Break Fresh Ground

6: REQUEST

"Putain de sa mère la pute!!!" I cursed out loud.

Nang makita kung sino ang hindi-sinasadyang-nanggulat sa akin ay parehas kaming nanlaki ang mata. Parehas yata kaming nagulat – siya, dahil sa reaksiyon ko; at ako, dahil sa pagsulpot niya.

"I'm sorry." We said in unison.

Artemis chuckled. "It's okay. Mabuti at hindi mo nahampas sa akin 'yan." She pouts while pointing on my canister.

My gaze was fixated on her lips, a rosy hue that seemed to radiate a soft glow. I couldn't help but bite my own lips in envy. Was my lip balm not working? Did my own lips appear parched in comparison?

"Can I assist you?" I blurted out, as she caught me staring. She had a stack of rolled up cartolinas in her arms.

Umiling ito. "Kay Prof. Villegas ko--" Hindi pa man siya tapos magsalita ay pinagbuksan ko siya ng pinto ng office ng propesor namin. "Thank you."

"Miss Del Gallego." I heard the professor said.

As I prepared to leave, I offered her a smile. I quickly made my exit from the building, searching for my friends in the study sheds. They teased me that I looked like I had just run a marathon. I simply rolled my eyes, but their words held a grain of truth. My heart was pounding so fast, as if I had run a great distance, when in reality it was only a few meters from my current position.

"Oh, by the way, France," I said, catching her attention. "Professor Villegas asked me to pass on a message to you." France looked at me expectantly. "Learn to put labels," I said, watching as her eyes widened in surprise.

"She said that? To you?" She asked, with a hint of disbelief in her voice.

I nodded. "Yeah, she did. You didn't label the floor plan, did you? She takes off a lot of points, even for small mistakes like that."

She sighed... in relief? "Ah... Oo. Nakalimutan ko kasi."

"Rush pa more." Ivy teased.

I checked my wristwatch, and we all have 10 minutes time before the first subject. Magkasamang umalis si Paris at Ivy para pumunta sa mga building nila, gano'n rin naman kami ni France.

Monday morning and our first class of the day is Mathematics in the Modern World, causing a palpable sense of dread among my classmates. I don't think it's fully sunk in for any of us that we're now first-year college students. It's been almost a month since we embarked on this new journey, with the goal of fulfilling our dreams. But to be honest, it's been a bit of a rollercoaster ride so far. At times, it feels like we're navigating through rough waters in a wooden boat, while other times, it's more like savoring a warm cup of tea on a chilly morning.

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The professor droned on for two hours before finally announcing that we had a quiz on Wednesday. My classmates, including the more vocal ones, groaned in unison. Some of them began to voice their complaints, questioning the necessity of mathematics, a subject that seemed to follow them from elementary school all the way to college.

"Sige, huwag mong gagamitan ng sukat 'yung design mo." One of my block mates spoke.

I just sit there and waited for our next professor to come, which we waited for almost 15 minutes. Meron daw inaasikaso sa faculty. Just like Prof Villegas, isa rin sa mga strict na professor itong si Sir Tolentino.

"Alright, future architects," the professor began, his eyes scanning the room, "I'll be delving into Sigmund Freud's concept of the self. As a reminder, last time..." And with that, the minor subject began. The lecture ended as abruptly as it began, with the professor announcing, "We'll have a graded recitation on Wednesday," before turning on his heel and exiting the room.