Last Drop of Coffee (Lost Souls Series #1)

Chapter 28

"Here," dahan-dahan kong inabot ang papel na nilalaman ng mga bagay mula sa contest. It was nerve-wrecking of course for the fact na ngayon lang ako na expose sa ganito.

I'm happy that I get to experience such an achievement. Win or Lose, at least for the meantime I had fun.

"Napakagaling..." pabirong usal ni Rain sabay palakpak ng paloko. We did our segment shake hands and then laughed.

He sighed and looked at me, "Unfair mo talaga kahit kailan, pinanuod ko 'yung iyo tapos sa akin naman nawala ka bigla."

"Parang bata naman 'to, alangan namang manood ako, baka 'di ko pa magustuhan arguments niyo at makisali ako. Anong magagawa mo? ngumanga?" binatukan ko siya matapos ko sabihin iyon. Tanging pagtawa lang ang linabas niya at binigay sakin ang phone ko, "May missed calls ka, 15 galing kay Drome."

"Bakit ngayon mo lang sinabi?" tanong ko pa na naiinis.

"I didn't want to spoil you some fun, atsaka ngayon ko lang din nahalata. Nakasilent pala phone mo." tila ba rumagasa ang pawis ko. Hindi naman sa sobrang negative ko sa buhay kaya ako nagkakaganito. Sadyang lahat ng bagay na kabilang sila ay kinakabahan ako.

I dialed her number only to hear the words that I couldn't reach her. Everything just feels not right. Anong nangyayari?

"May dala ka bang sasakyan?" tinanong ko ang matalik kong kaibigan. Rain just sighed.

"Unfortunately, I do not. Sorry." napasapo ako sa noo ko sa aking naturang mga salita galing sakan'ya.

I bit my nails, a sign of frustration. Okay, maybe I'm just overthinking, or maybe my instincts are right...

"Do you want a ride? I can help you, just a little bit. Marunong ka ba mag-commute?" tapik ni Laurei sa'kin, matapos niyang tanungin na marunong ba ako mag commute ay napakamot nalang siya sa kaniyang batok.

"Yes, anything will do. Basta lang makarating ako sa inuupahan namin." tumango siya matapos sabihin iyon, hinatak niya ako sa may bus station at kumuha na kami ng ticket.

To the fact na nakalimutan ko alamin kung nanalo ba ako sa sinasalihan ko. Kelan ko ba uunahin ang sarili?

"Ate, Okay ka lang ba?" tanong sa akin ng kaibigan ko habang nakakalabit ang kamay sa riles ng jeep.

"Yes, malapit na ba?" I asked, again. Still shaking...

"Oo, isang kanto nalang paharap sa apartment mo." tumango ako sa narinig. Having the urge to jump here is scary, my heart is throbbing rappidly and all I can think about is our safety. No secrets can be limited forever, no such thing as that. Maybe you can keep it a little, with an ounce of hope that it won't betray and spread like a wildfire, but it will always and will always be revealed in the right time, at the wrong place.

I walked through the front door. As the sky started to become dull, I calmed myself and contained my breaths. It was a sight. I mere sight, like the calm before the storm.

But, maybe of course I'm just overthinking. Baka nga umiiyak lang si Nai kaya napatawag sa'kin si Drome. Pero, grabe naman 15 missed calls? hindi ba siya marunong magpatahan ng bata?

Pumasok ako sa elevator at pinindot ang floor na pinapasukan namin. Hingang malalim... ipalabas... Nasa likuran ko si Laurei, habang dahan-dahan ko namang pinihit ang doorknob ng inuupahan namin. Only to find out Drome shaking while holding the baby.

"Whose baby is this? Andromeda Celestine?!" fear rushed through me as I heard the authoritative scream of Tita Abenzuella.

Drome covered Nai's ears and looked at her mom the way she looked at Ellie on my birthday. Nasaan na ba si Aeolus?!