["PLAY THE KING" IS ACT TWO OF THE "PLAY" SERIES. PLEASE READ "PLAY THE QUEEN" FIRST.]
It's been four months since Priam Torres, the once unpopular president of the Elysian University Student Council, assumed office. Thanks to his chief-of-staff Cas...
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FABIENNE
HALOS MALAGLAG ang panga ko matapos basahin ang isang post sa CampuSite. I knew this was coming! Kung wala akong matinding hinala kay Priscilla, 'di ko mase-sense ang kaniyang hidden agenda sa pagpilit niya sa 'min ni Colin na magmukhang intimate at sweet. Kaso nabuking ko agad siya. I could smell the stench of her scheme miles away.
Yet I fell for it. Mahirap siyang labanan lalo na't may basbas ni Direk ang bawat galaw niya. It's all for the play, it's all for the marketing and sales. Ano'ng laban ko ro'n? Magmumukha pa akong maarte at paimportante kung tututulan ko pa. Nai-imagine ko na ang headlines at captions sa mga post! I'd be painted as the villain, and that would be a good scoop for our gossipmongering campus entertainment media.
Pero 'di ko puwedeng hayaan ang ganito. Hindi ko puwedeng pabayaan na maging powerless ako sa mga bagay na involved ako. I needed to find a way to clarify stuff and come to Priam's defense lalo na't nag-start na ang impeachment trial. I had to be there for him.
"I'm sorry, Fabby, but we can't control the narrative spinned by our entertainment media," sabi ni Priscilla nang cinonfront ko siya kinabukasan sa labas ng auditorium. "These things take on a life of their own. It's not wise to try to restrain them. We're all for free speech, aren't we?"
Ang mga tsismis at maling akala ay parang apoy. Kapag hinayaan kumalat, tutupukin nito ang image at reputasyon ng sinumang sinilaban nito. That's why we had to do something about it!
"But can't we at least issue a statement?" tanong ni Colin. Mabuti't kasama ko rin siyang nagreklamo. There's strength in numbers kahit dalawa lang kami. Even he was uncomfortable with being publicly dragged into a fake love triangle scenario. "Let's clarify that Fab and I are just fellow theater actors playing our roles and we have no romantic inclination to each other?"
Nakapamaywang na humarap sa kanya ang publicity manager namin. "Colin, have you read the comments on the post? Maraming kinikilig sa inyong dalawa. Maraming nagsasabing may chemistry kayo. I heard that even the director had claimed the same before. We're getting the result that we want for the play. It's working!"
"But not at the expense of—"
"So you wanna burst the bubble of romance that we've inadvertently conjured?" Priscilla cut him off. She even rolled her eyes. "Look here. Ang importante'y walang totoong cheating na nangyayari, okay? Let our audience's imagination run wild. That will get our numbers up. That will create the buzz that we desperately need."
"Okay lang ba na ganito ka-wild ang kanilang iniisip?" Ipinakita ko ang aking phone screen kung saan naka-display ang post ng Gotcha! social media account. "They're already insinuating that I'm cheating on my boyfriend with my fellow actor!"
"That's just for the clout." She waved her hand dismissively na parang sobrang small deal ng binring up ko. Palibhasa, 'di sa kanya nakatutok ang spotlight. "They know na maraming magre-react, magko-comment, magshi-share, at magki-click sa mga post kung saan damay ka. Even the mere mention of your name is enough to attract attention. Gaya ng sinabi ko kanina, ang importante'y alam mong hindi 'yon totoo. The truth is all that matters."
