Here, Under the Stars

CHAPTER 31

-- MAGUI --

"I can't sleep," I whispered to myself.

I kept on thinking about the book Ashi made for me. I read it over and over until I realized that she was already setting me free.

I don't know if I was supposed to be happy or not. When she did extreme measures just to make me extend my stay here, I was furious at her. But now that she's setting me free, I'm lonely. It feels like I didn't want to be separated from her. It's like I wanted to stay for her or I'd bring her with me instead. But I can't. Her life's settled here.

Our lives are settled in two different places. Manila and Canada, two countries that are so far away from each other.

I finally fell asleep and woke up when I felt the room being cold. I looked at the window and noticed that it was raining heavily. I had the craziest idea so I hurried my way outside. It felt so comforting to shower in the rain.

"Magui!" Riley called for me with an umbrella in her hand. "You might catch some colds!"

"I'm not a kid anymore, Ry. Try it, it's fun!" I invited her to join me.

"Ayoko nga! Ang dumi kaya ng water na 'yan!" She declined.

"Ang arte mo, ha?" I teased her as I started splashing water on her.

"Magui! Ayaw mo tumigil ah?" She was so annoyed that she let go of the umbrella and took the hose on the corner to spew at me.

"What's happening here?" Lia went out of the house. "Ay parang masaya 'yan! Sali ako!"

Lia ran towards me and started splashing Riley with water. The three of us played like little kids in the rain. After a while, the two already went inside. I was left in the middle of heavy rain.

I closed my eyes and started dancing gracefully. I probably looked stupid but I imagined that I was dancing with Ashi. It was always her dream to dance in the rain.

"When the sun don't shine no more
And we can't see where we're going
There's only one thing I know for sure
It's your hands I'll still be holding"

"There's only one place I want to be
Through every pain and victory"

"I'll be here right next to you
I'll know all your fears, protect you with truth
Love you from here, all the way to the moon
And make my way back home to you"

I stopped singing when the rain finally stopped falling. I went inside and took a hot shower. I was about to eat my pandesal when I suddenly sneezed.

"You're not a kid anymore, huh?" Riley said sarcastically while handing me a cup of hot chocolate. It was her specialty.

"I just really love the rain," I told her while sipping my drink. I can't stop smiling.

I didn't have work today so I spent the day in my room. I was just watching movies and scrolling on my phone from time to time. I went to Instagram and saw that Ashi was live.

"Drop your song suggestions and I'll pick one to sing for you guys," Ashi told her viewers while she was reading the comments.

People keep on commenting on different songs but one song was being mentioned over and over again. Reside. I decided to join with the fan's pleads.

m.feola: reside

"Reside?" Ashi read the comments. "Is that m.feola? Is Magui here?" She asked in shocked.