Traversing with the Infinity (Sun Rays #1)

Chapter 2

Chapter 2

I've never really felt that fluttery nervousness when meeting new people. I've been used to it since I was a kid, and honestly, it has always fascinated me, the way how meeting different faces, hearing different stories, and connecting with so many people can feel like collecting little sparks of life.

But today. . . today felt different. Today, I felt that tight, restless kind of anxiety around someone, and it caught me off guard. Because this wasn't just small talk or casual banter. I actually needed to act composed, to measure my words and my tone, to be. . . careful.

The fact that I even had to offer a sort of "peace offering" for dragging him into the mess I got myself into yesterday? Iyon ang isa pang dahilan kaya hindi ako mapakali simula pa kagabi. Suddenly, all my easy confidence felt like it had packed its bags and left me with nothing but jittery awareness and this strange, unfamiliar feeling in my chest.

Rize, umayos ka nga! Kailangan mong harapin 'to!

"Huy, bakit kabado ang beshy ko?"

Inusisa ako agad ni Rhyolite na Class President namin habang nagka-klase sa General Mathematics. I wobble in my seat like I was sitting on a bed of pins, worried about lending Jayscen my notes. Each second is making me feel restless. Kinakabahan ako sa hindi malamang dahilan. Ano ba 'to, para namang tanga!

Ngayon ko lang na-realize na ang pangit ng sulat ko kaya ano na lang sasabihin niya kapag nakita niya ang notes ko?! Nakakahiya, Rize!

Nakabukas naman ang aircon, yet here I was, sweating like a popsicle in the sun. Tinititigan ko pa rin ang notes kong parang walang magandang impluwensya.

"Pahiram nga ng notes mo sa Reading and Writing, Rhyo," balisa kong tugon sa kaibigan ko.

Pinaningkitan niya tuloy ako ng mata, kumukunot-kunot pa ang kilay. "At bakit naman kita pahihiramin?" she asked suspiciously. Normal na tono niya na yata ang maging strikto.

"Sige na, oh," pagpupumilit ko.

Hindi niya na 'yon nasagot dahil eager talaga siyang makinig sa klase. Napanguso muna ako pagkatapos ay bumuntonghininha. Sana may himala manlang na mangyari para hindi ako mapahiya kay Jayscen.

"What's the answer again, Ms. Guillermo?"

Ito yata ang himala. Thanks, Lord, for my unwanted sense of timing. Just when I didn't want to recite dahil math ang subject tapos tyaka naman ako nag-bingo.

Umupo ako nang diretso mula sa pagkakasandal nang tawagin ako ni Ma'am Salva. Iyan, sa sobrang distracted ko, hindi na ako nakinig sa klase. Okay lang, madali ko lang naman matandaan ang mga numbers at formula sa math, pero kasi, sobrang occupied ng utak ko ngayon!

Tinignan ko ang given problem sa white board at isinolve sa utak ko.

Given:
f(x) = 3x - 2
g(x) = x² + 5
Find: f × g

I narrowed my eyes for a moment while looking at it. After a quite seconds, I solved the problem faster than a squirrel on caffein. Phew, basic lang naman 'yon. Salamat po ulit, Lord.

Tumayo ako at sumagot. "Ma'am, 3x³ - 2x² + 15x - 10."

Madali ko lang naman iyon isinolve dahil sa FOIL method. Mabuti na lang talaga madali-dali pa ang binigay ni Ma'am.

"Good. Sit down," she strictly announced. "Next time, ayaw ko nang may sumasagot ng buntonghininga sa klase ko kung ayaw niyong mag-quiz na walang gamit na scientific calculator."

Napakamot ako sa batok. Malamang narinig niya ang buntonghininga ko kanina. Ayaw ko naman madamay ang mga classmate ko dahil sa kagagawan ko. Pinaka-ayaw pa man din ni Ma'am Salva na hindi kami nakikinig sa subject niya. She's really strict.