Sunod-sunod na kumawala ang mga malalim na buntong-hininga ko. We were seated on our chair the entire morning. Lahat ng lakas ko sa katawan ay tila parang sinipsip ng upuan ko. I couldn't feel my body anymore. Tiny lights were flying in front of me.

Three birds were flying around my head as well. I felt like a thorn had been finally pulled out in my throat when the bell suddenly rang. Sunod-sunod ko ring narinig ang sigh of relief nina Hecate at Lupus. Kanina pa ako nahihilo sa mga lecture ni Sir Durano.

Magkasunod kasi ang dalawang subjects niya. Two hours naman 'yong Multimedia. At four hours naman 'yong Programming 1 namin. The first two hours is okay. Pero no'ng dumating na ang oras para sa programming namin, tila nanghina kaagad ang tuhod ko nang ituro na ni Sir Durano ang basic coding.

Basic coding palang 'yon, ah. Pero ganoon na ang epekto nito sa akin. Our professor even let us practice coding the "Hello World" program. A program that is the first step towards learning any programming language and is also one of the simplest programs we will learn.

Nakakaduling ang programming because it consists of a vocabulary containing a set of grammatical rules intended to convey instructions to a computer or computing device to perform specific tasks. According to our professor, each programming language has a unique set of keywords along with a special syntax to organize the software's instructions.

"That's all for today. Tomorrow we will be learning further about Multimedia and Algorithms and Flowcharts in Programming," when he finally said his final words, he excused himself.

Nang makalabas na ang aming Professor sa classroom ay dinampot ko ang aking bag na nasa aking paanan. Ipinasok ko ang aking notebook doon. Tumingin ako sa wrist watch ko kung ano na ang oras. Mag-a-alas dose na pala ng tanghali.

"Would you like to eat lunch with me, Kai?" Napatingin ako sa katabi kong lalaki na naka-cross arms pa rin.

His tantalizing mocha-brown eyes met mine. I gulp twice when I realized how captivating those were. Sandali pa akong napatitig sa mga mata niya. Tumigil na lamang ako nang mapansin ko ang mapang-asar niyang ngiti sa labi.

I was about to response when Hecate suddenly grab my hand. Nataranta pa akong napatayo't dinampot ang aking bag. I don't want to be rude, kaya nagpatangay na lamang ako sa kaniya. I mouthed him 'sorry' before finally getting outside the room.

"Sama ka sa 'min ni Lupus, Kai. Kasi nagsasawa na ako sa pagmumukha niyan." Inirapan pa niya ang taong nasa likuran ko.

Lumingon ako. There I saw Lupus behind my back. Nakabulsa naman ang isa niyang kamay. Habang 'yong isa pa ay nakahawak sa strap ng kaniyang bag na nakasabit lang sa kaliwa niyang balikat.

I saw how his face grimaced after he heard what Hecate said. They even throw piercing stares to each other. I secretly nodded. I concluded, they are friends.

"Mutual."

I saw Hecate placed her palm on her chest, acting as if she's emotionally hurt. Tinawanan lang siya ni Lupus dahilan para makatanggap siya ng isang malakas na batok mula kay Hecate. Napangiti ako.

Ganitong-ganito lang kami mag-aasaran ni Wesley. Biglang bumagsak ang balikat ko sa lungkot. How I wish Wesley, my only friend, is here with me. But of course, I know I couldn't do that. My life is already here in Luna Roja. And Wesley's life will forever be in Las Plovis.

I gritted my teeth. I will call him later this afternoon, for sure.

"Kai, are you okay?" Nabaling muli ang aking atensyon kay Hecate nang bigla niya akong tanungin. They are now both looking at me with worried on their eyes. "You seemed down," she added.

A bitter smile quickly formed upon my lips. "Wala. Na-miss ko bigla ang kaibigan ko dahil sa inyong dalawa."

"Oh, no. Sorry." She made a peace sign and give me a hugged. "Nasaan na ba ang kaibigan mo?" bigla niyang tanong.

Of course, I was surprised by her question. Because I rarely share my personal life with someone I just met. But I guess, it won't hurt my butt to share just a piece of them. Besides, they seem like people I could easily trust.

"Nasa Las Plovis siya. Nagkahiwalay lang kami dahil lumipat ako rito sa Luna Roja," I responded straightforwardly.

Naglakad na kaming tatlo patungo sa cafeteria. Habang naglalakad ay nararamdaman ko na naman ang mga titig na 'yon. I didn't bother to look behind my back because I already know who it is.

"Wow, taga Las Plovis ka pala?"

I nodded at Lupus' question as a response. "Lumaki ako sa Las Plovis. Pero originally taga rito talaga mga magulang ko. Napadpad lang kami roon dahil sa trabaho ng Papa ko," kasunod kong response sa tango ko kanina.

Tumatango-tango lang sila hanggang sa dumating na kami sa cafeteria. Humanga kaagad ako sa disenyo ng gusali. Luna Roja University's cafeteria were made of glass walls. I can literally saw here outside of what happened inside of the cafeteria.

Marami-raming mga estudyanteng nasa loob. Ang iba ay kapansin-pansin ang pagiging marangya sa buhay. The students were happily chit-chatting and teasing each other. Some were peacefully enjoying their lunch. And there are some students who prefer to be alone.

Hecate once again grabbed my wrist and energetically walked towards the glass door of the cafeteria. Iniling ko ang aking ulo dahil sa pinaggagawa niya. If only I could sue someone who likes pulling people, I will be on the first line to file a case against them.

We ended up filling the vacant table at the corner of the cafeteria. Kung saan medyo malayo sa mga tables na palaging ginagamit ng mga estudyante. This is the corner where outcasts favorite place that often showed in films or T.V series.

It is also where they always get bullied. Or sometimes, a place where someone prefers privacy.

"Ano order mo, Kai?" Hecate suddenly asked.

I shook my head twice. "Hindi na. May dala naman akong baon. Luto ng Lola ko," I responded with a proud smile.

They both nodded and excused themselves. Naglakad na sila patungo sa counter. Habang ako naman ay naiwang mag-isa. Pero napatingin ang lahat nang biglang bumukas ang pintuan ng cafeteria at iniluwa roon ang lalaking pinagtitilian ng mga kababaihan.

I once again met his eyes when I laid my eyes on him. Kaagad na bumagsak ang mata ko sa sahig dahil sa epektong hatid nito sa akin. How in the world he do that? How the hell he could numb my knees through his stares?

Kinuha ko na lamang ang aking bag at binuksan ito. I grab my notebook. Kinuha ko ang nakaipit na printed schedule ko para tignan ito. Nang tignan ko ito ay napagtanto kong three hours pala ang vacant namin ngayon sa lunch.

Hanggang alas dos pa ang first period namin sa hapon. Tinignan ko ang mga subjects. Minor subjects lang naman kaya I'm sure hindi na naman ako maduduling tulad ng kanina sa programming 1. Sa alas-dos hanggang alas-tres ay GEE-RLRH o Readings in Luna Roja's History.

Sa alas-tres hanggang alas-kuwatro ay GEE-TEM o The Entrepreneurial Mind. At ang last subject namin sa alas-kuwatro hanggang alas-singko ay GEC-MMW o Mathematics in the Modern World.

My face instantaneously grimaced as I realized I have a math subject. Hate ko pa naman ang subject na 'yan. Pero wala na akong magagawa. Nandiyan na 'yan eh.

"Pretending to be busy, huh?"

Napatingin naman ako sa taong nagsalita sa aking harapan. Kaagad na tinablan ako ng kaba nang mapagtantong ang lapit na ng kaniyang mukha sa mukha ko. A simple move, our lips could end up touching each other.

Bumaba ang mga tingin namin sa aming mga labi. Kinusot ko ang aking hita nang mapansing rosy na rosy sa malapitan ang mga labi niya.

"That's what I thought."

Dahil sa sinabi niya ay kumunot kaagad ang noo ko. What the hell is he talking about? Binigyan ko siya ng nagtatanong na tingin. Pero ang gago sinuklian lang ako ng nang-aasar na ngiti. Umalis siya sa kinaroroonan ko't naglakad papunta sa isa pang lamesang malapit sa glass wall.

It's just a few inches away from our table.

Minutes later, bumalik na sina Lupus at Hecate dala-dala ang kanilang mga orders. They simultaneously placed their tray on the table. Lupus ordered a fish sinigang, two cups of rice, and a can of soda. Hecate, on the other hand, ordered a small bowl of pinakbet, one cup of rice, and one glass of fresh pineapple juice.

Inilabas ko ang aking baon. Ulam ko ay hotdog at scrambled egg. Simple lang. Ito 'yong naging palaman ko sa pandesal sa umagahan namin ni Lola kanina. Nakita ko namang nagningning ang mata ni Hecate matapos makita ang ulam ko.

When we dig in, silence prevails. Panay subo lang kami. Hecate broke that silence by opening a conversation randomly.

"You know what, I was named after the Greek goddess that capable of both good and evil. She was associated with witchcraft, magic, the Moon, doorways, and creatures of the night like hell-hounds and ghosts. Lola ko ang nagbigay sa akin ng pangalan," kuwento niya.

As far as I can remember, Hecate is the goddess who controlled the Mist, also known as Glamour, is a supernatural force that twists a mortal's sight from seeing monsters, gods, and Titans and other supernatural occurrences by replacing them with things that mortal mind knows about and can comprehend.

She scoffed in the middle of eating. "Palagi kasing kinukuwento sa akin ni Lola na galing kami sa witch bloodline. And she even said that Hecate is the patron of our coven." Natatawa niyang dagdag.

"And you believe her?" I suddenly asked.

Dahil sa tanong ko ay mas lalong lumakas ang tawa niya. I even saw some of the students looking at us. "Of course not! There's no such thing as witches!" she confidently answered. "Baka dahil sa katandaan na ng Lola ko, nagku-kuwento na siya ng mga bagay na hindi kapani-paniwala."

After what she said, silence once again prevails between us three. But Hecate once again broke it by asking Lupus.

"Ano naman meaning ng pangalan mo, Lupus?"

Huminto sa pagnguya si Lupus. "Simple lang naman ang meaning ng pangalan ko. Lupus was derived from Latin word which means wolf." Napatango naman ako sa sinagot niya.

Habang si Hecate naman ay tila parang may hinihintay na kadugtong.

"'Yon lang?" she disappointingly asked.

"Yup, there's nothing special."

At this point, I could trace Lupus' voice how defensive he was. Or am I hallucinating? Ako na naman ang napatigil sa pagnguya nang mapansin ko ang mga tingin nilang dalawa sa akin.

"Ikaw ba, Kai?"

Nagpakawala muna ako ng isang mababaw na buntong-hininga bago sumagot. "Caelestis Reyan means heavenly gift. My surname means the opposite of paradise."

Gusto ko humagalpak ng tawa nang makita kong nakabukas ang kanilang bibig matapos marinig ang sinabi ko. They even both close and open their eyes, confirming if they heard the right words.

"Damn," rinig kong mura ni Lupus. "You are the heaven and hell."