Clark High is in lockdown due to the threat of coronavirus. The student council takes over and the QED-4, now part of the student executive committee, assists in maintaining peace and order on the campus.
A/N: You've heard from Lorelei. You've heard from Jamie. You've heard from Loki. Now it's Alistair's turn!
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ALISTAIR
HANGGA'T MAAARI, ayaw kong magkaroon ng away. Mas gusto ko na mapayapa at maayos ang lahat. That was my ideal situation. Pero kung magpapakatotoo tayo, hindi natin maaalis ang possibility na magkaroon ng hindi pagkakasundo, na magkakaroon pa rin ng gulo. We are, after all, men and women of different beliefs and convictions coming from different backgrounds.
My dad once taught me the idea of compromise. 'If only they want, people can always meet halfway,' he told me. Magkakaiba man tayo ng pinaniniwalaan at paninindigan, there can be a middle ground kung saan tayo magkakasundo. Minsan, hindi gano'n kadaling hanapin, lalo na kapag ang dalawang party na involved ay nasa magkabilang extremes.
Bakit ko ba nasasabi 'to? I remember my dad's words when Loki and Stein agreed to a ceasefire during the school lockdown. Words cannot describe the hatred that Loki feels toward Stein. Stein, on the other hand, showed no remorse on the pain he inflicted to our club president. Parang balewala lang sa kanya.
Noong naikwento sa 'kin ni Lorelei ang mga pinagdaanan ni Loki, doon ko siya lalong naintindihan. Loki may be rude. He may not trust anyone so easily. But I believe na may mas malalim pa siyang pinanghuhugutan. He lost a friend, and the one who claimed to have been behind it was still walking free.
Kung titingnan kasi sa itsura niya, lagi siyang kalmado at parang walang pakialam. Lorelei likes to describe him as someone who has a consistent blank face. He may not be expressive of his emotions most of the time. But there were times when I saw the cracks on his cold mask. Isa na rito ay ang unang encounter namin kay Stein ngayong naka-lockdown ang school.
Katabi ko si Loki sa upuan kaya napapansin ko ang kilos at reaksyon niya. I sensed his blood boiling when he found out that Stein was seated behind us. His face may not show his anger, but his body language betrayed him. Mula sa pasimpleng pagkuyom ng kanyang mga kamao hanggang sa marahang pagsinghal niya. Kaya habang nag-uusap silang dalawa, inihanda ko na rin ang sarili ko na mamagitan sakaling may gawin siya.
Mabuti na lang, napanatili ni Loki ang pagiging kalmado. He may have insulted Stein through words, but that's much better than physically hurting him. Violence is never the answer. As his member and as his friend, I will never let him resort to that method.
Sumagi tuloy sa isip ko 'yong quote galing kay Friedrich Nietzsche. "If you gaze long into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you." This has been one of my guiding mottos in life. It means that when you're fighting the "monsters," make sure that you won't turn out like them. Do not become the very thing that you swore to destroy.
Stein is the monster, and he uses violence. If Loki resorts to violence to deal with Stein, he is no longer different from him.
"Magiging okay lang kaya tayo?" Lorelei whispered to me. "Stein is with us."
