Dream Escape

Chapter 3: Glitch in the matrix

Sa huli, they found themselves waiting on a bench sa park na lagi nilang tambayan nung bata pa sila when Reve approached them, wearing a scowl na lalong kumukunot as he drew closer. His arrival marked a new chapter in their journey to unravel the enigma that had taken hold of their lives.

"This better be important for me to be spending my precious time with you two," Reve grumbled, his tone laced with irritation. His presence added an element of unpredictability to their already bewildering day.

"Oh, come on, Reve, parang iba ka naman," Maya lamented, her voice carrying a hint of sarcasm. But she was quick to welcome him into their circle, even if the circumstances were peculiar. 

"yun lang ba?" Reve inquired, his eyebrows raised in anticipation, his annoyance showing. Bata palang sila, alam nila kung gaano mabilis mapikon si Reve. 

"No," Tilt stood up and glared at him, his gaze unwavering. Dahil sa mas matangkad si Tilt kay Reve, hindi napigilang sipain ni Reve ang tuhod ni Tilt na ikinatawa naman ni Maya.

"Aray ko ha!" Hinimas lang ni Tilt ang tuhod nya at bumalik kaagad sya sa tayo nya. His determination to solve the mystery had intensified, and he had no intention of letting Reve off the hook without answers. 

"Reve, what's her name?"

"Huh?" Reve's confusion was evident as he struggled to comprehend the sudden urgency in Tilt's tone. His brows furrowed as he attempted to process the unexpected question.

"Sya... I mean, she—gah! I thought it would be easy to ask, but without any other way to refer to her except with 'her,' it's harder than I thought," Tilt confessed, his frustration bubbling to the surface. The complexity of their situation had rendered even the simplest question a daunting task.

"Pang-apat natin, what's her name?" Maya pressed, her gaze locked onto Reve, her impatience evident.

"Pang-apat? What the hell are you two talking about?" Reve asked, his irritation growing as he tried to make sense of the cryptic inquiry. Naparito lang sya, dahil sa chat ni Maya na emergency meeting raw sa park, pero hindi naman nya inakala na narito rin si Tilt. 

"Her! The girl you are always with!" Tilt exclaimed, his voice rising with a mix of frustration and desperation. He had hoped that Reve, who shared a close bond with his crush, kahit na nakakainis, would hold the key to unlocking the mystery.

"Oh, you mean her!" Reve finally seemed to understand, his tone taking on a touch of curiosity as he grasped the subject of their discussion.

"Oo, sya!" Tilt urged, his impatience palpable. Reve's acknowledgment of their classmate's existence was a ray of hope in their quest.

Reve hesitated, his brow furrowing as he racked his brain for the answer. "I highly doubt we're talking about the same girl without her name, to be honest," he admitted, a hint of uncertainty in his voice. The elusive name remained just out of reach, even for someone as intimately connected as Reve.

"I..." Reve looked at them with boredom at first, but as he seriously thought of the question, he drew a blank, his expression transitioning from nonchalant to perplexed. The weight of their collective amnesia bore down on him, and he struggled to find the missing puzzle piece.

"Hah, wait, what?" Tilt and Maya exchanged bewildered glances, their disbelief mirrored in their expressions. Even Reve, who had been a constant presence in their classmate's life, seemed to share their baffling predicament.

"Seryoso ka ba, pati ikaw?!" Tilt exclaimed, his frustration reaching its peak. The realization that their classmate's name had somehow slipped from Reve's memory was a blow they had not anticipated.

"What the hell is happening? Why can't I—" Reve began, his voice filled with confusion, his fingers clutching at his hair in frustration as if he could physically shake loose the answer.

"No, this isn't supposed— You're supposed to know! Ikaw lagi ang kasama nya!" Tilt insisted, his tone firm and resolute, as if his words could reverse the inexplicable amnesia that had taken hold.

"Haahh, what the hell... what the hell," Reve muttered in confusion, his shoulders slumping in confusion. He, too, was grappling with the inexplicable phenomenon that had robbed him of a simple name.

"Now this is definitely not normal, hindi na'to normal!" Maya remarked, her eyes narrowing as she considered the situation. The bizarre turn of events had cast a shadow of doubt over their once-ordinary school days.

"What do you mean you don't know?" Tilt demanded, his voice tinged with exasperation. The frustration of their fruitless quest was taking its toll on him.

"I just don't know, what do you want me to say?" Reve replied, frustration evident in his voice as he raked a hand through his hair. The mere thought of being unable to recall their classmate's name was unsettling, and Reve's agitation was palpable.

"Paano natin nakalimutan ang pangalan nya?" Tilt noted, his curiosity piqued. The gravity of their situation had shifted from frustration to fascination as they delved deeper into the mystery.

"There's nothing weird kung ilan lang satin pero lahat tayo, this is definitely not normal anymore," Maya agreed, her eyes fixed on Reve, as if trying to uncover the hidden truth behind his baffling forgetfulness.

"Don't you think it's that..." Tilt began, his voice hushed as he contemplated a theory that seemed almost too bizarre to be true.

"What is it this time, you paranoid?" Maya interjected, her skepticism clear. She was not ready to entertain wild theories in the absence of concrete answer.

"I mean, it's that... the glitch in the matrix," Tilt suggested, his words hanging in the air like an unsettling revelation. The very idea that reality itself might be unraveling around them sent shivers down their spines.

"Well, it wouldn't be this big if we just asked her," Reve reasoned, his tone practical. In his view, the solution to their problem was straightforward, even if their collective amnesia was not.

"Tch, easy for you to say." Tilt muttered under his breath, his eyes fixed on the distant horizon. The frustration of their fruitless pursuit had begun to erode his patience.

As the trio contemplated this strange turn of events, it was clear that something extraordinary was unfolding. The simple act of recalling her name had become an enigma, and the friends couldn't shake the feeling that it was just the tip of the iceberg in a much larger mystery, their actions and expressions reflecting their growing unease.