My Handsome Katipunero

KABANATA 2

Para sakin, anghel si Kuya Kevin. Hindi lang dahil sa malaanghel si kuya, kundi dahil sa mabait ito. He's very kind. Sa family niya, sa friends niya, even with strangers.Napakamatulungin ni kuya Kevin. Kahit na medical student palang, kapag may time ay sumasam siya sa mga medical missions para tumulong. Kahit hindi niya kilala, basta't alam niyang nangangailangan ng tulong, hindi siya magdadalawang-isip na tulungan.

Masipag din si Kuya pagdating sa pag-aaral. Matalino. Halos gabi-gabi siyang nagpupuyat kakabasa ng mga medical books. Para bang hindi nauubusan ng room ang utak niya para sa mga bagong kaalaman.

Siya ang hero ko. Ang iniidolo ko. I want to be like him someday that's why I'm studying hard.

Lumipas ang ilang linggo ay hindi bumalik si kuya. Umalis din sila Mommy at Daddy at naiwan ako sa bahay kasama ang mga maids.

I waited for them for months. Wala akong kaalam-alam sa mga nangyayari. They call me to ask how's my day, if I have eaten. I kept asking the maids, even my mother's secretary, pero pare-pareho lang ang sagot nila. Business trip. But I know there was something wrong. Hindi gugustuhin nila mommy at daddy na iwan ako for months. And kuya Kevin will call me every day.

After six months napag-alaman kong nasa Ospital sila Mommy. Sumama ako kina Tito Frank, my mother's brother, papunta sa Ospital na kinaroroonan nila.

And there, I saw my Mom and Dad crying in one corner habang kinakausap ng doktor. My brother was sitting on the hospital bed, nagwawala. Three nurses were holding both his arms, preventing him from struggling habang may pilit na itinuturok sa kanya.

Doon ko napansin ang mga pasa ni kuya sa katawan. Marami siyang pasa at mga sugat.

Then I looked at his face. His face was beat up. Halos pumutok ang labi at may mga pasa rin sa pisngi niya. There were dark circles around his eyes, he looked like he was fatigued and haven't slept for months.

     "Pakawalan niyo ko! Nandyan na sila! Aaaah! Please- please stop it! Please, p-pakawalan niyo na po ako! Ah! M-masakit! Mommy! Daddy!" Maya-maya'y tumigil ito sa pagpupumiglas na parang bang may naalalang masama. Nagsimula siyang manginig at napahawak ng ulo."Mom, b-inugbog nila ako. They hit me a hundred times. T-they- Mom, t-they r-r-raped me-"

I gripped the teddy bear I was holding. At the age of ten, I wasn't oblivious to what rape means. That time, I didn't know what to do. Lumapit ako sa kuya ko at niyakap ito. I cried. Cried and cried.

Bakit? Bakit nangyari 'to sa kanya? He's the kindest of kindest people.

When I turned 15, doon ko lubusang naintindihan ang mga nangyari.

While on Sulu, my brother was kidnapped by a terrorist group. My parents found out about it, kaya lumipad sila papuntang Sulu. They asked help from the Filipino government. But the kidnappers asked for a 50 million ransom money in exchange of my brother's life. We can give them the money. We can afford such a tiny amount. But the government kept on insisting na sundin ang "No ransom policy". Heck. My brother's life was at stake at ang policy-policy pa ang pinaprioritize nila.

So, that's what they did for 6 months. Kinakagat lahat ng intel tungkol sa kung saan nagkukuta ang mga letseng bandido. Priority daw nila ang buhay ng biktima. Priority their ass. Obvious naman na priority nila ang mahanap ang kuta ng mga putang bandidong 'yun so they can exterminate them, get the fucking reward, and be recognized.

My parents gave up. Hindi na sila umasa sa gobyerno, they gave the ransom money sa mga bandido lalo na noong nakareceive sila ng video ni kuya. It was a video of him, naked and all beat up. He was crying on the video and was asking for help.