LESSON IN CONTROL

Part 1

It was the start of their final year as Civil Engineering students - a milestone that felt both surreal and terrifying. To mark the occasion and calm their fraying nerves, Aika and her closest friends made an unspoken agreement: meet at their usual spot on campus - the silent witness to years of breakdowns, breakthroughs, and bonding over group projects and thesis panic.

📱GROUP CHAT: "CE GIRLIES 💅💻🛠️"

Maloi:
girls?? gising na kayo??
first day of hell starts today 😭😭

Stacey:
school, not hell 😌
pero gets. same vibe 😭

Sheena:
already had 2 cups of coffee
and I'm still half-dead 😵‍💫
bakit parang kakagraduate lang natin kahapon

Jhoana:
awake. barely.
still choosing between 3 identical white blouses 😭

Maloi:
basta huwag na yung may stain sa collar pls HAHA

Jhoana:
😐 noted

Stacey:
GUYS WHAT IF LATE TAYO
what if pasukan agad 'yung terror prof 😭

Sheena:
what if cute siya 👀

Maloi:
or BOTH 😭 terrifying and attractive
god save us

Stacey:
jho ikaw 'yung may sense sa style, ano suot mo?
baka gayahin ko 😭

Jhoana:
plain blouse, slacks, low ponytail
safe and boring. like my love life 💀

Maloi:
damn relatable

Sheena:
but you always look mysteriously put together
aesthetic ng "secretly has issues but aces the exams" 😌

Jhoana:
HAHAHA rude but okay

Maloi:
okay guys legit, kinakabahan ako
first day jitters are REAL
what if di ko maalala kahit paano gumamit ng calculator 😭

Stacey:
what if di natin mahanap yung room tapos andun na prof tapos sabay-sabay tayong papasok like idiots

Sheena:
honestly... peak CE girl behavior 😂

Jhoana:
we'll survive. probably.
see you in 20 mins?
bench sa may shaded area?

Maloi:
YESSSS. same spot as always
kailangan ko ng emotional support y'all

Sheena:
and iced coffee.

Stacey:
and tsismis updates.

Jhoana:
and maybe a prayer.

Maloi:
AMEN 😂

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At exactly 7:30 AM, the girls meet at their usual spot - the weathered bench shaded by a large acacia tree, just a few steps away from the Civil Engineering building. The same bench where they waited out boring breaks, crammed for quizzes, and laughed until their stomachs hurt. Today, it felt a little different - like the beginning of something they couldn't quite name yet.

Stacey was the first to arrive, already sipping iced coffee and scrolling through her feed.

Maloi came next, adjusting her backpack straps every two seconds and muttering something about forgetting how to socialize.

Sheena arrived in her usual laidback fashion, sunglasses on, acting like it was just another Tuesday even though she was clearly vibrating with nerves under the surface.

And then Jhoana, quiet as always, but dressed crisp and clean - the type of put-together that looked effortless but wasn't. Her low ponytail was neat. Her bag, organized. But her mind? Racing.