LET LOVE FIND YOU

Chapter 5: Friday Squad Night

From the deepest desires often come the deadliest hate. (-Socrates)

*****

AIKA



When Rina and I walked out of Tito Ted's office, I was frowning.

Inis na inis ako sa pagiging arrogante at pagiging mahangin ng lalaking yun pero mas lalo akong naiinis sa sarili ko because he has that effect on me!

Naiinis ako kasi naiinis ako! No reason. Basta yun na yun.

Akala nya kung sino sya! Mabango lang sya at gwapo pero wala syang appeal kasi ang hambog nya!!!

"So, that was the infamous President Enzo pala, girl. In fairness, gwapo sya ha. At gwapo rin yung Dwayne. Where have they've been ba all this time? Parang wala kasi akong gwapong nakikita dito sa campus until now ha. And oh my! Mabango sila. Was it Givenchy?"

I rolled my eyes at Rina's banter.

"Eww, is that the basis of gwapo for you, girl? You have lowered your standards na yata with your definition of gwapo. I didn't see them as gwapo. I saw them as arrogant, haughty, and overbearing assholes! Kala nila kung sino sila... And it wasn't Givenchy. It was Tom Ford Noir!"

"Really??? Coming from someone who said she doesn't give a damn, andaming mong adjectives to describe them ha. And hey! You noticed the scent! So, confidently it means, napansin mo nga! Hahaha. And also wait, have you noticed the way his eyes challenged you when he threw that question back? Aba! Hinamon ka girl!" Rina teased. It seems that she was enjoying my discomfort and dismay over that Enzo!

"Excuse me, but I'm not backing out to whatever challenge he has on his mind!" I spat back.

"Oh! may pa challenge "eme-eme" na. Hahaha... I can’t wait to see that. Ngayon lang kita nakitang nainis na ganyan sa male species ha."

I rolled my eyes again and snickered, "Yeah, whatever."

And I snapped my head to face Rina again. "And what the hell dies "eme-eme" means??? You know, you should review your terminology, girl. You are using words not suitable to your status."

Rina laughed. "I learned "eme-eme" is the same as saying "whatever or whatever it is" and I just thought it sounded cute." She kept laughing at my irritation.

"Ok! Eme eme!" I retorted with my eyes rolling.

“Hahaha. You’re so cute, girl!”

I rolled my eyes again.

Rina and I haven't got a chance to meet the rest of the girls because we have different schedules of classes. It was just like a mental understanding sa aming apat na kapag tapos na ang classes, nagkikita kita na lang kami for a short chit chat at the parking lot.

And of course, we have our weekend bonding. It was something that we definitely look forward to, always.

Don't get us wrong, we're maybe bitches but our academic grades have always been commendable.

After all, we have a name to keep up and though being privileged has its perks, kailangan pa rin naming pinagtatrabahuhan ang grades namin.

I, for one, have been on a consistent dean's list for years now, as well as with my other friends in our respective departments.

Kaya nga kahit na ano man ang bad impression ng ibang students sa amin, our professors never give it a big deal kasi alam nila how we do our part as students.

Most of the time nga, it's the reason why most of them raised their eyebrows at us, na kesyo dahil ganyan kami or ganito..

Na dahil sipsip kami and everything

We don't really give a damn!

Mamatay man sila sa inggit, hindi na namin kasalanan yun.

Today is Friday and it only means it's our girl's night out.

As usual, we got into this posh club called "Mazza" that our parents would allow us kasi kakilala nila ang nagmamay ari nito. Iilang bar at clubs lang kasi ang pwede naming puntahan na pinapayagan kami ng mga parents namin, and usually, those places are known to them.

We usually drown ourselves sa inuman pag weekends and wala namang problema because as always, iisang sasakyan lang ang ginagamit namin, at parating kasama si Kuya Isko, to drive us and Ate Cheng.

By the way, Kuya Isko is Sophia's driver ever since and Si Ate Cheng naman ay nanny ni Sophia na asawa ni Kuya Isko. They saw us grow up before their very eyes.

Sophia's parents will only allow her to go out pag kasama sina Kuya Isko at Ate Cheng. Papayagan lang din kami ng mga magulang namin kung andyan si Sophia kasi alam ng mga magulang namin na mas may kasama kaming magbabantay. I'm pretty sure nagtatawagan ang mga mommies naman pag may ganito.

Sila parati ang kasa kasama namin sa mga nightouts at gala tulad nito kasi alam na ni Kuya Isko at Ate Cheng ang gagawin sa amin pag nalasing kami.

We never mind their company, kasi mababait naman sila at tama rin naman na dapat may makakasama kami sa mga ganyan.

Kadalasan, they just stay inside the van at doon matulog while waiting for us or minsan, Kuya Isko would also date Ate Cheng, which is so "kilig" din.

And being regulars, we usually have this VIP place in Mazza which is located at a mezzanine floor of the club, a bit far from where the real action is happening kasi medyo may privacy dun. It was our favorite place because hindi ganun kagulo at makapag usap kami like all girls would really love to do.

We were about to be ushered by our favorite server to our place when Rina suddenly stopped and said; "You know what girls, let's try something different tonight."

Sophia raised her brow. "What kind of "different" is that? Aber?"

Rina shrugged her shoulders, maybe realizing that her suggestion isn't that great to make a difference. "Well, I'm just thinking if we can stay here near the dance floor, for a change instead of the usual VIP table we reserve."

I saw how Miel's eyes twinkled in glee and Sophia's wide smile that could almost reach her ears.

They answered in unison. "Sure!"

I just rolled my eyes.

"Come on Aiks, wala ka namang magagawa. In this squad, the majority wins."

I actually don't mind kung saan kami pupwesto. I only want to drink tonight. Sobrang stressed na ako sa acads, knowing na nagsisimula lang ulit ng class at gusto kong lunurin ang sarili ko sa alak ngayon.

I really only have one concern, and I hate to admit it sa mga kaibigan ko. I just felt I wasn't dressed enough to be on the dance floor.

I was only wearing leather black, fitted pants, and a white haltered, peplum top. Even my shoes! I was just wearing my Gucci squared heeled sandals na di man lang umabot ng 2 inches.

Unlike sa mga kaibigan ko, the three of them were wearing dresses and stilettos, something that they really planned all along.

Di ko naman kasi inexpect na dito kami pupwesto. I thought dun pa kami sa dating place namin na bihira ang mga tao na makita kami.How can I say no? eh lahat sila yun ang gusto, so talo na ako.

I sighed. "I wasn't dressed well."

Those three pairs of eyes looked at me from head to toe, and their expressions tell me na mukha na akong baliw sa pinagsasabi ko or like there was really something wrong with me.

"If "wasn't dressed well" means wearing Gucci sandals, YSL leather pants, and a Zara top, ewan ko na lang." Miel rolled her eyes on me.

"And if I may add, a Chanel bangle on your left wrist and a Rolex on your right, plus an LV sling on your shoulders, then pano naman ako??? Overdressed na?" Rina added sarcastically.

"And duh, as if we care what other people think naman no!" sabi naman ni Sophia. "So, keri na yan, girl. You look gorgeous as you always are." She kissed me on my cheeks.

Now, how can I say no to them? Syempre hindi! Talo na ako eh. Majority wins nga, di ba?

Our server gave us a very good table, one located near the bar where the bartenders could easily and immediately serve us and bouncers who could clearly see us and not far from the dance floor too. The cocktail tables are usually not big enough kayat binigyan kami ng server namin ng dalawang tables. He moved beside each one kasi alam nya na umo-order kami ng maraming foods pag andito kami.

Kaya nga't sana mas comfy dun sa VIP kasi mas wider ang table dun.

The club wasn't that crowded yet, though a few tables have been occupied already.

We were on our 2nd pitcher of strawberry margaritas and God knows kung ano pang appetizers ang nasa table namin. Mas crowded pa ang tables namin kesa tao dito sa club.

Kunsabagay, it is not midnight yet. Normally, pag malapit nang midnight, biglang napupuno na ang mga tao dito.

It was really fun having time with my girls and I admit, mas masaya pala dito sa baba kasi feeling mo, andito ka talaga sa club! Unlike pag nasa VIP lounge ka, dahil medjo secluded ang place, it felt like kayo kayo lang ng mga kaibigan mo ang magkakasama.

Tonight, it is indeed different.

We recognized some familiar faces coming in. Mostly from other schools but they looked familiar na din kasi we have seen them somewhere.

As the people started to pour in inside, the music started to hype.

Other familiar faces suddenly came in and passed by our tables.

"Oh, my Gee. Those guys are from our school!" Rina exclaimed.

Our eyes were diverted sa kung saan ang nginunguso ni Rina.

Three tables away from us, I saw them. Yes, those guys are from our school!

That arrogant President of our Student Council and his minions!!! What are they doing here?

"Really? I don't know them! Are they from SouthFord too?" Sophie asked in awe.

"Yeah, they're our student council officers!" Rina emphasized, glancing at me and probably checking my reaction.

I remained unaffected but I also knew I was smirking.

"Oh! It's intriguing. I didn't know we have good-looking male species din pala sa school ha." Miel commented, also looking unaffected.

“Yeah, same thing on my mind, luv!” Rina added.

For a while, I was glad na hindi sila interesado sa mga yun kasi naiirita akong makita yang Presidenteng yan.

I still recalled how he challenged me with that look on his face!

"How do you know them, luv?" Sophie asked, not wanting to change the topic.

We normally call each other luv, or girl. It was the endearment we use for each other.

Rina sipped on her glass and said, "Well, it is a long story but---"

"A long, irrelevant, boring story that I'm pretty sure, not worth our time." I cut in. "We have more interesting topics that we can talk about other than those arrogant assholes." I drank the half remaining margarita on my glass in one straight gulp and poured another.

"OH... arrogant assholes... big words!" Sophie teased.

But she didn't stop there. Lumapit sya kay Rina and whispered, but it was loud enough for me to hear. “Why, what happened? Did something happen?”

Not wanting to hear what they were going to talk about, which I know na ikukwento ni Rina kay Sophie, I stood up from my seat. "CR lang ako girls."

Tumayo din si Miel, "Sama ako. I can’t breathe with the girdle I’m using."

We don't use the public comfort room in the club kayat umakyat pa kami ni Miel para sa comfort room ng mga VIPs.

When we got back to our table, Sophie was teasingly smiling at me.

"What?"

"Uhm... nothing... I was just super intrigued with those arrogant assholes."

At alam ko na na di nila ako titigilan ni Rina.

Urgh!!!

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