Depression Plutus (Curse #4)

CHAPTER 8 Demo

 OTTILIE VIRSES POV
 
 
Nakakaasar.
 
 
Umagang-umaga pero ang level ng pagkabadtrip ko umabot na ata hanggang impyerno. Nakabusangot tuloy ang mukha ko habang naka-upo sa upuan ko dito sa room.

Hindi pa nga ako nakakarecover sa ginawa niya sa'kin kagabi, dinagdagan na naman niya kanina bago ako pumasok.

Paano ba naman, ayaw niya akong papasukin hanggat di ako nagsusuklay ng buhok. Pinagbantaan pa ako nito na pagsisisihan ko daw kapag hindi ko inayos ang sarili ko.

I had no choice but to obey, and now I’d almost been late to class. 
 
Nakakaasar! Kita namang ang hirap-hirap suklayin ng buhok ko. Kaya nga hindi ako madalas magsuklay dahil inaabot ako ng siyam-siyam bago ito maayos. Palagi talagang pinag-iinitan ng asungot na 'yon ang buhok ko.

At isa pa, imbis na diretso uwi na ako ng bahay mamaya, kailangan ko dumaan sa boutique para papalitan ng XL ang brief niya!

Ako na nga 'tong nagmamagandang loob, kasalanan ko ba na nakadipende pala 'yun sa laki ng baril nila.
 
"Ottilie, your turn," tawag sa pangalan ko ni Mrs. Willow.
 
The whole room quieted down as I stood up. My legs felt heavy as I walked to the front of the class, trying to ignore the whispers.

May marinig lang talaga ako na hindi kaaya-aya sa pandinig ko, lalapain ko talaga sila. 
 
“This is Ottilie, our new transfer student from the city,” Mrs. Willow introduced with a smile.
 
I just nodded, avoiding eye contact with everyone. My head was still filled with thoughts of Plutus, his smug face, and the way he scolded me this morning. I clenched my fists, trying to push it aside.
 
"Whenever you’re ready," Mrs. Willow encouraged.
 
I took a deep breath and looked at the candle in front of me. I remembered everything Plutus taught me. Focus.  Control the flame. Guide the energy.

I raised my hand and felt the magic gathering around me.

But then,

I suddenly remembered Plutus yelling at me earlier this morning.

And before I knew it,

WHOOSH!

The entire classroom gasped.

A giant flame exploded from the candle, way bigger than I intended. I froze as the fire shot upward, making shadows dance around the room.
 
Mrs. Willow reacted quickly, her eyes wide in surprise. She waved her hand, and the fire vanished in an instant. I stood there, completely stunned.
 
"S-sorry po!!" I stammered, bowing over and over in apology. "Hindi ko po sinasadya!"
 
To my surprise, Mrs. Willow just laughed. "No need to apologize! That was... well, quite impressive! Perhaps a bit too much enthusiasm, hmm?"
 
The class burst into laughter, and I couldn’t help but smile nervously. Mrs. Willow placed another candle in front of me. 
 
"Let’s try again, shall we? This time, you’ll focus on extinguishing it."
 
I nodded and took another deep breath to calm myself.

This time, I remembered Plutus’ instructions clearly. I focused on pulling the energy away from the flame.
 
With one small movement,

The candle went out.

Much easier this time.

I quietly sighed in relief.

Hays salamat natapos din.
 
"Well done," Mrs. Willow said with a smile as I returned to my seat.
 
Nang makabalik ako sa upuan ko, nagulat na lang ako ng biglang lumingon sa pwesto ko ang dalawang classmates ko na naka-upo lamang sa unahan ng table ko. Japanese style kasi ang mga tables at chairs na ginagamit namin dito sa paaralan. 
 
“That was awesome!” the boy said excitedly while pushing up his glasses. “That’s the biggest flame I’ve ever seen!”
 
"Oo nga! Ang cool mo kanina!" Dagdag naman ng girl na naka-braces.
 
Napakurap-kurap dahil sa pagiging masiyahin ng dalawang ito. Hindi ko akalain na may magkukusang kumausap sa'kin ngayon.
 
"Uh, thanks," I said, feeling a smile tugging at my lips.
 
"I'm Dylan," the boy introduced himself, still grinning.
 
"And I'm Jenna," the girl added.
 
"I'm Ottilie."

I shook their hands, still surprised by how welcoming they were. For the first time today, I didn’t feel completely awkward.
 
As we exchanged names, Mrs. Willow was busy grading the class. Kahit papaano nawala ang inis ko sa asungot na 'yon. Nang matapos ang demo namin, dumiretso na kami nila Dylan at Jenna sa cafeteria para magtanghalian. 
 
As we entered, the place was packed with students eating with their circle of friends. Napaka-ingay dito sa loob, dinaig pa ang sabungan sa human world. We just grabbed our trays and filled them with food, and after some searching, we found a spot at a table toward the far corner, where it was less crowded.
 
Kaka-upo pa lang naming tatlo nang magsimula na naman si Jenna na dumaldal.

"So, Dylan and I are childhood friends," she said between bites of her sandwich. "We moved here to study because, you know, the quality of education is just better."
 
Dylan nodded. “Yeah. This place is one of the best schools for magic and academics.”
 
"Mukhang tama pala ang naging disisyon ko na dito mag-transfer," I lied. 
 
Napatango-tango naman sila sa sinabi ko. Pero sang-ayon naman talaga ako sa sinabi nila. Sabi nga ng mga nakatira sa city, kung gusto mo ng magandang future, sa CA ka mag-aral. Napakaswerte nga ni Kuya dahil pinaglaanan talaga ng stepmom ko at ni dad ang pag-aaral ni Kuya dito. 
 
Sa kaso ko naman, kaya nakayanan ko ang tuition dito ay dahil sa business ng late mom ko sa human world na on business pa din hanggang ngayon, at pinapalakad ito ng kapatid niya. Ang kalahati ng kita sa fragrance boutique ni mom ay napupunta sa bank account ko habang ang kalahati ay sa kapatid nito. 
 
"Oh my gosh, they’re here!" 
 
Nabalik na lang ako sa reyalidad ng biglang magkikikisay si Jenna sa upuan nito. Napansin ko din ang tilian ng mga babae sa buong cafeteria, kaya mabilis kong hinanap ang pinagmulan ng ingay. 
 
May tatlo na nagtatangkarang mga kalalakihan ang kapapasok lamang sa cafeteria. Nakaproper uniform ito at talagang takaw atensyon ang dating nila. Pero nang mapadako ang tingin ko sa pinakahuling lalaki na pumasok, nanlalaki ang mga mata ko ng mamukhaan ito. 
 
Taragis, si Slate ba 'yon? My heart skipped a beat as I quickly turned back to face my tray, hoping he wouldn’t see me. Jenna, meanwhile, was grinning from ear to ear, practically beaming.
 
"There’s my baby Slate," she sighed dreamily. Habang hindi maalis ang tingin nito sa kinaroroonan ni Slate. 
 
Dylan rolled his eyes dramatically. “Ignore her. She’s been obsessed with Slate since day one.”
 
Natawa ako sa sinabi nito, halatang umay na umay na siya sa fan girling ng kan'yang best friend. "Halatang-halata nga."
 
"He’s so handsome, isn’t he? And so talented. And rich. Ugh, he’s perfect." Bulong ni Jenna sa sarili na rinig na rinig naman namin ni Dylan.
 
"Yeah, yeah," Dylan snorted. "Sino ba namang hindi mahuhumaling, anak lang naman si Slate ng may-ari nitong school, which is why they’re all treated like royalty around here."
 
"Huh? Anong sabi mo?" I asked, blinking in surprise. "The son of the owner? Si Slate?"
 
"Yep. Slate Van Crimson," Dylan said casually. "And the three guys with him? Their parents are shareholders in this school."
 
I froze, the name sinking in. So Slate was the son of the academy’s owner? And the same Slate who saved me? What a ridiculously small world.
 
Jenna was still in awe, watching the guys as they sat down at a far-off table. "Do you see how perfect they look even when they’re eating? I mean, seriously!"
 
Good thing Slate was far away. The last thing I wanted was for him to recognize me and start pestering me about joining his band again. Babalik na sana ako sa pagkain ng si Dylan naman ang mapasinghap. Muli na namang nag-ingay ang buong cafeteria. Paglingon ko sa entrance, 6 guys who's wearing their varsity uniform came in. 
 
"Walang kupas talaga ang idol ko soccer field." Nakangiting turan ni Dylan habang hindi mapuknit ang tingin sa anim na lalaki. "Next year ay magt-try out na ako para makapasok sa soccer team." 
 
"Pwe! Hindi naman magaling 'yang Lucas mo sa soccer," pangbabara ni Jenna. 
 
"Kumpara mo naman sa Slate mo na puro papogi lang sa stage," singhal naman ni Dylan.
 
At nagbangayan na po silang dalawa. Napapakamot na lang ako sa sintindo ko dahil sa dalawang ito. Mukhang hindi sila nagkakasundo pagdating sa mga idols nila.
 

To be continued...