Afterlife

V. At Worst

Chapter 5 :
At Worst

Chloe's POV

"Taho! Taho!"

"Saging!"

"Isda!"

There were vendors shouting their wares. Kadalasan those who shout their wares are those who sell fish, bananas, at.. tama ba 'yong narinig ko? Taho? Tahong ba na mussels or ibang taho?

The man who accompanied me, he threw away the cigarette he was using. Am I right to trust him? Kasi, don't trust to strangers daw eh kaso kailangan ko ng tulong para makabalik sa amin. But we've been walking around here on the road before. I'm starting to doubt.

Minsan, may nadadaanan kaming kanal na punong-puno ng basura. There were also scattered plastic bags, plastic spoons, plastic forks, plastic cups and on the side of the road there was a garbage bag lying full of garbage. At isa pa, hindi ko maiwasang makalanghap ng maiitim na usok dahil sa mga sasakyan dito.

Ilang saglit lamang, bigla na lamang siya umimik. "Tara, kain muna tayo," aya niya habang dinala naman niya ako sa isang kainan.

Pagkarating namin sa kakaibang kainan, nangunot ang aking noo. So many people are eating. Their chairs look like white bleachers while their table is very simple but seems outdated. 'Yong iba, ibang klase kung kumain. Hindi man lang sila gumamit ng kubyertos. Nagkakamay lang sila. The question is, did they wash their hands before eating? They eat dirty. Isa pa, 'yong iba nakataas pa ang kanilang mga paa. I gritted my teeth.

Sheesh..

Matapos niyang mag-order, inilapag niya sa bakanteng mesa ang pagkain na in-order niya while I remained standing still.

"Tara na, h'wag kang mahiya. Bayaran mo na lang ako mamaya," baling niya sa akin as he sat in the chair and then ate with a spoon and fork.

Ang tanong, mababayaran pa ba kita mamaya?

Darn it! Wala akong perang dala! Paano ko mababayaran si Kuya? What if I have nothing to give? What will happen?

"N-no, thank you.."

"Bakit? May problema ba?" usisa niya habang ako'y nagdadalawang isip na siya'y sagutin. "Wala kang perang dala? Haha! 'Yon lang naman pala. H'wag kang mag-alala, pagnahatid na kita sa inyo, t'saka mo na ako bayaran," aniya at wala akong nagawa kung 'di maupo sa harapan niya. "Saglit lang, may kakausapin lang ako."

He left in front of me and went somewhere while I was staring at my plate. Ang mayroon ako sa aking plato ay one cup of rice, pansit, at dalawang nakatusok sa stick na.. i-is that chicken intestine?!

"Eww.. g-gross!" I criticized as I gently pushed my plate away from me. H'wag na lang. Hindi naman ako gutom. Why do they eat this kind of food? Baka mamaya, pagkumain pa ako niyan magkasakit pa ako o sumakit tiyan ko.

Out of the corner of my eye, others are staring at me. Often what I hear from them is why I'm wearing this. I rolled my eyes.

Hello? This is called sleeping gown!

Sa 'di kalayuan, 'yong lalaking nakasama ko mula kanina, may kausap sa telepono. I frowned when he mentioned about me on the other line.

"Pre, may kasama akong chix.. Oo, dalaga. Sunduin mo ako dito iuuwi ko riyan sa atin,"

I quickly got up from my seat while my chair fell on the cement causing him to look at me. Ako'y tumakbo papalayo sa kainan dahilan siya'y maalarma!

"H-hoy! Bumalik ka dito!" habol niya sa akin. I just ran as far as I could. Fear and nervousness suddenly enveloped me.