THE LOVER : Lucius Marco

[Treinta Y Seis] CUT

"Omg, hoy! Nakita mo ba yung new magazine na nirelease ng MMAEA?"

"Yess! Tama ba yung nakita ko? Si Emmanuela 'yon diba?"

"Eh diba siya yung baliw daw kasi sa sobrang talino? Kasi nga diba, valedictorian yun noon." The other girl slapped her friend's arm.

"Gaga, hindi. Tinawag na baliw yun kasi parang nakatakas daw sa mental kung makipag-pisikal na away daw yun kay Shane noon." The girl giggled after saying those words.

"Sa pagkakaalam ko hindi eh. Kaya tinatawag yung baliw kasi napapraning yun sa harap ng maraming tao. Bigla 'di daw makahinga or ewan, basta mukha siyang tanga," she ended with an eyeroll.

"Agree, pero infairness, ganda niya dito oh," said another girl that is part of their friend group as she showed something in her phone, probably Emmanuela on the cover magazine of Marco Media and Advertising Entertainment Agency.

As they walk through the hallway, dinig na dinig nilang Frudo at Kyline ang mga bulong-bulongan ng ibang estyudante. Dalawang rason kung bakit; Una, dahil sa bagong magazine na nirelease ng agency ng Marco kung saan front cover si Emmanuela at may sariling content sa magazine. At pangalawa, hindi nila kasama si Emmanuela. It's been a month since they last seen each other and the last day that they did was in their classroom, the day when Kyline confronted Emmanuela regarding with the relationship she has with Lucius, their professor.

Nang isinarado ni Kyline ang locker niya pagkatapos kunin ang sariling libro ay bumungad sa kanya ang nakakarinding mukha ni Shane. Pero 'di nakaguhit sa mukha niya ang palaging nakakairitang nakangising ekspresyon nito sa halip ay parang nagtatampo ito.

"Ano na naman kailangan mo?" naiiritang tanong ni Kyline kay Shane.

Agad nang in‐on ni Shane ang cellphone niya at saka pinakita ang screen nito sa kanila ni Frudo at Kyline.

"Si Emmanuela ba 'to?" tanong nito, halata sa boses niya ang hindi pagpapaniwala.

Nang masilayan ni Kyline ang mukha ni Emmanuela sa phone ni Shane ay 'di ito makagalaw sa kinatatayuan na, pati na si Frudo. Sa litrato; naka-posing habang nakaupo si Emmanuela at walang bakas na ngiti sa mukha niya. She's not wearing a revealing dress but it's sleeveless and her white arms are giving her a somewhat glow, not to mention— the make-up looks great, it made her perfect features pop out, making it more captivating that it already was. She's wearing high-knee black boots and the end of her dress is sitting on her lap while the rest of it is in the floor. Her thighs can be seen and her face is looking up on the camera and her hair is down. She looks astonishing. But Kyline knows better to not appreciate what she's seeing.

Kyline glanced at Shane.

"May mga mata ka, diba? Gamitin mo yan at titigan mo ang picture kung siya ba nga ba 'yan o hindi. 'Di ka naman siguro masyadong bobo para 'di makilala ang taong kinaiinggitan mo. Ilusyonadang palaka." Ani Kyline at saka tumalikod at naglakad palayo.

Frudo and Shane's eyes have widened from Kyline's remark. That literally came out of nowhere. Agad na lamang napasunod si Frudo kay Kyline at naiwang mag-isa si Shane. Tulala at naiinis dahil nagtanong lang naman siya tapos bigla siyang tinawag na ilusyonadang palaka. Nagpabagulbol nalang si Shane habang nagpameywang.

———

"Releasing the magazine with her as the cover photo is indeed a good idea, Raffaello hijo!" nagagalak na saad ni Maximo habang nakahawak ng isang baso ng whiskey at kaharap ang sariling laptop niya at nakangiti ito habang kausap ang mestizong binata sa screen.

"I told you, Papa. When you sent me her picture, I know that she'll grab everyone's attention and she successfully did." Nakangising tugon naman sa panganay na anak ni Maximo na si Raffaello.