Chapter 14
I scrunched up my nose in disgust when the foul smell of cigarette and smoke hit my nostrils the moment Lysander occupied the seat next to me. We are all inside a bus bound to D'Bones museum in Davao. Lysander glanced at me and grinned widely.
"Are you drunk?" I squinted my eyes suspiciously.
"Not really," he shrugged, tearing his gaze away from me and flinching at himself as if the mere idea of speaking hurts his head.
Napakibit-balikat nalang ako at hindi siya pinansin. I tried scooting as far away from him as possible but it's rendered useless. Tumatama talaga sa aking ilong at hindi kanais-nais na amoy ng alak at sigarilyo. His smell today reminded me so much of my stepfather before.
The facilitator climbed the bus and checked on all of us. Matapos niyang mag-roll call ay umakyat na din ang driver. My heart leaped in my throat when I saw Sage climbing inside the bus as well, a frown on his face. The purple marks on his eye is starting to fade. Maging ang sugat nito sa labi ay naghilom na.
Most of my classmates went silent. Nakatingin lang sila kay Sage na hinahanap ang kaniyang designated seat. His partner, Laura, tensed when he took the seat next to her. Mukha itong disoriented at hindi mapakali. Some of the girls are giggling and nudging at each other habang pinagmamasdan si Sage.
I sighed. Hindi man lang nagtama ang mga mata namin.
Inilipat ko ang aking paningin kay Lysander na ngayo'y natutulog na sa kaniyang upuan. Our science professor gave him a disapproving look but didn't said anything as the bus move forward.
I leaned my head against the closed glass window of the bus, trying to get some sleep and succeeded. For the rest of the six-hour drive to Davao, both my partner and I are sleeping on our seats.
---
"I expect you to behave accordingly, you guys are college students now," our professor said. "Remember our primary purpose here. No selfies. No taking random pictures and no touching! Maliwanag?"
Our professor got a chorus of yes Ma'am before she scanned us again and nodded. Kaniya-kaniya kaagad alis ang mga blockmates ko. Nilingon ko si Lysander na bored na nakatingin sa paligid. Ang kaniyang kamay ay nakasilid sa kaniyang bulsa. He's tapping the floor with his foot impatiently, as if he can't wait to get out of here.
Scanning my surroundings again, hindi ko na nakita si Sage at ang kaniyang partner. I shook my head inwardly. We're in a field trip, rode the same bus, and we're supposed to focus on the assignment onhand yet here I am, still thinking of him even if we're here together.
"Tara na, Lysander,"
He grunted a response and followed me deeper into the museum. I was in awe, watching the perfectly lined-up bones of huge sperm whales and other animals. Kinuha ko ang aking notebook at nagsimula nang magtake-down notes dahil alam kong hindi ko naman maaasahan si Lysander sa bagay na ito. He even had the audacity to show up drunk.
Napailing nalang ako.
"Hey, Mallory, let's check that out," kinalabit ako ni Lysander at itinuro ang isang collection sa dulo ng silid. Tumaas ang aking kilay.
"We're assigned on the sperm whales, Lysander. Hindi sa small reptiles—"
Hindi na niya ako pinatapos sa pagsasalita at tuloy-tuloy na nagpunta doon. Napabuntong-hininga nalang ako at walang nagawa kung hindi ang sundan siya habang mabilis siyang naglalakad. I noticed there were only a few people aside from us, mostly because our professor didn't bother assigning a group for small reptiles kaya naman walang nagawi sa area na ito.
Lysander stared at the small bone collection as a grin slowly spread on his face. "Isn't this fun?"
Tumaas ulit ang aking kilay sa kaniyang sinabi. "What—"
Lysander took a step closer to me and the smell became stronger. Napaatras ako pero mabilis niyang hinapit ang aking beywang at inilapit ako sa kaniya.
"What are you doing, Lysander?" kinakabahan kong tanong sa kaniya.
"Wala namang tao, eh," nginisihan niya ako. His hands started rubbing my waist up and down na mas lalong nagpakaba sa akin. Pakiramdam koy sasabog na ang dibdib ko.
I quickly looked around, looking for help only to realize that we're the only one left inside this small and dim-lighted room. Gumapang ang mga kamay ni Lysander sa aking pang-upo. My entire body tensed when he squeezed my butt.
Inilapit niya ang kaniyang ulo sa akin at bumulong sa aking tainga. "Pagbigyan mo na ako, Mallory. Alam mo bang matagal na akong nagpapantasya sa iyo?"
A sob immediately rose in my throat because of intense fear. In one swift move, Lysander pinned me to the well and pressed his body to me. I could feel his erection down there and it made my knees tremble.
Sage!
I wanted to scream out loud pero tinakasan na ako ng aking boses. "Lysander, please get away from me," I said in a weak voice.
"What? I know you like it as well. Don't deny it, Mallory. Pare-pareho lang naman ang mga babae."
"Lysander, please," I pleaded. "I don't want to cause a scene,"
Umangat ang sulok ng kaniyang labi sa aking sinabi. "You're not going to cause a scene, baby. You're not dumb enough to moan louder, right?" mahina pa itong humalakhak. When his hands went under my skirt and touched my inner thighs, that's when I lost it.
"Stop!" I screamed out loud, tears springing to my eyes. "Let me go!"
"Shut up—"
"Let me go!" I screamed louder, sobbing. Mayamaya pa ay nakarinig na ako nang mabibigat at mabibilis na yapak papunta sa direksiyon namin. I felt overwhelmed when I saw Sage storming towards my direction.
Mabilis pa sa alas kwatro na umalis sa aking harapan si Lysander. I ran to Sage and sobbed against his chest. I could feel the growing pair of eyes gathering in this small room.
"What happened here?" tanong niya sa matigas na boses.
"He—" I sobbed harder. "His hands... u-under my skirt—" putol-putol ang aking pagsasalita dahil sa matinding iyak. "I'm scared—"
Pagak na tumawa si Lysander. "I didn't do anything—"
Before he could finish speaking, Sage gently untangled himself from me and took a step towards him. To my horror, he punched Lysander twice on the face. His second punch made him fall into the ground with a bleeding nose.
"Sage!"
"How dare you touch her!" nanggagalaiting wika ni Sage. Pinatungan niya si Lysander at pinagsusuntok sa mukha. Most of my girl blockmates shrieked in horror.
"Sage, tama na..." I sobbed.
Bigla kong naalala ang sinabi ni Zian sa akin dati. Sage accidentally killed someone because a guy tried to touch his girlfriend. Mas lalo akong natakot.
I immediately ran to him and pulled his arms with all my force. Sage's stormy face glared at me, he was about to punch Lysander again. His face is a mess of blood already.
"Please... tama na." I pleaded with my eyes full of tears.
Tension radiated off his body. He glared at me for a while before his features softened. Ibinagsak niya ang kaniyang kamao at tumayo.
"What happened here!" our professor demanded angrily. Nang makita niya si Sage ay mas lalong sumama ang loob nito. "Monterio! What did you do?"
"Wala po siyang kasalanan, Ma'am. Ipinagtanggol niya lang po ako—"
"All three of you, on the bus!" she jabbed a finger at us. "Now!"
I flinched at her sharp voice. Kaagad akong tumalima. Natatakot akong lingunin si Lysander but I could hear him groaning in pain behind us.
As if sensing my distraught, Sage wrapped his arms around my tiny shoulders and pulled me closer to him. I look up at him. His lips are still pursed and the muscle on his jaw twitched, indicating that he's still angry after all. Diretso lang ang kaniyang tingin sa labas at mahigpit ang hawak sa akin.
My heart sank deeper inside my chest.
---
"That boy should be expelled!" my mother said angrily. Napaigtad ako mula sa aking kinauupuan. Magkatabi kaming dalawa ni Sage ngayon. Si Lysander naman ay nasa kabilang room. "I won't let this pass, Ma'am Jacklyn. Ako mismo ang kakausap sa admin para matanggal siya sa paaralang ito,"
I slumped deeper into my seat. Kanina pa tulo nang tulo ang mga luha ko.
"Ma'am Castillo, baka naman puwede nating kausapin muna ang bata. He's the mayor's son. Paniguradong masisira ang paaralan natin—"
"He tried to touch my daughter!" tumaas ang kaniyang boses. "Do you think I will let him see her again?"
Cassie's kind face flashed inside my mind. Anong sasabihin niya kapag nalaman niyang natanggal sa paaralan ang kapatid niya nang dahil sa akin? Even if she's kind, I know she will side her brother after all. She's a really good friend at alam kong malapit nang magtapos ang pagkakaibigan naming dalawa nang dahil sa ginawa ni Lysander.
Our science professor sighed. "Okay, then. Talk to the admin. Wala akong sasabihin,"
My mother glared at her. Pagkatapos ay binalingan niya si Sage. She still has a disapproving look pasted on her face but she didn't said anything.
"As for you, Monterio," pagbasag ni Ms. Jacklyn sa katahimikan. "I would like to see you in the guidance office."
"Ma'am, wala po siyang kasalanan talaga—"
"Mallory, I'm not talking to you," mahinahon niyang wika. "You should go home. Rest up. It's been a rough day for you. I'm sorry, sweetheart."
---
Ilang oras pa lamang akong nananatili sa bahay ay hindi na ako mapakali. My mother can't go with me because she's one of the head programs at kailangan niyang um-attend ng meeting. She strictly advised me to wait for her and not go anywhere.
What happened to Sage? He didn't bother talking to me until he was guided out to the office. Is he okay? Paano kung parusahan siya eh wala naman siyang kasalanan?
Sighing to myself, I pulled myself from the chair and looked for my shoes. Nang maitali ko na ang liston ay nagmamadali kong ini-lock ang bahay at tinahak ang daan papunta sa mansion ng mga Monterio.
I can't just sit in the house the entire day, wondering what the hell happened to Sage when it's not his fault in the first place. Kasalanan ko kasi sumama ako kay Lysander sa kwartong iyon. I should apologize to him.
Tahimik ang buong mansiyon pagdating ko. Just like I used to do, I climbed the iron wrought fence and peered at his windows. To my delight, he's inside his room. Nakatalikod siya sa akin at nagbibihis ng pang-itaas.
Marahas siyang lumingon nang tumunog ang bintana. When he saw me, his features softened a little. I smiled hesitantly at him.
"What are you doing here, Mallory?" bumagsak ang kaniyang mga balikat.
I pursed my lips. "I came here to apologize,"
"You don't need to apologize," he said, throwing his dirty clothes to the hamper. Naglakad ito at naupo sa kaniyang kama. To my surprise, he pulled me with him and made me sit next to him. Kaagad na nag-alburuto ang puso ko lalo pa't nagtatama ang siko naming dalawa.
"K-Kasalanan ko..."
"It's that motherfucker's fault. He should've known better than to mess with me," he growled.
I wanted to touch his bruised eye but I held myself back. Lysander didn't had a change to fight back earlier. Kaya naman nasisigurado kong ayos lang siya. At least, physically.
"Anong sinabi nila sa iyo?"
He shrugged. "10 hours community service as a punishment. Nothing serious,"
Napahinga ako nang maluwag. "That's good to hear. I'm really worried about you,"
Sage's entire body tensed. He peered at me through his lashes. "You should worry about yourself more, Mallory. Sobrang lapitin ka ng gulo,"
"Hindi ko naman alam—"
Naputol ang pagsasalita ko nang hilahin niya ako papalapit sa kaniya. He gently pulled my head closer to his chest and wrapped his arms around my waist. To my surprise, he even buried his head on my neck. My chest is about to burst.
"Please take care of yourself, Mallory. It's so fucking frustrating. I'm not always gonna be here to protect you..." he murmured.