*The Disconnect

When a disaster strikes, the fear and pain are felt most strongly amidst the ongoing calamity. However, the depredation does not end there, as its consequences are felt long after the catastrophe, with those affected needing the time to heal their wounds and get their lives back on track. Hardly synonymous with a debacle are lies, but their effects could be linked to that. Lying usually starts out small, with a few words to cover up an unpleasant fact or two. Perpetual lying leads to more creative words and phrases used, making a liar harder to detect, and ultimately physical actions and behaviours belie the true nature of a liar. Once a liar masters the art of lying, he/she is nothing but a dead soul. But the effects of the lying would not die, wreaking havoc around the lives of the liar. With the full eruption of the underground volcano and the complete transition of the great divide, this is yet another major issue that had engulfed the tiresome problematic Sunway University College.

One disparate issue that had dominated headlines was Hans Basil's deteriorating health condition that had seen him elevate the bars of emoness while struggling to keep his secret under wraps. Sanya Dival, Angie Flo, John Bow, Sue Anne, Theo Oscar and Nick Ivans had made attempts to discover the bugging issue, to no avail. Until Hans decided to let a few in on the secret, a shocking piece of news that would have threatened not only his future but his life. Fortunately, luck was on his side as his illness was ruled "harmless". Hans was not pleased though, as he toyed with the possibility that getting the worse deal would rid him off all the disasters he would potentially have to face. One such "disaster" was his shocking displacement off the pinnacle of English, his forte. Always seen as an English "Master", his slip down the postions came as a rude awakening that he was not the smartest out there. And to add to his woes, the troublesome alien language had reared its head again, this time in the class of the supoosed international language, with Hans' group members disussing in that alien language where English was the order. The biggest irony.

It seems third time was not the charm for both Sue Anne and Angie Flo in their quest for love. After the failure to nail down Dan Wise and to know the mysterious "Long-Haired Hottie", Sue had met Leo Jon, a foreigner from Hans' land that managed to make her heart beat like crazy and her behaviour to be the same way. Ignoring rumours of his attached status only served to prepare her fall from greater heights, as Hans and Diane spotted Leo with an unidentified Ugly Girl, sharing ice cream, basking in the moonlight and enjoying a romantic moment. As the news reached Sue's ears, her heart beat with fury as she contemplated murdering the Ugly Girl. Perhaps this was her punishment for closing her heart for so long.
For Angie, after her mild crush on someone from the now defunct C-Clique had vanquished, her heart turned to another, only to discover he was a playboy. Third time seemed to be the charm when she met Javis James- perfect gentleman with charming qualities, a smile that made her heart melt and sharing sizzling chemistry. Their friendship blossomed over time and a relationship looked to be on the cards, until he mentioned that he was still waiting for his past love, abruptly yanking Angie out of her dreamland and halting her progress. Both Sue and Angie claimed that they were unaffected, but their faces that shined whenever their crushes were mentioned belied their claims.

Sanya Dival portrayed the archetypal "Fallen Angel"- once reigning Queen of Sunway, shoved off her throne, dumped in the shadows, ravaged by problems and appearing in college looking dishevelled. As if trying to top her "coming-to-college-in-the-clothes-i slept-in" look, she made a grand appearance with a conspicuous lovebite, her recent drunk ventures and clubbing to blame. She was not repeating last year's antics though, but displayed admirable caring qualities instead. Hans, Ash and Theo were undergoing serious health issues of different natures, but only Hans was fortunate enough to be treated by the triumvirate of Sanya, Sue and Angie, painstakingly venturing through Sunway Pyramid for Hans' upcoming dinners, which Sue made to perfection. Sanya's constant concern put her in a completely different light, and perhaps Lady Luck had rewarded her, with Mango Mophead finally checking her out, not once but twice, sending Sanya into the high echelons of delirium.

Face of a Thousand Impressions and self-proclaimed 'Niner' Nick Ivans had been under the radar after rumours of him and Diane Shine had died after raging for several weeks. He had resurfaced, only to be pulverized by the division between the Hometowners and the All-Sitiawan Rejects. With cracks appearing amongst them, one by one the Outsiders started facing their own problems to unite and remain strong. With secrets running around and uncertainty clouding judgement, individuals started isolating themselves, Diane and Hans being examples. And Nick decided to join the bandwagon. Only for his case, he decided to force himself into the Hometowners, having his breaks with them and putting to an end the nightly routine of studying in the foyer, hoping to revive the C-Clique. It seems he had enough of enduring what Hans went through almost all of last year. What goes around comes around, and should the C-Clique be revived, it will definitely shake Sunway University College up.

Currently flying solo was Diane Shine, whose personal issues were getting better, although those in college were not. Her days of absence among the Outsiders lessened the daily activities with them, and adversely added to more activities with a "friend" of Cheeze Kenzo. Perhaps being Sunway's Queen has its negative effects as well, drawing unwanted attention. Random messages throughout the day followed by calls and sightings of this friend, who constituted to a stalker, left Diane all hot and bothered, and with the foyer study plan now nothing but a name, it seems Diane is at the mercy of this stalker with no 'protector'. Will she be able to handle this gracefully? Or will her 'disconnection' from The All-Sitiawan Rejects come back to haunt her?

Finally, the single thing that had been bothering almost every student had been laid to rest, at least on paper. For nearly two weeks, students were confused and stressed over the university applications that would determine their immediate future, and after several discussions and hours of careful planning, they managed to fill in the forms and submit them, with Hans facing mild difficulties given his status. More trouble seems to be on the horizon for him though, with the uncertainty of his application for a student pass a major stumbling block to make it to the July Intake.

For John Bow, he seems to have nothing major to be concerned about, other than his flagging studies. With finals appraoching at breakneck speed, he, along with everyone else, need to pull up his socks and push harder. But yet, the multiple distractions continue tugging at their heads, with John, Dan, Nick, Hans, Sue and Diane hitting Sunway Pyramid for a movie. The different movies watched- John and Dan one, with the other four watching another- only corroborated the separation and overall disconnect that had inundated Sunway University College for the past two weeks. Personal thoughts become darker, words turn bitchy, intentions turn evil as everything is in disarray behind the facades of smiles and laughter. One revenge mission had been complete even without the individual needing to lift a finger, but with the results not turning out as expected. It seems that for the Outsiders, college is the modern day lunch table where they congregate and converse, each hiding behind veneers, feeling disconnected from everyone around them. But for the Hometowners, they face no such problem.