[CASE 03]
"Alam mo, dati pangarap ko lang maging mayaman pero mula noong nakilala natin si Damien, parang pangarap ko na lang maging siya," Naythan blabbered as he had his eyes glued to the screen of his android phone. Maya-maya pa, kumunot ang noo nito at may ipinakita kay Nemesis.
"Tingnan mo, oh! Sa sobrang famous niya, may sarili pa siyang fan page!"
"Kung may official FB group for haters, paki-invite na lang ako."
"Eh? Fan page, Nem! Biruin mo 'yon?"
Sinulyapan ni Nemesis ang sinasabi nitong page. True enough, it was even named after their beloved leader. Nang mag-scroll siya rito, hindi na siya nagtaka nang samu't saring pictures ni Damien---some stolen shots, while others were from his personal account---ang tumambad sa kanya.
It didn't impress her one bit.
"Yup, ang dami niyang fans. Pwede na siyang magsimula ng sarili niyang kulto," she replied before tossing the phone back at her bestfriend.
Nataranta naman si Naythan at kamuntikan pa itong 'di nasalo.
"Alam mo, Nem, may kasabihan tayo na 'the more you hate, the more you---"
"Finish that, at baka 'aksidente' kong sabihin kay tita na hindi naman talaga ₱2,500 ang bayad noon sa field trip at kinupit mo lang 'yong extra." Nemesis smiled, all too sweetly. Agad namang namutla si Naythan at ninenerbyos na natawa.
"H-Hehe! Ito naman, 'di mabiro..."
"Heyo~! So, what are you fellas talking about?"
The both of them turned their attention to Rionach who sat across of them. Bitbit nito ang ilang makakapal na libro. From their spines, Nemesis could make out the titles of some classics. Mukhang katulad nila, may readings din si Rio, leading to their coincidental encounter.
Either that, or her psychic abilities told her they were here.
'Minsan talaga hindi ko alam kung paano gumagana ang psychic skills niya,' Nemesis thought.
"Pinag-uusapan lang namin ni Nem kung gaano ka-famous ang leader natin! Damn, he already has the money, the looks, the popularity... Ano na lang kaya wala sa isang 'yon?"
"Puso?"
Naythan and Rio stared at her.
Nemesis shrugged and acted like she was still busy reading a paragraph from the history book laid in front of her. What? Hindi naman na misteryo sa kanila na hindi nila gusto ang isa't isa. In fact, Damien pretty much makes it his personal mission to annoy her and flaunt his fucking money every single time they bump into each other! Sino ba naman ang hindi isusumpa ang isang 'yon?
Kung marunong lang ng witchcraft si Nemesis, baka matagal na niyang kinulam si Alcott.
Speaking of witchcraft...
"Rio, may kumakalat palang tsismis sa campus na nagbebenta ka raw ng gayuma?"
Agad na napasipol ang psychic at pasimpleng umiwas ng tingin.
"Ah, e-eh... Ang init ngayon, 'no? Parang summer---!"
"Rio," Nemesis called her back. "Totoo ba 'yong tsismis?"
Napangiti na lang ito nang inosente at inayos ang kanyang makapal na salamin. "It was in demand. Hindi ko alam kung bakit ang daming nagre-request sa'kin noong una, but since it's my primary purpose in life to help these poor loveless souls, I couldn't resist, Nemo! Tsaka nakakatulong siya sa promotion ng shop namin!" Rio explained.
Sa gilid ng kanyang mata, napansin ni Nemesis ang pag-aliwalas ng mukha ni Naythan.
"Talaga?! Hoy, pabili naman ako!"
"Sigiiii! Teka, kunin ko 'yong brochure para makita mo!"
"Yay! May discount ba? Hehe!"
Nemesis face-palmed. Dahil mahilig siya sa misteryo, mukhang magiging misteryo rin sa kanya ngayong araw kung bakit hindi pa sila pinapagalitan ng librarian dahil sa ingay ng dalawang 'to. Nang sulyapan niya ang direksyon nito, napabuntong-hininga na lang si Nemesis nang makitang humihilik na pala ang matanda.
So much for a peaceful day at the university library.
Since she had half an hour left before classes start, Nemesis was about to pick out a mystery novel from the fiction aisle when she passed by the librarian's desk.
Mukhang nakatulog ito habang nagbabasa ng dyaryo.
'Is the news really that boring nowadays?'
Upon glancing at the headlines, hindi niya naiwasang maintriga sa isang artikulo.
"White lady spotted at Mahogany Street?"
Nakakapagtaka.
Nemesis hasn't heard any rumors about Mahogany Street for a couple of years now, pero aminado naman siyang matagal nang usap-usapan ang lugar na 'yon dahil sa ghost sightings na ibinabalita dito. Napi-feature na nga rin ito sa iba't ibang TV shows tuwing Halloween.
'Mukhang nagbabalik ang sikat na white lady.'
She was pulled out of her reverie when the librarian yawned and started to wake up.
Buong araw na hindi naalis sa isip ni Nemesis ang tungkol sa balitang 'yon.
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