The Indulgence to Desire (SPG)

Chapter Six

Chapter Six | Fail

Just like that, Valen and I were back to normal. We didn't talk much about what I said, pero hindi na ulit binanggit ni Valen ang tungkol sa pag-transfer sa block ko.

The days went unnaturally fast, but the routines stayed the same— Valen and I would go school and eat lunch together. Pagkatapos ng klase ko, I would see him waiting outside my room, talking to one of his friends. Minsan, kapag naunang matapos ang last course ko, ako naman ang nag-aabang sa kanya.

But at home, I felt something change. I knew exactly when this odd feeling started, but I had no idea how to stop it. All of the sudden, I could feel Valen's presence from across the room. I would find myself searching for the scent of his cologne. And every time he touched me, gosh, something in me burned. It took everything in me to ignore it.

And as the days rolled by, I continued doing just that. The next thing I knew, it was already pre-midterms.

Sobrang hectic na agad. Taxation was such a pain in the ass. Sobrang dami pa ng backlogs ko sa academic texts that were supposed to be covered by the pre-mid. Nakikisabay pa 'tong mga elective courses. It bummed me even more na sobrang chill lang ni Valen.

He says he's trying to do the bare minimum since he doesn't really like this academic program. He often jokes about how he's planning to fail every semester para madagdagan ang gastos ng Daddy niya. But still, he effortlessly aces both oral recits and written examinations. I'm pretty sure the guy has a photographic memory.

"Shit?" Kell whispered beside me. His head was crouched to his paper.

Our Law and Philosophy professor had returned our position papers today. Ramdam ko ang tensyon sa paligid nang isa-isang tinawag ang mga blockmates ko para kunin ang gawa nila.

"That bad?" I leaned over to him.

Kell nodded and slid his paper towards me. I gasped.

Gosh... Atty. Nieves gave him a 4.9? Was his paper that bad?

"Serrano, Lara Celeste..." Our professor's voice echoed.

I stood up to claim my paper. I couldn't get myself to look at my grade even after I sat down. My heart raced inside my chest.

"Don't prolong the agony," Bulong ni Kell, traces of his frustration still evident in his voice.

I gulped. Slowly, I turned over the paper.

Oh, my god.

God.

5.0

It was written in red ink.

"My God," I said to myself, tears forming on the side of my eyes.

This may be my first failing grade ever. And I worked so hard on this position paper. I even spent two sleepless nights for this.

"As you may notice, most of you acquired failing grades. I think only Lazarrabal and Carillo passed this one. Truthfully, I was under the impression that the first four semesters have prepared you for this track. I was wrong to assume that, as it turns out," Si Atty Nieves.

"Your papers have proven to be quite a disappointment. High school pa lang, dapat alam niyo na kung paano magsulat ng position paper. Your previous course in Comparative Political Analysis held a Model United Nations Simulation, am I right? And that required you to write a position paper. But what you have submitted lacked either the basic structure of the paper or legitimate legal references."

"I hope you understand that the last two years of this academic program won't be as easy as the first two. If you feel you cannot meet the standards of the professional courses, I highly encourage you to drop out habang maaga pa."