How To Make A Serial Killer

|o3 : The Brains |

"Ayoko ng wings, sinong gustong makipagpalit?" parang batang nanawagan si Micky sabay upo sa ibabaw ng mesa upang silipin ang mga styro ng pagkain namin.

"Spicy?" tanong ko.

Umiling-iling si Micky at bumusangot. "Maanghang, eh."

"Ito na lang, drumstick na spicy," Kenzo offered. Naglaho na naman ang mata niya dahil sa pagngiti niya.

"Ayoko ng drumstick." Umiling ulit si Micky. Maarteng adik.

"Arte talaga kapag rich kid!" komento ni Ashton.

"Eh sa wala akong makain kapag wings!" bulalas ni Micky. Parang handang makipaghimagsikan, makakain lang ng manok.

"Just go eat your food," iritadong sambit ni Zambrano.

Humalakhak si Julian. "Oh heto, palit na lang tayo. Breast 'tong sa akin."

Micky beamed at agad na nakipagpalit. Parang batang adik.

Habang kumakain, napakaingay namin. Ngayon lang nagkakilala ang karamihan sa amin pero nagagawa na naming mag-asaran — siyempre, si Micky ang target. Dapat may takot kami sa kanya kasi anak siya ng vice mayor, pero kabaliktaran ang nangyayari.

"Mabuti naman at nagkakasundo kayo."

Dumating na sina Selene at Andros mula sa hagdan, bitbit ang isang pack ng canned soft drinks at bottled water. Ayos ding boss 'tong si Andros, ah! Papi na, galante pa!

While Selene was handing out the drinks, hinila naman ni Andros ang isang white board patungo sa direksyon namin. In fairness, medyo masipag din 'tong si Andros. Hindi lang puro si Selene ang kumikilos.

"Bakit pinauwi ang iba?" I couldn't help but ask. We're a team, aren't we supposed to be together?

"Because the six of you will serve as the brains for this project. Julian, for his horror movie expertise. Ashton, for his knowledge about the city. Micky, for his out of the box personality. Zambrano, for his rational outlook. Kenzo, for his film background. And you, Wren, for your crime scene expertise," Andros explained as he looked at us one by one.

"The rest of your teammates will move according to your plan," he added.

Sa puntong iyon ay nahinto kaming lahat sa pagkain at nagkatinginan.

I had goosebumps from the way Andros spoke. It sounded like he already planned everything in his mind. I guess it's really true that he chose us for a reason.

"Okay, so how do we make a serial killer?" tanong ni Zambrano sabay tulak palayo ng pagkain niya. Ngayon ko lang siya nakilala pero sa tingin ko ay siya ang tipo ng taong gustong straight to the point lagi. Ayaw mag-aksaya ng oras.

I sighed and stood up. Patagilid akong naupo sa ibabaw ng mesa habang pinapagpagan ko ang mga kamay gamit ang isa't isa. "To make a serial killer, we need a name or title. Most serial killers have one which serves as their identity." I raised my thumb and started counting. "Gary Ridgway, also known as the Green River Killer. Dennis Raider, the BTK Killer. Albert Fish, The Boogey Man. And so much more."

Natahimik ang lahat habang nakatingin sa akin kaya naman kunot-noo ko silang tingnan isa-isa. "Bakit? Totoo naman ang sinabi ko, ah."

"Damn, I like your brain." Ngumisi si Julian sabay kindat sa akin.

Pabiro rin akong kumindat pabalik.

"Tama!" Micky suddenly beamed. "Gaya ni Jack na Jack the Ripper!"

"Jack's not his name. He was never even caught," giit ni Ashton. "I saw a documentary on Youtube once." He shrugged.

"No, you're both correct. He was never caught, but think of this: we all know Jack the Ripper as Jack the Ripper, which is what the public called him." I grinned and moved my shoulders up and down. "You guys know where I'm getting at, right?"