/17/
Girl Who Cried Morse

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THE MOMENT the three boys stepped inside the confines of 10 – Fortitude on Tuesday morning, Rein couldn't help but shake the feeling of impending doom.

He didn't know what it was, but that there was something that felt out of place as soon as he had entered.

"Yenna Alonzo?" Tyra, who was currently in front of the class was checking the absentee list — something that she was tasked to do every morning as the class secretary.

"Present!" Yenna said loudly before returning to talk to her group of friends with a volleyball in one arm. She was an athletic young girl who was also running for the honors' list.

Rein then placed his backpack in his seat that was near the teacher's table, and next to Jarrell and Quinn's respective armchairs. Habang nag-uusap ang kaniyang dalawang kaibigan ay sinamahan naman ni Rein si Tyra sa harap, standing right next to her as she roll-called the names of the rest of their classmates.

"Mayer and Milo Cortez?" She called quietly, and even though she was perfectly fine, Tyra seemed to have flinched as she called for the identical twins' names.

Rein narrowed his eyes at the brothers who were sitting at their usual place — far into the back next to the bulletin board and the classroom's last window.

"Here." Mayer grinned charmingly, and Rein frowned as he noticed that the feminine Tyra seemed to have hung her head down, her cheeks turning red. Milo on the other hand, merely half-raised his hand in a bored, uninterested manner, before turning his attention back to the window, where his thoughts seemed very far away.

Tyra then continued calling for the rest as Rein stared at the brothers. Pag magkatabi ang dalawa, halos hindi na ma-differentiate ng binata kung sino si Mayer at sino si Milo.

"Thank God Quinn and Queenie are fraternal twins." He said thoughtfully, as it was easier to tell the Gintuan twins apart, compared to the Cortez twins.

As the roll-calling of names went on and on, napatingin naman si Rein sa kaniyang relo. It was fifteen minutes 'til seven in the morning, which also meant that there was fifteen more minutes left 'til their first class.

"Ann Lobris?" At the sound of her name, Rein unconsciously raised his head, waiting for any indication of her presence.

But as the classroom continued bustling and there was no answer to Tyra's call, the unsettling feeling that Rein had felt a few moments ago, soon returned.

Nagkatinginan si Tyra at Rein, with Tyra shaking her head, as if she didn't know what had happened to Ann, bago lumingon si Rein sa upuan ng dalaga.

The seat was empty. Indeed, there was no trace of Annaliese Gracielle Beltran Lobris anywhere.

Rein felt a weird feeling overpower him as he wondered where his rival was. Is she ignoring me? He asked himself with a frown. Suddenly, the young man felt very worried when he realized that after confronting Zan Chu yesterday, he had not heard anything from Ann despite her promise to message him.

What if she had betrayed me? He asked. What if she realized we're better off as rivals than as partners? That she could win the Writers' Schism without me? The questions fired, running through Rein's mind like the plague.

This type of feeling and the questions he was asking himself felt very foreign for him, to the point that it weirded him out. Rein never cared about Ann's whereabouts before. Heck, she could be drowning and he wouldn't have cared before, so why would he care about her now?

"Hmm, absent ata 'yung bebelabs mo ngayon ah?" Jarrell asked with a teasing smirk plastered on his face.

"I doubt." Rein said, trying to ignore the feeling. "Wala pa si Sera at Queenie. She must be with them."

Rein's response soon backfired though, because just as he had uttered those words, both Sera and Queenie rushed into their classroom, widening their eyes at the boys in fright — as if something very terrible had happened.

"Hindi nila kasama si Ann." Quinn observed, suddenly feeling very worried himself.

Before the two girls could reach the three boys and explain the frightened looks on their faces, agad na pumasok ang kanilang adviser na mukhang nagmamadali.

"Good morning class! No need to greet me." professor Airyn Ruaño said in a hurried tone. "As you may have heard, the tenth grade teachers have an urgent meeting with the principal at this moment. Baka maging matagal ito due to various issues that we have to discuss; so for now, I want you all to continue doing your performance tasks."

She then gently held Rein and Tyra's by the shoulders and gestured Jarrell and Sera to step near them. "Sera, Jarrell, please come forward. I have a few more instructions for you officers."

Sera hurried from her seat to join the huddle, and Jarrell too had stood up from where he sat.

"Teka, nasa'n pala si Ann?" The young professor asked, blinking as she looked around her to search for the class vice president.

"Absent po prof—"

"ACTUALLY professor," Sera interjected, cutting Tyra. "Wag po kayong mag-alala, may sakit lang 'yun." Sera explained, waving her hand as if Ann's absence was nothing to be worried of. "Nasa dorm po namin siya ngayon, nagpapahinga." Sera added with a charming smile, before quickly widening her eyes at Rein and Jarrell as if she was saying otherwise.

"Alright, thank you for that Sera." Their adviser nodded. "Now I want you to listen carefully officers."

"While I'm away, kayo muna ang bahala sa mga kaklase ninyo. Wag niyong hahayaan na gumawa sila ng kalokohan, ha? As officers, you will be the ones supervising them, and will be responsible for any misconduct that your classmates will do." The professor said in a serious tone.

She then turned to Tyra. "Tyra dear, I want you to relay this information to the officers of the other sections." Bilin nito at tumango naman ang mahinhin na dalaga.

"Alright, I should go now." Miss Airyn said at nagmano agad ang apat sa kanilang propesor. "Remember my instructions, okay?"

"No worries, professor." Rein said in reassurance. "Kami na po ang bahala sa Fortitude."

At Rein's words, professor Airyn nodded gratefully before turning once more to the rest of the class. "Fortitude, I'll be going now. You will be under the supervision of the officers so be sure to behave. Huwag niyo silang bibigyan ng sakit ng ulo." Seryosong sabi nito. Agad namang tumango ang karamihan sa mga estudyante, before they waved their goodbyes to their adviser who immediately rushed back to the meeting room.

When professor Airyn was out of sight, Rein turned to Tyra. "Sabihan mo na yung ibang sections, Tyra. Kami na muna ang bahala dito." He told her, and Tyra diligently nodded before walking towards 10 – Freedom, the section closest to theirs.

Nang nakalayo na si Tyta ay humarap naman agad si Jarrell at Rein kay Sera — their faces visibly confused. Quinn and Queenie, who were watching the officers from afar, ran towards them as soon as the three where alone.

"What happened?!"

"Anong meron?"

"Nawawala si Ann!"

"Ann's missing!"

Halos sabay-sabay na nagsalita agad ang lima, causing even more confusion between them.

"Wait, what?? Anong ibig niyong sabihin?" Kunot-noong tanong ni Rein sa dalawang dalaga.

"What do you think missing means?" Sera snapped impatiently. "She's gone! Not seen! Nowhere to be found! Nada!"

"I meant to say, why do you think so?" Rein asked, pursing his lips.

"Hindi siya umuwi sa dormitory room namin kagabi." Queenie explained, and the boys realized that the girls looked tired. "Hinintay namin siya buong gabi pero 'di siya dumating."

"Rein, you were the last to talk to her yesterday." Sera said quietly, pursing her lips. "Sinabi ba niya kung saan siya pupunta?"

The young man shook his head. "Sabi lang niya na mas mabuting magsulat muna kami nang magkahiwalay. I assumed she would write at your dorm."

"No," Queenie said, shaking her head. "Wala sa dorm yung backpack at laptop niya. Even Ronan is missing. That means she didn't stay there to write."

"Chineck niyo kwarto niya?" Quinn inquired and the two girls nodded.

"We..." Queenie started, glancing at Sera. "...also saw some disturbing things there."

Kumunot naman ang noo ni Jarrell. "Porn?" Seryoso niyang sabi, and the others groaned.

"Joke lang eh! Pinapagaan ko lang yung atmosphere." Yamot na sabi ni Jarrell.

"We saw that Ann had garnered multiple different copies of the Gazette's confession sections." Sera continued, ignoring Jarrell.

"And why is that relevant?" Rein asked, frowning.

"We read them, and saw that the confessions section mostly contains threats directed at her." Paliwanag ni Queenie. "We're not sure, but, there's a possibility that she may be in danger either because of the culprit we're all after, or because of the other threats that Ann faces everyday."

"Then we have to find her." Seryosong sambit ni Rein. "We can—"

"Uh, Sera?" A voice suddenly interjected, and the five turned around to see their classmates, Richard Tynas and Mira Santos, standing awkwardly behind them as if they were about to ask question.

"Sorry, uh, yes?" Sera frowned, wondering why the two were asking for her.

"Um, diba dormmate niyo ni Queenie si Ann?" Mira asked, and the two girls glanced at each other before nodding.

"Nasa'n kaya siya? Sabi kasi samin ni Kat at Alyssa na hinahanap daw kami ni Ann kahapon?"

At this information, the five immediately straightened up and perked their ears.

"Ah, may sakit kasi siya kaya nagpapahinga sa dorm." Sera lied.

"Are you sure that Ann was looking for you??" Queenie asked at tumango naman ang dalawa bago itinuro si Kat at Alyssa na nasa loob ng classroom nila, nag-uusap.

"Tanungin niyo pa sina Kat." Richard shrugged. "Sila lang rin nagsabi samin eh."

"Kat! Alyssa!" Mira called, catching the attention of her two friends to come over. Medyo nagmukha tuloy na may meeting silang pinag-uusapan sa labas.

"Alyssa, Kat." Rein said, greeting them. "Richard and Mira here says that you girls told them that Ann was looking for them?"

"Ay oo!" Sambit naman ni Alyssa na mukhang kinikilig habang kinakausap si Rein. "Dismissal na nun, mga alas singko ata. Pumunta si Ann sa'min, tinatanong kung nakita ba namin si Richard at Mira."

"Yep," Kat said in agreement. "Tapos sabi ko, nasa may Books & Brews itong dalawa."

"Do'n kasi kami madalas na tumatambay para magsulat." Richard said sheepishly, rubbing his nape as both he and Mira blushed.

"You're part of the Schism?" Quinn asked in surprise, and the two nodded.

"Wait, so Ann didn't get to talk to both of you yesterday?" Rein frowned.

"You see, 'yun ang hindi namin maintindihan." Alyssa said thoughtfully. "Kasi nakita namin na tumakbo palabas ng campus si Ann. Clearly she wanted to immediately talk to Richard and Mira at Books & Brews, so nagulat kami nang malaman namin na hindi pala sila nagkausap-usap."

Rein and the others exchanged knowing glances.

"No worries," Sera smiled. "Baka biglang naisipan lang ni Ann na wag nalang tumuloy kasi nga biglaang sumama pakiramdam niya kahapon."

"Yeah," Queenie nodded solemnly, playing along with Sera's lie. "Like we said, Ann's sick and resting in our dorm right now."

"We'll just tell Ann that you meant to talk to her." Sambit ni Sera, at tumango naman ang dalawa as all eight of them re-entered their classroom.

Hindi naman sila masyadong pinansin ng kanilang mga kaklase na busy na sa paggawa ng kanilang mga project, tulad ng bilin ng kanilang adviser.

"So anong balak natin?" Jarrell muttered under his breath as soon as Richard, Mira, Kat and Alyssa were out of earshot.

"We need to look for her in Books & Brews." Seryosong sabi ni Queenie.

"That's the problem though." Sera said grimly. "We can't go out of the campus during class hours, and we officers were strictly instructed to supervise the class. Hindi tayo pwedeng mawala dito sa classroom."

"Sera's right." Rein agreed, even though he would have rather they would look for Ann now. "We have no choice. We'll wait for Ann to turn up for the whole day. Pagdating ng dismissal at wala pa rin siya, saka natin siya hahanapin." He said, glancing out the window and wondering where on earth could his rival be.

---

The day passed by wearily, much to the five's impatience. Pakiramdam nila ay ang bagal-bagal ng oras lalo na't halos free time lang ang kanilang mga klase ngayong araw — to the point where Rein seemed to be suspicious about the faculty meeting happening between the tenth grade teachers.

"I wonder what the teachers are meeting about." Rein wondered out loud during the period before their lunch break, as he helped Jarrell cut illustration boards into smaller pieces for their project.

"Baka nira-rank nila sino pinaka-makulit sa batch natin." Jarrell said jokingly, letting the cutter in his hands do its work.

"Ikaw na number one pag ganun." Quinn, who was using the glue gun, responded cheekily.

Dahil sa kalayaang meron ang mga tenth graders, ay halos mag-kumpitensya na yung ingay ng apat na section sa kanilang hallway. Thankfully, the tenth grade officers managed to settle them down before the teachers from the other levels could hear.

When dismissal finally came, the five were already packing their things as the corridors of Castillo High were filled with students who were eager to get out of their classrooms and enjoy the rest of the day.

Inaayos pa lamang ni Jarrell ang kaniyang mga kagamitan sa backpack niya nang bigla siyang hinawakan ni Sera sa braso at hinila papalayo.

"Marquez, anong petsa na? Ang bagal-bagal mo! The sooner we find Ann, the better, kaya bilisan mo na!" She scolded him by the time the five of them were the only ones left in their classroom.

"Oo na, ito na nga eh!" Yamot na reklamo ni Jarrell habang hinihila siya ni Sera palabas. Habang nagbabardagulan ay sinundan ni Quinn, Queenie at Rein ang dalawa nang may ngisi sa kanilang mga mukha — Rein most especially.

The two had always seemed like a good pair to him, and this was one of those moments that made him think so.

"Ang sabihin mo, gusto mo lang talagang hawakan yung kamay ko." Jarrell grinned by the time they were out in the corridor.

At his words, Sera's eyes turned into slits, at mabilis na binitawan agad ng dalaga ang braso ni Jarrell.

"Oh please." Sera huffed. "Ayan na 'yang pinakamamahal mong kamay. Isaksak mo sa baga mo!" With a flourish, nauna na sa paglalakad ang dalaga.

"Awts. Masakit bang maiwanan sa ere?" Pang-asar ni Rein kay Jarrell na naka-busangot na ang mukha.

"Hoy ikaw, porket wala lang bebe mo, ako na pinag-didiskitahan mo." Jarrell muttered as the five of them exited the junior high school building.

"'Di ko siya bebe." Rein corrected his friend, the hot afternoon breeze and the blinding sunlight greeted them.

"Soon she will be." Bulong ni Jarrell habang sinusundan nila si Sera palabas sa main gates ng campus.

"Do we know where Books & Brews is, exactly?" Sera asked, slowing down so that the others can catch up.

"I do." Queenie offered. "I've been there once." She said, before turning her face away as if she was ashamed. "Alone."

"Great sis, lead the way." Sambit ng kaniyang kambal at agad naman silang tumawid sa main street sa harapan ng academe.

The five of them then silently walked on the busy sidewalks once they crossed the other side, the smell of different kinds of snacks and delicacies wafted their nostrils on the way.

Nang nakalayo na ang lima sa maingay na main street ay pumasok naman sila sa Sequoia Lane, ang tahimik na daanang kumokonekta sa main street at sa susunod pang kalsada kung nasaan ang Books & Brews.

Kumpara sa main street ay mas tahimik ang daanang ito. Very few people walked among them on the sidewalk, habang may mga iilan na bata ang naglalaro ng patintero sa gilid. But other than that, the place was eerily silent — as if it was part of an alternate dimension that had once experienced the apocalypse.

"Ang creepy naman dito." Bulong ni Jarrell habang naglalakad kasabay ng apat, shielding himself from the sun's bright afternoon light. Rein was just about to reply when something momentarily caught his eye.

Slowing down his steps, Rein stopped altogether to look towards the direction of an old-looking, abandoned mansion that they were currently passing by. Halatang wala nang nakatira rito as its walls were filled with soot and grime, and the paint on its roof was chipping off.

But it wasn't the ruined exterior that caught Rein's attention.

Up there on the small, circular window where the attic was, flashes of glinting light could be seen.

Rein frowned as the others stopped alongside him.

"That's strange." Rein muttered as he stared at the small window — his lips forming a thin, grim line as the hair on his neck rose.

"Nobody would live in a place as ugly as that... Right?" Sera asked in disgust as she held onto the straps of her bag.

"It does seem to be abandoned." Komento ni Queenie, adjusting her specs.

"Kung walang nakatira, sino 'yang nag-papatay-sindi ng ilaw?" Kunot-noong tanong ni Jarrell. The whole aura of the house was beginning to creep them out.

"Well, there's a possibility that it's just a mirror reflecting the light of the sun." Quinn suggested, pushing his round eyeglasses further into his nose bridge.

But as Rein looked closer at the flashes of light, na-realize nito na mayroong kakaiba sa paraan nang pag-tama ng ilaw.

It was as if the light was following some kind of pattern.

"Dot. Dot. Dot." Jarrell murmured to the rhythm of the short, blinking of light, visibly in deep thought.

"Dash. Dash. Dash." Rein continued, his words loud and clear as he also followed the pattern. This time, the flashes of light were longer.

Nagka-tinginan ang anim, and Sera's eyes narrowed into slits.

"What the hell are you guys saying?" She demanded.

"Dot. Dot. Dot."Quinn repeated once more as the blinking light transitioned back into three quick flashes.

At this point, the three young men gave each other knowing looks.

"Three short flashes equals to three dots, and three long flashes equals to three dashes." Jarrell muttered under his breath — na para bang kinakakausap niya ang kaniyang sarili.

"Are you saying that someone's using the morse code for SOS?" Queenie asked, blinking in realization.

"I'm not sure I'm quite following?" Sera frowned.

"Morse code, it's a type of communication used in the late 19th century. It's a way of communicating messages through a code disguised in dots and dashes." Quinn explained.

"So are you guys saying that someone's asking for help?" Sera frowned once more as the six of them stared up at the window in deep thought.

"Dots and dashes." Rein murmured, and a memory came to his mind.

"Our characters could use morse code when communicating with each other." Rein remembered Ann's voice, the image of meeting her late at night unconsciously popped into his mind.

A sinking feeling dawned upon the young man as his heart rate increased.

"Lobris." He murmured, and the others sharply turned to look at him in confusion.

"Ha?"

"What are you sayi—"

"It's Lobris!" Rein said louder, more sure of himself this time before dashing inside the old, abandoned house — all his thoughts, worries and anxiety flying out of the window.

---

Ann's eyes were slowly starting to blur as she held the jagged piece of glass in her shaky hands.

"Please," she mumbled weakly, dizzy and hungry from being locked up in an attic for almost 24 hours now.

The young girl had only woken up from her fainting spell an hour ago — confused and with the worst headache. Hindi alam ng dalaga kung nasaan siya as she crawled towards the attic door with her bounded hands and feet as soon as she had woken.

With deep, shaky breaths, Ann had tried her first resort — which was to open the attic door to no avail. It was locked and sturdy, and Ann was already far too weak due to the lack of food and water. She was no match to break down the door.

Despite this, all that she could think about was her need to escape.

With trembling lips, dahan-dahang  tumayo ang dalaga, tumbling and falling through the process before finally pushing herself to stand up despite her bound limbs.

She had already felt even more lightheaded than she was, but still proceeded to gather all the strength she had left before surveying the small room that confined her, trying to think of any other way that could get herself out of this hell.

Ann then caught glimpse of a faint glow of light from across the room and strained her eyes to look at it. Squinting her eyes, it took her a few minutes before she realized that it was a window, and that the light coming from it was from the sun's rays.

Tottering like a toddler learning her first baby steps, she then slowly made her way towards it.

But the sooner she came closer, the more Ann was met with disappointment. Turns out, the window was nothing more but a small, circular attic window — barely large for her to fit in and escape. In fact, it was too small that she wouldn't be able to stick her whole face out and shout for help.

A wave of hopelessness filled the young girl as she pressed herself onto the window's glass, tears slowly forming in the corner of her eyes as she stared helplessly outside, not bothering to yell for attention since she had no energy left.

Hindi rin naman ako maririnig ng mga tao kahit na sumigaw ako. I'm too high up to be noticed. Ann thought desperately. If only I had my ph—

Her eyes suddenly widened as she whirled around, looking frantically for her laptop bag and backpack which contained her phone. Bumilis agad ang tibok ng kaniyang puso as she scrambled down on the floor, fondling in the stuffy room and trying to look for her things in despair.

Halos mangiyak-ngiyak na ito when she leaned back on the wall, none of her things in sight. Whoever had assaulted her had clearly stolen her things as well.

With her hair frazzled and limp, tears soon rolled down Ann's cheeks. Hindi alam ng dalaga kung hanggang kailan pa siya mahahanap, and the thought of losing control over her life weighed her chest heavily.

Crying silently, Ann stared into space with dead, tired eyes. For a moment, her head was empty, not until it slowly dawned upon her that someone else was staring back at her.

Ann blinked. Saka lang niya napagtanto na isang basag na salamin ang kaniyang kaharap, at repleksyon lang pala niya ang kaniyang nakikita. Napakurap muli ang dalaga.

The mirror was clearly broken — as if someone had stabbed it with a bottle, its glass shards scattered nearby.

Ann blinked once more as an idea crept into her mind.

"Time to use a bit of what I learned from Nancy Drew." She muttered, forcing herself to stand up once more as she faced her haggard reflection in the mirror.

And that was how the young girl came to be, holding a broken glass shard of the mirror in her hands and hoping that someone with enough knowledge on morse code, would see her cry for help.

"Come on," she mumbled, feeling faint once more as she continuously angled and re-angled the glass shard directly under the sunlight to create a flash of light. Pakiramdam ng dalaga ay unti nalang, magba-black out na muli ang kaniyang paningin.

Because the flashes of light were too blinding from where she was, hindi makita ng dalaga kung mayroon bang mga tao na nakakapansin sa kaniyang signal. Despite this, she continued doing it anyway — even if she was slowly losing touch of reality.

"H-Help..." She gasped, blinking rapidly to stop herself from fainting.

Just as her palms bled holding the sharp edges of the glass in her hands, there was a sudden, loud banging on the attic door.

BANG! BANG! BANG! The series of deafening thuds echoed, and out of surprise, Ann dropped the glass shard in her hands, letting it fall into a million pieces.

"Y-Yes...!" She mumbled, desperately crawling towards the door in her rumpled uniform. But Ann was now to weak to move.

At that moment, bigla na lamang nasira at bumigay yung pintuan, the frail, wooden door dropping onto the floor with a loud crash. Dust soon filled the attic room as five hazy figures rushed towards her.

"Ann!" A familiar voice exclaimed in relief, but Ann's senses were too blurry to make sense of her rescuers.

"Come on Lobris," a deeper voice said this time, and she could feel gentle, large hands carry her body.

"Let's get you home."

---

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Rein's anxiety throughout this chapter is best represented through the song in the media entitled, "Without Me" by Halsey. Be sure to listen to it for the added feels!