The Switch: Fara's Turn | On-Going

CHAPTER 14

"How is it?" I immediately asked her upon my arrival from Treston.

She gave me a nervous smile. Uh-oh. Does it mean trouble?

"What? Come on! Please utter some words," I asked nervously.

Pakiramdam ko tuloy kasalanan ko kung bakit kami naiipit sa ganito. Wait. What am I saying? Kasalanan ko naman talaga. Kanino bang idea ito? Malamang sa akin!

And also, I was uneasy from the fact that Hilton was...you know...flirting with Lara. I mean, wala namang kaso if magustuhan nya si Lara, pero...pero diba ako naman iyon?

I mean, I was the one he's flirting with...technically. Ugh! Why am I thinking this? Jeez!

"Actually, he approached me," Lara started and I couldn't pinpoint if she was nervous or preventing herself to laugh.

"And then?" I asked, encouraging her to spill more. Come on, sis! Cut the suspense!

"Tinkabuhan ko siya tapos pinagtaguan," she said and chuckled.

Seriously, hindi ko alam kung anong ire-react ko sa sinabi niya. Pero, I think that's better, isn't it? Compare naman sa subukan niyang magmataray.

I can't imagine Lara doing that. She just simply can't. Eh pati pagtataray, nahihiya pa 'yan.

Somehow, nakaramdam naman ako ng kaginhawaan. Just, a tiny bit of relief. This is just a first step, and hopefully, magtuloy tuloy na.

"Kailangan mo na rin mag-practice magtaray, Lara. You cannot run and hide from Hilton for what...how many days, or let's say, months," I suggested.

"Kaya nga tumakbo nalang ako kasi di ko naman kaya. Eh bakit ba kasi nangbibingwit ka? No more boys nga diba?"

I rolled my eyes heavenwards. "Fine, fine, fine. I'm sorry. I was just being careless. Don't worry, we will shoo Hilton," and hopefully no issue for Oliver.

Speaking of, ibabalita ko pa pala kay Lara ang midterm examination sa isa niyang subject, in which, ka-partner niya si Oliver.

I cleared my throat as I began to announce this major information. "Lara," I called her as she approached her closet.

She looked at me and then went back looking at her closet to get her clothes to change. "Nagbigay na ng midterm examination ang isa niyong prof, I forgot the subject thou, I'll check later, but it's not individual, it's by pair."

"Who's my partner then?" she asked.

"Sia. Oliver Sia. I think, kilala mo na siya," I tried to sound, you know, calm. Pakiramdam ko kasi, mase-sense nitong si Lara ang pinaggagawa ko sa Treston.

"Hmm. Yes, I know him. Nagkausap kami before."

I swear, my jaw drops and my lovely eyes widened. Nagkausap na sila before?! Hindi niya nabanggit sa akin!

Oh God, oh God. Did Oliver tell her about the winking incident?

Pero, imposible naman atang bigla nalang sabihin iyon ni Oliver, right? From my first impression sa kanya, mukha namang hindi siya ganoon.

"Oh really? Ano napag-usapan niyo?" I asked. More like, suspecting her. Maybe she's the one doing silly things! Kidding, she's not. I'm more prone to that. Period.

"Wala naman masyado. Napadaan lang ako sa registration ng theater, and he was there. He just asked me if magreregister ba raw ako."

My forehead creased. "Why would he ask you that?"

That's...a sus! Bakit niya tatanungin si Lara if magreregister siya? As if nakadepende roon ang pagsali niya. Wait. Mukha naman hindi gano'n iyon, baka nag-aassume lang ako na iyon ang rason.

Maybe, he was trying to be friendly and...oh goodness! Maybe he was trying to start a conversation and later on asked why I winked at him!

No way!

As much as possible, there shall be less encounter with Oliver. Pero paano? Lalo na ngayong magkapartner kami sa midterm exam!

Ang dami ko namang problema, my God!

I shooked my head. I must not overthink. Lara and I can handle this situation. Hope so.

"Well, maybe he sensed that Fara is full of confidence, that's why," she joked before going to her bathroom.

Napanguso tuloy ako. Kasalanan ko ba kung I'm confidently beautiful?

Wait, since nagpapalit kami ni Lara, kailangan ko ring magpanggap na mahiyain. Ugh! Baka maging nominee na ako nito sa pagka-best actress, jeez.

Okay, fine. For one year lang naman. After that, mawawala na ko sa Treston and finally transferring at Enderun.

Jeez, buti nalang wala kaming pasok ni Lara bukas. Finally resting from avoiding Hilton and of course, awkward moments with Oliver. I didn't know that this was so stressful!

But then again, I realized...

May training pala bukas si Lara sa journalism!

So much for my luck, huh. The heck!