Rude Ruby

05: Hushed

Watch your thoughts, they become your words: 05  Hushed

He sounded like someone from last night... I thought as I watched his face contorted, his features twisted in frustration as he burried his face in wet wipes.

Saglit ko pa siyang tinitigan bago lumayas sa silid na iyon. Naglakad ako palabas ng maalalang, maliit lang pala ang mundo kaya hindi dapat ako magtaka ng ganito. He wouldn't knew me, anyway.

Pushing aside my worries with a heavy sigh, I tried to focus on what mattered most. The weight of what I'd done—killing that old man—still clung to me, gnawing at the edges of my mind.

Now that I had my disguise, what's next? My first day as a student didn't exactly go smoothly, and optimism isn't really my thing. Honestly, I feel more like I'm teetering on the edge, one step away from losing it.

I wandered across the campus, my thoughts dragging me down with every step. How am I supposed to live like this—knowing I'm hunted, with a bounty on my head?

Nagiging blangko lang kasi bigla ang isip ko sa tuwing  gusto kong pag-isipan kung ano ang mga susunod kong gawin ngayong isa na akong ibong nakawala sa hawla. Or a stray cat perhaps, abandoned by the owner and hunted by the cat pound.

Ewan ko ba, para kasing nawawalan na ako ng paki sa lahat. Like, bahala na si batman sa buhay ko. And if I where a villain in Gotham City? Magpapahuli nalang siguro ako sa kanya or better yet chill out with the suicide squad. I would really like to meet Harley and be her puddin since Joker dump her in the last movie.

Kiddin' aside, isa rin siguro sa dahilan kung bakit hindi ako makapag isip ng maayos dahil nae-excite ako. Natupad na naman ang nasa bucket list ko.

I finally got to live one of my lifelong dreams—wearing a school uniform and experiencing student life, even if just for a moment. Totoong namamangha ako dahil kakaiba ang karanasang ito para sa akin pero dahil binibinat ang natitirang katinuan palayo sa akin ay malabo atang ma enjoy ko ang kasalukuyan.

Tapos, the moment I stepped into the school grounds, my excitement quickly faded as I faced a harsh reality. A sudden slap from a woman shattered my innocent expectations, leaving me stunned and disappointed.

Instead of the carefree adventure I had imagined, I found myself being pulled, shoved, accused, and touched without consent. 

What had happened was far from the romanticized high school drama I had envisioned. With the slap? I couldn't deny the truth that my idealized vision of school was nothing more than a fantasy.

The harshness of reality crashed down on me, stripping away the rose-colored glasses I had worn in anticipation of this new chapter... Charizz, para talagang hindi ko pa naranasan kung gaano ka sama yung realidad. In fact, I've been through worse!

I sighed again, trying to ease the weight of my emotions. Lost in thought, like leaves in a storm, I jolted when someone suddenly pulled me aside. The sudden move shook me, snapping me out of my daydream.

See? These things happens... 

Naglalakad lang ako kanina, bigla na akong nasampal. Tapos ngayon may biglang manghihila???

And if not for that burst of adrenaline, I would have been caught off guard even worse than before. I couldn't help but wonder about the nature of the high school drama happening in front of me.

In the movies I've seen, there's always someone who steps in if you're acting foolish or brokenhearted, like a damsel needing rescue. But that's not me. I'm no damsel. A killer in distress, perhaps?