Trigger and Bullets

bullet 9 - the calm before the storm

Kung iyon man ang dahilan nila upang pabagsakin ang aming kumpanya, masyado mababaw. They could file a suit again instead, they didn’t need to do these Satan-like killing.

Hindi ko namamalayang pabigat nang pabigat ang pagdiin ko sa aking pag-guhit hanggang sa naputol ang dulo ng lapis ko.

Tuk.

Napatitig ako sa pahinang pinag-guguhitan ko and then I groaned. Napuno ko ng exclamation points ang isang pahina ng notebook ko. Screw this. Devin and I were exchanging messages for the past days at puro exclamation points lang ang mensahe namin.

“Are there any problem, Miss Fronda?” tanong ng aking propesora na nasa harap ng silid, hinawakan niya ang kanyang eye-glasses at ibinaba ito nang kaunti bago ako siringan. Why did she have to do that? Her hair bun and seventies way of clothing were enough to stress she was ‘Mrs. Strict’.

“Nothing, Madame Leonora Paige,” sagot ko. Less talk, less chances to have a chair in detention room. She proceeded with the lesson.

Binuksan ko ang bag ko sa tuktok ng lamesa upang kumuha ng pansulat. Ang una kong nakita sa loob ay ang note na napulot ko sa ilalim ng aking upuan kanina. Mag-iisang linggo na rin na nakahahanap ako ng mga notes sa gamit ko. I found one in my locker, in my shoes, and another under my coffee cup when I was in Starbucks. Iisa lang ang nakasulat sa mga ito. Trust. At lahat ay mula kay L. Sa dinami-dami ng pwede gamiting letra iyon pa ang napili niya! I was a fan of Deathnote and L was my favorite fictional detective. Okay, that was not the point. But why use an overused codename? Dahil sa ‘L’ nakatatawa na ang note. But to receive the same message was somewhat… disturbing.

“Clearly, your body is in the room but your literature spirit is somewhere else.” I was startled with Mrs. Strict’s voice. Nakatayo na siya sa harap ng lamesa ko at galit na nakatingin sa akin. Can she teleport? Hindi ko siya namalayang papalapit.

“Stand up, dear,” aniya. Tumayo ako at tumingin sa kanya para hindi ko mapansin ang mga kaklase ko na nanonood at nagbubulung-bulungan. What was their problem?

Inayos niya ang kanyang eye-glasses. “Identify whose words are these. ‘If I must die I will encounter darkness as a bride and hug it in my arms.’”

“Shakespear,” I said.

She nodded.

“’Let none think to fly the danger for soon or late love is his own avenger.’”

“Lord Byron,” sagot ko.

Bago ka pa magtaka kung saan ko napulot ang mga tamang sagot na iyon… my mom has a photographic memory, that was the reason. I think I did get some of that ‘skill’ ngunit hindi ako kasing-tindi niya na magagawang mamemorya ang isang libro at hindi malimutan sa mahabang panahon. My retention is a lot shorter than her. Para lamang makumpara, she restores it for a year, I can restore it for weeks. I read the notes she gave last night so remembering all of it was no sweat at all.

“’Make yourself an honest man, and then you may be sure that there is one rascal less in the world.’”