DESPEDIDA GONE WRONG. What's supposed to be a memorable send-off party ends up in tragedy as the celebrant drops dead after making a toast. Of all the possibilities, murder seems to be most likely scenario. And the suspects? The four attendees who w...
Ουπς! Αυτή η εικόνα δεν ακολουθεί τους κανόνες περιεχομένου. Για να συνεχίσεις με την δημοσίευση, παρακαλώ αφαίρεσε την ή ανέβασε διαφορετική εικόνα.
BEATRICE
WHEN I left the balcony and returned to the living room, Cole stood and walked past me, making his way to the stairs. I could tell by the way he looked at me that he was uncomfortable around me. Aside from Sir Zafra, I was the only one in the room who knew about his alleged drug use.
Then there was Anastacia, seated on the couch as she was browsing on her phone. Once in a while, I looked at her sideways, my eyes transfixed on her lips. They shared the same color as the stain on Sir Zafra's lips.
I clenched my fists. There was no doubt that the two shared a kiss. I could not think of any other explanation on why and how Sir got that deep red stain. His lips were not bleeding. Maybe just a friendly kiss? No. If that was the case, she should have kissed him on the cheeks, not on the lips.
What a flirt. She was hitting at two men at the same time. She should have left Sir Zafra alone, and have stuck with Cole. Those two seemed to be quite close, and one could not blame me for thinking that they might be a couple already. They came to this house together. They were sometimes spotted on campus together.
Oh, speaking of Cole. Maybe Anastacia knew if he was a user. Maybe she saw him actually using. Of course, she would not tell me honestly, but I could observe her reaction and see if she had any idea.
"You and Cole are quite close, 'no? I don't wanna sound rude with this question, but I felt like I have to ask you. Do you know if Cole is . . . doing drugs?"
It was strange to ask that question out of the blue, but I felt like I had to ask it nevertheless.
"Kung nagda-drugs man siya, ako ang unang magre-report sa kanya."
At least, she outright denied that Cole was a user, unlike the man himself who did not tell me anything—not even a simple "no." It's possible that Anastacia was covering up for him. It's also possible that she was not aware of his other hobby, if it were true.
Even Desmond, who was seated across us, could not help but share his opinion and said he would not be surprised if Cole was into drugs. I thought he was so engrossed on his phone that he was not paying attention to what we were talking about.
"He's one of the rich kids. He's friends with students who probably have drug dealers on speed dial."
"I would have known already kung user siya."
"Pero gaano mo ba siya kakilala? Alam mo ba kung ano ang pinagkakaabalahan niya kapag mag-isa lang siya?"
The conversation stopped when we heard footsteps coming from the stairs. Cole was done with his one-on-one session with Sir Zafra. Desmond was up next so he stood and climbed the stairs. The two close friends reunited, with Anastacia looking fazed. And I returned to scrolling to my social media feed.
The time for the farewell toast came. Sir Zafra told us to gather on the balcony to enjoy the evening view as we drink our wine. Cole brought the wineglasses to the table while Desmond carried the ice bucket. Sir Zafra was about to open the wine bottle, but Cole volunteered to do it instead. He made a mess by accidentally pouring some wine on the table. We had to return to the living room and continue the ceremony downstairs.
