Officially Meeting You

Chapter 20: Stares

"Table 60."

I nodded and took the trays from Eve. Umakyat na ako sa second floor at nagpatuloy sa pagse-serve.

It's Friday night and it's raining outside. Hindi naman ganoon kalakas pero sana tumila mamaya dahil masyadong malamig. I can endure it though.

Pagkababa ko, napansin ko si Ate Mitchie at Kuya Jed malapit sa counter. Nag-uusap sila at parehong seryoso kaya medyo nagtaka ako. I had the urge to ask Eve or Annie about it but just shrugged it off at the end.

I'm not the type of person who interferes with people's business. Siguro naman walang masamang nangyayari.

After my shift, mabilis akong nagbihis at nagpaalam sa kanila. I left VegaChicken and thankfully, the rain stopped.

Pero pagkatapak ko pa lang sa labas, kakaiba na kaagad ang pakiramdam ko. I feel like there's someone watching me.

I roamed my eyes around and saw few people walking and still working. Was it a ghost?

"Huy!"

Halos mapatalon ako sa gulat nang biglang lumitaw si Annie sa gilid ko. She laughed at my reaction and I grasped my chest before sighing.

"Ayos ka lang?" natatawang tanong niya.

"Aatakihin ako sa puso dahil sayo."

Tumawa lang siya at nagpaalam na. I just nodded and watched her walking away, going to the opposite direction.

Napabuntong hininga ako ulit at naglakad na din. I put my hands inside my jacket's pockets when a blast of cold breeze slapped my body.

It's really cold.

I was about to cross the highway when I saw Lolo Juan. As usual, nasa tabi na naman ito ng kalsada at mag-isa.

For the past weeks, I often see him in his usual spot. Madalas ko siyang binibilhan ng pagkain pagkatapos ng trabaho kapag nakikita ko siya.

And since I saw him again, bumili ako ng cup noodles sa malapit na 7/11 at kape. Nilagyan ko na iyon ng mainit na tubig at maingat na lumabas at lumapit kay Lolo Juan.

And like what he usually does, he will brightly smile whenever he sees me and call me the word I love to hear.

"Ikaw pala, Apo."

Nilapag ko iyong pagkain at kape sa harapan niya. "Kain na po kayo."

"Hanggang kailan mo ba ako papakainin, Apo? Hindi mo naman ako kaano-ano," sambit niya na may tono ng lungkot. "Hindi ko din masusuklian ang tulong mo."

I shook my head and smiled. "Ayos lang po, Lolo. Hindi ko naman po kailangan ng bayad. Ayos na po iyong ngiti niyo."

"Pero—"

"Kumain na po kayo. Sige kayo, baka lumamig 'yan."

Bahagya lang siyang tumawa sa sinabi ko. Pumunit siya ng karton at iyon ang ginamit upang hindi siya mapaso sa paghawak sa cup. Then he dug in.

Tiny rains started to drop once again so I decided to join him for a while. Binuksan ko iyong payong ko at pinayungan kaming dalawa habang kumakain siya.

I sat beside him and saw some people looking at us. Hindi ko na lang sila pinansin.

Hindi naman mabaho si Lolo Juan eh. Well, slight.

While he's eating, pakiramdam ko ay may nakatingin sa amin. I just shrugged it off. Kung masamang loob man iyon, he cannot touch me now since there are still people around.