[LUA]
ANG ganda dito.
Napangiti ako nang makuntento ako sa paglalatag ng picnic blanket sa sahig ng pavilion na nakita ko sa Freedom Park sa tapat ng building namin. Nagtanong ako sa teachers kung puwedeng gamitin iyon at nang sinabi nilang puwede iyong gamitin ng mga estudyante, inaya ko si Pixie na dito mag-lunch. Nag-prepare ako ng lunch namin ngayon.
Tinulungan ko si Ma'am Eleanor na magluto kanina. Nag-prepare kami ng beef broccoli para sa lunch ngayon. Para sa dessert, gumawa naman si Ma'am Eleanor ng cupcakes.
Ang tagal naman ni Pixie.
"Lua Quindall?"
Nalingunan ko ang dalawang magandang babae na parehong mukhang may lahi. Iyong mestiza, nakalugay lang ang long brown hair. Habang iyong isa naman na mukhang Chinese, may shoulder-length black hair. They don't look hostile but still, I put my guard up.
You can never be too careful.
Nang tumayo sila sa harapan ko, saka ko lang napansin na red ang lanyard nila. It means these girls are in Grade 12. Ang mga Grade 11 students kasi na gaya ko eh blue ang lanyard.
"Hello," polite na bati ko sa kanila. "Ako nga po si Lua Quindall. May kailangan po ba kayo sa'kin?"
"You don't have to be formal since we're only a year apart," nakangiting sabi no'ng magandang Chinita. She looks like the outspoken one because the mestiza beside her is just staring at me with a pokerface. "I'm Ai Chua. And this is my friend Juliet Bartolome. Since you look like a straightforward person, I'll get to the point: we want to recruit you to our club."
"Club?" excited na tanong ko. I used to be an active member of the female basketball team in my previous school. Point guard ako noon dahil bukod sa maliit ako compared sa teammates ko, mabilis din akong kumilos. "Anong klaseng club?"
"It's called NFG," nakangiting sagot ni Ai. "Nato's Flower Garden."
I almosted laughed at the ridiculous club name but I didn't want to offend them so I held myself back. Saka mabilis ding nawala ang amusement ko nang mag-replay sa isipan ko ang pangalan na naka-attach sa club name.
"Nato?" kunot-noong tanong ko naman. "As in Nato Fortaleza?"
"Yes," sagot ni Juliet na no'n lang nagsalita. Her voice sounds as gentle as she looks. "NFG is a club founded by Nato's first girlfriend. From then on, every ex of his automatically becomes a member of the club."
Nanlaki ang mga mata ko sa gulat. Well, gets ko na kung bakit nila ako nilapitan. Pero hindi pa rin ako makapaniwala sa nalaman ko. "Pinayagan ng school na magkaro'n ng gano'ng klase ng club dito?"
"Of course not, silly," natatawang sagot ni Ai. "NFG isn't an official club. But even so, it's still a well-known exclusive club here at Evangelina Academy. After all, only girls Nato dated could join us. I heard that you're smart so I'm assuming that you already get what's happening."
Tumango ako bilang confirmation. "Pero mako-consider bang "ex-girlfriend" ako ni Nato kahit two minutes lang namang naging "kami?""
Well, hindi ko naman binilang kung ilang minuto talaga kaming naging mag-jowa ni Nato. Pero sigurado akong wala pa 'yong five minutes.
"It doesn't matter how long or short your relationship with Nato had been," nakangiting sabi ni Ai. "The fact that Nato expressed his desire to date you means he wishes to protect you. We know your circumstances so we understand his purpose. Since you declined his protection by breaking up with him, we decided to protect you in his place. If you become one of us, your social status will improve."
