Player of the Game

Track 26: I Don't Wanna Live Forever (ZAYN, Taylor Swift)

Days have passed and Jho seemed to feel better—or to be politically correct about it, stable. Conversations that last until midnight and frequent walks to the rose garden had been a big help. Ysay has been surprisingly helpful: cooking gourmet food and bringing DVDs for the girls. Of course, Maddie and he would always fight but it'd just make the whole situation amusing.

Jho wanted to go home but decided instead to make herself better before going home to the province. Her parents are still out of the country, procuring some art pieces for their newly-purchased nook in the Highlands so there'd be really no one to welcome her there. Besides, Mrs. De Leon had been more than insistent in keeping her in the mansion—not just because the preparations for the ball is in apace and the family needs all the creative person in the team but—because the woman, in those afternoon teatimes accompanied as well by Ysay and Maddie, has grown fond of Jho who apparently has most of the time same interests as hers.

I know you would think where the hell is Beatriz? According to one source, she's staying in one of their family's hotels while some gossip said she's just in the mansion refusing to show herself. But one thing's sure, she has been frequently sighted with EJ Laure and some other girls at Privé and Revel (renting the whole terrace for her and her 'friends'—what a VIP indeed) a lot these days since she was reportedly back in the country.

Of course, no one would say anything about Bea in the presence of Jho as they're afraid of what might be the effect on her. Little did they know, she can hear them and their whispers. Jho would feel sad. She can't help but miss her friend.

But of course, Maddie knows a lot but decided instead to wait for the perfect timing to tell Jho everything she knows. She actually expected that, after that unfortunate "general assembly" at Nicole's place, Bea would finally be showing herself to Jho and initiate answering all of Jho's queries. But as Nicole said, she should know better and wait for Bea's timing. She has to trust Bea's process and that for the meantime, she could settle to be a company for Jho.

Romantic feelings aside, Jho misses the conversations. Especially now that she has discovered this inner revolutionary in her. It's so weird that she feels like she needs validation for this kind of thing from Bea. It's a feeling, a self-culture—why would you need validation from another person?

'What would Bea do? What did she say when she heard about the dictator's burial? I bet she threw blasphemy all over the place.' Jho would ask herself a million times a day.

She'd smile to herself realizing how far things have gone off from those simple things.

In school, Jho had missed most of her classes but conveniently, there is a tutoring center in the university that helped her keep up. There's just one subject that needed help since most of the available tutors for the subject is currently unavailable: Microeconomics.

Of course, Maddie offered but as she is at the same time taking the course herself and is having the same difficulties, they could hardly attain progress.

"We're doomed, Jho" Maddie convulsively said out of unfinished exercises and problem sets. "The deadline's 3 days from now and we have, what, answered 23 out of 105!"

"Sure ka bang wala nang ibang available sa tutorial center?" Jho throws herself on the bed and closed her eyes. They have been studying for almost 5 hours now and couldn't believe that the exercises had still proven themselves to be unanswerable.

"Wala na, Jho. There are only 15 of them."

"Lahat 'yon may tinututor na?"

"Yes, halos lahat sila sa basic Econ nag-ttutor, since kahit hindi econ major tntake 'yung subject as elective. Mataas demand for tutors ng basic econ so busy din 'yung econ majors na tutors." Maddie lies beside Jho. "Saka busy kasi lahat sila with Highest Honors, you know mga dean's listers so besides the tutorial, they have this rigorous studying to do."