Above Heavens

Eighth Glitch

V A U G H N

"Zamora, Villamor G.”

“Ma’am! Present and pretty!” Vil waved his right hand like a beauty queen. It’s Monday and boring. And our first subject is P.E. Katatapos lang mag-check ng attendance namin. Vil’s lucky, nakaabot pa. Katabi ko siya ngayon dito sa court.

“Vaughn-Vaughn, oks lang ba blush on ko?” He whispered while our professor is discussing something about basketball.

“It looks like someone slapped you.” I said bluntly. Umirap naman siya at hinampas ang hita ko.

“Ano ka ba? It’s better to arrive late than to arrive ugly.” Nag-not-so-beautiful-eyes pa siya.

The heck is that mantra?

I tried convincing myself to be engaged in the discussion. But, I already lost my appetite. Dad’s going to meet me later after this class. Bakit ko ba kasi binigay ang schedule ko sa kanya. Alam niya tuloy lahat ng vacant hours ko.

“Another outdoor game is soccer.” The lady professor on her early 40’s continue her job. I’m not interested though.

“Vaughn dear, okay na pala 'yong activity natin?” Vil asked casually while putting some red tint on his thick lips looking on the round mirror—ignoring the presence of our teacher.

“Yeah. Isa-submit na lang.”

“Vaughn-Vaughn ako na magpapasa. Kaka-lurky! Ganda na nga lang ambag ko! Sorry ulit hehe. Sumumpong migraine ni dade kaya dinala ko 'yong gamot niya sa police station. Yah know naman, perfect daughter.” He moved his hand in the thin air acting like he’s flipping a long hair. Kahit gupit lalaki naman siya.

“Okay.” Tsaka ko kinuha sa bag ko ‘yong tatlong activity sheets at iniabot sa kanya.

The day Candary and I, saw the old version of Vil, Candary ran swiftly. As if she saw a ghost.
Sumabay na lang din ako sa pagtakbo niya. Dali-dali siyang pumara sa jeep na nadaan kaya't sumakay naman kami.

Parehas naming hinahabol ang paghinga namin nang makaupo. Mabuti at wala namang pakialam ang mga pasahero. Nang makababa kami ay tsaka palang siya naka-received ng text mula kay Vil. Ang sabi, wala siya sa bahay. Emergency na pinapunta siya sa police station ng katrabaho ng papa niya para dalhin ang gamot nito.

That’s really, really, of-the-wall. The whole picture painted itself, saying this is an another glitch.

I don’t know if I’ll be mesmerized or what.
Candary handed me the materials for the activity and bid goodbye. Sumakay siya ng trike at nawala na sa paningin ko. Her face screams strange encounter.

I didn’t bother her the next day, to talk virtually about what happened. Hindi nga siya nagparamdam sa group chat namin. Kami lang tuloy ni Vil ang nag-uusap. Good thing there’s a nearby computer shop from our dormitory. Ako na nagpa-print at nagsagot.

“Vaughn-Vaughn sabi ninyo ni Ary pumunta kayo ro'n sa subdivision namin. Kaloka kayo! Chineck ko 'yong log book kay kuyang guard wala naman names ni'yo! Hmmp!” Umismid siya at humalukipkip.
Even I tell him, he won’t believe it. I need to cover it with lies. Tsk.

“'Di pa kami naglo-log. We just stayed outside the gate waiting for your text.” Tsk. I hate liars but I needed to do it. Vil might think, Candary and I lost our sanity.

Natapos ang dalawang oras kong pagpapanggap na nakikinig. It’s 10:37 AM. Ang usapan namin ni daddy, magkikita kami sa mall sa kalapit bayan.