Gravity by BlueEnigmaaa

The scorching sun bore down on the campus, the heat radiating off the concrete in shimmering waves. Sweat trickled down my back as I found myself wedged between hundreds of other hopefuls. Voices clashed around me—people shouting, laughing, complaining, the cacophony rising and falling like a wave crashing over the campus grounds. The familiar scent of Manila—faint diesel fumes, food carts, and the tang of nearby river water—filled the air, making it feel more alive, more chaotic.I wiped the sweat from my forehead and glanced at the long lines snaking across the open space, winding around buildings like never-ending rivers. People looked frustrated, shifting from one foot to the other, fanning themselves with crumpled documents as they waited for their turn. I clutched my enrollment papers tighter, the edges crinkling under my grip. The idea of attending PUP had always felt like a distant dream—an ideal painted in bright strokes. Now that I stood here, at the heart of it, reality hit me like a punch to the gut."Next! Move forward!" came a voice from the front of the line, sharp and impatient. I shuffled forward, the crowd pressing closer. Every now and then, someone in the line ahead would groan, muttering curses under their breath about the 'Pila Ulit Pila' system, a humor that seemed to spread as fast as the sweat staining their shirts."Eh pare, mukhang aabutin tayo ng Pasko dito!" someone behind me quipped with a forced laugh.I couldn't help but chuckle despite my growing nerves. There was a strange camaraderie among the students, a shared frustration that made the suffocating heat and endless waiting somehow bearable. Yet beneath that veneer of humor, a knot of anxiety tightened in my stomach.What if I wasn't cut out for this? What if this place, with its endless crowds and bureaucratic chaos, swallowed me whole before I even had a chance to prove myself?I glanced around, trying to ground myself in the moment. The towering buildings of PUP Sta. Mesa rose like sentinels, worn and weathered but still proud. The sound of footsteps echoed off the old stone, accompanied by the murmur of students—new and returning—chatting as they moved between offices and classrooms. A faded banner flapped in the wind, welcoming the new batch of students, its edges frayed and bleached from years under the sun.I shifted my feet, feeling the weight of expectation pressing down on me, heavier than the sun that beat relentlessly overhead. I had made it this far, yet standing in that sea of people, I felt small. Uncertain.Suddenly, a sharp voice pierced through the crowd. "Hoy, first-timer ka ba dito?" A young guy in a faded blue shirt stood beside me, a smirk playing on his lips. His hair was messy, as if he'd just rolled out of bed, and he was lazily waving his own stack of papers."Uh, yeah. Why?" I replied, slightly wary but trying to sound casual.He raised an eyebrow. "Good luck. You'll need it. The lines here? Brutal. Welcome to the real world, bro."I offered a tight smile, not sure whether to laugh or cry. "Thanks for the pep talk."He shrugged, shuffling ahead as the line inched forward. "You'll get used to it. Or you'll quit. Depends on how tough you are."Tough. The word echoed in my mind as I watched him blend back into the crowd. I wasn't here to quit. I had worked too hard, sacrificed too much to let a few lines and some heat knock me down.I glanced back at the university buildings, a fresh wave of determination surging through me. This place, chaotic and daunting as it was, held the future I had been dreaming of. And no matter how overwhelming it seemed, I was ready to face whatever challenges lay ahead.With a deep breath, I took another step forward.The line had been a mess for hours—students pushing and elbowing their way forward, frustration building like the heat radiating from the concrete. Then, as if a miracle, a voice rose above the chaotic hum. "Alright, alright! Lahat kayo, form an orderly line! Sumunod na lang!"Heads turned as a tall guy in a worn varsity jacket—obviously a volunteer from one of the school's fraternities—waded through the crowd, his voice sharp with authority. He wasn't here to play around. With a wave of his hand and a few barks, he got the line to straighten out in record time. It was like watching a drill sergeant whip new recruits into shape. "Sa mga likod, walang singitan! Kung gusto niyong matapos, maghintay nang maayos."I found myself nudged forward faster than I had expected, the disarray transforming into some semblance of order. The grumbling died down, replaced with murmurs of surprise. Even the guy in front of me muttered, "'Di ko akalain, effective pala."I moved up in the line, grateful for the progress but feeling a familiar weight settling on my chest. As we stood there in relative silence, my thoughts spiraled back to the nagging doubt that had been gnawing at me since I first set foot on campus. Computer Engineering—it sounded prestigious, difficult, exactly the kind of thing my parents would brag about. But was it the right path for me?I shifted uncomfortably, feeling the papers in my hands crinkle slightly under the pressure of my grip. The noise around me faded into the background as I heard my father's voice again, clear and firm in my mind. "You know what's right and wrong. Make the right choice." It was something he'd say all the time when I was a kid, and now it weighed on me more than ever.A voice interrupted my thoughts, pulling me back to the present. "Bro, sigurado ka na ba sa course mo?" The guy next to me asked casually, his voice low but filled with the kind of uncertainty I wasn't used to hearing from strangers.I glanced at him. He was flipping through a tattered brochure for the College of Engineering, his brow furrowed as if he was wrestling with the same doubts I was.I shrugged, trying to sound more confident than I felt. "Computer Engineering, yeah. You?"He laughed, but it didn't reach his eyes. "Electrical Engineering. Pero, alam mo 'yon? Yung pakiramdam na parang... baka mali?"I nodded slowly, his words hitting too close to home. "Yeah, I get it. My dad wants this for me, so..."He raised an eyebrow. "But what do you want?"That was the question, wasn't it? I had spent so much time trying to live up to everyone else's expectations—my father's, my teachers'—that I had never really asked myself what I wanted. I looked down at the papers in my hand, the bold letters of "Computer Engineering" staring back at me like a challenge.The line moved again, jerking me forward, but my feet felt heavier with each step. I thought back to those late nights spent tinkering with computers, not because it was expected of me, but because I genuinely loved it. And yet, the thought of spending the next few years of my life buried in formulas and code, just to meet someone else's expectations, twisted my stomach in knots."I guess... I don't really know," I finally admitted, my voice barely above a whisper.The guy beside me gave a sympathetic nod. "Well, better figure it out quick, bro. These lines are long, but they don't last forever."I laughed softly, appreciating the honesty. He wasn't wrong.The line crawled forward until, finally, I found myself standing in front of the registrar's window. My heart pounded in my chest, a mix of nerves and excitement I couldn't quite shake. The woman behind the glass glanced at me, her expression tired from a day of endless students, but efficient as she reached for my documents."Next," she called, as if I wasn't already standing right there.I slid my papers under the window, trying to appear calm, but my hand trembled slightly. She barely looked at me as she flipped through the forms, then stamped them with a decisive thud. "Here you go," she said, shoving a stack of papers back toward me, but just as I reached to grab them, she held onto the top sheet, her nails tapping lightly on it. "You'll also need this."I blinked, confused, as she handed me a list of courses with a note at the top: For interview requirements, see below.The letters seemed to swim in front of me for a second as I skimmed the list. Computer Engineering was there, just as I expected, but then my eyes stopped on something else—something I hadn't thought about before.Electrical Engineering.The words stood out as if they were bolded, like they were daring me to look at them. My grip tightened on the papers, a strange weight settling in my chest. Electrical Engineering—my father had mentioned it once in passing, something about how it was a "solid choice," practical, respectable. But I'd always dismissed it, focused solely on what I thought I was supposed to do.I stared at the name, lost in thought, when I felt a nudge at my shoulder. The guy behind me in line—impatient, of course. "Bro, you're holding up the line.""Right," I mumbled, stepping aside, my gaze still glued to the list in my hand. As I moved out of the way, I couldn't stop the thoughts from racing through my head. What if this was a sign? What if I'd been too focused on one path, when there was something else right in front of me?The woman behind the window cleared her throat, already dealing with the next student. I stood there, frozen for a moment longer, then stuffed the papers into my bag, my mind still swirling with questions.I stepped out into the courtyard, the afternoon sun blazing down, but it barely registered. My thoughts were too loud. What was I supposed to do now? Stick with Computer Engineering like I'd always planned, or...?Suddenly, my phone buzzed in my pocket. I fished it out, glancing at the screen. It was a text from my dad."Everything okay? Got your courses lined up?"I stared at the message, the decision looming larger than before.My father had always been a quiet man, his days spent surrounded by computers and power grids at the country's sole Electrical Power Transmission Company. As an Information Technology Specialist, he was the kind of person who rarely spoke about his work, but when he did, you could hear the pride in his voice—the subtle thrill of knowing that, in his own way, he kept is one of the people who make sure the lights are kept on for the entire country. Following in his footsteps had always been a thought buried somewhere in the back of my mind, both thrilling and intimidating. Now, standing at a crossroads, that buried thought was clawing its way to the surface.I glanced at the course list in my hand again, the words Electrical Engineering almost mocking me. It was like a puzzle piece I didn't know I'd been missing. My feet felt heavy as I walked toward the interview area, each step tugging me closer to something that felt both familiar and completely foreign. There was a strange sensation in my chest, a mix of anticipation and dread—like coming home after years away and realizing nothing looked quite the same.As I approached the interview area, my mind raced with questions. What if I'm not cut out for this? What if I fail? A wave of doubt hit me, and for a moment, I considered turning around, walking away from the whole thing. But then I remembered the nights I'd spent watching my father at his computer, his fingers flying over the keyboard as he solved problems only a handful of people could even understand. He never showed it, but I knew he enjoyed the challenge. There was a quiet satisfaction in the way he worked, and for the first time, I wondered if I could find that same satisfaction too.The interview area was a small room at the end of the hallway, with a few plastic chairs lined up outside. A couple of other students sat there, heads bowed over their phones, eyes darting around nervously. I swallowed hard and took a seat, clutching the papers in my hands as if they were a lifeline.A door creaked open, and a man in a buttoned-up shirt stepped out, his eyes scanning the room. "Next, please."I stood up, my legs feeling like they were made of lead. As I walked toward the door, my phone buzzed in my pocket. I pulled it out—a message from my father."You've got this, son. Whatever course you choose."A small, reassuring smile tugged at my lips. I stuffed the phone back into my pocket, took a deep breath, and stepped into the room.