["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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REYNARD
I HAD been itching to expose the details of Oplan First Lady since last year, but I didn't want to expose it this way. I didn't want to break someone's trust. But alas, what's done was done. I couldn't go back in time and be more cautious. This was entirely on me.
Or maybe not. On my own, I never had the intention of making any details public until Valeria Encarnacion's conditions were met. My only fault was the failure to provide added security to my phone's contents. Kung may dapat talagang sisihin, hindi si Valeria na boluntaryong nagpa-interview sa 'kin, hindi ako na nag-record sa interview, kundi ang taong nag-utos na nakawin ang device ko at i-access ang mga laman nito.
That's right. It's none other than Alaric Esteban. Habang patagal nang patagal, parami nang parami ang mga atraso niya sa 'kin. Malapit na siyang bumingo.
"I humbly accept my party's nomination to be the presidential candidate for the University Student Council," a guy with blond hair spoke before a huge crowd at the campus quadrangle. He was greeted by a round of applause and standing ovation. I was watching him through the Herald's livestream on SchoolBuzz.
Herald, huh? I would not lie. Nakami-miss ding magsulat para sa kanila. Nami-miss kong pumunta sa LEXECOM office at iba pang lugar para sa coverage. Nami-miss kong tumambay sa editorial office. Nami-miss kong ipakita ang media pass ko tuwing haharangan ako ng guard. At nami-miss ko ring isuot ang navy blue hoodie ko. May isang beses nga na muntik na akong pumasok sa editorial office pagkatapos ng klase namin. Gano'n na ka-embedded ang Herald sa daily routine ko.
Did I regret resigning from our student publication? Nope! There was never a single day where I thought of taking back my decision. Isinuka ko na nga, kakain ko pa ulit? Yuck. Admittedly, I missed a bunch of stuff during my time as one of their reporters. But that's all there was. Nostalgia. The good old times.
Sometimes, taking a stand would cost a lot. For me standing with and for the truth, this was the ultimate price: self-exile from my area of comfort. I gave up the access. I gave up the chance to climb the ladder. But it would be worth it in the end.
"I would also like introduce to you the next vice president of the University Student Council, Phoebe Marie Alegria from the College of Allied Medical Professions!" Alaric beckoned at someone standing on the side of the stage. Lumapit ang isang babaeng naka-Pharmacy student uniform. She was met with a loud applause and standing ovation, too.
So both parties chose vice presidential nominees to appeal to the vote-rich college dominated by the other party, huh? For SALVo, it's Tabitha Rustan from CBA. From AEGIS, it's that Fajardo girl from CAMP. This was gonna be an interesting election.
If I didn't resign from The Herald, I would have been present at the AEGIS party's official nomination of candidates. I would be on my laptop, my fingers dancing across the keyboard as I vomited words after words.
