. Mas maingay, mas buhay, at mas magulo. May orientation booths sa bawat building, may mga student organizations na nag-aalok ng flyers, at may mga tarp na nakasabit tungkol sa iba't ibang courses.

Pero kahit ganito ka-busy ang paligid, kalmado pa rin si Ael.

Naka-white polo siya ngayon na may university ID lace at black slacks ulit. Simple pero controlled ang itsura niya. Hindi siya dumiretso sa crowd ng BSBA orientation. Instead, she checked the schedule on her phone first.

“9:00 AM, College of Business Administration orientation,” bulong niya.

She had ten minutes.

Naglakad siya papunta sa main hall, pero habang nasa pathway siya, napansin niya ang mas maingay na bahagi sa kabilang side ng campus. May mga estudyanteng nagtitipon sa open field, may hawak na seedlings, soil samples, at demonstration tools.

Agriculture department.

She stopped for a second.

Hindi niya alam kung bakit, pero nakuha ng curiosity niya ang eksena.

“Hands-on planting demo today,” narinig niyang sabi ng isang student guide.

Sa gitna ng field, may mga estudyanteng nakayuko, nagtatanim, nagpapakita ng soil preparation. Iba ang energy nila. Hindi pormal, pero very grounded.

At doon niya siya nakita.

Si Zai .

Nakatayo siya sa gitna ng lupa, nakasuot ng simpleng long sleeves na nakatupi hanggang siko. May konting putik sa kamay niya, pero hindi niya ito pinapansin. Focused siya habang nagpapaliwanag sa mga kasama niya tungkol sa soil condition.

“Hindi pwedeng basta tanim lang,” sabi ni Zai sa group. “Kailangan alam mo kung anong nutrients ang kulang sa lupa. Otherwise, business lang ang mangyayari dito, hindi farming.”

Napakunot ang noo ni Ael sa narinig niya.

Business lang?

She crossed her arms slightly, watching from a distance.

“Excuse me,” biglang tawag ng isang student volunteer sa kanya. “BSBA orientation po ba kayo? That way po.”

She nodded slightly. “I know.”

Pero hindi pa siya umaalis agad. Sandaling nagtagal ang tingin niya sa field.

Zai suddenly looked up.

Their eyes met.

For a moment, walang ingay. Parang huminto ang paligid.

Then Zai raised an eyebrow slightly, as if recognizing her from somewhere. Slowly, he walked closer to the fence separating the field and pathway.

“Ay, ikaw pala yung nasa admission hall kahapon,” sabi niya.

Ael blinked once. “And you are?”

“BS Agriculture,” sagot niya. “Zai.”

She nodded politely. “Ael.”

“Monteverde,” dagdag niya, parang hindi sigurado kung kilala niya dapat ito.

“Right,” sagot ni Zai, pero may bahid ng sarcasm. “Business student.”

Ael didn’t react. “Yes.”

Zai looked at her for a second longer, then glanced at the direction of the business building.

“Interesting timing mo magpunta dito,” sabi niya.

“I was not planning to,” sagot ni Ael calmly. “I was just passing by.”

“Mm,” Zai hummed. “Sure.”

May konting tension agad sa pagitan nila, hindi malakas, pero noticeable.

Napatingin si Ael sa mga kamay niya. May soil siya, may seedlings. Simple. Real.

Then she said, “So you teach agriculture?”

Zai smirked slightly. “I don’t teach. I study. And I work with it.”

“Same thing,” sagot ni Ael.

Agad na tumigil si Zai sa paggalaw.

“No,” sabi niya. “Not even close.”

Napatingin si Ael ulit sa kanya.

“Explain.”

Zai stepped closer to the fence, lowering his voice slightly.

“Studying agriculture means understanding life cycles, soil science, crop production, climate effects. Working with it means you actually get your hands dirty. You don’t just talk about supply and demand in a classroom. You feel it.”

Ael didn’t look offended, but her tone stayed firm.

“Business is not just talking in classrooms either.”

Zai nodded once. “Good. Then don’t treat agriculture like it is just a resource.”

That sentence landed heavier than expected.

Ael stared at him.

“I didn’t say that,” she replied.

“Not yet,” Zai said. “But most people from your world usually do.”

Her eyes narrowed slightly.

“My world?”

Zai shrugged. “Business. Corporations. People who see farms as supply chains, not livelihoods.”

Sandaling katahimikan.

Then Ael spoke.

“You assume too much.”

Zai smirked again. “Maybe. Or maybe I’ve seen enough.”

The tension was interrupted when a gust of wind passed through the field, making the leaves move and some soil dust rise slightly.

Ael stepped back a little, but Zai didn’t.

“Anyway,” Zai said, “if you’re going to be a business student, try not to forget where raw materials come from.”

Ael looked at him directly.

“And if you’re going to be an agriculturist, try not to ignore that markets exist,” she replied.

For the first time, Zai paused.

Then he chuckled.

“Fair point.”

But instead of softening the tension, it made it sharper in a different way. Like both of them realized the other was not easy to dismiss.

From afar, someone called Zai’s name, signaling him to go back to the demo.

He raised a hand. “Coming.”

Then he looked at Ael again.

“This isn’t the last time we’ll see each other,” he said.

Ael raised an eyebrow. “Is that a threat?”

“It depends on how you see it,” Zai replied.

Then he turned and walked back into the field, joining his group.

Ael stood still for a moment, watching him.

After a few seconds, she turned away and finally headed toward the BSBA orientation hall.

Pero habang naglalakad siya, hindi mawala sa isip niya ang sinabi nito.

Business vs agriculture.

Supply chains vs livelihoods.

Practicality vs reality.

And somehow, kahit ayaw niya aminin, that stranger from the soil field felt more real than anything she had heard since she entered university.

Sa kabilang banda, habang bumabalik si Zai sa pagtatanim, sandaling napatingin siya sa direksyon ng business building.

“Monteverde,” bulong niya.

Then he shook his head slightly.

“Let’s see how long you last in this world, business girl.”