Hate to Love You

Kabanata I

The hallway leading to the main building of the senior high school department in San Laurel Public School was packed, almost to the point where moving felt like a chore. It wasn’t even dismissal time yet, but the crowd made it seem like the day was already over. It's he quarterly PTA meeting, and everyone knew that meant the bulletin board would soon be updated with the latest announcements, especially the student rankings.

Karamihan sa mga tao ay mga estudyanteng grade-conscious. Some were clustered in tight groups, pulled by their friends who couldn’t wait to see if they made it to the top. Para naman sa Humanities and Social Sciences 2-A, ang excitement ay nakatuon sa pagkilala kung sino ang nasa number one.

It was the same for me, the only difference is I, myself, is part of the main show.

I bit my inner lip and clenched my hand holding the skirt of my uniform as I closed my eyes, tilting my head slightly trying to calm myself.

One... Two... Three... Four... Five... Breathe.

I breathed in slowly, counting each number in my head. Focused on evening out my breathing, feeling it slow down.

"Klaudia sabi ko sa'yo marami pang tao eh. Kami na lang ang titingin at magsasabi sa'yo ng resulta. Bumalik na tayo sa room." said a familiar voice, accompanied by a light shake on my shoulder. It was probably Equin, looking out for me.

It's too late, I already saw.

The image replayed over and over in my mind, like a broken record.

From the first quarter when my name was at the very top…

To now.

HUMSS 2-Aristotle Ranking

1. Blas Santiago Benitez III
2. Klaudia Louis Buencamino

It's irritating enough that we're always seated next to each other because of our surnames, pati ba naman sa rankings ganito pa rin.

Ilang taon na itong ganitong pangyayari pero naiinis pa rin ako. If only I could erase his whole existence in San Laurel.

"Ayos lang iyan, ikaw naman ang rank one last quarter."

I nodded at Yna, one of my classmates. We were about to go back to the room when we heard loud celebratory shouts near the end of the hallway.

"Yon! patingin nga ng itsura ng rank one."

"Burger! burger! Santi, libre naman." followed by laughter and pushing as a group swarmed toward the boy they were calling Santi. Despite the crowd, he stood tall, towering above most of them.

He was always the center of attention wherever he goes. He was friendly to everyone that even the most quiet ones in our class can be talkative when conversing with him. Boys from different social classes and ages were his friends and I don't understand how he does that. There are even more girls who are friendly to him, dahil nga mas matangkad siya sa iilang mga ka-batch namin at galing pa sa kilalang pamilya, marami-rami ang tinutuksong nagagandahang babae sa kaniya even with the higher years.

He can't even properly button his uniform and cut his hair. What's there to admire?

Still, he was grinning from ear to ear, clearly enjoying the attention. He even managed to get some classmates to agree to buy him burgers.

"Buhatin niyo ang top one niyo papuntang canteen," sabi niya na nakaturo pa sa doreksyon nh canteen na mabilis sinunod ng mga lalaki naming kaklase.

Wala talagang manners.

Naagaw ang pansin ko sa pagtunog ng phone ko.

You couldn't get it? One point na lang.

That was fast.