Depression Plutus (Curse #4)

CHAPTER 8 Demo

 OTTILIE VIRSES POV
 
 
Nakakaasar.
 
 
Umagang-umaga pero ang level ng pagkabadtrip ko umabot na ata hanggang langit. Nakabusangot tuloy ang mukha ko habang naka-upo sa upuan ko dito sa room. Muli na namang bumalik sa ala-ala ko ang bangayan namin ni Plutus kanina bago ako pumasok.
 
Plutus, in all his annoying glory, wouldn’t let me leave the house this morning without combing my hair. 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.
 
"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 from the city," Mrs. Willow said 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.
 
Taking a deep breath, I focused on the candle in front of me. I recalled everything Plutus had taught me. Focus, control the flame, and guide the energy. I raised my hand, feeling the magic pulse through me. But then, just as I was about to light the candle, I remembered Plutus’ nagging voice from this morning, and before I knew it...
 
WHOOSH!
 
The entire room gasped. A massive fire roared up from the candle, much bigger than I had intended. I froze in place, my heart pounding in my chest. The flames shot upward, casting eerie shadows across 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, taking a deep breath to calm myself. I raised my hand again, this time focusing on Plutus’ advice about turning off the flame. I felt the energy gather in my fingertips, and with a small motion, the flame disappeared. Much easier than before. I sighed in relief, feeling a weight lift off my shoulders.
 
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. Style Japanese kasi ang mga tables at chairs na ginagamit namin dito sa paaralan. 
 
"That was awesome!" the boy said, pushing his glasses up his nose and giving me a thumbs-up. "You made 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. 
 
"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 replied, shaking their hands.
 
Their friendliness caught me off guard, but it was nice to feel like I wasn’t just the awkward new girl. For the first time today, I felt a little more at ease.
 
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, adding, "Yeah, this place is top tier for magic and academics. Figured it’d give us an edge."
 
"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 just gave them a deadpan look, his expression unimpressed. "Don’t mind her," he muttered to me, rolling his eyes. "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...