The Lie Beneath

Rhianne

The next few hours passed in a steady rhythm, our professor dismissed us for the day.

Lecture. Mostly observation.

Smiling when necessary and distant politeness when not. Trish turned out to be a surprisingly chatty but not annoyingly clingy. Minsan tatawa siya sa sarili niyang jokes na parang walang ibang nakaka gets, but at least she was genuine. Not the type you'd expect to get tangled with shady business.

Perfect for cover. But to be clear, ayoko gumamit ng mga tao under this mission.

"You're from where again?" tanong niya habang naglalakad kami palabas ng classroom, si Trish balancing her books on one hand.

"Pampanga," I lied smoothly, adjusting the strap of my backpack. "Small town, not much happening except rice fields and fiestas."

"Wow, sounds peaceful," she said, eyes shining like I just described a magical place. I chuckled lightly.

We rounded a corner and suddenly, the hallway buzzed louder than usual. A crowd was forming near the main stairwell. Students craned their necks, some even standing on tiptoe.

Curiosity itched under my skin.

"What's going on?" tanong ko kay Trish.

She looked around, lowered her voice. "Rumor says.. one of the cheerleaders fainted kanina. Sa locker room. Wala pa ring nakakaalam kung bakit."

Fainting? Could be nothing, sa sobrang init ngayon there's a possibility maybe because of the heat index cause of her fainting.

"Locker rooms are closed now," dagdag pa niya, whispering like it was top secret. "Nag collapse din si nath last week the and their captain on basketball told us na dahil lang sa pagod, but when that happened. Dumaan ako sa gymnasium where nath fainted.. i clearly saw blood, i just know they replace it with another reasons."

Two incidents within months, suspicious. Why would they cover up something if it's not a big deal? A huge fight perhaps. I look at the crowded area.

"I see," I murmured, mind already racing.

While the crowd buzzed, I slipped my phone from my pocket, pretending to text but actually recording. Footage like this could be useful later so i can review and start my first step starting tomorrow about the mess on this school.

"Do things like that happen a lot here?" casual kong tanong habang inaayos ang voice recorder.

Trish shrugged, uncomfortable. "Not really. Before, St. Adrian was known for being super competitive pero safe naman. Ever since nagbago yung school chairman.. ang dami na nabago."

"New chairman?" I asked, feigning mild interest.

"Yeah, Mr. Castaneda took over last year. Big changes, lalo na sa mga building permits, humigpit ang mga rules sa school lalo, it becomes not enjoyable to other students anymore." She said with a low voice as we started to walk again.

My instincts screamed pay attention. I know this short discussion with her couldn't be any a big deal, but i should give it a shot. Sa mga maliliit nga naman talaga nakikita ang mga butas.

"Just rumors, of course," dagdag ni Trish hurriedly, sensing she said too much. "Anyway, see you tomorrow! Nice meeting you again."

She gave me a little wave before disappearing into the crowd.

The sunset had fallen, and now i'm going head to the dorm my general ready for me. It's not that far at all. Just inside the school which was really surprised me, sobrang lawak ng school na 'to, and possibly leading a lot of potential.