The Show After the 17th

03

2019

Rover's Guild, the school's robotics club was on the second floor of the ESEP building. ESEP stands for Engineering and Science Education Program. Technically, it was a separate science class for selected students taking extra math subjects and advanced sciences. I spent four years of my junior high school in that program, along with Tasha. 

Nevertheless, extracurriculars centered on math or science didn't appeal to me; instead, I joined the school's drama club in eighth grade, Kinaiya.

We were peering through the glass of the double-door entrance of Rover's Guild when someone opened the door from the inside. Everyone was doing their own thing, or I should say "bots", and it was good we never seemed to interrupt anything. Except for the girl who I assumed was going outside but we were blocking her way. 

"Hi, is Mr. Reyes here?" Atasha was quick to ask.

The girl carrying a black Dura box just turned her head toward the corner right of the room and there we barely saw our adviser at the table where the club members were huddling. We said our thanks and even helped her open both doors so she could walk out easily.

Just when I thought Tasha was the most confident as we just walked behind her, she pulled me forward, and I found myself standing near the bunch who stopped what they were doing and looked at us, waiting.

"Excuse me, good afternoon Sir." I started.

Mr. Reyes must be expecting his students to drop by. After all, it was the season of asking your adviser to assist you with college applications. Only that we were coming in at the last minute. 

He crossed his arms and faced us sternly but in a jesting manner. He must be in a good mood. Without us telling anything, he extended his hands expecting us to hand him the request forms he needed to note.

"Ms. Seraffin, Ms. Mojica, and Ms. Typoco..." 

Mr. Reyes who was in his late 20s was usually strict and hated it when his students were late. Reasonable. He would allot about 10 minutes or so of his class only to have a discourse on how our unfavorable practices in high school could put us in a dire situation when in college if we keep it that way. He was mostly strict with our laboratory reports. Telling us that we must work on our paper for at least a week for a better output, and not just the night before its deadline. He had a talent for recognizing papers done in a rush and those that were not. He was keen about it. The most frightening part, and what he was well-known for—returning papers he rebuked that even a 50% grade was not deserving. I had never experienced that, thankfully. Neither Atasha nor Madison. So I guessed, that was why he was clement this time. We had no questionable record in him. Only this time, I reminded myself.

"I have been waiting for your forms for the past weeks. Didn't know you girls had taken up a new hobby. Save yourselves while it is early. No college will simply extend its deadlines solely to accommodate you, even if you are very smart and talented."

We were in a very awkward position because of Mr. Reyes' comment, and the curious eyes of the robo-kids around, alternatively shifting their eyes from our forms to us. Some faces were familiar, those that we would casually walk by in our building. They must have been our batchmates or just a year lower. But others who by the looks of them, appear like rascals, must still be in junior high school.

"Primo..." the tallest guy read in an inquisitive tone. He was not wearing a uniform or an ID, and he looked more mature, in the way he stood beside the other robo-kids. He looked at me and eventually raised his brows.

"What happened, Ms. Typoco? I thought you would even trade your coveted albums and merchandise collections just so you could enroll and study at this university." Mr. Reyes commented still scanning our forms on his table. 

Maddie and I once again shared the same reaction as we checked on Tasha, who was staggering on her feet. We collectively pursed our lips at that.

"Is that true, Tasha? seriously, where did that thought come from?" I asked right after confirming that we were beyond Mr. Reyes' visibility and hearing.

"You mean, how did he know Tasha's obsessions and come up with that assertion." Madison had the follow-up correction to my question.

"Right. Yes, the thought already exists but only in her mind, and probably in ours. But Mr. Reyes?" I concurred.

"He probably read that in my lab rep... He really does read everything we submit to him. Why does he have so much time?" Atasha gave us the impression that she was zoning out as she stated her supposed answer to our confusion.

It turned out Tasha included it in her laboratory report which was not in any way related to the activity we did in class. She inserted those sentences in the last section of the middle part of her output to fill up the five pages Mr. Reyes required as the maximum; thinking he would only read the introduction and conclusion. While also strangely hoping that for once, he would return her paper because he never did—that, made her feel like he never fully read our papers and only focused on the outputs of the students he expected he could pick on. She wanted to confirm that her efforts were not wasted.

"Look, Mr. Reyes is clearly not mad about it. He must have been who knows, impressed, that he decided to not call you out for that." I consoled our friend, who was at the stage of second-guessing her life decisions. 

We were sitting on one of the benches near the field while Maddie volunteered to buy our snacks from the canteen.

"I know. But I'd appreciate it more if he had just said that in front of our class. Why else did he mention that when some of our seniors were there." She exhaled as if trying to blow away what was in front of her through that.

"Seniors, who? where?" I returned to being as confused as I was when I was in the room with the robo-kids.

"Dave Ramos, Emil Sorita, Carla Andrade, and Simon Gambito were there. I see, you didn't know or notice them. They were right beside Mr. Reyes."

"Are they the same people you said you knew at the club?" 

"Nope. Jana was not there. I also know the other kids there, but I am closest to Jana" She was amazingly, and not surprisingly acquainted with a lot of people in school.

"But wait, I get that you don't know the rest of them, but Simon? Simon Gambito. He fundamentally contributed a lot of trophies and awards in Aldebaran. He and his team always had congratulatory posters featuring their faces and names hanging at the main gate during their time. Seriously, where were you looking at when entering our campus?" She sounded like it was a shame that I was not aware of the facts she stated.

"How many years were they ahead of us?" My forehead creased.

"Two years. And are you forgetting that Anja doesn't pass by the main gate? She prefers to enter at the second gate because it is near 7-Eleven." Maddie just came back handing out our snacks and joining the conversation to answer Tasha on how come I didn't see any posters they were referring to.

"So what's the occasion?" I kept asking but it was not related to our current topic. My eyes squinted at the covered court abutting the newly mowed field where baseball players were warming up.

"I heard there's an upcoming international tournament. They might be here to help them prepare for it." Maddie replaced Tasha from answering my questions I never was curious to begin with.

"No. I mean, over there." I extended my hand holding a lemon juice to gesture toward the mini dump trucks loading structural steel parked at the field intersection.

"Obviously, what happens when we leave our school? there will be a major revamp or a make-over or they build a new facility we will never get to use." At the perimeter of the site, caution tape was laid to secure the area that would be under construction for the coming days, or weeks, and most probably, for months.

With Madison's judgment of the sight, it dawned on me. Yet, I didn't want to consider it because the area being off limits was the Theater Hall, my favorite part of the school, the home for Kinaiya.