Fight or Flight

Chapter 1: In Manila

"When are you going back to Bicol, Joe?" Avery, my friend asked me.

"My flight to Bicol is in two days. Meron pa kasi akong need i-submit to my org president tomorrow sa campus." I answered her.

"Last week pa yung christmas break pero may mga reports pa rin kayo?" She asked me. I nodded to her but explained that it was just extra work that I insisted on doing.

"Wala naman kasi akong gagawin sa Bicol eh. Tayo tayo lang rin naman nandon." 

Avery nodded and laughed. "Malay mo naman meron tayong mameet from high school no? Magsisi-uwian ata lahat eh. Finally, freshman year is almost finished. Nakakapanibago no?"

"Yeah, onti. I am so happy with how this year went. Sobrang daming ganap and I just feel so energized and fulfilled already." I told her.

"Oo nga eh. Kausap ko lang kanina sila Reah tapos yan lang rin pinagusapan namin eh. Sige na, Joe. Bye na. Mag aasikaso na ako, punta na akong bus terminal maya maya." Avery concluded.

"Sige, call ka nalang if ma-bored ka sa bus or what. See you in Naga nalang hahaha" I answered. "Bye, Ave"

I spent the rest of my afternoon finishing up templates and editing posters for my org. We have so much to do kasi and we have almost four weeks of break, so that's so much of unsupervised time that we could be wasting.

One thing I'm so excited pagbalik ko ng Naga is having to spend time with my family and friends from my high school.

The clique i formed in high school- close pa rin kaming lahat even though nagkahiwa-hiwalay kami ng universities that we enrolled to. We stuck together because it was just easier and sila lang rin naman gusto kong makasama. They're amazing people, really.

I'm an Architecture student from Ateneo de Manila University. Avery is a nursing student from ADMU too. Some of my friends got in to UP, UST, DLSU, and others, so medyo nagkawatak watak talaga. 

Nagkakasama sama pa rin kami halos twice a week to hang out- have dinner or partying and clubbing. But kami na magkakalapit lang ng campus, UP, ADMU, halos gabi-gabi kaming nasa club.

College is a whole new world.

There is so much freedom. So much independency. It's liberating. 

As an only daughter in my family, with my kuya and a young brother both in Naga City, I'm just lucky I am so smart that my parents had no choice but to let me study in manila when i told them i passed sa ADMU. But I practically had to beg them to let me go. 

Of course the middle child unica ija will break the family tradition of graduating in Ateneo de Naga University. I'm going to be the main character here. I will graduate in Ateneo de Manila University instead.

-

It's around 7pm when my friends started a group video call. Almost half of us on their way home to Naga. "Oh si Hannah pala, nasa Naga na, hindi ka man lang nag-sabi samin siraulo ka." Reah said on the other line.

"Wow, kailangan updated ka sa buhay ko? Jowa ka ba?" Hannah bantered.

"Parang tanga to." Sean reacted, an arki student rin from UP. "Pero pag natatae ka, Hannah, kailangan nakamention pa lahat sa gc?"

I laughed at Sean's comment. "Oo nga, parang hindi siya makakatae pag di nagpaalam" I answered. "Ano ba yan? so dugyot ng topic niyo." I told them.

"Baho ng trip niyo. Pun intended. hahahaha" Deon, added. He's my closest within this group. "Avery, anong oras nakaalis bus niyo kanina? Sobrang traffic daw eh." He asked.

"Palagi naman traffic, ah?" Avery reacted. "Na-delay kami ng 2 hours bago makalabas yung bus sa terminal." She scoffed.

"Weh? Sobrang tagal naman nyan." I added.

"Ikaw, Joe, what time ka pupunta ng campus bukas?" Hannah asked me.

"Maybe around 10am so I can just grab my brunch at around 11am afterwards." I answered her. "Tatawid lang naman ako tapos campus na eh." I added, naka-dorm kasi ako dito sa Manila.

"Wag niyo kalimutan yung plans natin for Dec. 27th ha. May christmas party tayo, nakarent na ako ng air bnb natin sa Naga." Deon announced.

"Alam mo, Deon, masyado kang excited eh napag hahalataan ka na" Sean said. "Oo na nga eh, oo na. Ilang beses na yang reminder mo. Eh wala pa nga sila Joe sa Naga tas yan na agad iniisip mo. Pauwein mo muna yung tao para matuloy na nga talaga."

"What are your plans for Christmas ba?" I asked no one and everyone.

"Ano pa ba?" Avery answered first. "Sa bahay lang naman muna kami. Kami lang family."

"Magddine-out ata kami nila papa with some other relatives na uuwe rin from states eh." Reah added.

"Yup, kami rin." Hannah and Deon followed.

"Kami, sa bahay lang din eh." Sean said. "Doon ulit kayo sa lola niyo, Joe?" He asked me.

I nodded and decided to grab a soda from my fridge. "Oo, and doon ulit for new years." 

"Uuwe nga tayo pero parehong ganap lang rin naman gagawin natin" Reah bitterly added. "Sana magka-jowa naman ako."

We all violently reacted by hanging up. Natawa naman ako sa reactcion na nakita ko from Reah nung naunang mag end ng call si Deon, Sean, Avery, and Hannah followed, just before I hung up.