Halaw (Writing Exercises)

THE COURSE (15)

She looks like hell. She feels like she's been to hell. And, she'll catch hell looking like this when she meets up with Kim and Kenneth in about -- 30 minutes, as per her digital wristwatch. But what can she do?

Dominique stared at her measly collection of powders and liquids and what nots. She has been wracking her brain for the past 10 minutes trying to remember how to blend the concealer into her dark circles as what Kim taught her ages ago. This would be the first time she would try it but she has no clue how to go about it.

She glanced at her watch again and sighed. Five minutes have passed with her just staring at her reflection. At this rate, she would be late for the meet up. Then, Kenneth will be demanding to know her address and insist on picking her up which would be the end of the world for her especially if her friend meets her neighbor. So, dark circles be damned. She has to go now.

Giving up on trying to fix her face, she left the make-up on the table and grabbed her tennis shoes instead and put them on. She then grabbed one of the oversized shades she seldom use but kept for the very purpose of covering up her late nights at the lab. She just hopes that when her friends saw her circles later, they would assume the usual: another overnighter at the lab.

Running a cursory glance of her reflection on the full-length mirror and determining that this is the best she could do with her appearance, she grabbed her trusty sling bag, went out the room, and trudged down the stairs.

Before opening the front door, Dominique stood very still in the middle of her sala and listened for unusual sounds. Specifically, she is trying to determine if the beast from the other unit is gone and there is no possibility of meeting him outside.

Yeah, it's cowardly, but Dominique does not care. She can't face him yet. With the way she embarrased herself the other week, forever would be to soon for her to see him again.

No ruckus from the other unit. No music, or humming, or stumbling, or anything. It was absolutely quiet.

Taking a deep breath, she opened the door and went out. She locked up in record time and almost run the whole way out of the gate and speedwalked in the direction of the crossroads where she could get a tricycle.

***

Cute! Ty thought and chuckled while watching the sight of Dominique fleeing from her unit as if it was on fire. By how fast she was gone, she was definitely fleeing.

She was hiding from him. He is sure of that.

He wakes up really early for field practice and early classes but they have never crossed each others path in going to school. Short of really stalking her, which he promised he'll never do this time around, he wouldn't have seen her if not for the two classes they have together. Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, they have a 7am class together. And on Tuesdays and Thursdays, they have a 5pm class together. If not for those two, he would have thought that the girl went AWOL from the university.

For their 7am class, she always arrives later than he does and for their 5pm class, she always leaves first. It seemed that the moment the bell rings, she is off like a rocket.

They were seatmates in both classes and he is amazed that the girl is not developing a stiff neck in her determination to never glance in his direction. Sometimes he is tempted to drag his seat over her side and see how far she'll go with her plan of ignoring him.

If he did not know the reason for this peculiar behavior, he would have felt insulted but he knew why she is this way and he just finds it cute. And exhilarating.