DETECTIVE FILES. File 1 (Published under PSICOM)

CHAPTER 1 : BRIDLE HIGH

[UNEDITED AND SOME THINGS ARE MIXED UP WITH THE BOOK VERSION SO IT'S A BIT CONFUSING. SORRY AND PLEASE BEAR WITH ME.]

Chapter 1: Bridle High School

It was almost 5 in the afternoon when I decided to leave the library. Magsasara iyon nang alas singko at kapag nagtagal pa ako ay hindi ko na mailalabas ang libro na hihiramin ko. I was engrossed in the book that I'm reading to the point that I didn't notice the time.

Kanina pa akong ala una nang hapon dito dahil napagpasyahan kong hindi pumasok sa lahat ng klase ko. Itiniklop ko ang libro at dinala iyon sa nakabusangot ang mukha na librarian. It was Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Valley of Fear. Padabog na nagstamp sa record ang librarian bago iyon inabot sa akin. She's not old but like some typical librarians, she's strict. At inis rin siya sa akin dahil madalas ay nakakalimutan ko ang oras at lumalampas ako nang alas singko doon.

I am always the last student to get out of the library. Why? It's simply because I love reading books. Not textbooks to do some homeworks but informational and mystery books. Nagbabasa din naman ako ng textbooks but I do it in the dormitory and not in the library. Yep, Bridle High is a boarding school. Students stay in the dormitory dahil iyon ang rules ng eskwelahan.

I am Amber Sison, a Grade 11 student at Bridle High School. I am bookworm and somewhat a nerd minus the nerdy clothes and thick old-fashioned glasses. Sa unang tingin ay hindi ako mapagkakamalang nerd but Bridle's students see me as one.

Why? Dahil kahit saan ako magpunta, I bring along a book with me at hindi masyadong nakikipag-usap. I'm not snob but people would think that I am. The reason why I don't usually talk with others is because I usually spend more time with books. I have some friends na kinakausap ko nang madalas. They are my roommates, Therese and Andi na katulad ko ay Grade 11 din.

Nang makalabas na ako ng library ay nagtuloy na ako sa dorm ng mga babae. It was in the east wing of the campus samantalang sa west wing naman ang dorm ng mga lalaki. Nang makarating ako sa room ko which is on the third floor, agad kong binuksan ang pinto na may markang 305. Pagpasok ko ay naroon na si Therese at Andi. They were talking about something seriously. Hindi ko sila pinansin at nagtuloy na sa kama ko.

"Amber," tawag ni Therese. Hindi ko sila tiningnan dahil nakahiga ako sa kama at nakatingala sa kisame.

"What?"

"Have you heard about the commotion kanina sa klase ng Section C?," tanong ni Andi. Hindi ko alam dahil nagcut ako ng klase kanina. And even if I didn't cut classes, I would never know dahil malayo ang classroom namin sa Section C.

"Did you know na nagkasagutan daw ang adviser ng Section C na si Mrs. Sera at si Lowie Mondino?" tanong ni Therese.

"No," tipid kong sagot sa kanila. I'm not really interested with the affairs of other people.

"Ang sabi nila ay may hinalo raw na mga chemicals si Lowie mula sa Science lab which were dangerous. Pinaglaruan nila ito ng mga barkada niya and Mrs. Sera was very angry dahil balak daw ni Lowie na pasabugin ang laboratory. Lowie denied the accusations and they ended up threatening each other's life."

Oh, I know Lowie by name. Anak ito ng may-ari ng Mondino Pharmaceuticals Company, a known company for the production and sale of pharmaceutical drugs and medicines. Base na rin sa mga kwento nina Therese, Lowie is a brat. He is a bully at kilala sa katigasan ng ulo.

Ipinagpatuloy ko lang ang pagpikit ng mga mata ko at hindi na nagkomento pa.

"As usual, hindi ka na naman interesado," Therese said. I mumbled something like 'yeah' and they both groaned in frustration. I ignored them at agad na natulog.