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Skeletons in the Closet

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"NEVER NAMAN nangyari 'to eh." Jarrell commented as he stood beside Rein who was seated in front of Quinn's desktop. It was already nightfall, pero pinapakinggan pa rin muli ni Rein ang mga interviews na na-irecord nila ngayong araw, in the hopes of finding another lead.

"Never namang umalis si Quinston nang hindi nagpapaalam." Jarrell said once more to Rein. He then wearily glanced outside Quinn's window, worrying that their friend might not come home as he promised.

It had only been a few minutes since the girls had left the two alone in their dorm. Despite the fact that it was still in the early hours of the evening, it was already far too dark — with both of them anticipating Quinn's return.

Rein, who had now turned off the desktop, stood up and walked out of Quinn's room and towards their living room; with Jarrell following close behind him.

"Never na may pinuntahan si Quinn nang hindi nagsasabi." Jarrell repeated, and Rein let out a sigh before finally facing him.

"Alam ko Jarrell. 'Di mo kailangang ulit-ulitin." Iritadong sagot ng binata. Quinn's absence had taken a different kind of toll on both of them; with Jarrell being anxious than usual, and Rein being irritated than customary.

Pakiramdam ni Rein ay para silang naputulan ng isang paa sa panandaliang pagkawala ni Quinn; especially since their heist that morning could have been easily thwarted if they had not made an effort to push through with it.

Dahil muntikan nang sumemplang ang kanilang plano kaninang umaga, it only furthered Rein's belief that each and everyone of them were important with regards to the success of their investigation — something that Quinn seemed to have disregarded, much to Rein's bitter dismay.

But aside from Quinn's obvious relevance to the case, the two boys were worried of course — not just because of the close call earlier, but because Quinn was still after all, their friend.

And friends didn't keep secrets.

As silence hung upon the room after Rein's outburst, the door to their dormitory suddenly creaked open, and the subject of their conversation soon entered the room.

"Quinn!" Jarrell croaked in relief as he greeted the spectacled boy with a rough hug, happy to see that their friend was safe and alright after all.

"Err, hi." Quinn managed to say, as Rein stared at him as if he was a stranger. Napansin ng binata na may hawak-hawak itong trophy sa isang kamay, at suot niya ang kaniyang lumang backpack na hanggang ngayon ay hindi pa niya napapalitan.

"So, kamusta yung ano..." Jarrell asked as soon as he he had pulled away from hugging Quinn, his voice trailing off as his eyes darted towards the trophy that Quinn quickly hid behind his back.

The three boys had been friends for four years already, but right now, it seemed as if none of them knew the exact right words to say to each other. Para bang hindi nila kilala ang isa't-isa, lalo na si Quinn na namumula na sa kahihiyan.

"...the competition?" Jarrell offered, trying to make conversation. But Quinn only shrugged his shoulders, avoiding the topic.

"Okay lang." He said coldly, the tone of his voice being sharper than he intended to when he saw the look of disappointment and betrayal that ghosted over Rein's face.

Quinn knew. Even without Rein speaking, Quinn knew that he wanted answers — right here, right now.

Mapait na ngumiti ang binata.

Kaibigan ko sila ng apat na taon. Quinn thought bitterly. They of all people shouldn't judge me for doing whatever the hell I want. I deserve to do things on my own accord.

As the silent tension between the three of them grew, Quinn understood that Jarrell and Rein were waiting for him to explain. But the dark-skinned boy of course, was not yet ready to acknowledge the elephant in the room, and hoped that the two boys would understood and respect his silence.

Yet after a few more seconds of ringing silence, Quinn gave a bitter smile. He was disappointed in them for not understanding that he didn't want to speak, as much as they were disappointed with him for abandoning them when they needed him most.

"Sa kwarto lang ako." The spectacled boy finally spoke, not meeting their questioning gazes.

"Ha?" Kunot-noong tanong ni Jarrell. "Hindi ka ba kakain—"

Quinn didn't let Jarrell finish his sentence as he eventually shut himself in his own room, locking the door swiftly. Jarrell's face immediately fell at this action, and Rein's look of disappointment turned into disdain.

This wasn't the Quinn they knew.

And what haunted Rein the most as he stared at Quinn's closed door, was that maybe, they never really knew Quinn at all.

Shaking his head with a grimace, he then snatched his laptop bag from the coffee table, hurriedly pushing his laptop and journal inside it before slinging the bag over his shoulder.

"I'll be at the library." Rein muttered under his breath, remembering that before the three ladies had left there dorm, he and Ann had an agreement. Napag-usapan ng dalawa na magkita sa library pagkatapos nilang kumain ng pang-hapunan, with the notion to work on their novel now that they have a little lead regarding their investigation.

As Rein headed towards the door, Jarrell, who would usually greet him goodbye with loud, obnoxious, smooching sounds just to spite him, did not give a reply. He was too bothered with Quinn's distant attitude to think about anything else.

Napatigil sa paglalakad si Rein at lumingon sa kaniyang tahimik na kaibigan. He would have to cheer Jarrell up later.

With a deep exhale, Rein then shut their dormitory door behind him and made his way towards the library, which was opened until nine in the evening. Right now, it was only 6:30 p.m. — still enough time for him and Ann to write a chapter or two for their novel.

As Rein walked out of the dormitory building and across the campus, the young man unconsciously squared his shoulders stiffly as the tension between him and his friends weighed him down.

Around him, the campus was lit in its usual warm lights that made the place comforting. But despite the cozy aura, Rein did not feel at all comforted, for Quinn's sudden presence reignited the feeling he had felt that morning when they learned that he had abandoned them. It was the disgusting feeling of betrayal.

Pakiramdam nito ay may tinatagong sikreto si Quinn sa kanila. And right now, keeping secrets were something that they shouldn't be doing as a group. Kailangan nilang pagkatiwalaan ang isa't-isa, especially if they wanted to outsmart their opponent as a team.

But if Quinn has no plans on telling them sooner about his secret agenda today, Rein would have no choice but to deem him suspicious — even if he was his longtime friend.

Napailing si Rein. Maybe I'm being too harsh on him? He asked himself with a sigh, finally entering the library by pushing the double doors with one hand.

"Curious to see you here so late, Maccio. Doing some late night studying?" Emerie Castrana greeted him sarcastically as soon as he had stepped inside the library.

"Good evening to you too, Emerie." He greeted her back, facing Emerie who was at her usual position — sitting right behind the library's desk as she painted her nails with the color black.

"I was actually going to do some groundwork for our group's research." Paliwanag ng binata habang nire-register ang kaniyang pangalan sa registration sheet ng library, which was used to keep track of all the students who visited the place.

"Oooh," Emerie grinned, raising a hand to check her nails. "Ann Lobris is your groupmate right? Well, according to what she said to the press the other night, she is." She rambled on. "Kaya naman pala nandito rin siya. Hmmm, interesting. In fact, she arrived a little earlier than you."

"Aren't you the detective." Rein raised an eyebrow before curving his lips into a smirk that usually made the girls fawn all over him.

Emerie though, ignored his remark, giving her nails a second coat of nail polish. "She's seated on the farthest table by the way. Though siguro napag-usapan niyo na yun — being research groupmates and all. Ang nacu-curious ako ay kung anong meron sa kanila ni Mayer Cortez?"

At the sound of Mayer's name, Rein stopped in his tracks, his smirk fading before raising his head to look up at Emerie with a frown. "Excuse me?"

The assistant librarian shrugged. "He's been talking to her for a good ten minutes now. Funny enough, she's actually entertaining him back — even flirting with him."

At these words, Rein's eyes narrowed into slits.

"What the hell do you mean?" He asked with a dangerous edge in his tone, slowly straightening his back.

"See for yourself." Emerie said without looking up. Rein stared at her, wondering if he should, before finally succumbing and turning around.

The sight that greeted him almost knocked the air out of his lungs.

Napakurap ang binata. He stood there by the librarian's desk, staring at his rival who sat at the very back of the library, not seen unless one would look hard enough to see that Ann Lobris was indeed playfully chatting with Mayer Cortez.

Agad na dumilim ang paningin ni Rein. Instead of Ann busy working on their novel and typing away on the laptop in front of her, she was engrossed in Mayer Cortez's charming presence who sat on the table where she was working. He looked cool — making conversation and flashing her a teasing smile that made the blood in Rein's veins boil.

The overarching burst of feelings from yesterday night that he had harbored during the socialite party, seemed to cover him like vines until he was nothing but green with envy.

"Have a blast doing your research by the way." Emerie remarked once more, snapping him back to reality. He sharply turned to face her again.

"Thanks. See you wherever, Emerie." Sambit ng binata pabalik, pilit na hindi pinapakita sa dalaga na apektado ito sa nakita.

He then left the assistant librarian by her desk, before walking towards the two with a lump in his throat. The library was barely empty during the night, with only a few students here and there scattered across the vast room, lost in their own worlds.

Just like the other students, Rein too was lost in his own world, fighting an internal battle as he walked closer towards the end of the library. He didn't like whatever he was currently feeling. He didn't like it at all.

When he was now just about two bookshelves away from the room's end, he could finally hear the ongoing conversation between Ann and Mayer who seemed to not have noticed his incoming presence.

"Come on," Rein could hear Mayer say with his lopsided grin as he passed the rows of mahogany housing the books. "It's just a coffee date."

Napaigting ang panga ng binata. Unconsciously, he balled his hands into fists as he glanced towards the two from between the shelves.

He could see Ann chuckling and shaking her head.

"Sorry, busy talaga eh. Besides, my parents would rather I stay here in school where I'm safe. They've become paranoid after what happened you know, the fainting scandal and all."

"Oh," Mayer's said in disappointment, and Rein couldn't help but grimace as the two finally came to his view.

"But if you can, you'd accept my offer right?"

Natawa muli ang dalaga. "Maybe." She said teasingly. Mayer let out a groan and the two started their playful banter once more. It was time for Rein to intervene.

"Ehem." He coughed obnxiously, clearing his throat. Agad na napatigil ang dalawa at napatingin kay Rein na matigas na nakatayo sa kanilang harapan, particularly gazing at Mayer with a cold look.

"Presi." Mayer exclaimed with a bright smile. But as soon as he saw Rein's serious gaze, Mayer's smile faded.

He too, cleared his throat. "Uh, I'll see you tomorrow, Ann?"

"Yeah, sure."

And with that, the two waved their goodbyes. When he was sure that Mayer was out of earshot, Rein sat down and placed his laptop bag on the table in a grouchy manner.

"You don't have to be so rude Maccio." Ann snapped, leaning forward from across the table. "Napadaan lang naman yung tao."

Rein scoffed as he pulled out his things.

"Napadaan? You let that guy distract you." He spat out, not meeting Ann's gaze.

"Excuse me??" Ann frowned. Hindi pinansin ng binata ito at saka binuksan ang kaniyang laptop — drumming his fingers atop the table.

"Don't you dare ignore me when I'm talking to you!" The short-haired girl hissed, pushing away his laptop so that Rein could face her.

When the two finally locked eyes, Rein's face creased. Looking directly at his rival only resurfaced every tidbit of strong emotion that he was feeling. And he absolutely despised it.

It was very unlike him to feel possessive — if that was the word, especially if it involved his number one rival.

"Instead of focusing on our goal and writing the next chapters of our novel, you flirt with Mayer Cortez." He said angrily, the tone in his voice rising with each word that left his mouth.

Ann looked at him, extremely appalled.

"Are you accusing me of being a slack-off??" Hindi makapaniwalang tanong ng dalaga.

Rein shook his head in disbelief before pushing back his laptop towards him. "No, I'm saying you're easily distracted."

"Jesus, Maccio! What do you want me to do? Gusto mo itaboy ko yung tao??" Ann shot back.

"I would!" Rein said aloud, turning to her sharply. "Do you think I would compromise work just to entertain every girl that I meet?? Common sense naman Lobris!"

Ann flushed in both anger and embarrassment. "You can't accuse me like this. I wrote several chapters the other day when I should have been resting after being abducted! And now that I get only one moment of being myself, just ONE moment, you tell me off as if it's a bad thing—"

"It is a bad thing!" Rein exclaimed, perplexed. "We can't afford to be distracted now. Ikaw ang may gusto nito diba?!" He scoffed accusingly. When Ann was now too angry to say a coherent reply, he then stood up from where he sat, walking towards her.

"What are you doing??" She frowned, staring at him as he neared her.

"Tignan natin kung may nasulat ka." Sambit nito, as if challenging her.

"Wow," Ann scoffed. "For your information, may nasulat ako bago pa 'ko kausapin ni Mayer."

"Let's see it then." Rein challenged her in a cold tone.

Napairap agad ang dalaga at saka binuksan muli ang MS Word file ng kanilang novel.

"See, I'm not useless Maccio—"

Hindi na natapos ni Ann ang kaniyang sasabihin nang lumingon ito para harapin si Rein.

To her surprise, the young man had crouched down — his left hand placed on the back of her chair, and his right hand planted on top of the table as he gazed at her laptop seriously. He was hovering dangerously close behind her with his face only a few meters above her shoulder.

"Scroll up." He ordered. And Ann, whose cheeks and neck had now flushed into a bright shade of red, scrolled furiously using her mouse.

"Well?" She demanded, hot bright eyes turning to face Rein once more who stared right back at her with his face up close. Dahil sa kalapitan ng dalawa ay mas kita ni Ann ang sugat sa pisngi ni Rein.

Rein's gaze on the other hand, surveyed Ann's face. Napatitig ito sa mahabang pilik-mata ng dalaga, bago ibinaba ang kaniyang tingin sa labi nito.

"Well??" Ann demanded once more, but this time her voice was short and out of breath with the way they were positioned — but most especially because of the way Rein was looking at her.

Napalunok ng laway ang binata bago lumayo, straightening his back and staring at his rival in a manner different from how he used to look at her before.

Rein cursed himself as he turned his face away. Hindi niya alam kung bakit siya nagkakaganito. It was very unlike him to be like this — the ever-charming Reagan Iñigo Maccio, who was usually the one being chased by women, was now distracted with one particular lady.

His rival.

Saka lang napagtanto ng binata na kailangan niya munang lumayo sa lahat — clear his mind off from all the emotional distraction troubling inside him.

Before Ann could say anything more, Rein took a deep breath. Ibinalik na niya ang kaniyang tingin sa dalaga at saka inilabas mula sa kaniyang bulsa ang kanilang flashdrive.

He then tossed it to her the same way she tossed it to him during the socialite party.

"I've rewritten the outline for chapters 15-20." Malamig na sabi ng binata. "I also proofread the chapters you wrote — added a few scenes, tweaked a few words here and there. But it was great work, Lobris." He said stiffly with a pause.

"I can write the succeeding chapters if you want me to, since you're obviously too preoccupied with someone else."

And with that, the young Maccio heir finally walked away, leaving a very confused Ann Lobris watch him go — wondering what in the world did she do wrong.

---

There was an air of stiffness between the six comrades as they attended their classes the next day. Jarrell, who was usually the one creating noise alongside Javier, was quiet. Nakapanlumo ito at nakatingin sa bintana habang nilalaro ang kaniyang ballpen, flitting and spinning it around his fingers.

Most of the time, the pen would just slip and fall from his fingers. But because he had nothing better to do, agad rin itong pupulutin ni Jarrell at lalaruin muli.

Rein on the other hand, was busy playing some kind of puzzle on his phone while listening to rock music — drowning everyone out with the loud riffs of guitars. Kung pwede ay gusto niyang magpalamon sa malakas na tugtog, upang masiguradong hindi na siya makakaramdam pa.

He didn't want to further entertain the feelings that were overpowering him lately. Ayaw niya munang isipin si Quinn, o si Ann. Because the more that his mind drifted to these emotions, the more he remembered his father's own words.

"Emotions are a sign of weakness!" His father would growl, beating him harder everytime he would cry as a child.

Rein shifted uncomfortably in his chair, pushing the memory away. Dahil dito ay mas lalo lang niyang nilakasan ang volume ng music na kaniyang pinapakinggan.

Meanwhile, Quinn on the other hand still sat beside his two friends out of courtesy. However, just like Rein and Jarrell, he too was ignoring them both and fiddling on his laptop. Katulad ng dalawa ay wala ring balak na makipag-usap si Quinn. Pakiramdam nito ay wala ring pupuntahan kung mag-usap silang tatlo.

Ann of course, was poring over a book, her lips sealed in a tight line as she tried to push away the thought of Rein from her mind. She had decided to tuck herself away in the corner of her armchair and not acknowledge anyone, even Queenie or Sera. As much as possible, tinatago rin ng dalaga ang kaniyang mukha sa ilalim ng kaniyang bangs

Queenie, who had noticed the sour mood between them since the start of the day, but only acknowledged it during their last afternoon class, frowned. Palipat-lipat itong tumingin sa apat.

"Anong problema nung apat?" Tanong ni Queenie kay Sera na nagsasalamin muli gamit ang kaniyang compact mirror.

"Maybe they're just not in the mood to talk?" Sera offered, reapplying her lipstick.

Napailing naman si Queenie bago tinignan muli ang kaniyang mga kaibigan. "Para silang binagsakan ng langit at lupa." She said sympathetically.

As Queenie continued watching her four friends sulk on, Sera's phone suddenly vibrated as she received a text message.

"Who's that? Another one of your suitors?" Panunukso ni Queenie nang silipin ni Sera ang kaniyang cellular device.

"Please," Sera rolled her eyes as she opened the message.

But what Sera received was far from what Queenie had expected.

The young girl almost dropped both her phone and compact mirror as she stared in both horror and disbelief at the photo sent to her.

It was a picture of her, Jarrell, Ann and Rein during the Marquez socialite party.

The photo was taken from a great distance, but clear enough to see that the four of them were suspiciously running away from the main hall — as if they were secretly sneaking off to somewhere in the mansion with bad intentions.

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