PAP48
"She kind of... hated me for real because I scolded her."
"Nagtampo, ganon?" Tanong ko. Saakin kasi ay ang lalim noong paggamit niya ng 'hated' na salita. Hindi naman 'yon ang nararamdaman ko tuwing nakikita sila. They are just distant, and they don't speak at all to each other.
Cell was telling me about Kill. We're just talking about random things a while ago before we ended up with her—I mean, I brought her up. Napansin ko kasi noong mga huling araw na nasa Manila kami na parang totoo pala iyong sinasabi ni Ate Io na sila ang pinaka-close sa magkakapatid. Kasi naman, tuwing nakikita ko sila noon ay nagsasamaan lang sila ng tingin at hindi nag-uusap.
So that's the reason. They fought.
"Yeah, she's a brat," aniya na parang natural lang sa kanyang magsabi ng ganon sa kapatid. "We fight a lot because of useless things. But that time, she must have felt really bad. Hinayaan ko na lang muna. She's not the type to be swayed when consoled. She'll just sulk more."
"Ayos na kayo ngayon?"
"I guess? Siya lang naman 'yon."
I nodded at him. Now, I fully understand. Siguro kaya rin distant si Kill saakin ay dahil doon. Ako pala ang pinag-awayan nila. He suspected her to be the one who told Mama about me before, kasi ito lang naman daw sa pamilya nila ang may alam. Turns out, it was really her. Tama nga si Cell, she must have felt bad for different reasons. She felt guilty but she also doesn't wanna be blamed. Baka ganon lang 'yon.
"Why? Did she do something weird to you?" tanong niya naman saakin.
Umiling ako sa kanya at huminga ng malalim. "Wala naman. Parang ang hirap niya lang maka-close."
Lumingon ako sa kanya noong marinig ko ang tawa niya. He nodded. "She's not friendly, it's natural. Don't worry about it, you'll get close soon."
Yeah, I believe too. Nakakausap ko na rin naman siya nitong mga nakaraan, hindi tulad noon. Mas madali kay Ate Io dahil friendly ito at kusang nagbubukas ng usapan. Pero saamin ni Kill na parehas hindi friendly at madalang maging approachable? It will surely take time. That's what I also think about with their elder brother. Si Kuya Rion.
"How about Mama? How are you with her?"
Parehas lang kaming naglakad ng walang direksyon dahil mas abala kami sa pag-uusap. Ni wala nga kaming napagkasunduan na pupuntahan. We're just walking. Tumitingin ako sa paligid pero mas invested ako sa pakikipag-usap kay Cell.
We went out for a while today to hang out and have some time for ourselves like before. Bukas kasi ay magsisimula na ulit ako sa trabaho. Sobrang tagal na rin naming hindi nakakalabas nitong mga nagdaang buwan, and soon we'll be busy working again. Though we spend a lot of time together at home, we just kinda want a different environment.
"Good? She's... cool," I said.
Noong una ay halos manginig pa ako sa takot sa kanya. I even hated her for sounding too manipulative over me. But I managed to know her more these past few months. Hindi ko alam pero I somehow admire her now. She's cool with everything as long as it's reasonable. Minsan nga ay nahihiya ako kahit sa isip ko lang na may pagkakataon na inayawan ko siya. Like... who am I in comparison to her?
Naintindihan ko na rin kung bakit ganon na lang siya pinagtanggol ni Cell noon.
"Wow. You really described her like that."
"Bakit? How would you describe Mama ba?" hamon ko sa kanya.
He smiled and titled his head. "I won't tell you. Baka isumbong mo ako."
