And like I said, the Clasiso family did not stop. They pursued me even at my school. I was shocked because when I stepped out of the University, I was swarmed by reporters. I stopped in my tracks, surprised, and looked around at all the cameras pointed at me.
“You are Mr. Anthony’s friend, right? How are you related to the Clasiso family?”
“Miss, what can you say about the suicide incident involving Mr. Anthony Clasiso?”
“Did he say anything to you that triggered him to do that?”
“Was he depressed?”
“Why didn’t you stop him?”
I blinked and stepped back. I was almost blinded by the numerous flashes. I shut my eyes tightly and raised my hand to cover my face from the reporters. I swallowed and continued to step back. They kept stepping forward, closing the gap between us.
They only stopped when a guard escorted me back inside the campus. I was still stunned, unable to breathe properly. I faced the guard’s chest and caught my breath. I bit my lip and stomped my foot in frustration.
Surely, this was all the Clasiso family’s doing. They wanted me to speak, to catch me in my own words. I knew it. They had been calling me for the past few days, and I knew they would stop at nothing until they got the answer they wanted.
But cowards!
Why didn’t they face me? Why didn’t we just talk face-to-face? Why call the media? Why make a big fuss? Why do they want to spread the news nationwide?
“Miss, please stay in the guidance office. We’ll talk to the director about what to do with the reporters outside. Don’t leave the University,” said the guard.
I took a deep breath and nodded at him. The guard escorted me to the guidance office. The bad thing was it was lunchtime. Many students were coming in and out of the gate, and I knew they saw what happened. That’s probably why they were staring at me so intensely. Shameless! The students didn’t even try to hide their stares.
I glared at some of them, who quickly looked away. I let out a breath. I didn’t want to be rude to them, but I couldn’t help it.
I averted my gaze and focused ahead. I thought about where and when this trouble started.
Well, Jenica assumed that Anthony and I were friends. That’s the reason I was called to the office the day after Anthony’s death. Maybe Mr. Clasiso believed it since everyone there pointed to me as Anthony’s friend. A scene suddenly came to mind. I smirked. That didn’t even include my confession to Mr. Clasiso that I was a friend of his son.
That’s probably why the reporters were so hyped. The Clasiso family wanted more information, and sorry, I wouldn’t let them know it. I didn’t want to ruin Dad even though we weren’t close. Also, if he went to prison, what about me? My life would surely be ruined too. No, I wouldn’t let that happen.
Besides, I was the only witness to that crime. No one else saw it but me, so it would be easier to just hide what I knew about the incident.
And it was a good thing I listened to Japen this morning. That’s why he stopped me; he had a bad feeling about the reporters outside the gate. He was right. I was the one they wanted to catch. Sorry for them, I wasn’t that easy to catch.
The guard knocked on the guidance office door. I pouted. I had no plans to go to that office. It was almost noon, and my stomach was grumbling. The guard glanced at me while we waited for someone inside the office to open the door.
I smiled sheepishly. “Can I ask a favor, kuya? Can you buy me lunch from the canteen?”
The guard shook his head, but I saw him grin as if he was amused. “Alright,” he said and then looked at the door in front of us.
It opened, and the young guidance counselor from the Engineering department greeted us. She smiled and widened the door. “Come in,” she invited with a smile.
I entered without a word. The guard followed behind me. I took my wallet from my pocket and took out a hundred peso bill. I gave it to the guard. “Here, kuya. Just get me an A1 lunch set,” I said. “Take out,” I joked.
He laughed and nodded. He said goodbye to the guidance counselor before leaving.
I didn’t do much inside. The guidance counselor just asked what happened, why it happened, and what I was going to do about the current problem.
What was I going to do? Nothing. I planned to let the reporters stay at the gate. Let the University admin deal with them. I would leave through the side gate later and tell Japen to wait for me there. As for tomorrow, I wasn’t sure yet because it would depend on whether the reporters would gather at the gate again. Their pay must be high if they waited for me until tomorrow.
Not long after, the guard knocked. He took my joke about takeout seriously. Everything in the bag was almost disposable. The guard gave me the change, which I immediately refused. He could keep it.
The guidance counselor and I ate together in the office. Actually, it was against University rules, but since we were almost the same age, and she had just graduated, and we still had a long conversation ahead, we decided to eat there. She had her own packed lunch, so it was okay.
Of course, I had no plans to say that I witnessed the crime. I only told her about my friendship with Anthony and what it had brought me during that time.
It would have been fine, but when I opened the bag containing my order from the canteen, I noticed something strange. It wasn’t the combo I had been enjoying for the past few days, but it was the food that Anthony and I used to order together.
I blinked. Why were these here? This wasn’t what I told the guard. And why were they exactly the foods that Anthony and I used to order?
“Azora?” the guidance counselor called. “Are you okay?”
That’s when I realized I had been staring intently at the food. I smiled at her and shook my head. Suddenly, I lost my appetite, but since my stomach was growling, I had no choice but to eat them.
I chewed the chicken furiously. Whoever was behind this, it wasn’t funny anymore.