Bitter Holidays in Jeju

Chapter 18

While we're waiting for the transit, I nudged him off. Tiningnan naman niya ako na pinanliitan pa ng mata.

"Sabi ko naman sa 'yo, marami pa ring nakikilala sa 'yo. Marami pa ring gustong makita ka. Tingnan mo, kahit na nasa military ka ng halos dalawang taon ay hindi ka pa rin nila binitawan. Katulad ko... naniwala pa rin akong makababalik dito and it's you who made it happened again."

He took a deep breath. "You believed in me so much."

"Syempre naman. Bakit naman hindi?" Napangiti na lamang ako. "Bakit ikaw? Don't you believe in yourself? If people believed in you, maybe you should do the same thing."

"It's easy to say you know," he said. "But I'm trying to believe myself... they uplift me though. They made me realize that I'm still here and doing a part in this industry." Pinalibot naman ni BJH ang braso niya sa balikat ko at hinila niya ako papalapit sa kanya. Halos kulungin niya ako sa yakap niya. "Thank you for believing in me, Raijine."

Tinusok ko siya sa tagiliran niya para kilitiin siya. He didn't react, but he smiled. "Of course, ikaw pa ba!"

He chuckled. "But I'm sorry that we had to leave early and it's because of that paparazzi. Maybe next time we could do it again."

Mabilis naman akong tumango. "Yes! We really should do it next time. At okay lang naman sa akin if we left early, at least we've got to see the sunrise. Iyon naan ang importante, 'di ba?"

He nodded as if I'm saying it right. "Yup. That's the important thing and what made this day for me. Do you want to go home now or eat in someplace?"

Napa-isip naman ako sa tanong and I have to consider such things before saying a thing. Papayag sana akong kumain kami sa labas if it's not risky pero dahil may nag-aabang sa amin, it would be better for us just to go back home so I could get back to sleep na rin.

When the public transit came, we both get inside and must wait for another two hours of ride to get back home. Nasa tabi naman ako ng bintana at naaaliw naman ako sa view dahil sag awing kaliwa ay matatanaw ang karagatan. Up in the Sunrise Peak, parang gusto kong tanawin ang Pilipinas mula ro'n pero imposible naman 'yon kaya inimagine ko na lang.

BJH then caught my attention and he asked something about what I do when Chini didn't call me to be back here. Ang dami kong gustong i-kwento sa kanya. Literal na nag-flashback sa isipan ko 'yong mga nangyari sa buhay ko sa nakalipas na dalawang taon.

"Siguro sisimula ko na lang by the time I left South Korea and I had to find another job to sustain the needs of my family... actually, it's kinda hard for me to find a stable job. Nag-apply ako sa isang call center company pero three months lang ang itinagal ko. I look for part-time jobs and yet what I'm getting isn't enough. And then a few months ago, pumasok ako sa online selling. Naging stable 'yon at naging maganda ang kita ng shop ko kaya hindi ko binitawan 'yon. Back before my first year here, everything changed. It changed my life and I've got to save up some money that eventually helps me, but within those months, it was really a struggle for me, but I keep coming by and I'm glad that I made it and back to this country once again."

He breathes and let it go swiftly. Napailing at pikit pa ito as if he's not believing that it happened to me.

"And you've made it all through those stuff?" he wondered. Tumango-tango naman ako sa kanya. "Wow... you're tough and unbelievable, Raijine. And you even hope that you'll get this job back?"

I sighed and nodded. "Actually, yes... ang taas pa ng pag-asa kong makababalik ulit ako rito. Na kapag tapos ka na sa military training mo, baka pwedeng makabalik ulit ako rito. Alam kong medyo imposibleng mangyari 'yon no'ng mga oras na 'yon kaya nag-stick na lang ako sa online selling ko. Binuhos ko ang atensyon ko ro'n. And it's the same platform where Chini would reach out to me once again... ang sarap lang sa pakiramdam na mabigyan ulit ng opportunity na ganito at hindi ko na sasayangin pa 'yon."