ChaCha's Chances

ChaCha 25

A/N: Hindi ako magaling sa drama eh. Pagpasensyahan niyo na ang chapter na 'to! Comment kayo! Haha. Minsan lang mag-demand. :)

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Seeing your dad who abandoned his family 11 years ago. What am I suppose to feel? Malulungkot dahil kung anong ikinaginhawa ng buhay niya ay siya namang ikinahirap ng buhay niyong mga naiwan; magiging masaya kasi for many years of longing ay nagkita na kayo finally; o magagalit para sa pagiging walang puso niya para iwan kayo noon.

"Ano bang naging kasalanan namin sa inyo, Papa? Bakit mo kami iniwan? Bakit mo hinayaang hindi ka namin makasama habang lumalaki kami?"

"ChaCha, anak... Sorry naging mahina ang papa."

"Alam niyo ba na malaki na si Nessa? Na favorite namin ang coffee crumble flavored ice cream? Alam niyo bang nagkasakit si Nessa noong iwan mo kami? Wala naman kayong alam eh. Ang iwan niyo lang kami ang alam niyo!"

"Anak..." I feel his touch in my yumuyugyog na shoulders.

"Bakit ang kapal niyong tawagin akong anak? Anak ba ang tawag sa batang iniwan niyo? Anak niyo bang matatawag 'yung hinayaan niyong lumaki sa hirap at lumaki na walang gabay ng ama? Anak ba tawag mo sa'kin, Papa? Anak mo ba ako? Ang kapal kapal mo!"

"ChaCha, babawi si papa." My dad's boses is garalgal. Lumipas ang 11 years then only sorry ?

I was eight when he left us for I-do-not-know reasons. Nessa was three na taon lang. We were happy pero biglaan ang naging pag-alis niya. Mommy said ay umalis na daw siya and will never babalik na. I witnessed how my mom wept. She was wrecked that time. Even though I was bata pa noon, I clearly remember everything.

"Babawi? Ngayon pa, Papa?" I make tayo na and I don't want this kadramahan. "Huwag ka na lang magpakita kay Mommy at Nessa. Salamat." I have to compose myself. I won't make iyak to the patay who is biglang nabuhay. I wiped my tears.

"ChaCha, nagsisisi ako anak."

I smiled at my dad. How I missed him. How I missed those happy days with him. I missed the picture of my parents happy and inlove.

"Masaya na kaming wala ka, Papa.  Sana po ay pagbigyan niyo ang lang kahilingan ko na wag nang magpakita kay Mommy at Nessa." I make tayo ng tuwid. I want to let him see that his anak na he make iwan 11 years ago is maganda.

"Anak, gusto kong maging ama sa inyo ni Chainessa."

I smiled wryly.

"Sa tingin niyo po papayagan ko kayong maging ama sa'min? Masyado nang huli para bumawi at magpaka-dakilang ama sa amin."

"Babawi ako." I can see him silently crying. Wala kang karapatang umiiyak dahil kami ang naiwan.

"Huwag mo nang subukan pa, Papa. Paala--"

"Teka, anak. Magpapaliwanag ang papa." He make pigil me na lumabas. I slapped his hands away.

"Pupuntahan kita kapag kaya ko nang pakinggan ang paliwanag mo." I stepped out from his office and slammed the door.

I forced a ngiti when I see Ice na waiting for me yata. I know he has many katanungan but I'm not in the mood to make salita and kwento what just nangyari. It's epic lang talaga to have an accident encounter with my jerky father. I never expected that moment talaga.

"Come closer." Ice said.

"Huh?"

Ice make lapit to me and yakap na lang me bigla.

"Hindi kita iiwan." Ice make bulong that but I heard it naman. I'm napaiyak talaga ulit. Why he make sabi ba that? "I hate seeing you like this." He make more higpit to his yakap to me. Ice is naramdaman yata that I need yakap.

"I'm okay lang naman eh. He is just multo. I shouldn't be crying nga dapat kasi." I said while my luha is making my paningin blurry na.

"You can cry as long as I'm here."

We were umalis din agad from that building kasi it's like I'm nasusuffocate talaga kanina. I swear talaga not to make tapak na to that building.

"Lord Ice, it's hell yata that is our pinuntahan and not langit." I said we are going home na kasi.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know that you're related with each other."

"Don't say sorry,  Lord Ice. It's not your kasalanan naman and isa pa he is considered patay na rin naman to us."

"My parents died in a vehicular accident just last year. I was left with great responsibilities, taking over the management in our businesses and looking after my sister. There's no easy way handling things but I'm surviving, awesomely."

I'm nagulat naman sa sinabi ni Ice. There is lungkot in his voice. I thought kasi their parents ni Mindy are in a business trip lang or busy lang. They don't make banggit naman that their magulang are deads na pala. I feel sad naman for Ice and Mindy.

"I'm maswerte pa pala because I have my Mommy pa kahit nga my jerky father was iniwan kami." I said na lang. I feel the urge to make comfort him pero I don't know naman kung paano. I know he is sad kasi. "Lord Ice, can we go somewhere ba na tahimik?" I make tanong pa.

I want to go to a serene place talaga to make isip about things. And seeing Ice na malungkot makes me more malungkot.

"Not without buying a food. I'm hungry."

We are bumili na nga ng foods and drinks. We are nag-stop over in a convenient store pa nga. We are kumain na rin inside the sasakyan. Halatang we are so gutom because we are kumain ng marami.

"Lord Ice, where are we going na ba? It's padilim na ah." I asked him.  He is kanina pa kasi nagdadrive.

"Malapit na tayo."

He is not nagsusungit ngayon to me. He is naawa yata to me when he saw me na umiiyak kanina. Ice has puso naman yata. Guztazo Gonzales, Owner and CEO of GazGo Corporation. I make iling na lang to my thoughts. I don't want to make alala na lang the nangyari kanina.

"Sana pala we make sama na si  Mindy. We are like making pasyal lang naman ngayon."

"Edi hindi kita nasolo." He mumbled something na I don't make rinig naman.

"Pardon?"

"Sabi ko baka malungkot lang si Mindy kung nakita ka niyang umiiyak."

"Ah. Okay."

After how many minutes lang naman, Ice said na we are here na daw. He make stop the sasakyan sa gilid ng kalsada. He is naunang bumaba na. Wait, maybe he will make iwan me again? Gawd!

He make senyas naman to me to make baba na.

"Where are we ba?"

"Antipolo." He said and he make hawak my kamay. I'm nagulat pa nga.

Awed when I see what is his tinuro. "Wow! It's maganda." I make sambit.

The place we are naroroon is  overlooking kasi. I can see the whole Metro in our kinakaroroonan. The buildings are like so maliit in my paningin and the ilaw in every bahay are like lightings na designed to make the view beautiful.

"It's maganda here."

"And peaceful." Ice added. I'm napaigtad when he took my hand. Parang the tibok of my heart is nag-iba. In what way, I don't know. He giya me to make upo in the hood of his car.

Next, silence took over. Weird but I feel masaya. I don't know because I am supposed to be malungkot. The thoughts of my jerky tatay ay nag-drift off kung saan.

"ChaCha..."

It's tahimik and the air between us ni Ice is like awkward lang. The space between us naman is like telling me to close it and make lapit to him.

I shifted my gaze from the magandang view ng Metro to Ice.

"You have sinasabi, Lord Ice?"

Ice took my hand again. He locked his with mine. I'm kinabahan naman.

"Sorry, ChaCha. Pinigilan ko naman pero hindi ko talaga kaya at hindi ko na mapipigilan pa."

Oh my Maria Cristina Falls!
Ice ba is may gusto na sa akin?
Why I feel so masaya?