While We Were Away | BINI OT8 AU

The Supplies Stop

Day Four: The Supplies Stop

"Wala pa rin ba?" one of the two camp volunteers asked as he stood beside Marianne, who was gazing into the distance from the balcony.

The SC President shook her head, maintaining a small, reassuring smile despite the growing knot in her stomach.

"Baka delay lang," she reasoned, though the unease in her chest was hard to ignore.

"Delay? Pres Ari, apat na araw na silang delay. Should we head to town and try to contact them? Wala naman tayong signal dito, so it's useless to keep trying from here," he suggested, concern creeping into his tone.

Marianne considered his words carefully before nodding slowly. "Okay, sige. And while you're at it, bumili na rin kayo ng temporary supplies. Reimburse na lang natin pag-uwi."

"Pupunta sa bayan? Pwede ba akong sumama? Kailangan ko rin i-contact family ko," asked the second volunteer, overhearing their conversation.

"Ako din! Bili lang ako ng toiletries," a participant chimed in eagerly.

After a brief discussion, Marianne approved seven people to make the hour-long trip to town. They crammed into a small Vios—courtesy of a latecomer participant—since it was the only available vehicle. Originally, twenty students had signed up for the camp, pero may apat na di sumipot, leaving only sixteen to push through.

Aside from the missing deliveries, the camp's problems were beginning to pile up. The professor scheduled to lead a module hadn't shown up, and even the assigned moderator hadn't made an appearance.

"What's going on?" Marianne asked herself quietly as she remained standing on the balcony.

Meanwhile, Savannah and Madison stood by the gate, watching the overloaded car speed down the dirt road. They had planned to join the trip, but with no more space left, they settled for handing over their shopping lists.

"I want to use the internet so bad," Madison muttered as she and Savannah closed the gate behind them.

"Looks like 'tong camp lang ang magpapagaling sayo from your COD addition," Savannah teased, smirking.

Madison groaned. "Gosh, don't remind me, Savie." She whined playfully, giving Savannah a light shove as they made their way back to the house. "Bakit ba kasi kailangan ng four weeks for this leadership camp?"

"As if naman di ka nage-enjoy. Kita ko kaya yung mga pasulyap mo kay Ari," Savannah teased, nudging her best friend with her elbow. "May I remind you na sworn rival ko 'yon."

"You mean your one-sided sworn rival?" Madison scoffed. "She's mabait naman and super reliable as a leader. Bakit ba ayaw mo sa kanya?"

"You're just crushing on her, kaya biased ka."

"Whatever." Madison rolled her eyes. "So bakit nga? May ginawa ba siya sa'yo?"

"I don't know," Savannah muttered. "May weird vibe lang siya. Parang too good to be true. Like, goody-two-shoes levels."

"Ang judger naman."

"Shut up. I've been around her since first year sa council. May something talaga sa kanya—di ko ma-explain."

Gia and Sienna had wanted to go to town too, pero hindi na sila nakasama since the car was already packed. Now, they were lounging on top of a wide bamboo table under the shade of a huge mango tree. Gia, holding a long stick, was busy picking ripe mangoes from the branches overhead while Sienna sat beside her, looking lost in thought.

After successfully knocking down three golden-yellow mangoes, Gia sat down with a chuckle, glancing at her best friend's worried expression.

"Oh, ba't ganyan mukha mo?" Gia asked, placing two mangoes between them habang binabalatan niya yung isa. "Pwede naman tayong sumama next time sa bayan."