TWENTY FOUR
“Keith,” lumipat ‘yung tingin ng English Lit teacher namin mula kay Key papunta sa akin, acknowledging us. “Elisha.”
Goodness, hindi ko yata siya kayang tignan sa mga mata. Papasok kami mula sa pinto ng faculty room and I could collapse just right about now. My ribs felt like blowing off dahil sa lakas ng kabog ng dibdib ko. Fudge, eto na nga bang sinasabi ko eh! Sa dami naman ng makakahalfungkat ng lihim ng buhay ko, bakit ang pamintang si Mr. Madrigal pa!
Milo the uninvited, on the other hand, entered the door last. Tumikhim siya ng pagkalakas-lakas. “Nathan Milo Vallejo, present Sir!” He shot his right hand up in the air. “Tagapagtanggol ng naaapi!”
“Nathan, I don’t remember asking for you,” may pagtatakang sabi ni Sir Madrigal. “Anong ginagawa mo dito?”
“Sir, moral support, sir!” Sagot ni Milo with a salute. His one hand on his back, feet parted like he’s some soldier. Jusmiyo, ano nanamang na-singhot ng isang ‘to?
“Sorry sir, nagpumilit po kasing sumama eh,” pagsusumbong ni Key. Hindi ako nakatingin sa dalawa, sinubukan kong i-focus ‘yung mga mata ko kay Sir Madrigal, waiting for him to drop the bomb, but I’m pretty sure nairapan na ni Keith Kato si Milo by now. “I’ll get him out at once.”
“Ihhh, hoy Key! H’wag ka ngang pabibo!” Padabog na suway ni Milo.
“That won’t be necessary, Keith, thank you.” With tantalizing eyes, nginitian ng teacher ang dalawang lalaki. “Mas mainam pa nga siguro ‘yung presence ni Nathan dito since he’s also from the Student Council.”
Shocks, what’s with the SC involvement? Heto na ba talaga ang araw ng paghuhusga? Magaganap sa isang faculty room? I knew this fateful day would come eventually, but darn, I was actually expecting it to be more dramatic than this.
Dinala kami ni Sir Madrigal sa meeting area ng mga teachers na mukhang rehabilitation center sa sobrang puti at liwanag. Umupo kaming tatlo sa couch – me, Milo, and Key, respectively – opposite our teacher. May baon-baon siyang isang stack ng papel.
Crap, this is it. Any minute now.
The whole of my anatomy was trembling kaya napagdesisyunan kong paglaruan ‘yung tie ng uniform ko para hindi nila masyadong mapansin ‘yung weird, shaky movements ng body parts ko.
“Pssst, Pringles,” Milo whispered saka pa niya tinusok ‘yung tagiliran ko with his elbow. “Pring! Pssssst!”
“Ano?!” Hindi ko intention na sumigaw pero dahil sa kaba, napalakas ‘yung boses na na-produce ko. When I raised my head, naka-focus na sa’kin ‘yung attention ng tatlong lalaki.
“I was just asking if you were alright, Elisha, may sakit ka ba?” The English Literature teacher threw me an incredulous look as he lifted his round eyeglasses. Darn, akala niya yata siya ‘yung hiniyawan ko. Apparently, kanina pa pala siya nagsasabi-sabi while I was busy spacing out.
Pinanlakihan ko ng mga mata si Milo, threateningly, bago ko harapan si Sir Madrigal. Well, he could’ve warned me sooner! Hihintayin munang mapahamak ako eh. “Oh, no, I’m perfectly fine. Thank you po sa concern, and sorry for the intrusion. Please go on, Sir.”
