ERALD

WE THOUGHT that only a powerful earthquake could shake and shock Clark High.

But we were wrong.

Martes ng umaga, umalingawngaw ang bulung-bulungan sa bawat classroom at corridors. Students had their phones out, showing to the unaware what the latest news was.

Gaya ng nakasanayan, wala akong pakialaman sa kung ano ang pinag-uusapan nila. Nagpatuloy lang ako sa paglalakad sa kahabaan ng hallway habang inoobserbahan ang mala-bubuyog nilang bulungan. Meron na namang tsismis siguro na pinasabog ang Clark High Confessions page kaya active na active ang mga tsismosa ng bayan.

At dahil maaga pa, dumaan muna ako sa clubroom. This week was going to be a busy one as we continue crossing names off our list of potential K-OS Club accomplice. Nadatnan kong nasa loob na sina Clyde at Charlotte, nakatutok sa phone na nakalapag sa mesa.

Pati ba naman sila, nakikiusyoso sa kung ano ang hottest topic sa campus? Itong si apat-na-mata, imbes na ituloy ang pag-i-interrogate, nagawa pang maki-tsismis. We have a job to do!

"Good morning, Erald!" nakangiting bati ni Charlotte. Inihagis ko sa bakanteng upuan ang bag ko at umupo sa katabi nito. "Have you seen the latest post on the Clark High Confessions?"

I rolled my eyes. Sabi ko na nga ba, 'yon ang pinagkakaabalahan nila ngayong umaga. Matagal ko nang in-unfollow ang naturang Facebook page. Matapos kong i-expose ang mole sa loob ng Clark Clarion na nagle-leak ng tsismis sa kanila, wala na akong nakitang pakinabang doon. Ayaw ko ring makabasa ng blind items at walang kwentang confessions sa feed ko.

"I haven't and I don't care," I yawned. "Wala ba kayong magawa ngayong umaga kaya 'yan ang napagdiskitahan n'yong pagtuunan ng pansin? Don't we have better things to do instead of reading gossips?"

"If you have read the newest confession, you would understand why it got our attention," Clyde explained, looking at me sidewards. "At sigurado akong kapag nabasa mo, magkakaroon ka rin ng interes. See for yourself."

"Fine! Fine!" nagmamaktol kong tugon. In-open ko ang Facebook app sa aking phone at pumunta sa page ng Clark High Confessions. My thumb scrolled past the unnecessary stuff and looked for the latest post. At first, I thought it was just a petty blind item with a video. Nang mabasa ko kung sino ang sender, napabalikwas ako ng pagkakaupo at namulagat ang aking mga mata.

The confession came from the wanted K-OS Club. The caption read, "Kanino kaya ang mga boses na 'to? Hulaan!" Pang-tabloid talaga, ha?

I clicked the play button on the video. Puro itim lang ang nakita ko. Ang akala ko nga'y nagba-buffer pa lang. Ilang segundo ang lumipas bago ako nakarinig ng pagkaluskos ng pinto at tila pagpindot sa doorknob. The next sound that I heard were familiar voices, that of a boy and a girl.

"Babalik pa ba sina Madelaine at Reign?"

"I don't think so. I already dismissed them. They probably went home already."

"That's good. We can now..."

"Oh! Not there!"

"Come on! We've been busy the past week. We didn't have time to—"

"Yeah, but—"

"Wala na ring mang-iistorbo sa atin kaya wala kang dapat alalahanin."

"Please, not there!"

What I heard next gave me goosebumps. I could hear their lips kissing and the table moving. Pero hindi roon tumigil ang tunog. Sinundan pa 'to ng mga mahihinang pag-ungol.

Oh, by the way, I forgot to say that this was supposed to be Rated SPG. Not suitable for young audiences which, by the way, was most of Clark High's demographics.

I stopped the video after hearing a few more moans. Natulala ako ng ilang segundo at napaisip kung totoo ba talaga ang narinig ko o hindi. Alam ko kung kanino ang mga boses na 'yon. Alam din nina Clyde at Charlotte kung kanino. They were probably as shocked as I was upon listening to it.

"Now you know why the confession piqued our curiosity," Clyde told me. "Aside from the fact that the sender's name is K-OS Club, the audio involves two of the high-ranking student council officers. Agnes and Bruce, the president and the vice president. A scandal, if you want to call it."

"But I can't believe it," Charlotte shook her head, eyebrows furrowed. "This must be some kind of prank by that rogue group. Baka in-edit nila ang boses ng president at veep para palabasing may ginawa silang kalaswaan. We are talking about the K-OS Club after all."

"That is possible," I nodded. "Audio lang itong material nila at madaling manipulahin gamit ang isang audio editing software."

Naalala ko ang sinabi sa akin ni Torry noon. He threatened me that if I exposed them, they would create a fake phone conversation between me and them using my voice. Meron daw silang member na kayang mag-edit ng photo at boses. If the audio file involving the two student council officers was fake, this would serve as a proof of their talent.

"But the audio sounds authentic," Clyde countered. "We heard the creaking noise of their office door and the pressing of the door lock. Bruce also mentioned Madelaine and Reign's names in the conversation. The pitches of their voice did not change. The ambiant noise was consistent."

"If it was a forgery, then the K-OS Club did a great job," I commented. "If it wasn't a forgery, then it's going to be a huge blow to their dignity. Wala na silang mukhang maihaharap sa mga tao."

"Should we investigate whether the audio is genuine or not?" Charlotte asked. "This is an attack to their reputation! Something must be done."

"The damage has been done," Clyde remarked. "Everyone's talking about the confession and spreading it among their peers. Wala nang pakialam ang mga estudyante kung authentic ito o hindi. They won't bother checking for themselves."

And that's how exactly people fall victim to fake news. Wala na kasing time ang ilang tao na i-verify kung totoo ang balita o hindi. Kung mukhang totoo at tunog totoo, papaniwalaan na nila. The scandal may either be a fake news or a real thing.

"Dahil involved ang K-OS Club dito, pwede tayong mag-initiate ng investigation," sabi ko. "If we get hold of the source of that confession, baka ma-trace natin kung sino at saan galing ito."

"But the Clark High Confessions page uses Google forms," Clyde said. "I doubt that we have the capability to trace the IP address of the confessor. Kung meron kang kilalang professional hacker, baka magawan natin ng paraan."

"Wala bang naka-store diyan sa databank mo kung paano mang-hack?" tanong ko sabay turo sa ulo niya. Kung kailan may kailangan kaming partikular na info, mukhang doon pa walang mahugot si apat-na-mata.

"My databank is not a search engine where you can get any result in an instant," he replied. "I may know something about hacking, but I have no idea on how to apply them."

In short, useless siya. Ang dami-dami pa niyang sinabi, 'yon lang din pala ang punto niya.

"Let's discuss this later," Charlotte said as she grabbed her bag. "Morning classes are about to start. Pag-usapan natin mamaya kung paano natin maisasalba ang reputasyon ng student council."

To be honest, I was not interested in defending the dignity of the president and the vice president. I was only after the possibility that it might lead us to the K-OS Club.

***

What spreads as fast and wide as a wildfire? A scandal.

Mapa-classroom man o cafeteria, wala pa ring humpay ang tsismisan ng mga estudyante tungkol sa umano'y scandal ng president at vice president. The operative word is "umano'y" because it hasn't been confirmed if the audio was not fabricated. Hindi ako gaya ng mga tangang 'to na naniwala kaagad sa confession para lang may mapag-usapan.

My morning wouldn't be complete without the clubhouse sandwich. Sa dinami-dami kasi ng pwedeng bilhin sa cafeteria, ito lang ang pumasa sa panlasa. I swiped my ID card on the sensor to pay for the food. When we wanted to buy something, all we needed to do was to load up our cards. Hindi na kailangang magbigay ng perang papel o barya.

Tumayo ako sa tapat ng isang mesa kung saan tapos nang kumain ang tatlong estudyante. Ubos na rin ang softdrinks nila. Nagtsitsismisan na lang sila tungkol sa scandal. Tumayo lang ako sa tapat nila habang unti-unting kinakagat ang sandwich. As soon as they noticed my presence, they immediately vacated the table.

The student council officers must be barricaded inside their office, evading reporters from the Clark Clarion and the rumor-mongering students. The longer they say nothing about the issue, the more students would believe that the scandal was genuine.

Muli akong napakagat sa aking sandwich habang pinapanood ang tawanan ng ilang estudyante sa harapan ko. Out of the blue, my vision was blocked a person who stood in front of me. Iniangat ko ang aking mata para makita ang kanyang itsura.

Our university insignia was engraved on the badge pinned on his collar. I thought he was a member of the executive committee, but the design on the engraving was not the same.

I have never met this man who had a determined look on his face. His gray eyes scrutinized me as if he was already judging my life story with just a single stare.

"How may I help you?" Umayos ako ng upo at nagpukol ng nagtatakang tingin sa kanya. Wala akong matandaang lalaki na pinagkaka-atrasuhan ko so why on earth was he intentionally blocking my view?

"You must be Erald Castell of the QED Club," he spoke at last. Ang akala ko'y pipi siya dahil hindi siya umiimik. "My name's Geoffrey Guevarra, chairperson of the Student Grievance Committee."

Grievance? Bigla akong napalunok ng laway. I have read sa student handbook na may grievance committee na under ng Office of the Student Affairs. Dahil in-approach ako ng lalaking 'to, ibig sabihin ba noo'y may atraso ako? Dahil ba 'to sa pagpindot ko ng fire alarm sa acquaintance party na lumikha ng pansamantalang panic. But I already explained my side to the execom!

"Just to be clear, my actions have been—"

"You have probably heard about the alleged scandal of the student council president and veep," Geoffrey cut me short. "I have been tasked by the OSA director to form an ad hoc committee and investigate the misconduct."

"So you are not here to investigate me, but someone else?"

"Not unless you committed an act that is clearly a violation of the student handbook," Geoffrey answered. "I am here to request if you can be a member of that committee. Pitong member ang kailangan ko para mabuo ito. There are still three slots. I heard that the QED Club has three members. Should you accept, you and your friends can fill up the vacancy."

"I can't speak on behalf of our club," depensa ko. "I'm not the president. I'm just a member. Kung gusto mong mahingi ang kooperasyon namin, you should ask our leader."

"Can you relay my message to that person and ask him to meet with me?" Geoffrey asked.

Normally, I would decline anyone who would order me to do something. But there was something strange in this person. He has that commanding aura.

"By the way, it's her. Our president's a girl," I corrected him as I sent a text message to Charlotte. Kahit nanghihinayang ako sa load, itinext ko na rin si Clyde na pumunta rito.

Geoffrey dragged a chair and sat on it as we waited for my two companions. Naging awkward tuloy ang sitwasyon sa table namin. Hindi ko tuloy naubos kaagad ang sandwich ko. Na-conscious kasi ako dahil nakatingin siya sa akin.

After more or less ten minutes, sabay na pumasok sina Charlotte at Clyde sa cafeteria. I waved at them so they would know my place. Marami rin kasing tao sa loob. They took the two other vacant seats, looking curiously at the unfamiliar face.

"Meet Geoffrey of the Student Grievance Committee," I introduced the student across the table. "Meron siyang request para sa atin."

"A case?" Charlotte asked before raising her digital camera and taking a photo of the person. Geoffrey did not seem to mind. "Oh, I hope you don't mind. I have a habit of taking pictures."

"Not really a case," I corrected our club president. "Can you go over your request again?"

"The Office of Student Affairs has appointed me to lead the ad hoc committee to investigate the apparent misconduct of two student leaders," Geoffrey explained. "You have been probably informed about the alleged scandal that's being shared by the students."

"So you want to know whether the president and the vice president committed a violation on their code as student leaders?" tanong ni Clyde.

"Why not investigate if that scandal is real or fake?" Charlotte asked. "'Yon dapat muna ang alamin n'yo bago kayo mag-imbestiga kung may violations silang nagawa, 'di ba?"

"The authenticity of the audio is also part of the investigation," Geoffrey replied.

"Paano tatakbo ang imbestigasyong ito?" tanong ko.

"There's going to be a hearing where we will invite the president and the vice president, as well as some resource speakers," Lawrence explained. "We will ask them questions and based on their answers, we will draw a conclusion on them. After the hearing, we will vote on whether or not there were violations."

"If the committee decides against the two, what will happen?" Charlotte asked.

"We will submit a recommendation to the Office of Student Affairs," Geoffrey answered. "The director will recommend action against them."

"In other words, they can be removed from office?" I asked.

"But the Constitution and By-laws states that the president and vice president can only be removed either through impeachment or resignation," Clyde cited. "The OSA director cannot remove the sitting student council officers."

"Again, the director will recommend action," Geoffrey reiterated. "She may recommend to the president and veep to resign based on our findings. It is up to the two if they want to play hard and cling to their positions."

Nagkatinginan kaming tatlo, tila nag-uusap sa pamamagitan ng isip. If we accept the offer, the fate of Agnes and Bruce would be on our hands. Or to be exact, three-seventh of their fate. The other four members may vote differently from us.

"If the aim of this committee is to discern the truth, then the QED Club has no problem being a part of it," Charlotte declared. "We are partners for the truth after all. Do you have any objections?"

Clyde and I shook our heads.

"Hearing none from my members, pumapayag na kaming sumali sa ad hoc committee," Charlotte told the chairperson. "When can we start?"

"The hearing is set at four in the afternoon," Geoffrey said. "The other three members have already confirmed their availability. We will send a formal communication to the student council and summon them to the same meeting."

"See you then."

Tumayo na si Geoffrey at nagpaalam na sa amin.

Mukhang may panibago naman kaming pagkakaabalahan.