"So, after a while, ang dami ko nang absences, although mabait talaga yung prof ko. Ayoko yun. Ayoko yung bumalik ako ng school to get the artista treatment. No, I said, ‘I'm quitting.' If you can't release me on time always, and you're gonna mess up with my school schedule.
"Hindi ko na nga nakuha yung everyday sa school. T-Th-S na lang yung nakuha ko. Yung M-W-F, may Wednesday work ako. Tapos, sinisiksik ko na lahat from 8:30 a.m to 6 p.m. para lang maka-full units ako. Tapos I-re-release nila ako ng ganoon. So siyempre, the rest of the day, antok-antok ako. Parang may certain day na nakatulog ako sa mga benches."
Paula spent two years in De La Salle-Araneta but later decided that Veterinary Medicine wasn't to her liking. She transferred to the University of the Philippines in 2004.
She says that she's enjoying her stay in the country's premier university.
"Mahilig talaga ako pumasok. Natutuwa kasi nagkakaroon ka talaga ng social awareness. Kahit na itago mo yung sarili mo sa mundo, hindi puwede kasi magkakaroon at magkakaroon ka ng ideas sa mga nangyayari. Ang saya kasi dati, wala talaga akong pakialam. Proud pa ako na wala akong pakialam," she said.
But being known as a TV star, she became a target of envy.
"Noong bago nga ako sa U.P., may vandalism sa CR [comfort room]. Nakalagay doon parang, ‘I hate Paula', ganoon-ganoon. May isa naman, ‘Why?' ‘Because she stole my boyfriend.' Huh?! Sino yun, excuse me. Tapos may boyfriend pa talaga ako that time na parang ‘Hello, I didn't steal him from anybody.'"
She continued, "Nakakatawa talaga. Pero anyway, hindi ko nabasa iyon. Kwinento lang sa akin ng isang friend ko. Tawa lang ako nang tawa. Nakakatawa talaga yung tao. Basta artista, they'll just say anything. Parang kailangan lang may masabi ka about you. Anyway, I don't really care."
Paula is also proud that her sister Rica was able to go back to school at the Ateneo de Manila, Loyola Heights, which is near U.P., Diliman.
She happily tells, "Masaya. Laging naiingit iyon for a time sa amin, ‘Ay! Lahat kayo nag-aaral.' I'm happy because she got into a good school. She's really learning a lot. Hindi naman niya talaga dream yung manalo talaga ng award or something. There are a lot of things that she wants to do and like yung writing. Mahilig siyang magsulat. It's good that she got into creative writing.
"Funny kasi all those Starbucks planners. Never ko nagagalaw iyon. Kinokolekta ko lang. Siya talaga makikita mo na back-to-back, sobra, sobrang haba, as in everything. Siya talaga kasi yung may mga diary nung bata pa. Mahilig talaga siyang magsulat.
"Hassle lang. Kasi hindi pareho yung time ng U.P. at ng Ateneo. So yung mga break time namin, hindi talaga nagkaka-ano. Sinasabi ko sa kanya, ‘uy, pag break natin mag-lunch tayo. Iba yung break nila. That's the only thing I'm sad about."
Paula is currently running for magna cum laude, although she doesn't beat herself up for high grades.
"Hindi ko prine-pressure yung sarili ko sa grades. Never ko naman pri-nessure yung sarili ko sa grades. Hindi ko rin naman na ini-expect na mag-cum laude standing ako. Parang wala. Hindi ko naman habol yung sa grades," she said.
EXPLORING THE COUNTRY. Besides enriching her academic life this past few years, Paula is determined to travel around the Philippines. She has gone to different parts of the country exploring the spots, meeting people and getting scenic pictures as souvenirs of her travel.
