The Revolution (Phase I): Dawn of the Endgame

[7]

MAGNUS SMILED AS he stared at her, laughing about a foot from him. Both were sitting on a bedroom floor, with pink walls around them. Why am I here? Magnus thought for a moment but then shrugged.

"Ish, tapusin na natin 'to ah, wala tayong natatapos, puro tayo tawa!" Kathy said, flipping the stapled coupon of printed activities. That's right, I'm here to help her with her courses. "Ay ako lang pala tumatawa, sorry," she added, chuckling.

"The audacity to choose acountancy when you can't even multiply seven multiplied by eight," wika ni Magnus.

"Yabang mo naman, kapatid," Kathy replied, rolling her eyes from him. "Eh kaya nga ako nag-accountancy kasi nahihirapan ako sa math."

Magnus raised his brows. "What?"

She chuckled. "Wala," she said, without looking at him.

Magnus studied the pink bedroom. There was a study table in one corner of the room, with a closed laptop and an off-lamp on it. Academic books and papers were compiled in a cabinet near it. Her wardrobe was on the right, and the bed was at the centre. It was going to be a typical bedroom of a college girl, except for the paintings hanging on the walls. It was her own artwork.

He almost jumped when some fluffy object brushed itself against his legs.

Meow.

"Moshi, baba!" sigaw ni Kathy sa pusang nasa kandungan ni Magnus. It was a black persian cat. "Bakit parang gulat ka sa kanya?"

"He's ugly."

"Che!" Her lips pouted, grabbing the cat from his lap. She caressed the cat erotically. "Nakakainis 'yung napanood kong movie. Cats and Dogs. Ginawang kontrabida 'yung isang persian na pusa. Ang dami tuloy takot sa kanila."

"But this does look like a villain."

"Isa pa Magnus, ipapakain kita sa kanya." The cat went to her owner. Kathy gently stroked her and the cat liked it. "Hindi ka ba mahilig sa pusa?"

Magnus was quiet for a while. "No," he replied. "They don't do anything."

"Wow," she said in disgust, but not long. "Maganda nga silang kasama e. Tulad ni Moshi na nakakatulong sa 'kin kapag nalulungkot ako. Maganda nga 'to sa mga tulad mong laging mag-isa sa buhay eh. Para kapag sakaling namatay na ako, atleast may kasama ka pa rin sa buhay." There was a sound of jest in her voice.

Magnus didn't react. He stared at the window. There was silence.

"Alam mo, kapag nakakasama kita minsan parang ang lungkot-lungkot mo," Kathy said, probably noticing him of his sudden silence. "Magsabi ka kaya ng problema mo sa 'kin. It's always your views, or your opinion, or your philosophies, but not . . . you." She looked at him but found his eyes outside, somewhere.

Magnus didn't answer. "Karamihan sa mga matatalinong kakilala ko, si kuya, si Nami—'yung babaeng binabanggit ko sa'yo dati, tapos 'yung isa pang kaibigan ko, pansin kong may mga pagkakataong nahuhulian ko silang nakatingin sa kawalan. Their eyes seemed sad. Pero nakangiti naman sila." 

Kathy raised her eyes to him curiously. "Ganyan ba kayong mga matatalino, laging malungkot?"

"What, no."

"Ah, sa mga 'enlightened' lang?" she said it with mockery, hooking the air with her fingers to represent the quotation marks.

Yes, Magnus thought but didn't say it. I got it all from his father.

Congressman and former Speaker of the House, Alfonso Salazar came from nothing. He was not born with a silver spoon. He didn't have a powerful father or any of his relatives to help him attain power. But with ambition and dedication, he climbed the ladder. One day, the news came to the young Magnus that his father died in a car accident.