Moonstruck (𝚂𝚎𝚊𝚜𝚘𝚗 𝙾𝚗𝚎)

OPENING PANDORA'S BOX 02

𝓙𝓪𝔂𝓼𝓱𝓲𝓮 𝓩𝓲𝓷 𝓥𝓮𝓵𝓪𝓼𝓺𝓾𝓮𝔃

Scarlet, the Drama Club President, narrates the introduction of El Filibusterismo as the actors and actresses slowly enter the scene as they are being introduced. Everyone performed with utmost enthusiasm, but this is not doing it for me. This is so boring, gusto ko nang matulog. It's nearly ten o'clock, and we still have classes tomorrow morning. Nag-iisip ba sila? I need to fulfill my eight hours of sleep kung hindi I will not function properly! Function properly? Maybe I'm the robot here. Shut up, brain.

As I tried my best to watch the whole act play out, I saw Adrielle slowly creeping and approaching the main stage of the theatrical play. My left eyebrow quirked up in perplexity. Why the hell was Adrielle on stage? What was she doing there? She's worse than a fucking dogshit! Her rebonded hair and makeup were a complete mess. She's still wearing her bloody red gown. Wait, is she taking part for Sisa? I didn't know a complete dogshit could be this talented at acting.

As she slowly sidled to the center of the stage, tracing the edge of a shiny knife, she faced the crowd with an eerie look. Everyone in the crowd, even the actors, stopped in silence and halted in their tracks as they narrowed their sights to Adrielle, who's just creepily standing with a knife in the center of the stage, mind you. The silence broke as she let out a haunting yell. "I hate all of you!" She started crying while her right hand gripped the knife. May ganiyan bang scene sa El Filibusterismo? As far as I remember, "wala eh!" At this point, even I am convinced that she was doing all this for attention. I'm guessing that people will forget what happened moments ago.

"Kailan pa natutong mag-english si Sisa?" Chadler asked, confused, but I seriously can't tell if he's being sarcastic or not.

"Baka 'El Filibusterismo with a twist' 'yung sa kanila," Kage assumed.

"Duh, attention seeker lang talaga si Adrielle!" Lax hissed and rolled her eyes upright as she crossed her arms across her chest.

As soon as the silence broke, everyone praised her performance. All the ladies and gentlemen howled and clapped their dirty hands, completely oblivious to the situation. Esmeralda had just stabbed herself in the stomach; the cut was deep, and I saw crimson-red liquid gush out as she removed the knife from her body. She received standing ovations from the teachers and fellow students alike. Everyone was impressed, amused, astonished, and unsuspecting.

"Bakit nakikisali 'yang kupal na 'yan?" someone from the crowd shouted. "Inaagaw niya lang atensyon, eh! She wants it all for herself!" they added.

"Hindi naman siya kasali sa Drama Club! Epal talaga!" Phoebe joined the crowd.

Well, she still has bashers, as I expected. She's just trying to divert the public's attention to avoid further judgment, especially after what transpired earlier. I gazed at the scene: red, black, and maroon. Adrielle's blood was noticeably dark and thick; it slowly ran on the stage. The viscous liquid traveled, seeped through her clothes, and ran down the platform. Slowly but surely, it flowed until it reached the edge of the platform and into the crowd down the stage.

Blood also oozed out of her mouth and nose, leaving stains on her face, especially her lips, as it quickly dried. A continuous stream of crimson red exits out of every hole in her face. Something isn't right. Adrielle's life is being sucked away as she desperately tries to gasp for air, and as soon as everyone knows it, she's now lying on the stage, lifeless. Her final moments were filled with spite, hatred, and contempt; it was a grim thought to linger on knowing that she went out unhappy. The scene was something out of a horror movie—no, it was something out of a disturbing, gory film.