Drawn to His Flame

Kabanata 14

Lesson

I already inserted the key inside the hole and I was about to twist the knob when someone opened the door from the inside. My brows furrowed and my gaze immediately darted to the room number attached to the door's wooden frame to see if I was in the wrong place. Lalong kumunot ang noo ko nang makumpirmang hindi ako naligaw dahil nasa labas nga ako ng unit ko ngayon.

My eyes turned into slits when I recognized the person currently keeping the door open for me. Nakasuot ang taong 'yon ng itim na sando at shorts habang may nakasampay na tuwalya sa kanyang balikat. Even though his disheveled hair was covering half of his face, I know that he's giving me the look of boredom.

If this isn't what they call a bad Monday morning, then I don't know anymore.

Napahikab si Treyton bago niya ako binalingan ng tingin. "Papasok ka ba o hindi?" he asked but my temper flared up because I hinted arrogance in his voice. Irritation overpowered the disbelief I was feeling in just a snap.

I scoffed loudly afterwards. This is what I get after giving him that offer last week. Great.

Sasarhan na sana ako ni Treyton ng pinto pero ginamit ko ang kanan kong paa para harangin ang tuluyang pagsara no'n. Tumalim ang pagkakatingin niya sa akin pero hindi ako natinag. Too bad for him because I have a lot of energy today because I had slept for the entirety of the trip back here in Nueva City.

"Bakit ka ba atat? Ang aga-aga galit agad," I argued. Tinulak ko na rin ang pinto kaya walang nagawa si Treyton kundi hayaan na lang akong makapasok. Once I got inside, I was surprised to see that my room looked tidier than when I left it. At nang maamoy ko ang bagong lutong pagkain ay agad kong hinanap ang pinanggagalingan no'n.

"Do not try to even snatch a single piece," I heard Treyton warning me and I knew that he was referring to the food on the table that I was eyeing just a moment ago. I rolled my eyes but in doing so, I saw the unwashed pan near the kitchen sink so I arrived at a conclusion. I really thought that he doesn't know how to cook.

Nang mapalingon ako kay Treyton ay nakita ko siyang nakasandal sa hamba ng pinto habang nakakibit-balikat. Even with his attire, he still appeared intimidating because of how intense he was staring at me. Ako na lang ang umiwas ng tingin bago ako lumapit sa cabinet para kunin ang mga gamit na kailangan kong dalhin para sa klase namin.

Natapos na ako sa pag-aayos pero hindi pa rin umaalis si Treyton mula sa puwesto niya kanina pa. Was he really serious? Sa tingin niya ba talaga ay kukunin ko ang hinanda niyang umagahan kaya binabantayan niya pa rin ang bawat galaw ko?

If that's what this is all about, then he's unbelievable.

"Don't get worked up. I don't have any plans to eat your hotdog," saad ko habang dire-diretso akong naglakad palabas. The cloud of air suffocating me vanished the moment I stepped outside. Hindi na ako lumingon pa at nagpatuloy nang umalis. While walking to the university, I continuously prayed that the next hours would come in a breeze because I already had too much on my plate after learning that Treyton came back as my roommate.

But what occurred before lunch proved that I was indeed bound to suffer today.

"Don't worry about it, Regan. For sure, marami pa tayong quizzes sa sunod. You'll be more prepared next time," pagpapagaan ni Fiona sa aking loob. Marahan namang tinapik ni Shell ang balikat ko kaya nagawa ko siyang ngitian kahit hinang-hina na ako.

I failed a quiz in one of our major subjects. Ngayon lang ito nangyari sa akin at nag-aalala ako dahil sigurado akong gagamitin na naman ito ni Mama para kumbunsihin akong sundin ang gusto niya. But what made everything worse was that this happened to me just after the day I planned to finally ace my tests so that my mother won't question my decision again.