The Nameless Hour

Chapter 06: Rogue's Queen

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Nilapat ko ang kamay sa bintana ng tren, eksakto sa posisyon ng mga punong kahoy na nasa bundok. Pataas nang pataas ang daanan. Ngayon ko lang nakita ang ganitong klaseng tanawin. Simula nang mawalan ako ng memorya ay puro mga nagtataasang gusali lang ang nakikita ko.

I still can't believe it. Makakabalik na ako sa bayan na aking pinanggalingan. Ilang oras na lang ang hihintayin.

Nasisiyahan ako, ngunit hindi ko maalis itong hindi maipaliwanag na nararamdaman ko. Like, standing on the middle of an abandoned railway but still gets the feeling that a train could hit me anytime.

"...You're here for a reason. Someone put you here to protect you. 'Wag mong sayangin ang kaniyang sakripisyo," The fortune teller's voice echoed in my mind.

So, what am I supposed to do then? Get drowned by the thoughts of who I am? I hate the feeling of uncertainty.

I took a deep breath to shake-off those feelings. Nakasakay na ako, hindi na ako pwede pang bumalik uli. I'm aware of the possible consequences of my actions, and would face them if needed.

I think, this is the right situation to say that word I always hear, "Bahala na."

Someone made a gagging sound, followed by a tapping on the mouth. Leola, who was beside me, was looking green. Tinatakpan niya ang bibig niya habang aligaga naman ang Lola niya sa paghahanap ng supot sa bag nito.

"Do you have motion sickness?" I can't believe those words came out from my mouth. If it was someone else's, I would have stared at them.

Ganito nga siguro ang side-effect ng pagkawala ng memorya. Pati common sense, nawawala.

Iaabot na sana ng Lola niya ang supot ngunit agad na umiling si Leola habang nagpipigil pa rin. Her chest rose before I saw a movement on her neck. D-Did she just swallowed her—

Never mind. Nagpanggap na lang ako na hindi 'yon napansin.

Sumandal siya sa balikat ng Lola niya at ipinikit ang mata. I don't know though if she can manage to fall asleep.

Tahimik kong pinagmamasdan ang nangyayari sa harapan ko. Leola is blessed to have such caring grandparents. The way they looked at her... I never had someone who looked at me with such tenderness.

When I lived in the streets, the people whom I came across with gave me money or food— after looking at my face. Some would shook their head, pagkatapos ay bubulong na sayang daw ako. There was never kindness, just plain attraction.

But, there's always something to lack. After what I heard, I know for sure that they're hiding something from her. Intensyon man nilang protektahan siya ngunit sa paningin ko ay mas pinakomplikado lang nila ang kanilang problema.

'Di ko na pero sila papangunahan sa bagay na 'yon. But, I'm curious about a certain thing that her grandmother talked about before...

"What do you mean when you said that a certain someone had already found you?" Direkta akong tumingin sa Lola.

"Hindi ko alam ang sinasabi mo, iha."

"Hindi ako pwedeng magkamali sa narinig. You even mentioned that you're already tired of running. Tell me, are you a—" Tumigil ako sa pagsasalita.