Deja vu

Melinda

Malea's POV

" Hello! Ako si Melinda, you can call me Melinda. I'm 18 years old and I transferred from Visayas. Sana maging matatag ang pakikipag-kaibigan ko sa inyo. "

Melinda, huh? Nag-transfer siya in the middle of the semester, ang weird naman. Troubled kid siguro siya.

Anyways, matatapos na din naman ang klase namin for Gen Bio, ang hirap! Hindi pa ako nakaka-review for my pre-cal test this week, talk about being busy.

I sat with Thea for lunch at the table.

" I really tried to forget about sa nangyari with the speakers, but I really can't. Ang hirap kalimutan no'n, lalo na't tungkol yun sa kaibigan natin na patay na! " tugon ni Thea.

"They might hear you! I've done some research, the only possible way is for it to be pre-recorded. " I said.

" Well, it has to be such a good recording that it was played live! Don't lie to yourself, one way or another, si Betty yun. " saad ni Thea.

" Fine, whatever. Let's stop by the library later, I have to study for pre-cal. " ani ko kay Thea.

" Uy, same! May test ako for General Mathematics and pinapalaki niya yung eyebags ko, stressed ako this past few days. Also, we need a distraction sa recent deaths na nangyayari. "

" Sana nga matapos na 'to, ang hirap na, parang ang malas natin this past week. Namatay si Betty, maraming tests and finals are coming up. "

Tinapos na namin yung lunch namin at dumaan sa library.

" Mrs. Bautista? Can we borrow some books po? " wika ko habang hinahanap si Mrs. Bautista.

" Sure! Kuha nalang kayo diyan ng kailangan niyo then fill-upan yung form dyan. Return it ah! " Mrs. Bautista said.

" Opo, sige. Salamat. " tugon ni Thea.

Kinuha ko na iyong libro ko para sa pre calculus at kinuha na ni Thea yung para sa

general math niya. Mabigat at makapal ang mga libro kaya nahihirapan kami na bitbitin yung mga libro pero nasa ground floor lang naman ang library kaya okay lang.

May lumabas mula sa likod ng library. Si Melinda, iyong bago naming kaklase.

" Hello. Ako pala si Melinda, from Visayas. You're in my general biology and my general mathematics class, right? " sabi niya habang hawak ang libro.

" Ay, alam ko ang libro na 'yan! Ang mga kaibigan ni Mama Susan. Ang ganda! Na-trauma nga lang ako sa huli. " sabi ko sa kaniya at tumawa.

" Ay, oo. Maganda 'to, binasa ko 'to noong nasa Visayas pa ako, uulitin ko lang. "

" Ah, okay. Mauna na kami ah? May pre-cal pa kami eh. " sabi ni Thea.

" Ay, okay lang. Break time naman namin ngayon dahil nawalan ng malay si Ms. Reese. " tugon ni Melinda.

Saka kami umalis sa library. Naglalakad palang kami patungo sa pre-cal, nagsalita ulit si Thea.

" Ang weird niya, ano? Ang mga kaibigan ni Mama Susan? Who reads Bob Ong anyways? "

" Uh, excuse me, ang ganda kaya ng novels ni Bob Ong, especially iyong Ang mga kaibigan ni Mama Susan. " I said.

" Whatever, I didn't see you for someone who reads horror novels. I thought you liked rom-com novels. Anyways, let's go na. Baka bawasan tayo ng grade ni Sir Balicio."

Mabait naman si Melinda, but she is weird. Like, she came here for a reason, hindi ko lang alam ang rason.

Anonymous voice

Competitor 1: Marcus

Competitor 2: Emorpheus

Competitor 3: Wana

Competitor 4: Selene

Competitor 5: Yzabel

Competitor 6: Via

Competitor 7: Thea

Competitor 8: Primo

Competitor 9: Melinda

Last but not least.

Malea.

Anonymous voice ends.

" What happened?! Ano yun?! "Sigaw ko.

Ang sakit niya sa tainga, pagkatapos 'nun ay ang naririnig ko lang ay may lalaking nagsasabi ng pangalan ko. Nagdilim ang mata ko, hindi makontrol ang sarili ko. Hindi ko malaman kung anong nangyayari, naririnig ko lang ang boses ni Thea.

" Malea! Malea! Ano bang nangyari?! Okay ka lang ba? Tumawag kayo ng Ospital! "

Suddenly, a gun fires. The sound of the bullet made my head hurt. Then, I remembered it. One of the worst times of my life.

" Losing my brother. His name was Achilles, he was my best friend, my second teacher and my very own psychiatrist. He kept me sane throughout my childhood. When I got bullied, he would bully them back. He wanted to be a lawyer so that he could stop people from getting molested. When I was 7, I was r***d. I didn't talk about it for months, 'cause I thought no one would believe me. The person who sexually assaulted me was a stranger. I still dream about it, the tears I shed, the sadness I felt. Five months after the assault, I told my brother. I cried for, god knows how long. He was there for me, he dreamt of being a lawyer to make people's voices heard. He was, and still is my hero." I said to the police while staring into the white wall.

" And, did you report this incident? This is a sensitive topic, ma'am. We need you to tell us the story as detailed as possible. "

My mom rushes to the room and pulls the officer outside.

" Please, not now. Malea has recovered from her brother's death, bringing it up now and making her tell it will bring back the pain. Give her a day or two. And never tell her to tell it more detailed, if she can't tell it as detailed as you like, then please f*cking leave. "

The officer understood and left the hospital.

I honestly felt nothing, well, if you consider being empty and lifeless an emotion, then yes, I do feel something.

But, I keep wondering to myself. Why were there competitors? For what competition? Why was I a part of it?

Other than Marcus, Thea and Melinda. I don't know anybody else. Why was I last? Why 10? What is this game?

" Uy! Malea! Okay ka lang? Mabuti pinayagan ako ni Mama at Papa na bisitahin ka rito kahit school night! Ito oh, binilhan kita ng fruits and your favorite chocolate, ferrero rocher! Medyo mahal ah, pero binigyan naman ako ni mama ng pera, basta daw ikaw. "tugon ni Thea habang hawak ang basket na puno ng flowers, fruits, letters at chocolates.

" Marami namang nagbigay. Buong school ba binigyan ako? "ani ko.

" Ay, alam mo na. Kalahati yan ay galing sa mga boys sa school. May nakita rin ako diyang letter from Marcus, basahin mo dali! " sabi ni Thea.

" Ano ba, Thea! Ang cringe siguro nito. Marcus was, and still is a romantic. " saad ko, pero alam ko na mapapangiti ako sa letter na 'to. Palagi naman eh, kahit last week, nagpadala siya ng flowers. Isn't it cliche?

I opened up the letter and read it out loud, of course kay Thea lamang.

" Dear Malea,

I know we've had our differences in the past and I know you've gotten over me, you've made that clear multiple times. Despite that, I won't give up. You're my lover and you always will be. Get well, my love. I might be Paris in Romeo and Juliet, but you can be my Juliet. I'll save you and will love you forevermore.

Sincerely yours,

Marcus. "

" Nurse! Help! What's happening to her?! Doc! Tulungan niyo kami! " Sigaw ni Thea.

The doctor rushes into the room along with the nurses.

" She's going into shock! Give her a dose of. "

I flatlined, the code blue signal was the last thing I heard.

" Code Blue! Starting chest compressions. Prepare the crash cart, if this gets any worse we will have to put her in the ICU." saad ng doctor.

" Doc! What's happening to her? Is she okay? " Ani ni Thea habang humahagulgol.

" Nurses, please take away the visitor. I can't focus. "

I guess Betty was right, it always starts with tragedy. The only way to end it is with another tragedy. In this case, the start was my death.