The Villain We Loved - CHAPTER 19: The Hero Wears Blood

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It started with a scream.

Then a slam.

Then silence.

Room 3-B, 4:12 PM.

The hallways were supposed to be empty—dismissal was an hour ago. But students lingered. Teachers signed papers. Janitors cleaned.

And inside that room, Ruthie stood still, blood rushing to her ears.

“Bitawan mo siya,” she said, her voice steady.

Sir Dela Cruz froze, hand still gripping the sophomore girl’s wrist. The girl’s eyes were red from crying. Her blouse was unbuttoned halfway. Her ID lay on the floor.

“Wala kang nakita,” the teacher hissed.

“Nakita ko lahat,” Ruthie replied.

For a moment, time stopped.

And then—

SLAP!

Ruthie’s palm cracked across his cheek, loud and sharp.

Gasps echoed from the door.

Phones were out.

Recording.

Sir Dela Cruz staggered backward. “You little—!”

“Huwag mo akong subukang takutin,” she spat. “Hindi ako kasing tahimik ng mga sinaktan mo noon.”

The girl sobbed behind Ruthie. She stood between them now, like a shield.

People poured into the hallway. Marian among them. Her mouth open in glee and horror.

“Bakit mo sinampal si Sir?” someone whispered.

“May nahuli raw siya,” another replied.

“Grabe, ‘yung bata umiiyak oh!”

“Nagre-record ba ‘yan? Send mo sa GC!”

“Principal’s office. NOW!”

The command came from a booming voice—Dean Rosal herself.

Sir Dela Cruz grabbed his briefcase and stormed out. Ruthie followed, head high. No shame. No fear.

Just the truth.

And blood on her palm.

The Office.

“Explain yourself,” the principal snapped.

“I saw him harassing a student.”

“Did you report it first?”

“He was touching her. What did you want me to do, wait?”

“Physical assault is still—”

“Self-defense is not assault.”

“It wasn’t you he touched.”

Ruthie stared. “Is that how you measure damage now?”

Jay was there. Sitting in the corner. Silent. Observing.

His eyes said Don’t speak.

But her soul screamed Say it all.

“You’re suspended until further notice,” the principal announced.

“No problem,” Ruthie said. “But just so you know…”

She leaned forward.

“There’s a video.”

“A video?”

“Yes. Of him. Of me. Of the girl.”

“You’re threatening the school?”

“No. I’m reminding you. Truth doesn’t need a permit to exist.”

Ruthie stood. Her chair scraped sharply across the floor.

“Expect noise,” she said. “Real noise.”

By evening, the video was everywhere.

Twitter. Facebook. TikTok.

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#JusticeFor3B57Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDMzaGpEqmN
#RuthieTheBrave

Some praised her.

Some blamed her.

Some called her unstable, again.

But no one ignored her.

At 9 PM, her mother stormed into her room.

“Ruthie, ano ‘tong pinaggagawa mo?!”

“Telling the truth.”

“Sinabi mo sa amin na aayusin mo na! Hindi ‘yan ang ibig sabihin ng ayos!”

“Then maybe your definition needs fixing.”

Her mother slapped the table.

“Expelled ka na! Sayang ang scholarship!”

Ruthie met her eyes. “Anong halaga ng scholarship kung may kabuntot itong katahimikan?”

She packed that night.

Books. Notebooks. One broken locket.

She stared at her school uniform for a long time.

And then shoved it deep in the drawer.

Jay messaged at midnight.

JAY: “I saw the video. You okay?”

RUTHIE: “Do I look okay?”

JAY: “You look alive.”

RUTHIE: “First time in a while.”

JAY: “They’re going to retaliate.”

RUTHIE: “Let them try.”

The next morning, the headline read:

STUDENT SLAPS TEACHER IN ALLEGED HARASSMENT CASE.

They printed her full name.

But not his.

Her phone rang nonstop.

Her scholarship was revoked.

Her Facebook inbox was flooded with strangers—some offering support, some hate.

She read them all.

And then turned off her phone.

At 10 AM, the sophomore girl’s parents showed up at Ruthie’s house.

They were crying.

“Kung wala ka roon… ewan ko na…”

The girl hugged Ruthie tightly. She said nothing. Just cried into her shoulder.

And in that moment—

Ruthie realized:

Truth hurts.

But silence kills.

And she would rather bleed in front of the world

than rot quietly behind closed doors.

She wasn’t a saint.

She wasn’t always right.

But today—

She was a hero.

And heroes wear blood, not capes.

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