The Price Of Love

Chapter Fourteen

A crowd was gathered at the very middle of the university, a wide, open space surrounded by the school's building. The place was a popular hang out place to students and was also a space where big events, such as school concerts and celebrations, were held. Curious to what was going on, Yuka couldn't help but stop and take a peak before heading to her next class.

"Ano'ng nagyayari?" Yuka asked the woman standing next to her.

"Hindi ko din alam. Inannounce lang kanina sa speaker na pumunta dito sa field." She answered, shrugging her shoulders.

She had missed the announcement dahil pagkatapos ng klase ay dumiretso siya sa restroom para ayusin ang make-up niya. Something she used to do with Tracy and the monkeys in between classes, but now she does everything alone.

"Good morning everyone." Sabi ng boses sa mike. All eyes were suddenly on the platform in front of them. There stood Janno in front of them with Tracy standing next to him with a withdrawn and annoyed look on her face. Janno cleared his throat, his eyes fixed on the paper he was holding. "We would like to take this time to publicly apologize to Yuka Grace Flores for damaging her reputation."

Yuka's brows crumpled when her name was said.

"We, Janno Alonzo and Tracy Padua, were the one who played the video of the alleged oral scandal that has tainted Yuka Grace Flores' name. Nandito po kami, nakatayo sa harap niyo, para linisin ang pangalan ni Yuka." Said Janno.

"It was a year ago when it happened at my party." Si Tracy naman ang nagsalita. "We were playing 7 minute in heaven and since Yuka was the new girl, we decided to play a little joke on her."

"It was a joke that got out of hand and we deeply aplogize to Ms. Yuka Grace Flores." Tila maamong tupang sabi ni Janno. "We were locked up in a dark closet, just as how the game is supposed to go, I unzipped my pants and pushed her down her knees to make it seem like she was giving me oral and then that was when I signalled for Tracy to open the door. It was just a joke, guys."

It happened just as how Janno told it. She was pushed down and the next thing she knew, the door opened and there was a dick in front of her face. She wanted to belong, to be one with the rich, liberated kids and went along with it. She didn't want to act all embarrassed when people at the party started teasing her about it because honestly, she'd seen them do worse. People were making out and dry humping each other at the party and she didn't want to be called a prude. After the party, Janno started pursuing her hanggang sa pumayag na siyang i-date ang lalaki. She wasn't attracted to the man, it was just that he was a famous basketball player and it gained her a little social leverage being seen with him. Isa pa, kaibigan din siya ni Tracy, the woman she was trying to impress at that time so that she could get into their social circle. She was once a Ciara not too long ago willing to do anything to get on Queen Tracy's good side.

He broke up with Janno after she became best friends with Tracy and he wanted more out of their relationship. Hindi na ito kontento sa make out lang, he started pressuring her to having sex so she broke up with him. Her refusal to sleep with him didn't come from high moral ground, it was in fact the opposite. Janno just wasn't rich enough for her. He was just a pawn, the first step up the social ladder. She looked at sex as power and if she was going to give it away, she'd want something huge in return. She wasn't going to give it away like her mother did, for just a few coins in the pocket. She was no one thousand peso whore. So far, nobody had given her a car yet to allow them access between her legs.

"If you're hearing this, I hope you find it in your heart to forgive us, Yuka." Sabi ni Tracy.

Yuka couldn't deny that it felt good hearing Tracy and Janno ask for forgiveness in front of all these people, the same people she had been humiliated in front of. But she wanted more than an apology. She wanted them to feel the humiliation she felt. Kulang pa ito sa mga kagaguhan na ginawa nila sa kanya.