Sinclaire Academy

Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten

"Crush na talaga kita!" Mia kept gushing about how pretty I looked. Kanina pa talaga, eh. Parehas lang naman palagi 'yong sagot ko sa kanya. I let her do my make-up dahil hindi ko naman kayang gawin mag-isa and she claimed that she's an expert kaya bahala na. Sabi rin niya it's a way to save money kaysa raw gumaya kami sa ibang students na nagha-hire pa ng stylist just for a one-night event. So, naging doll ako nang wala sa oras. Si Gray tawa lang nang tawa habang ginawang coloring book ni Mia ang mukha ko. She left my hair alone dahil na rin sa sarili kong desisyon. I didn't want any products to be put in it para deretso na lang akong matutulog mamaya. Sinuklay ko na lang nang kaunti to make it look presentable.

I'm wearing the dress now. Kahit na gaano ito kaganda sa 'kin, I still felt uncomfortable wearing it knowing that I got it for free. I spent the previous night wondering why someone would act like that and give away one of her precious creations for free. In the end, napabuntonghininga na lang ako at hindi na nag-isip pa. Tiningnan ko ang sarili ko sa salamin. I must say Mia did a pretty good job in making me look decent enough to fit in.

Sa grand hall gaganapin ang party. They said it's where most of the social gatherings in SA were held. Sa tagal ko rito, hindi ko pa nakikita 'yon kahit labas man lang.

"Sa tingin mo ano'ng game ang plano nila?" Mia asked as she fixed her look one last time.

"Malay mo hindi naman totoo 'yon," sagot sa kanya ni Gray.

"You know there's like an 80% chance that rumors are true involving the Fearsome Four, lalo na when they're planning something. I just hope it's not too wicked."

"Maybe we're going on a treasure hunt."

"In dresses?"

"Malay mo lang naman."

Umiling na lang ako sa kanilang dalawa. Madali talagang maniwala ang students dito sa kahit ano involving the high-ranking vampire students. It's their source of entertainment, and in fairness naman, there was always something new every week. Masasanay ka na lang talaga.

"Confirmed na raw kanina," malumanay kong sabi. Wala talaga akong balak banggitin ang nalalaman ko but as I listened to how their conversation went on, hindi ko alam kung matatawa ako o ano because of how clueless they sounded.

Sabay silang tumingin sa 'kin. "Paano mo nalaman?" they asked in unison.

"Narinig ko lang. Pinag-uusapan ng ibang students sa hallway." I shrugged, making it look like I didn't care.

Truth is, si Carly ang nagsabi sa 'kin. Siya talaga ang may pakana ng game just to spice things up daw because parties can be boring. I haven't been to many parties so I can't oppose. Since kasama nila si Senri, pinayagan sila ng administration. Ayaw niyang magbigay ng info kung ano'ng game ang gaganapin since it's a surprise. Hindi ako magsisinungaling, a part of me was nervous kahit na friends na kami. Baka kasi ako puntiryahin niya sa game. Nakaloloko kasi 'yong mukha niya habang nag-uusap kami.

"May free dance kaya?" Gray wondered out loud habang naglalakad na kami papunta sa grand hall.

"Siyempre, meron 'yan. It's going to be the highlight of the night apart from the game. Malay mo may request kay Adri," Mia teased, looking my way.

"I doubt it." I shook my head. No one talks to me other than Carly and my friends. No one spared me a glance after my first week here kaya malabong mangyari ang sinabi ni Mia.

We're walking on a cemented path lined with trees with twinkling lights. Napangiti ako.It was a different kind of beautiful sa kung ano nang nakasanayan ko rito. May students na rin kaming kasabay maglakad. It's hard to decipher whether they were vampires or not because of the masks. Some were even wearing full-face ones while the majority was wearing a half mask like mine. Marami ang nakatambay pa sa labas, probably gushing about their dresses and stuff. 'Yon lang ang hula ko with the way the girls giggled. Boys, however, stood in groups casually chatting. Pumasok na kami agad to get a table. Hindi pa kami tumatagal sa pag-upo, hindi na mapakali si Mia sa pagtingin kung saan-saan.