As Fermin walked to Maria's house, he looked at his phone and saw that Maria had texted him again. "Fermin, did you bring your drawing tube? I can't find mine at home, I need to put my drawing paper on it. Please," Maria wrote, attaching a pleading emoji to her message. Fermin couldn't help but smile at her message. He quickly replied:
"Okay, don't worry. I'll be there in a few minutes," he texted back as he continued walking to Maria's house. At Maria's house, she began packing her things for school. "Ma! I'm going to school with Fermin!" she shouted to her mother, who was cooking in the kitchen.
"So, are you two dating now?" her mother asked while stirring a pot. Maria went to the kitchen to grab her lunch bag and shook her head.
"No... we're just friends, Ma," she said, rolling her eyes. "Plus, I know his crush is." She put her lunch in her bag, kissed her mother on the cheek, and added, "Don't wait for me later, Ma. I have things to do after class." She headed to the living room and saw Fermin waiting outside. Blushing, she quickly shook her head, grabbed her bag, and headed outside. "Morning, Fermin," she smiled at him. "Ready to go?"
Fermin smiled back. "Sure, let's go," he replied. The two of them walked to the Jeep terminal. Along the way, they talked about their activities and schoolwork. They noticed four ambulances heading toward the city with a police escort, but they didn't think much of it and continued walking.
As they rode a jeepney, Maria browsed through her phone. "Oh, look," she said, showing Fermin an announcement about classes being canceled at select schools in Manila. "Man, how lucky," Maria puffed her cheeks and pouted. Fermin glanced at her, blushing slightly as he noticed her cute, disappointed expression. "Let me see," he said, moving closer to check the announcement, their shoulders touching. Maria felt the warmth of Fermin's shoulder brushing against hers and couldn't help but blush a bit.
"they're lucky," Maria replied in a shaky voice as she adjusted her seat and moved slightly to create space between them. Once they reached the school's front gate, they were greeted by their friends.
Emilio greeted Fermin with a friendly wave and a teasing remark. "Well, well, looks like we have a happy couple here," he said as he noticed Fermin and Maria walking together. Maria, feeling a bit flustered, quickly responded, "We're not a couple, Emilio," and crossed her arms as they continued walking. Emilio chuckled softly at her reaction. He then playfully wrapped his arms around Fermin and asked, "So, did you two finish the Plate Activity?" Maria and Fermin simply nodded in response feeling unease about what Emilio said earlier.
Emilio looked at Maria, feeling that he had made her uncomfortable with his teasing earlier. "Hey, I'm sorry, okay? It's just that you two looked cute together," he said as he grabbed something from his pocket and gave it to Maria—a small mint candy. "Here, as an apology."
Maria took the candy and looked at Emilio. "Hmph, okay," she said, continuing to pout as she went to her besties, leaving Emilio and Fermin alone. "Well, don't worry. Maria doesn't hold grudges, so you should be fine," Fermin reassured Emilio. "We should grab some snacks at the cafeteria before we go to our classroom," he suggested as he looked at his watch. "It's 6:30 AM, and the class starts at 8," Fermin said confidently as both of them headed towards the cafeteria.
Next to the campus, in an abandoned building, a couple of fourth-year college students were sitting and talking.
"Hmm, this place looks good for a meeting, right?" said a tall, blonde-haired guy as he puffed on a vape and passed it to his friend.
In another room, a couple was making out when a cat suddenly wandered in.
"What the heck?" said a bulky guy, stopping mid-kiss as he turned toward the cat. "Jeez, I thought someone else entered my dungeon. It's just a cute cat."
His girlfriend chuckled, adjusting her shirt. But as she looked at the cat, her expression shifted.
"Babe?" she called, standing up. "Is that...?" She approached the cat cautiously.
"Hmm? I don't see anything wrong with the cat, babe," the bulky guy said, glancing at her before fixing his clothes. But then he noticed something. Turning to the broken window, his eyes locked on the thick clouds of smoke rising in the distance.
Outside the room, the blonde-haired guy walked over to another window. He, too, noticed the plumes of smoke.
"Hey, guys..." he started, glancing back at his friends, who were still chatting and taking hits from the vape. "Y'all wanna skip class—"
Before he could finish, a scream echoed from the other room.
The fourth-year students and the blonde guy rushed toward the sound and threw the door open.
"What the hell happened?" the blonde guy asked, staring at the bulky guy, who was frantically checking on his girlfriend.
"The fucking cat bit my girlfriend, dude!" the bulky guy shouted, inspecting his girlfriend's hand. Meanwhile, the cat leaped out of the broken window, shocking the group since the room was located on the fourth floor.
"Di... Did the cat just jump from the building?" one of the students asked, his voice trembling with shock and disbelief.
The blonde-haired guy slowly moved toward the window, peering down in hopes of spotting the cat—and he did.
The cat lay motionless on the ground below, a pool of blood forming around its body, staining the grass red. His friends and the bulky guy gathered at the window, their faces pale as they looked at the scene.
"That's what you get, you dumb fuck!" the bulky guy yelled, his tone harsh as he turned to his friends and the blonde guy. "Well, my girlfriend and I are heading to the clinic now so the school nurse can treat her hand."
He walked over to his girlfriend, who stood frozen in place, still in shock and visibly upset. Placing a hand on her back, he gently guided her toward the door. Together, they left the abandoned building leaving the blonde hair and their friends just shocked and in disbelief.
Back on the Cafeteria where Fermin and Emilio just spending time waiting for the first class as the Cafeteria was very busy and many students and teachers are just having a casual talks.
"So have you finished your architecture plates?" Emilio asked while he was eating a burger "Me, I have one architecture plate to go then I can finally rest now, I was planning to finished all the activity before the final semester so I could just lay on the bed and just sleep all day you know" he chuckled as he look at Emilio.
"I still few more plates to do..." he said it straight to the point as his all attention on his phone as he watch a video about animals going berserk. The video shows some news about domestic pets like cats and dogs begins to act sudden berserk as some begins to attack its owner for unknown reason. Suddenly he felt a tap on his shoulder.
"Tsk Tsk, Looks like someone skipping their class" Mr. Lisandro chuckle as he join the two in their table. "Good Morning" he said it very friendly as he sip a fresh brewed coffee. "Oh by the way, tell to your classmates that we don't have any class later, the head office just announce a emergency meeting."
Emilio and Fermin just nod in understanding as Mr. Lisandro place his cup on the table. "Oh lastly, read in advance the study of-"
but before Mr. Lisandro finished his sentence, a group of Student council approaches him and one of the student council speak. "Uhm, Sir, Ma'am Ana wants you to go to the clinic." Mr. Lisandro looks at Emilio and Fermin before looking at the student council. "Right now."
The student just nodded and Mr. Lisandro looks at Emilio and Fermin. "Well please excuse me" and Emilio and Fermin just smile as Mr. Lisandro stand up and follow the Student Council.
As Mr. Lisandro arrived at the clinic, he knocked on the door before slowly entering. "Ma'am Ana, you were looking for me?" he asked, his eyes scanning the room. The sight was unsettling—several students were lying on beds, looking pale and sickly. Some were coughing heavily, while others were vomiting into basins.
"Oh, Mr. Lisandro, you're here," Ana greeted him as she finished checking a thermometer from a student. She glanced at the reading before placing the thermometer in warm water to disinfect it.
"Do you know a student named Paulina Bituin?" Ana asked, her expression serious. "She was bitten by a cat earlier, but..." Ana trailed off, gesturing for him to follow her.
She grabbed a face mask, tying it securely as they walked toward the far corner of the clinic. Once there, she pulled back the curtain, revealing Paulina sitting on a bed. The young girl looked terrible, her bitten hand was swollen, and her eyes were bloodshot. She fidgeted uneasily, clearly in distress.
"She said earlier that a cat bit her," Ana explained, her tone grave. "Normally, rabies symptoms take about three days to appear, but this..." Ana turned to Mr. Lisandro, her brows furrowed with worry. "I don't know what this is."
Mr. Lisandro approached the student and knelt beside her. "Hey, Ms. Paulina," he said softly. Paulina weakly turned her gaze toward him, her bloodshot eyes filled with exhaustion.
"Don't worry," he continued gently. "Ma'am Ana already called an ambulance for you, and she also contacted your parents." He offered a reassuring smile. "Just hang in there, okay? The ambulance will be here soon."
Paulina gave no response. She simply sat there, staring at the floor, her face pale and expressionless.
Mr. Lisandro stood up, his smile fading slightly as he softly closed the curtains around her bed. He turned to Ma'am Ana, and the two began discussing the situation in hushed tones.
Meanwhile, back at the abandoned building where the cat had died, something unsettling was happening. The lifeless body of the cat, lying in the grass and soaked in its own blood, suddenly twitched.
Its eyes slowly opened. The cat staggered to its feet, its fur still matted with blood. Bones protruded grotesquely from its damaged body, but that didn't stop it. The cat moved, slow and jerky, as it limped away from the building.
A few minutes later, some teachers and the bulky student arrived at the site. They scanned the area, their faces tense, but all they found was a puddle of blood—no sign of the cat.
End of the chapter.