["PLAY THE KING" IS ACT TWO OF THE "PLAY" SERIES. PLEASE READ "PLAY THE QUEEN" FIRST.]
It's been four months since Priam Torres, the once unpopular president of the Elysian University Student Council, assumed office. Thanks to his chief-of-staff Cas...
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REYNARD
ALARIC ESTEBAN left us on a cliffhanger with his constitutional amendment thingy. I had suspected that Priam through Castiel's maneuverings would seek re-election. It turned out that I was right, thanks to Valeria's exposé about Oplan First Lady's purpose. Sakaling maipasa ang amendment, hindi na makatatakbo sa susunod na eleksiyon ang incumbent. Castiel was saved by the bell, thanks to the motion by CAMP's Avrille and the timing of their session.
Pero time out na muna sa panibagong drama na 'yan! The first semester was about to end and we were approaching the much awaited semestrial break. Suspended na muna ang sessions ng LEXECOM kaya wala na muna akong iko-cover doon. Did that mean I would be on a break? Nope! Walang break sa pagbabalita. The annual campus fair was just around the corner anyway.
"Thank you for coming to our department meeting," our news editor Nolan San Miguel greeted us. We gathered round the conference table in the meeting room. Present ang lahat ng mga news writer, which was kinda rare dahil minsan lang kami makompleto. "Tomorrow is the start of the three-day campus fair, and we want all hands on deck."
Covering events wasn't my cup of tea. Most of the time, I found it to be boring because I would only report what happened. Where's the fun in that? Mas gusto kong mag-cover ng scandals dahil may thrill do'n. Parang karne—mas juicier, mas meatier. Unless something bizarre would happen in the campus fair, I would rather write about the paint drying.
But I was a mere news writer for The Herald. Wala pa ako sa posisyon para mag-no sa assignments namin. If I wanted to be the guy giving out reporter beats and just chilling in the office most of the time, I had to be in the position of the person who was standing at the other end of this table. In short, I had to be the editor.
"Starting lunchtime tomorrow, we will be posting updates and articles every hour," our editor went on. May kinuha siyang kumpol ng mga papel mula sa folder at ipinamigay ang mga 'yon sa amin. "Those are your assignments for the next three days. We're expecting at least two to four articles a day from you."
Two to four only? That's gonna be a piece of cake . . . kung sanang gusto ko 'tong iko-cover ko. I could probably write five to seven articles if I was in the right mood and headspace. Nope, I wasn't bragging. I was only stating a fact.
Inabot sa 'kin ni Ambrielle ang ilang sheet ng papel. Kumuha ako ng isa at ipinasa sa katabi kong si Clarence. I shut my eyes first and prayed for the best beat. If I were to cover one of the many activities tomorrow, I would want the most comfortable and convenient for me. Ayaw kong maglakad-lakad sa campus quadrangle habang tirik ang araw.
Please let it be the concert or play. Please let it be the concert or play.
Iminulat ko ang aking mga mata at hinanap sa assignment sheet ang pangalan ko. Nilawakan ko ang aking ngiti para maka-attract ng positive vibes at maki-conspire sa 'kin ang universe. Nakita ko ang phrase na "benefit concert," pero wala ang pangalan ko sa tabi nito. Sunod kong nakita ang phrase na "opening show," pero wala rin ang pangalan ko sa tabi n'on. Dahan-dahang naglaho ang ngiti sa labi ko hanggang sa makita ko ang aking pangalan sa pinakadulo. It made me frown.
