Playing Two Sides
Recently, I've learnt to just watch and observe people, kinda like be the guy who sees all but says none. And that is because I find it interesting watching people exhibit different kind of characters that they probably don't even know that they have. It's like seeing a movie in real time.
Well, last Saturday, I saw someone I do consider a friend do something that I felt was manipulative and that I should be weary of. You see, every Saturday at my hostel, we do sanitation to keep everywhere clean and then we give a fine to anyone who doesn't come out to participate for the said sanitation.
So on one faithful Saturday morning, two ladies had gone out the previous night to a party and had returned after the sanitation was over, and based on the rule of the hostel, as long as you were present at the hostel the previous day but wasn't present for the sanitation the next day, you have to pay the fine.
It's a rule that has been there for as long as I can remember but for some reason, these ladies had claimed to not be aware of the rule but that was none of anyone's business, they were going to pay the fine regardless.
So the ladies and the lodge president had a little back and forth argument before they angrily went upstairs, still insisting that they weren't going to pay the fine. After they had left, a friend of mine had walked up to the president, insisting that the ladies must pay the fine and they must pay it now.
He kept on insisting until the president got fed up and went with his executives to the ladies room to demand for the money. After about fifteen minutes of them shouting and quarreling, the ladies had no choice but to pay the money, and the president collected the money and left.
While all of this was happening, I was in my room, minding my business because the last thing I wanted was anyone talking to me rudely for money that won't be mine to spend.
Anyways, about five minutes after the president and his executive had left, I overheard someone talking to the lady whose money they just collected, trying to console her and make her feel good. It was none other than that friend of mine, the same guy who had motivated the president to go enforce the law in the first place.
Watching him play two sides was shocking and yet interesting to watch because it made me see a side of him that I never knew existed. It goes to show me that someone like him shouldn't be trusted because while he's looking for a solution to your problems, he could be the one behind the problems.
