M I L L E R

"Uh-Uhm... D-De Leon?"

Lumingon ako sa babaeng tumawag sa akin. Nasa cafeteria na ako. May bakanteng oras ako ngayon dahil hindi pumasok ang professor namin sa susunod kong lecture. It's actually good news, he is giving me the chance to write my Philosophy paper. I have to finish this by today para libre na ako bukas at sa mga susunod na araw.

It has been a whole day simula nung nagkita kami ni Axel sa convenience store. Simula nun ay hindi ko na siya nakita sa school not even outside my class. That's what he did after saying he'll wait for me.

"Hm?" mutawi ko nang napansin ko ang dalawang babae na papalapit sa akin.

"A-Ano... " the girl nervously uttered. I don't know her name but I think she is my classmate. Hindi ko nga lang matandaan kung saang klase.

"You can talk to me again once you remember what you want to sa—"

"Ah, t-teka!" she exclaimed when I was about to turn my back.

May isang oras at ilang minuto na lang ako bago matapos ang class hours, then I will have to go to the construction site to do my duties. Just like any other day, I am still busy today.

"Then, say it. You're wasting my time."

"S-Sorry... uhm. I think hindi mo ako kilala. Ako si Haley, magkaklase tayo sa Philo class," she said, introducing herself. But I actually don't care about who she is.

Hindi ko siya sinagot at tinitigan na lang. If I talk now, hahaba lang ang usapan namin.

The girl chuckled awkwardly. She must have felt the rejection I am imitating.

"A-Ah... Ha. Ha. Ha. I'm sorry about her."

What now? Sino naman 'to?
Another girl came in the scene.

"K-Krystal!"

"Shh!" Nagtago sa likod niya ang naunang babae. She then smiled at me then said, "Uh... Ms. Dy is calling you in her office." Mas kalmado at mas maayos akong kinausap ng babaeng nagngangalan na Krystal. Although I can see that she is also as nervous as the other girl.

"Ms. Dy?" sabi ko habang nag-iisip.
I don't think I have anything to pass this week or any other deadlines to meet. I also made sure that I sent her the paper that was given last week.

Si Ms. Dy ang Philosophy teacher namin. She's a lady in her mid-40s. Although that's all I know about her.

"Wala ba siyang sinabi kung ano ang sadya niya?"

It could be a pain in the *ss if she will just order me around again. Nakaka-aksaya ng oras.

"Hm? Ah. W-Wala," she replied, still shy and on guard.

I sighed. "Okay. Thanks for letting me know," I said before cleaning my table then left the girls in the cafeteria.

Kahit na paalis na ako ay kitang-kita pa rin na natatakot sila sa akin. Now that I think about it, the women in university are always wary of me. Unlike the older women in our host club that are aggressive and dominative, the women here are always on their guard. Scared and ready to submit. Ano naman kaya ang iniisip nila tungkol sa akin para ganun na lang sila kung umasta?

Anyway, I don't have to care too much about them. It's not like they can be any help in my life if I befriend them.

Naglalakad na ako sa hallway patungo ng College of Arts and Sciences (or CAS) faculty kung saan naroroon si Ms. Dy.

"Thank you po, ma'am." Bago pa man ako nakapasok sa loob ay may nakasalubong akong babae na palabas ng faculty.

"Uhmp!" Napahinto ako nang marinig ko ang mahinang boses at mapansin ang pagbangga ng babae sa dibdib ko. "S-S-Sorry." She panicked with her face all flushed in red.

"No, it's fine."

"S-Sorry!" sigaw niya saka nagmadaling umalis sa tapat ng pinto. Para bang mas natakot pa siya nung kinausap ko siya.

What's wrong with that girl?
Pinihit ko ang pinto ng faculty. Una muna akong sumilip bago tuluyang pumasok.

"Good day, sir," bati ko sa lalaking professor na nagkataon na nasa tapat ng pinto nakatayo.

Tumango lang siya sa akin at nagpatuloy sa pakikipag-usap sa isa naman na professor.

"Good day, ma'am," sambit ko rito tapos ay yumuko ng bahagya bago ako pumasok at sinara ang pinto.

Each professor has their own cubicle for their working space. Isang manipis na foldable divider ang naghihiwalay sa kanila sa isa't isa. At may saktong laki rin naman ang espasyo nila. Pero imbes na maghanap sa mga cubicle na ito ay dumiretso na ako sa pinto na nasa dulo ng faculty office.

Dean's Office
Ito ang salita na nakaukit sa template na nasa pinto.

"Excuse me, ano ang kailangan nila?" medyo masungit na tanong ng guro na malapit sa pinto ang cubicle.

"Pinatawag daw po ako ni Ms. Dy."

She scanned me from head to toe. She did not give me a bad look nor the sour one.
She was just scanning me before saying, "Oh. Sure ka, ha? Sige, sige. Pumasok ka na."

I just bowed as I twisted the doorknob.

Ms. Dy is the dean of the CAS department. She might be young for the position but she's smart enough earn it at a young age.

"Good day, ma'am. Pinata— what are you doing here?" Mabilis na nagbago ang mood ko nang makita na naman ang mukha ng lalaking akala ko ay hindi ko na makakasalubong sa araw na ito.

"Hey," Axel nonchalantly greeted me.

Nakaupo lang siya sa sofa na nasa harap ng lamesa ni Ms. Dy. Naka-krus ang kanyang mga paa at komportableng naka-pwesto ang mga braso niya sa armchair nito.

"Good afternoon, Mr. De Leon. Great timing, Mr. Wesley just got here as well." Habang nagsasalita ay sinenyasan ako ni Ms. Dy na umupo sa katabing sofa ni Axel.

I reluctantly took a seat then listened to her.

"Hi boys," she began, "I am so pleased to see two beautiful and handsome young men in front of me. But other than that, I also discovered that both of you are quite brilliant."

"I couldn't agree more, Ms. Dy," tugon ni Axel na masaya pa na nakangiti.

He seemed so pleased with what he heard.

Tiningnan ko ang wall clock na nasa nasa likurang bahagi lang ni Ms. Dy.

Shoot. It's near the end of the last period. I only have less than an hour left. I know, medyo mahaba pa ang oras na ito but considering that this is Axel Wesley, I got the feeling na magtatagal pa ang usapan namin na ito kung hahayaan ko na sila lang ni Ms. Dy ang mag-uusap.

From the sound of his words, I think that he can use them sweetly para ma-distract si Ma'am. And, obviously, I do not have the time for that.

"Excuse me," sabad ko, "I know that you are having a great time talking but, if you don't mind, ma'am. Can we proceed to the reason you called us here?" I boldly asked.

"Oh, sorry Miller," ani ni Axel.

Hindi ko sinagot si Axel hinintay ko lang na magsalita si Ms. Dy.

"Oh, yes. About that," she said as she was trying to prepare herself. "I checked your papers. You, Mr. De Leon, did a great job on your interpretation and presentation of your allegories in the book."

"Thank you, ma'am."

"Yes..." Sunod naman na gumawi kay Axel ang tingin ni Ma'am. "Meanwhile, Axel did the same to his papers. It was so vivid and realistic as if he himself had experienced witnessing a shadow inside a cave while tied up. As if he was in the cave, seeing illusions."

"Oh, it's nothing extravagant, Ms. Dy."

Are we having an individual evaluation of our paper?Why is she praising us and telling us her thoughts about those? Kung tama ako ng iniisip ay kaya kami nandito ni Axel dahil pareho kaming mag-isa at walang kagrupo. Well, I'm not sure about that yet it's pretty obvious kasi wala siyang kasama. Sa dami ng mga nag-aagawan sa kanya, niisa ay wala siyang piniling samahan.

"However," Ms. Dy took a brief break then said, "I've noticed that among the students kayo lang dalawa ang walang kagrupo."

And I was correct. Wala nga talagang piniling grupo si Axel.

"Can you state your reasons?" tanong ni Ma'am.

Unang nagtaas ng kamay niya si Axel at nagbigay ng dahilan na, "I'm sorry about that, Ms. Dy. But I can't seem to choose. All are too noisy for me." Rinig kong sinabi niya sa mahinang boses.

"What do you mean?"

Ngumisi ng maliit si Axel, akala ko ay hindi siya sasagot pero sinabi niya na, "They are too head over heels for me that whichever group I choose, girls will always want my attention."

For some reason his words don't sound too boastful. Since he got too much attention he has to sacrifice his private space. Isn't it inconvenient to have many people around you all the time?

Hindi na nakasagot pa si Ma'am sa rason ni Axel. I bet she thinks that Axel is someone who is too proud of himself... o kung anuman. I don't know her that well para malaman kung ano ang iniisip niya. But as someone who met Axel Wesley, I also felt the same the first time.

"Well, you got a point."

What!?
Muntik na akong sumigaw sa pagsang-ayon ni Ma'am. Palihim na lang akong umiling-iling.

"How about you, Mr. De Leon? You're always a one-man team, so I at least know your reason, more or less. But I will still try to guess; ayaw mo ng may kasama dahil sagabal lang sila sa schedule mo, tama ba ako?"

Ack. She hit the spot. Tama siya ng hula.

"Schedule? Are you someone important?" sabad naman ni Axel na may halong kuryosidad ang boses.

"You don't have to know about that," sabi ko.

"Well, siguro nga wala siyang kinalaman sa schedule mo," sabi naman ni Ms. Dy. Natigilan naman ako sa pagsasalita at tumingin sa kanya. "You see, no matter how smart you are both, I still want you to learn how to collaborate."

Oh no. Mukhang alam ko na kung saan ito patungo.

"Ma'am, alam niyo naman po na ako ang nagbabayad ng tuition ko. Kailangan ko po na pagkasyahin ang oras ko sa trabaho at pag-aaral. If it's the quality of the work, I can make sure to exceed your expectation in every paper I pass."

"I know that, Mr. De Leon. We have talked about your circumstances many times. And you are smart, I can't deny such a fact. But I still want you to acquire some collaborative experience. This project is all about collaboration anyway. And I think you two are best for each other." Dumako ang tingin ni Ma'am kay Axel at sinabi na, "Axel hates having his fans as his groupmates. Hindi man masyadong nahahalata but he is tired of the attention. You, Mr. De Leon, on the other hand," Ms. Dy then looked at me again, "Hates slow people as they always hold you back in attending your part time jobs. Mr. De Leon does not care about you Mr. Wesley, he is certainly not your fan. While Mr. Wesley is smart, he can surely catch up with you Mr. De Leon."

A minute of silence covered the dean's office. Habang nakangiti lang kaming tinitingnan ni Ms. Dy. She looks so satisfied after stating her reasons.

Lumingon ako kay Axel Wesley. Nakasimangot siya, habang nakapatong sa kamay niya ang kanyang baba.

"I can see that you guys still hate the idea," Ma'am said, "but you don't have a choice. I won't give you your grades if you don't collaborate with each other."

Napabuntong-hininga na lang ako since I know that no one could stop Ms. Dy with her decision.

I barely managed to shun Axel today, at ngayon kailangan ko pa na maging kagrupo siya?
I still have work to do and a due date to catch.
Seriously, how unlucky can I be?