That Nerd Is A Vampire (New Version)

24.

Third or fifth try, I got it correct and he congratulated me with three claps. For the final try, I also got it correctly so we had to proceed to the next.

"Since you can now control on how to put defense on your history, we'll proceed to the present."

Inilabas niya mula sa kaniyang bulsa ang sculpture ng mata at nilapag 'yon sa gitna namin. He crossed his arm while staring at me, blinking his eyes slowly and tiredly.

"Kagabi, nasa loob ka ng headquarters."

Napataas ang dalawa kong kilay, "Ha?"

"You were inside Aldrin's body and listened to our conversation for at least thirty seconds, but you still got caught."

"Ngayon, susubukan mong pumasok sa isip ni Sir Abcha nang hindi makikita ang mata mo sa mata niya."

Muling nangunot ang noo ko. Ano raw? Paano ko naman gagawin 'yon?

Tinawag ni Tyler si Sir Abcha. Hindi lang umabot ng isang minuto ay dumating siya't yumuko sa 'min bago umupo sa pinakadulong lamesa kung saan pumupwesto si Luisa.

Tyler nodded at me, I think it was his signal for me to start. Hindi ko alam kung paano ko ginawa 'yon kagabi. I just fell asleep and that's it, I don't know what I'm doing right now.

For an hour or two, I just kept on staring at Sir Abcha but still couldn't do it. I was waiting for Tyler's instruction for the whole two hours while trying to get inside Sir Abcha's head but he was just staring at Sir Abcha, too, and did nothing but keep on silence.

"Ty—"

"Just use your mind and remember how you did it on Reign and Aldrin."

Ano?

'Di ko nga maalala. 'Di ko rin alam kung paano at anong gagawin ko sa utak ko. Do I just have to think that I'm inside Sir Abcha's head? To imagine that I'm inside his head and can see what he can see?

I concentrated. I tried so hard until I heard Tyler's tongue clicked as if he was a time ticking.

"Look, Lucy, I know this is hard but you have to try. You can't just really use your eyes to stare at Sir Abcha and imagine you're inside his head. It needs patience and needs."

Tumango-tango ako. I looked down at the table and think of a way to go inside Sir Abcha's head.

Do I have to use my head with my heart, too? He said needs. I need to go inside Sir Abcha's head, not think.

When I opened my eyes, I saw circles of lights until I'm inside a familiar image of waves of bubbles.

I saw myself in front, not blinking. Tyler looked straight into Sir Abcha's eyes and smiled widely—his eyes stretched into a wide smile, too, and he looked proud of me. I'm proud of myself too.

"You got it, Lucy! But you need to act like you weren't there. Let's do it again and this time, you have to act double—feel both of the bodies, yours and the mind you want to enter."

* * *

Tyler said I can see the danger in the future, not just some random future. Hindi ko alam kung alin sa mga napapaginipan ko—or if it was a dream—ang nakikita kong panganib. I saw a dungeon before with two women in different cells, maybe that was a present. I don't know, hindi ko alam kung alin sa tatlo ang tungkol sa dungeon. 

Reign taught me the basics; how to give signals to the others through our minds, how to close my mind to prevent others to read what's inside, how I can stop dreaming about the past, present and future, and how I can act like a real vampire. The basics, they say.