Baby Madness

Chapter 54

Nag-break muna ako sa pagre-review dahil parang sasabog na ang utak ko. Finals na next week pero ang dami ko pang kailangang aralin. I have to maintain my grades or else I'd be disappointed in myself.

"Gutom na ako!" Queenie grumbled as she turned the pages of her binder.

She stood up and ordered some snacks while I continued reading. Hindi ko nga alam kung bakit kasama ko ang babaeng 'to ngayon dito sa café. She said she had to review for four subjects and the library was already full. Ako naman ang ginugulo niya ngayon.

Napasandal na lang ako sa upuan at bumuntong-hininga. I still couldn't bring myself to tell them about my plans. Si Jazer lang ang nakakaalam. Maging sina Kuya Larry, walang idea sa gagawin ko.

I looked at Queenie, who was attracting attention from the guys near her, and she suddenly waved at someone. Sinundan ko ng tingin ang mga mata niya at muntik na akong malaglag sa upuan nang makita ko sina Iñigo at Jazer na kapapasok lang sa café. She mouthed something at them and they turned to my direction.

Damn that bitch. Why did she invite them without informing me? Ang kapal ng mukha, in-invite na nga niya ang sarili niya, humatak pa ng iba.

Iñigo stayed with her while Jazer walked toward me. Before I averted his gaze, I saw him heaving a sigh. When he arrived at our area, he sat right across me and placed his bag under the table. Tumingin ako sa kanya at nakatitig lang siya sa akin.

"What?" I asked.

He flashed a gentle smile. "Akala ko umalis ka na. Nawala ka kasi bigla sa bahay. Hindi rin kita ma-contact."

Napatingin naman ako sa phone ko sa gilid. I put it on airplane mode so I wouldn't be disturbed.

"I told you, after pa ako ng sem aalis."

"Yeah," he muttered. "I guess paranoid lang ako."

My heart skipped a bit when he chuckled and his dimple deepened. However, I immediately felt a tug in my stomach when I saw sadness in his eyes. My hand instinctively reached for my necklace, the one he gave me as a present during my birthday, to calm my nerves down. These past few days, I was relying on it a lot. Somehow, fiddling with the pendant quell my anxiety.

"Alam na ba nila?" tanong niya naman habang nakatingin kina Queenie at Iñigo.

Umiling ako. "No need," I said. "They won't be bothered by my absence anyway."

"Sigurado ka ba?"

He stared at me intently and I couldn't respond anymore. It's just that . . . I don't want to burden them with troubles and worries regarding my departure.

Dumating naman na sina Queenie at Iñigo kaya nag-focus na lang ulit ako sa notes ko. The four of us continued studying but after some time, my mind started to drift away. I tried to push back those thoughts but it kept resurfacing.

"Hey!"

My mind came back to the present when Queenie tapped my arm. Doon ko lang na-realize na nakatingin na silang tatlo sa akin.

"You seem dispirited this fast few days, witch," she commented.

Napatingin naman ako kay Jazer at mukhang hinihintay niya kung ano ang sasabihin ko. I heaved a sigh and massaged my temple.

"I'm just tired," I replied.

Pagkasabi ko no'n ay hinayaan na lang nila ako at bumalik sila sa pagre-review pero nakikita kong sumusulyap si Jazer every now and then. Few hours passed and Queenie and Iñigo decided to go. Naiwan kami ni Jazer at seryoso pa rin siyang nagsasagot ng problem sets sa Calculus.