The Enigma of Erald

CHAPTER FOUR: Start With A Bang!

ERALD

ITO NA siguro ang isa sa mga pinakamasayang araw sa academic year na 'to.

I wasn't that excited for the club fair. Wala naman kasi akong gagawin dito buong araw kundi umupo at maghintay ng mga estudyanteng gustong magpa-member sa QED Club. Kung tutuusin nga, hindi ko kailangang magbantay. I could leave a pen and paper here and let the interested applicants write down their details.

What I liked about this sort of event was being excused in my classes. Hindi ko na kailangang magpanggap na nakikinig sa teacher o kaya'y makipagplastikan sa mga classmate kong lumalapit sa 'kin tuwing may kailangan. Salamat sa kagalang-galang na student council dahil mas mae-enjoy ko ang huling araw ng linggo.

As early as six in the morning, club officers were already putting up their booths and decorating them in the open area of our campus. Mag-aalas-siyete nang dumating kami ni Charlotte sa aming puwesto.

This club fair was secretly a contest among clubs. The more attractive your booth was, the more chances you would get more members. But I thought of a unique strategy to catch the attention of students. Madaling mapapansin ang booth ng QED Club dahil wala itong kadeko-dekorasyon at nasa gitna pa ng mga agaw-pansing booth ng Chemistry Society at Biological Sciences Society.

"Our booth looks so... boring," komento ni Charlotte habang nakapamewang at inililibot ang mga mata sa katabing booth. Hindi na niya kailangang banggitin ang obvious. "May maeengganyo kayang sumali sa club natin niyan?"

To be honest, this "unique" strategy was also my excuse so we wouldn't be doing too much work on decorating our booth. Gusto ko kasing umuwi nang maaga kahapon kaya hindi ko siya sinipot nang magpatawag siya ng meeting.

"Hindi natin kailangan ng enggrandeng booth," I said in my defense. "If our gimmick later works, we would do better than any of these clubs. Hindi rin natin kasalanan kung kulang tayo sa manpower. Kung mas marami tayong starting members, mas marami sana tayong nagawang paghahanda para sa event na 'to."

Sighing, she rolled her eyes. "If only you helped me come up with designs for the booth yesterday, hindi mauuwi sa ganito. Baka isipin ng mga estudyante na hindi tayo gano'n ka-prepared para sa club fair. This might give them the wrong impression!"

"Huwag ka kasing masyadong negative." My hand waved dismissively. "Hindi lahat ng mga estudyante ay ginagawang basehan ang pagkaka-decorate ng booth para makapag-decide kung aling club ang sasalihan. Our highlight would be the trick later, not this unnecessary display of creativity."

I could see a hint of skepticism in her eyes. Alam kong hindi pa niya ako gano'n kakilala, but I'd rather win this battle in another way — through a fake case — and not in the traditional sense of beautifying the booth and deceiving the students through its appearance.

"May nabili ka na bang tomato juice na gagamitin nating dugo mamaya?" Time to change the topic. "We have to make the act as realistic as possible."

She clapped her hands over her mouth. "Nawala sa isip ko! Mabuti't ipinaalala mo. Teka, bibili muna ako sa cafeteria. Man the booth, okay?"

That's strange. I thought she had a good memory? Kahapon, kabisadong-kabisado niya ang arrangement ng mga ginulong poster sa bulletin board kahit ilang segundo pa lang niya nakikita. How could a simple task of buying tomato juice escape her mind?

Hindi na niya kailangang sabihin kung anong dapat kong gawin. Wala rin naman akong ibang lugar na pupuntahan maliban dito. Well, I could go back to the clubroom, but we still had work to do.

When she was out of my sight, sumilip ako sa aking phone at tiningnan ang oras. Five minutes before seven-thirty in the morning.

"Is this one of your tricks?"