Ticking of time

Chapter 2

Name

Saturday class sucks!

Araw sana para magpahinga o gumawa ng personal stuffs pero heto kami ngayon, hinihintay si Attorney na dumating.

"Nagbasa ka ng articles? Kinakabahan ako as if this is my first time having a law class. Nagbasa naman ako pero feel ko hindi yun sapat." Tarantang tanong ni Reize at muling binuklat ang Law on Sales and Credit Transaction na book ni Hector De Leon. "Ayokong matawag sa recit mamaya. Baka mahimatay ako!" she added.

Reize has been my buddy in college. A chubby yet bubbly lady. She's smart! Smarter than me actually pero kahinaan niya kasi yata ang oral recitation. Though, we're same. Mas epal lang ako at kinakayang makatayo habang nag foformulate ng sagot mula sa kawalan.

"Relax. Hindi dadating si Attorney" I smirk and she laughs.

"Hindi ka nagbasa 'no? Ang tapang ha!" She said while minimizing the sound of her laugh.

Well like last year, our attorney didn't come on our supposed first day of meeting. Though tama siya na dapat maging prepared pa rin ako. Its just that, having a Saturday class isn't my thing. Mas prefer ko 'yung sched namin last semester, night class. And I don't have the time to read last night, I'm exhausted. Tsaka malay ko, baka 'di talaga sisipot si Attorney. Baka lang naman hehe.

"Trust me Reize. No recit for today!" Confident kong sinabi. "Pustahan oh. Libre mo ako ng lunch sa lunes" And she immediately agreed. Tignan mo 'tong babaeng ito, sugarol.

"Is this Bs Accountancy 3-B?" A man in his late 40s enter our room. Medyo napapanot na pero lakas maka clear skin ang mukha. He must be our prof. His presence screams authority and justice.

"Yes sir." Our class beadle replied and with that, the atmosphere suddenly changed.

Derederetso siyang pumasok at agad umupo sa designated chair para sa mga prof sa harapan.

Why do I feel like kinakapos ako ng hangin? I can't breathe properly. And it's not just me, all of us looks the same! Naka open naman yung aircon. Or maybe we need fresh air?

"Relax class. Breathe, okay." he gave us a sweet smile and tried to lessen the intensity that's been lingering in our room. Na para bang nababasa niya ang nasa utak namin o sadyang obvious lang na para kaming natataeng ewan at kitang-kita iyon sa pagmumukha namin.

"Sabi mo I'll trust you." Bulong ni Reize habang nakatingin pa rin sa harapan. "Sabi mo, hindi dadating si Attorney." I almost laugh hearing how dissapointed Reize is. This girl is funny even without trying.

"Sa 'walang recit for today' ang sinasabi ko. 'Di ko naman hawak sched ni Atty. para malaman kung papasok ba talaga siya o hindi"

I'm just assuming kanina kasi nga first meeting pa lang naman. Hindi naman ako aware na iba ang prinsipyo ni Attorney. Maybe he value time that much and ayaw niyang mag-aksaya ng oras.

"Do you have an index card with you right now?" All of us gasp and no one dared to exhale. Ang OA pero nakataas talaga lahat ang dibdib namin.

He smiled and slowly, he laugh. "I guess, wala. Sabagay, first meeting natin today. Then, I expect na magpass kayo ng index card next meeting with your full name, contact number and section on it. Okay?" He's weird.

We all nod and he smiled once again. Actually, we have an index card. We are already on our 3rd year kaya prepared kami but to avoid recit, no one confirms it. Okay, are we the weird ones?

"Let's just discuss our syllabus and your expectations for our class then" and he called us one by one according to our seat. And our supposedly 3-hour class ended in just an hour.

"Dismiss. See you next meeting"

Nag-uunahan na yung iba na tumayo para bang may free oxygen tank na naghihintay sa kanila sa labas. Kapos na kapos sa hangin eh?

"Reize! Jeep ka o bus?" And bumaba na kami from the College of Law building.

"Tao ako Seah. Pero mukhang baboy?" She tried to laugh at her own joke but I didn't.

"Silly! Tao ka siyempre but hindi ka baboy. You're size is cute kaya. Binobody shame mo ang sarili mo." I embrace her like a big teddy bear.

I don't know why people tend to forget how lovely our own body is. We we're born like this and there's nothing to be ashamed of. If we want to change something for our own good, we must at least learn to appreciate and accept our flaws first.

"Jeep na lang tayo. May nakaparada na sa harap ng CBA." She said and tightened the hug.
...

"Ngayon mo na lang kaya ako ilibre? Wala pala akong pagkain sa bahay." Pangungulit ko kay Reize. Malapit na kaming bumaba and walking distance lang naman ang bahay namin from a mall. Kaya no worries kung lumagpas man kami kunti.

"Hindi tayo nagrecit. Kaya obviously,nanalo ako sa pustahan natin" At siniksik ko lalo ang katawan ko sa kanya.

"Seah, ang sikip. Usog ka naman konti." Reklamo niya. Hindi naman puno yung jeep pero todo usog pa rin ako. Hindi nga lang palayo mula sa kanya. "Fine. Baba tayo sa mall. Usog ka konti, dali"

And like an obedient kid, dali-dali akong umusog papalayo sa kanya at tinuon ang atensyon ko sa pamilyar na kalsada na aming tinatahak. Ayos! Solved na naman ang lunch ko!

We had our lunch sa isang mala restaurant na may paunlirice and free drinks! We just have to present our school ID to avail their promo. Napaka student-friendly, sana lahat.

"Thanks!" I told her for the nth time and she just rolled her eyes for the nth time as well.

"Ang rich mo talaga e 'no? Bilhan mo kaya ako kahit na maliit lang na electric fan?" I suggest and napakaOA na irap ang sinagot niya. Naalala ko na naman ang aircon ko sa bahay. Should I invest into some appliances? It's for my own benefits rin lang naman, kung sakali.

"You know, Seah. Mayaman ka rin naman e. Why don't you stop your stubbornness and just go-"

"Hep!" I stopped her at humarap sa kaniya.

"I can't okay. I still have something to do. And there's a bigger reason why I can't." I told her but she just stand there. Waiting for me to add my reasons but I can't say more.

"Then tell me what is it, Seah" she said and trying to not provoke my head ache. Explaining to her will cause me an extreme pain.

But before I utter a response, my world suddenly stopped. The head ache she's trying to prevent was neglected because someone did the act for her without her knowing.

"Chelsea"

Bigla kaming natulala nang narinig namin ang pangalan ko. People call me Seah, my nickname, and they are only the one who calls me by my real name.

That mere mention of my name gave me another reason para huwag itigil ang kasalukuyan kong ginagawa. I'll never stop, no one can stop me from doing it.
....