'Face-off'
XIN
"Wen Junhui!" I saw Jun fell from his bed the moment I entered their shared room. Pinigilan ko nalang na matawa at tsaka nilapitan siya na kakaupo lang sa carpet at agad akong tiningnan.
"I'm a pure born vampire. I think I need to sleep for at least once a month. Don't you think, Xinny?" Natawa nalang ako sa sinabi niya at binaba ang mga librong hawak ko at tsaka hinawakan ang magkabilang pisngi niya. Jun was clearly or should I say ironically sleep deprived. He looked tired and sleepy for the first time in a while. Huminga nalang ako ng malalim at tsaka mahinang tinapik ang pisngi niya.
I peppered his face with small kisses at tsaka na siya tiningnan sa mga mata. Now, he's more alive.
"Bakit? Anong meron?" Tanong niya nung nakita niya ang mga librong dala ko.
"So, I stole these books from the restricted section. And—" Kumunot agad ang noo ni Jun dahil sa sinabi ko at hindi na ako pinatapos.
"Wait, what? You stole these books?" Tanong niya. Hindi siya galit nung tinanong niya 'yun. He even looked impressed as if stealing from the restricted section is a good thing to do. But Walter did it, so can I. Sinapo ko nalang ang noo ko dahil sa mga iniisip ko. "Isasauli ko rin naman pagkatapos. I just have something to show you." Jun just looked at me as if I'm very amusing to look at, with his smile on his lips when he was listening to me.
Kinuha ko ang mga libro sa carpet at tsaka ito inilapag sa harap niya. Agad naman itong tiningnan ni Jun at tiningnan ko lang siya na kunot-noong nakatingin dito. I had to flip a certain page on the book in order to gain a reaction from him kasi pagkunot lang ng noo ang nakikita ko sa kanya. Tiningnan lang ako ni Jun at tsaka binalik ang tingin niya sa libro.
I was getting impatient when he said nothing.
"Jun, it says 'Project Syzygy'. At tsaka tingnan mo 'yung dedication. My name's in it. So, is Storm's." Sabi ko at tsaka tinuro 'yung dedication ng libro. Jun bit his lower lip and tilted his head to the side. Tiningnan ko lang siya nung inangat niya ang tingin niya sa akin at parang sinusuri pa ako.
"Xin, there's nothing written on the book." Kumunot agad ang noo ko dahil sa sinabi niya. Agad kong kinuha ang libro at tsaka tiningnan ito. Nothing? It's written right here.
"N-No. Can't you see this?" Tanong ko sa kanya at tsaka tinuro ang title ng libro, ang author ng libro at tsaka ang pangalan ko dun sa dedication. Jun shook his head and looked at me with concern. What is this? Am I going crazy? Am I seeing things? Tiningnan ko ang libro at talagang nakikita kong may nakasulat dito.
Sabay kami ni Jun na tumingin sa pinto nung bumukas ito at pumasok sina Milo at Dino na kakapasok lang at may dalang Chinese take outs. Tiningnan lang nila kami at tsaka nilagay sa kani-kanilang studying table ang mga dala nila.
"Anong meron?" Tanong ni Dino nung makita niya ang mga libro. Jun looked like he couldn't form his words because he kept pointing at me, then the book, then at himself. Humarap ako kina Dino at binuklat ang libro.
"Please tell me na may nakasulat sa librong 'to." Nakapikit kong sabi sa kanila at nung minulat ko ang mga mata ko, lumingo-lingo lang sila at parang naguguluhan pa. Agad akong lumabas sa kwarto nila at tsaka isa-isang lumapit sa team tsaka pinakita sa kanila 'yung libro.
All of them had the same answer, even Xy. Sinabi nilang lahat na wala silang nakikita sa libro. And there, I concluded to myself. Ako lang yata ang nakakakita ng mga nakasulat sa librong 'to. Dahil ba ako lang ang babae dito? O dahil ba nababaliw na nga ako.
"Project Syzygy?" Natigilan kaagad ako at para akong nanigas sa kinauupuan ko nung marinig ko ang boses ni Hoshi sa likuran ko. Agad ko siyang tiningnan at nakita ko siyang nakatingin sa libro habang kumakain ng saging.
"Nakikita mo?" Tanong ko sa kanya. Tumango lang siya bilang sagot.
"You can really read this?" Tanong ko sa kanya at agad namang sumimangot si Hoshi at tiningnan ako na para bang naiinsulto siya sa sinabi ko, which was just a cute expression of him squinting his eyes and puffing out his pouty lips accompanied by his squishy cheeks. "Xin, I know how to read." Sabi niya at inubos na ang saging na kinakain niya.
"N-No, I mean. Wala sa kanila ang nakakakita ng mga sulat sa libro. I think it's just the two of us." Sabi ko at tiningnan ang libro.
"Maybe because you're both stars?" Matthew assumed. He's got a point though. Sabay naming tiningnan ni Hoshi ang laman ng libro. Hanggang dedication lang kasi ako nagbasa ng librong 'to. Bumaba narin 'yung iba pati na si Jun at tiningnan kaming dalawa ni Hoshi. I may look like I'm going crazy, but I least I have proof na hindi lang ako ang nakakakita ng mga nakasulat sa libro.
Hoshi sees them too. We both flipped the first page at agad kaming nagkatinginan dahil sa nakita namin.
"I can't read Greek." Sabay naming sabi ni Hoshi. Napapikit nalang ako at sumalampak sa sofa.
Tiningnan ko si Walter na nilalabas 'yung isang libro. 'Yung the dying star na libro. It was also written in Greek. Why does Storm have to write it in Greek anyway? What is he? Aside from being a hybrid, of course.
"None of us can see it. Also, none of us can read Greek." Sabi ni Seth at tiningnan 'yung libro kahit wala naman talaga siyang nababasa dun. Kinagat ko nalang ang labi ko at huminga ng malalim. What now? It'll take years before I finally learn Greek. Tiningnan ko agad si Dino na may hawak pang chopsticks at kumakain ng fried dumplings. "Do you know a spell than can make me fluent in Greek?" I asked, sounding so desperate.
"Xin, some skills don't have a shortcut. Wala akong alam na spell na ganun. Pero susubukan kong maghanap." Sabi niya bago kumain ulit. Nangalumbaba nalang ako at bahagyang nag-isip. None of them, except Hoshi, can see the things written in the book. None of them can read Greek. Dino says that he'll try looking for a spell. Kinagat ko nalang ang labi ko at nag-isip ng malalim. I feel like I'm forgetting something that can help me right now.
Or maybe, someone.
"I translated these into English."
"Luce.." Napalingon agad silang lahat sa akin dahil sa sinabi ko. Kinuha ko agad ang libro kay Seth at tiningnan ito. Luce can easily translate this into English. That's right. He can help me with this.
"Teka, Jun! 'San ka pupunta?" Tawag ni Milo sa kanya dahilan para iangat ko ang tingin ko kay Jun na naglalakad palabas ng dorm.
"To study Greek." Tipid na sagot ni Jun at tuluyan nang umalis. Napaawang nalang ang bibig ko at binalik nilang lahat ang tingin nila sa akin.
"If I didn't have a very hot demon boyfriend, I'd surely fall for him." Tiningnan ko agad si Keya na naglalakad palapit kay Walter. Hindi ko nalang siya pinansin at tsaka na niligpit ang mga librong hiniram slash ninakaw ko mula sa restricted section. I don't want to bother the team with this. Because as far as I know, exams are coming soon.
And I think most of them already took things seriously here in UHT. I should do that too. Well, after I find out who tried to kill the Queen, solve this book, learn Greek with Jun, sort out my little problems and talk to the Dean. Oh wait, ang dami ko pa palang gagawin. Napapikit nalang ako dahil dito.
"Mom, want a massage? You look like a rotten potato." Natawa nalang ako sa sinabi ni Xy. Nandito na kami ngayon sa kwarto namin. Tumango lang ako sa sinabi niya at tsaka na siya naglakad palapit sa akin. He gave me a massage on the head like he does. It made me calm and the next thing I knew, I fell asleep.
✥✥
"Yes. Then you divide the alpha by two. That's how you get your z." Kasalukuyan kong tinuturuan sina Hoshi at Lorisse na magsolve. They have this quantitative exam later at hindi pa nila namememorize ang formula at hindi pa nila alam kung paano magsolve. Hoshi missed some classes kasi may nilalakad ang team. Lorisse had to go back to his parents' house kasi nagkasakit 'yung kapatid niya.
And now, I'm teaching them on what they missed in class kahit wala naman akong ganung subject.
"I pity the calculator. We always give them problems." Napalingon agad kaming lahat kay Hoshi dahil sa sinabi niya. Even Jun, who was silently studying Greek by my side looked at him. Tinapik nalang ni Lorisse ang balikat niya at tsaka na sila nagpatuloy sa pagsosolve.
"I wonder what our exams will be." Tiningnan ko si Wolfie na kakaupo lang at umiinom ng energy drink. I heard this rumour that we're not really taking paper exams here in UHT. Well, except dun sa basic classes like Latin, Greek or college algebra, etc. Sabi nila, iba raw ang pamamaraan ng exams dito.
It is done by what kind of creature you are. Like for example, wolves will have a face-off battle later at the school grounds. Witches will also have a face-off at the school gym. Demi-gods will be sent to Olympus for who knows what they will do there. Lorisse has fire lessons coming up.
It's kindda great that they're valuing creatures by what they are. Even Hoshi at Milo's got something coming up. Meanwhile, I'll just cheer for them. This school don't have a prepared program for hybrids. Because then again, we're rare. I'll just take paper exams like the rest.
"Ta paratáo." Jun said and dropped his face on the book. I translated his words on my head for what felt like a whole minute at nung nalaman ko na kung ano ang sinabi niya ay natawa nalang ako. He said that he's giving up already. Mas lalo akong natawa dahil sa posisyon niya na binabaon nalang ang mukha niya sa libro as if he could learn more Greek if he buries his face deeper on the book.
I laughed at how cute he was at tsaka ginulo ang buhok niya.
"Jun, you don't need to learn this. Hindi naman ako nagmamadali na malaman kung anong nakasulat sa libro na 'yun." Sabi ko at agad akong tiningnan ni Jun at tinaasan lang ng kilay. Oh, he knows that I'm lying to him.
"Well, maybe just a bit? It's the adrenaline. But I swear, I'm not that in a hurry to know what's in it. And besides, I could just go to Storm to ask him himself once we know where the trident is." Sabi ko sa kanya. The reason why we haven't returned the trident yet is because we lost it. I mean, Storm lost it when we were still trying to kill each other back then. We're still in search of the trident.
"Dude, natatakot ka bang mag-usap si Luce at Xin?" Natatawang tanong ni Wolfie sa kanya matapos niyang itulak palayo si Hoshi na nagpapatulong lang naman sa kanya na buksan ang isang bote ng juice. Ako nalang ang kumuha ng bote at tsaka ito binuksan. Tiningnan ko lang si Jun na hindi nakasagot dahil sa sinabi ni Wolfie.
Wolfie smirked at him after knowing that he targeted a certain spot.
"No.." Jun mumbled and returned to reading his book. Sinara ko nalang ang librong binabasa niya at tiningnan si Wolfie. I just raised my pinky finger, showing him the alpha ring we're all wearing. Shaking the ring is a thing that we do when we're going to say good bye.
"We'll be at the face-off. See you." Tumango lang siya sa sinabi ko at tsaka na ako nagpaalam kina Lorisse. Hinila ko na si Jun papunta sa park pero napansin kong maraming tao doon kaya pumunta nalang kami sa greenhouse ng UHT. We were now surrounded by plants and flowers.
Pinaupo ko si Jun harap ng two-seater na mesa dito sa garden at tsaka ko nilabas ang dawalang coffee drink sa bag ko. Tiningnan niya lang ako na nagseset-up ng table naming dalawa at tsaka na ako umupo sa harap niya.
"A little reward for your effort on studying Greek." Nakangiti kong sabi sa kanya. Jun just let out a sigh and gulped down the coffee without saying a word. He then mumbled something about not being as good as Luce. Tiningnan ko nalang siya na nakatingin lang sa sapatos niya. The one that I gave him on his recent birthday.
I don't know if I can call it a mistake that I kept on mentioning Luce to him. It's just that he's the only one that I know who can read Greek as if it's his first language. But seeing Jun trying to study Greek seemed like he wanted me to know that he can do and learn anything just to help me at hindi ko na kailangang humingi pa ng tulong sa iba.
He wants to know that I have him to help me on this. That I have him, and only him. Thinking about it, my heart hurts so good. I've been receiving a big amount of love from him and the team.
Dahan-dahan na akong tumango at tsaka pumunta sa likuran niya. I hugged him from behind while he was sitting on the chair. I slouched on his back, pressing my cheeks to his ruffled hair.
"I love you, Wen Junhui." I rarely say those words. I am aware that whenever I say them, it's when I'm with him and nothing else matters anymore. I'm that level on loving him. It's dangerous, but I don't mind. Naramdaman kong hinawakan ni Jun ang kamay kong nakayakap sa kanya.
"Love you too, Xinny. So much." A smile formed on my lips. This is one of those rare moments where we exchange those words. And until now, I still feel like squealing whenever I hear him say it.
"Can I go back to studying Greek now?" I immediately gave him a flick on the forehead. Natawa lang siya sa ginawa ko at natawa narin ako sa kanya. We stayed like that for a moment until it was finally time for us to go watch the face-off.
The first face-off was for the white-witches. Tiningnan lang namin sila na parang naglalaro lang dun sa gym. We are here to cheer for Dino kaya nung dumating sina Seth ay agad niyang pinausog si Jun palayo sa akin at umupo sa gitna. Nagkibit-balikat nalang kami at tsaka na kumain ng popcorn na dala niya. Binilang ko ang team at kumunot ang noo ko nung wala sina Baxter at Hoshi.
My question was answered as to where they were when I saw a banner being raised up by two cute idiots at the bleachers.
'Go Dino! Ahu! Ahu!'
Sabay kaming natawa ni Milo dahil sa nabasa namin. Isn't that such a cheesy line? A short but cheesy line. Napasapo nalang si Dino sa mukha niya at naglakad na papunta sa harap. The witch's face-off goes like this. They will present one spell first. More like an individual intermission number to show off their skills before the face-off finally begins.
Dino did the spell that he practiced at the dorm. Tumayo si Milo at gumawa ng fireball sa kamay niya. Tumingin lang si Dino sa kanya at bahagyang tumango. Milo threw the fireball at him with ease. The fireball then became bigger and bigger as it approached Dino. Tinamaan si Dino ng fireball kaya napasigaw 'yung mga tao sa gym hanggang sa bigla nalang may umusok sa banda ng kinaroroonan ni Dino at nung nawala na ang mga usok ay nakita nila si Dino na iba na ang suot. His hands were in the air, trapping the core of the fireball on it.
It was a simple trick, but it was cool. Tiningnan ko nalang kung sino ang kalaban niya at agad na tumaas ang kilay ko nung nakita kong si Yen pala 'yun. Cousin to cousin, huh?
"Hey, cous." Hindi pinansin ni Dino ang bati ni Yen sa kanya. Yen just flicked his tongue and looked at our direction. We made eye-contact at nakita kong nag-iba ng kulay ang mga mata ni Yen. Napapikit agad ako at napasapo ako sa noo ko.
What was that?
"If it happens, na mananalo ako laban sa 'yo. Can I have her as a prize?" Rinig kong sabi ni Yen pero hindi ko nakita kong sino ang tinutukoy niya. I had to blink for a couple of times before my vision came back to how it was pero nabigla nalang ako nung nakita kong hawak-hawak na pala ni Seth si Jun para pigilan ito.
At dun ko lang nakita na tinuturo pala ako ni Yen. Naguguluhan akong tumingin sa tahimik na paligid dahil parang ang lahat ng taong nandito sa gym ay nakatingin sa amin. What now?
Ahh, hell. I'm feeling dizzy.
"Well, even if I lose. She's still my prize." Napapikit na ako nung marinig ko ang boses ni Yen. Why the hell does that sounds so intriguing?
"Did you drop your brain somewhere, asshole?" Inis na tanong ni Dino sa kanya at nakita kong agad niyang pinatumba si Yen gamit lang ang isang spell. The moment that I saw Yen's body falling, bleeding and almost lifeless. My vision changed.
In my vision, it was now Jun who was falling and bleeding to death.
Bigla nalang nag-init ang katawan ko at agad akong tumingin kay Dino na nakatingin lang sa katawan na nasa sahig at nakangiti pa na parang nasisiyahan siya sa ginagawa niya. I tilted my head to the side.
I want to kill.
❅ Snow ❅