Between Never and Maybe

Four.

“His grandmother had taught him that there was no such thing as coincidence. There are millions of people in this world, she had told him, and the spirits will see that most of them, you never have to meet. But there are one or two that you are tied to, and spirits will cross you back and forth, threading so many knots until they catch and you finally get it right.”
― Jodi Picoult

I blinked.

I blinked again.

I blinked another time as I looked at the same notification.

Tyler Janssen Van Howell sent you a friend request.

Confirm                Decline

Just what on earth is going on? I shook my head and pressed decline. I took out my to-do list and remembered the assignment in PPGC. Nag-unat unat muna ako at binuksan ang laptop para makita kung ano ang ipapagawa sa amin this time. Inopen ko ang school portal namin at thankfully nasa dashboard na yung assignment. I clicked it to see yet another article, minsan di ko rin alam kung para saan ba 'to. But given that it was on the curriculum, I have to pass this subject. I scrolled on to read the mechanics.

Good afternoon, BSBA Major in Marketing students. For this week's assignment, please create an original article on how do you think the society is affected by capitalism and its constituents. Feel free to use any representation, 500 words minimum. Submit the word file on or before Friday, November 16 at 11:59 PM.

Late submissions will not be honored and therefore be graded as zero. Provide a separate page for the reference used. I will be checking your work, and you know how I deal with plagiarisms.

P.S. This will be considered as your Final Examination in my subject, Good luck!

Regards,
Amenadiel Fausto
Course Instructor

Parang thesis lang ah, jusko daig pa nito mga major subjects namin di ko kinakaya. Napahilot na lang ako sa sintido ko at nagsimula na lang maghanap ng sources para sa fact sheet. Thankfully, I found a few ones that I can use. Hinighlight ko na yung mga parte na magagamit ko sa mismong article at ginawa ko na muna yung page for the reference. I then started typing, with the clickety-clack of the keyboard breaking the silence.

With money as the main root of many sins, then should the rich be considered as the biggest sinners of the world?

I stared at the last sentence of my article for a few minutes bago ko tinignan ang word count. Umabot nang almost 1500, nakakaloka. Pinroofread ko at baka may nailagay akong irrelevant na stand, thankfully wala naman. But I was still contemplating, hindi kaya ako masita dito? Para akong naghahamon ng away, hays. Pero totoo naman, turan ko sa sarili ko.

Sa mundong 'to, daig ng mga may pribilehiyo ang mahihirap. Kaya malakas ang loob nilang mang-abuso. Ilang beses nang nangyari sa akin yon para masabi ko na totoo. Pera din ang nagtulak sa amin para lumipat sa panibagong probinsya. Kapangyarihan ang nagwagi sa laban para sa karapatan.

At pera ang sumira sa sana ay maganda naming buhay.

Natigil ang inner monologue ko nang biglang may kumatok. Binuksan ko ang pinto at bumungad sa akin si inang na may dala-dalang gatas at biskwit. She looked really tired at lalo lang bumalik sa akin ang galit at sama ng loob ko sa babae na iyon.

That damn wench. My teeth clenched as I remembered her grin, that damn grin.

"Puyat ka na naman, baka magkasakit ka." Worry etched on her aging face and I felt soft all of a sudden as I hugged her, burying my face on her chest. I felt peace for while as she tapped my back gently.