R O O M 16 (Sixteen Series #1)

Part 3

THREE

…What?

“Shane, ano? Paano mangyayari yun? Eh, diba sabi mo base sa report ng mga pulis patay na yung driver at hindi makilala. While my father is alive, nasa hospital siya Shane, alam mo yun, nakita mo siya.” I am now looking at her with unbelievable eyes.

“Yun nga yung kaso, Alas, hindi makilala ang driver base sa report ng mga pulis dahil in the first place si Papa moa ng driver ng bus. The janitor and librarian told me kanina! I asked them. They were sure that they saw your father driving the bus and they’re aware that the school did not hired a driver for the student’s field trip.”Mahabang eksplenasyon ni Shane sa akin.

My mouth was left hanging wide open. I can’t understand what she’s saying. If my father is the driver of that bus then…no, no…he’s alive. Nasa hospital ang Papa ko. I stood up and was about to leave when Shane stopped me.

“Don’t worry, your father is alive, Alas. Oo. Nasa ospital siya ngayon. What I’m trying to say here is that…the person they thought the driver was not the real driver. The police investigation in this part was false.”

“Then tell me who is it?! Sino ang ipapalit nila na driver doon, eh, sinabi mo ngang si Papa ang driver ng bus. Kung si Papa talaga yung nagd-drive, I doubt it. Hindi siya aalis nang school na hindi nasisiguradong hindi safety ang sasakyan. He would’ve checked everything before leaving! He prioritize the student’s safety in the first place after all. Then tell me, Shane, why is my father alive?” Mariin na akong nakatitig ngayon sa kaniya.

“If it was my father who was driving, why is he here? Why did the bus exploded without him? Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad…really glad that my father is safe and sound. But this is confusing, Shane.” I ruffled my hair and looked up.

“I…I don’t know, Alas. Hindi ko rin alam. This is confusing for me, too. Mas lalong nakakapagtaka ay kung bakit hindi alam ng mga pulis ito.” Shane showed an empathetic face.

“Where are the janitor and librarian you’re saying? Bakit hindi nila sinabi sa mga pulis ang tungkol dito? This could be a testimony for the case to continue, you know? Pwedeng magamit ng mga mga pulis ang ganitong dahilan para maipagpatuloy nila ang kaso. Bakit sa’yo nila sinabi? Huh?”

This whole thing is starting to piss me off. If only the police investigated further, hindi sana kami ang nasa ganitong sitwasyon.

“Hindi nila kayang sabihin sa mga pulis. They were afraid that if they tell something, they will be fired. Tsaka they believe that what they witnessed wasn’t really a big help for the case.”

“For fvck’s sake, their statement could be an enough evidence for the reason to investigate. Didn’t the police interrogated the principal ba? That principal can’t just sit back and do nothing after all.”

“Apparently, the principal stayed silent. But he mourned at the burial of the students. Wala siyang ibang sinabi at humingi nang tawad sa mga magulang ng mga estudyante. He kept on saying sympathetic words and blamed himself for being irresponsible saying he did not managed to do anything and that he was sorry for all of them.”

I scoffed after hearing Shane’s words. He knows he’s irresponsible indeed.

“What about the parents of those students?”

“They still kept on asking for the justice pero wala silang nagagawa dahil ang mga pulis na mismo ang tumututol at nagsasabing walang sapat na ebidensyang ipinapakita na hindi iyon aksidente.”

This is so messed up. The more we dig, the more it’s getting confusing.

“So, do you have a hunch? About the driver, I mean.” I turned to her and stayed quiet.

Shane bit her lips and looked at me. “One thing is certain, your father is indeed the driver but someone took over him. We just don’t know yet in what kind of circumstances or in what way could they do it…”

I and Shane looked at each other with wide eyes. “Holy shit…” I whispered.

“So, that’s it. The reason why the accident happened was that someone was really…aiming for it…to happen…”

Both me and Shane had an unbelievable look in our eyes.

“That’s a good hunch.”

A voice interrupted us making the both of us startled.

Sabay kaming lumingon sa paninggalingan ng boses. It was a girl, I’m guessing that she’s just the same age as us.

“Ah?!” Shane reacted. She stood up and pointed at the girl.

“Y-you…you are…?!”

The girl looked at Shane, bewildered.

“Bakit?” I asked her. What’s with the overreacting? Does she know her?

“O-oh, my god! S-she’s…this girl!” She kept on stuttering. Mas lalong napakunot ang nook o dahil sa reaction niya. She looked at me with horror in her eyes. Like she’ve just seen a ghost.

“I-I saw this girl…! N-nakita ko siya sa g-group photo ng mga estudyante ng…r-room 16!” She slumped back in the chair while her lips were trembling, looking at the girl in front of her.

I was perplexed and slowly looked at the girl standing before Shane. Lumingon din sa direksyon ko ang babae at napangiti nang pilit na parang hindi niya alam kung ano ang nangyayari. I almost fell out of the chair. What in the living hell is happening?!