Depression Plutus (Curse #4)

CHAPTER 30 Neat Freak Alert

 OTTILIE VIRSES POV
 
 
Both Plutus and I woke up early to prepare for the trip. We need to be at the campus at exactly 4 a.m., kaya inagahan ko na ang gising. When I'm finally done preparing everything, I go downstairs to wait for Plutus. Mahigpit ako nitong binilinan kagabi na magsabay na daw kami sa pagpunta sa school habang nag-aayos ng dadalhin namin sa trip. If I know, hindi lang marunong mag-commute ang isang 'yon.
 
"Let's go," Plutus called, snapping me out of my thoughts.
 
"Finally! Ang tagal mo naman, daig mo pa babae kumilos," I grumbled, giving him an irritated look.
 
Plutus just jerked his eyebrow, "It's not my fault for having one toilet upstairs," he said arrogantly.
 
I rolled my eyes at him. Hindi ako mananalo sa isang, 'to kaya nag-umpisa na akong hilain ang luggage ko papalabas ng bahay. But the moment I stepped outside, my jaw dropped. Why the heck there's a Wrangler black SUV in front of my house? It was parked outside the gate. Then Plutus came out, dragging his luggage towards the car.
 
"What the, sayo 'yan?" Hindi makapaniwalang tanong ko sa kan'ya.
 
"Who else?" Plutus blankly said as he opened the trunk and placed the luggage.

Then he turned to look at me, "What are you waiting for? Get your ass here." 
 
Wala sa sariling napasunod ako sa sinabi nito at ibinigay kay Plutus ang maleta ko. 
 
"May bus na provided ang school ah, bakit nagdala ka ng sarili mong sasakyan?" Nagtatakang tanong ko.
 
Plutus scoffed, closing the trunk with a loud thud. "I'm not cramming myself into a bus with a bunch of bacteria-ridden strangers."
 
Hindi ko tuloy mapigilang mapahalakhak sa harapan nito. Napaka-arte, kala mo naman ikakamatay niya. Nang buksan nito ang pintuan sa passengerseat, doon niya lang ako tinawag.
 
"Get in, evil witch," he said, giving me a lazy look. 
 
When I'm inside, I see how spacious it is, and then plutus goes in the driver seat. As my gaze met his, my brows furrowed at the way he was staring at me.
 
"Bakit?" Kinakabahan kong tanong.
 
Plutus didn't say anything, but his gaze was so intense, his arms resting at the steering wheel. I gulped feeling nervous. Is he going to kiss me? Just try it, and I will punch him in the face. 
 
"Seat belt," he muttered.
 
"Ah, hehe, oo nga pala," I bit my lower lip, feeling embarrassed. 
 
Seat belt naman pala, masyado ka talagang assuming, Ottilie. Palagi mo na lang pinapahiya ang sarili mo sa harap ni Plutus. 
 
"Idiot." Plutus exclaimed as he started the engine and pulled onto the road.
 
Habang nasa byahe, bigla na lang akong may naalala, kaya mabilis akong napatingin kay Plutus.
 
"Nalock ko ba ang pintuan?" I ask in panic.
 
Plutus didn't tear his gaze at the rode as he said, "It's locked." 
 
Doon lang ako nakahinga ng maayos. Ang kaso bigla namang tumunog ang tiyan ko. Saglit na napatingin sa'kin si Plutus bago ibinalik ang tingin sa daan. 
 
"Hehehe, nakalimutan kong magbaon ng kutkutin," nahihiya kong turan kay Plutus.
 
"Tss, always hungry," Plutus said grumpily. "Are you growing some kind of hybrid worm inside that belly fat of yours?" 
 
"Ano?! Wala ah!" Singhal ko sa kanya bago tumingin sa labas ng bintana. "Kasalanan mo ‘to… ever since I tried your cooking, I’m hungry all the time." Bubulong-bulong na turan ko.
 
Nakita ko na napangisi si Plutus sa salamin ng bintana pero hindi na ito nagsalita pa. Soon, we pulled into a drive-thru and ordered some breakfast. As we drove, I eagerly dug into my food, but noticed Plutus hadn’t touched his burger.
 
"Hey, kumain kana rin," I said, nudging him.
 
"I'm driving," Plutus mumbled. 
 
Good point. But I felt bad eating alone, so I unwrapped his burger and held it up to his mouth. He looked at me, momentarily surprised.
 
"Kain na, susubuan kita habang nagmamaneho ka," tipid na sabi ko sa kan'ya. 
 
Plutus hesitated but finally took a bite, still focused on the road. We continued like that, me feeding him while he drove.
 
"Juice?" I offered after he’d finished his burger. He nodded, taking a sip as I held the cup for him.
 
Ang ending, parehas kaming busog ng makarating sa school. Nang mai-park ni Plutus ang sasakyan, inunahan ko na ito sa pagbaba, saka pinuntahan si Jenna at Dylan na naghihintay sa bench.
 
"Morning, Ottilie!" Dylan greeted. 
 
"Good morning! Naks, sabay na naman sila, kayo na ba?" Sabay halakhak ni Jenna. 
 
"Ano?! Hindi ah, malapit lang ang bahay nila sa'min kaya isinabay na ko ni Plutus," pagdadahilan ko. 
 
Kabado malala, sana maniwala itong si Jenna kundi yari ako kay Plutus. 
 
"Bro!" Pagtawag ni Dylan kay Plutus at nakipag fist bump dito. 
 
"Napakaswerte mo naman, gurl! Pasalamat ka si Slate na ulit ang number 1 sa list ko, ipapa-ubaya ko na si Plutus sayo," bulong ni Jenna sa'kin na ikinapula ng mukha ko.
 
"Pinagsasabi mo ba!" Singhal ko sa kan'ya na ikinahalakhak ulit nito. 
 
"Tignan mo sila Angelica, kanina pa masama ang tingin ng grupo niyan sa'yo, simula ng bumaba ka sa sasakyan ni Plutus," inginuso nito sila Angelica na nagkukumpulan sa hindi kalayuan, habang masama ang tingin sa direksyon namin.
 
"Alright, everyone, gather around!" Mr. Armstrong announced. 
 
And once the group was together, he said, "It's going to be a four-hour trip, so I hope you grab a bite before coming here. But don’t worry, there's a feast waiting for us at the facility."
 
Mabuti na lang nag-agahan na kami ni Plutus kanina sa daan. Then, after a while, Mr. Armstrong clapped his hands, signaling us to grab our luggages and head inside the bus.
 
Makikisabay na sana ako kina Jenna at Dylan ng maalala kong nasa kotse pala ni Plutus ang mga bagahe ko. Agad kong hinila ang tracksuit ni Plutus at natatarantang kinausap ito.
 
"Plutus, 'yong mga gamit ko!" Nagpapanic kong sabi sa kan'ya, ayaw kong maiwanan ng bus.
 
Plutus just looked at me lazily and shrugged. "Nah-uh, you’re riding with me."
 
Napanganga na lang ako dahil sa sinabi nito. Hanep, wala na ba akong karapatan magdesisyon para sa sarili ko? Maya-maya pa ay nakarinig ako ng tawa mula sa dalawa naming kaibigan.
 
"Ha? T-teka sa bus ako..." hindi ko malaman kung ano ang sasabihin ko dahil sa pagpa-panic.
 
"Looks like you’ve got yourself a personal driver for the trip," Jenna teased, winking at me. "Go on, keep him company. It’s a long ride, after all."
 
Dylan added with a grin, "I hope you packed a lot of patience. Good luck, Ottilie!"
 
With a sigh of defeat, I watched as the two of them headed into the bus, leaving me to trail behind Plutus back toward the car. Nakaka-asar talaga siya! Mas exciting kaya sa bus, makakakwentuhan ko pa sina Jenna at Dylan.
 
 
Arghhhhhh!! 
 
 
To be continued...