Wala sa sarili si Elmo ng pumasok siya ng bahay nila. Sarado ang mga ilaw kaya binuksan niya muna ang mga iyon para hindi na siya mangapa muli sa dilim. Aakyat na sana siya sa hagdan ng mapansin niyang nasa sala pa si Julie, nakaupo ito sa mahabang sofa at nakatingin sa kanya.
Kaagad na itinaas ni Elmo ang mga kamay niya na tila ba'y sumusurrender sa kanyang kalaban. "Nag-ot kami ni Alvin, hindi ako pumunta kung saan-saan. I texted you right?" Hindi parin umiimik si Julie. "Bakit ka pala nagpupuyat?" Tiningnan niya ang wrist watch niya. "Past 12am na."
"Nakakainis ka kasi." Kaagad tinakpan ni Julie ang mga mata niya ng sunod-sunod ng tumulo ang kanyang mga luha. "Sabi mo sa text mo 10pm ka uuwi."
Kaagad namang lumapit si Elmo sa tabi ni Julie dahil natatakot siya na baka malaglag ang anak nila kapag hindi pa ito tumahan sa pag-iyak. "Hon, natraffic lang ako. Promise na talaga yan."
"Ayan ka na naman, bakit Elmo pangit na ba talaga ako para ipagpalit mo ako sa iba?"
"Who told you that? Julie, please stop overthinking." Pinahiga niya ito sa balikat niya sabay haplos sa nanginginig na braso nito dahil sa paghikbi. "I love you." Pinaharap niya ito sa kanya upang mapunasan ang luha nito. "I'm really sorry about last night. I didn't mean to lie." He planted a kiss on her lips. "Bati na tayo ha?"
"Hindi ka na magsisinungaling ulit?" Humihikbing sambit ni Julie.
"Hindi na." Itinaas niya ang kanang kamay niya ng may halong ngiti sa kanyang mukha. "May ibibigay pala ako sa baby natin."
"Ano naman yun?" Parang bata niyang kinusot ang kanyang mata.
Binuksan ni Elmo ang bag niya para kunin ang binili niyang mini notebook para sa kanyang anak at pagkatapos ay ibinigay niya iyon kay Julie gamit ang pareho niyang kamay.
Napangiti si Julie ng makita niya ang bagay na inaabot sa kanya ng kanyang asawa. "Elmo item na naman?"
"Yes." Sumandal muna siya sa sofa bago niya buong ingat na pinahiga si Julie sa kanyang dibdib. "May sinulat pala ako dito. Ako na ang magbabasa para sayo."
Nakabukas na ang diary na pinagkaabalahan niyang tapusin bago pa man siya bisitahin ni Alvin sa kanyang opisina. Nagpasya siyang maupo muna sa sahig matapos niyang ayusin ang pagkaka-upo ni Julie sa sofa nila para makausap niya ng maayos ang kanilang anak. Ipinatong niya sa hita ni Julie ang kaliwang kamay niya na siyang may hawak ng diary-ng iyon habang ang kanan naman ay nakahawak sa tiyan ni Julie.
"Hey. It's me. Papa. You probably don't know me that well yet. But I'm the voice you hear every now and then that's not your Mama's. In less than a month, you'll be out here, in the real world. And it'll be my responsibility to take care of you, make sure you are always safe and sound, and guide you on the path to becoming a strong, good woman or a good man. I don't know if I'm allowed to say this, but right now, I'm absolutely terrified. I'm your Papa, but in many ways I still feel like a child myself. I haven't always made the right decisions, didn't act when I shouldn't, acted when I should have just observed, it's a fairly long list. If you ever let me ramble on about my various adventures, you're probably well aware of many of my mistakes. You also have probably noticed that I made a lot of big leaps in my life. I moved away from the warmth and security of my Lola Vera's home to go tackle this thing called independent life. I agreed to share my life with a total stranger. We'll talk about that further once you're born." Hindi maalis ang mga ngiti ni Julie sa kanyang mapupulang labi habang pinapakinggan niya si Elmo. "All of these things came with their own set of anxiety and fears, but let me tell you, what I feel now as you get ready to join us out here eclipses all of that. I'm scared, but don't worry sweetie, Papa will always be here. When you learn to ride a bicycle for the first time, I'll be there to pick you up and bandage up your scrapes. When you get the lead in the school play, I'll be in the front row taking video and embarrassing you by making funny faces. When you get your heart broken by your first real crush, I'll be there with a box of Kleenex and a bucket of ice cream. When you graduate from high school and beyond, I'll be bragging about my smart baby girl or baby boy to anyone in the stands who hasn't run away from me yet. When you get your first job, I'll help you open up your bank account. And when you do find the guy or a girl you decide to share your life with and start up a new family, I'll be there to support you. Like I said, I haven't always made the best choices, I haven't always been right in the end. But choosing your mom was the best decision I've ever made in my life so far." He smiled. "I promise to grow up alongside you. Right now you are still a moving mass inside your Mama's stomach. But I know that you are the future. And I want you to have a good one. I want you to be strong, able to take care of yourself when the time comes to strike out on your own. I want you to feel like you can do anything, achieve anything, so long as you want it and work hard for it. Don't sit around and wait for life to come to you, go out and grab it! I want you to be whoever you want to be. Don't let anyone tell you to behave or think in a certain way. If you want to play with action figures and video games, Papa will save you a seat next to him and show you how to give him hadoukens, and how to make Optimus Prime transform into a truck so he can run over his enemies. Of course, if you want to play with your other toys, that's fine too. I may not understand it as well, but I promise to attend all your tea parties or play dolls with you, if you happen to be a bouncing baby girl" He chuckled. "I'm not ready to be a father yet. I don't know if anyone is ever truly 'ready'. So I ask you now, forgive my mistakes. Understand that my fear is born from not wanting to fail you. Help me prove to your Mama how much Papa loves her okay?" Hinaplos niya ang tiyan ni Julie. "Sweetie, know that I'm here, and I will always be here, no matter what happens. So sit tight, continue to enjoy your time with Mama, and when you are ready, I'll see you out here. I'll be waiting." Tumayo siya ng kaunti sapat para mahalikan niya ang tiyan ni Julie. "I love you." He whispered.
Hindi malaman ni Julie kung ano ang irereact niya. She was speechless. Kaya naman nang maupo muli si Elmo sa tabi niya at ng sandaling magtama ang tingin niya ay kaagad niya itong niyakap ng mahigpit. Dahil sa sobrang tuwa ay hindi na niya napigilang maiyak muli, and this time around hindi na dahil sa sama ng loob kundi dahil na sa sobrang kasiyahan.
"Thank you for doing this, hon." She sniffed. "Ouch."
Mabilis na humiwalay si Elmo kay Julie. "Oh bakit?"
"The baby's moving." Tuwang-tuwang sambit ni Julie habang pinapakiramdaman niya ang kanyang tiyan.
Kaagad namang hinawakan ni Elmo ang tiyan ni Julie para maramdaman niya ang paggalaw ng kanyang anak. Nang sandaling maramdaman niya na iyon ay manghang-mangha siyang tumingin kay Julie sabay ngiti rito ng abot hanggang tenga.
"Cool!"
"Alam ko na gusto niyang sabihin." Pinunasan ni Julie ang luha niya sabay ngiti ng sandaling maabot na ng kanang kamay niya ang kaliwang pisngi ni Elmo. "Mama and I will love you as no other human can ever and will ever do." She kissed him lightly. "We love you Papa." Malambing na sambit niya habang nakikipagtitigan siya kay Elmo.
To be continued...
