Sa mga sumunod na araw ay mas naging komportable na si Harika sa mansyon ng mga Ishida. Melanie used to accompany her around when Waki was away at work, especially in the garden, where they enjoyed watering the plants. Mas nalibang na rin siya dahil may mga tao na siyang nakakausap at nakakasalamuha. Iba pa rin sa pakiramdam na may mga taong nakapaligid na kilala niya kumpara sa araw-araw na mag-isa siya noon. She used to overthought everything because of the isolation and imposing silence she's been living alone in her unit.
When days become a week of staying at the Ishidas' mansion, Harika felt like it was enough and she should leave. Kahit pa minsan nang muli siyang nasanay—lalo na sa alagang ipinararamdam sa kanya ni Waki ay mas napalagay muli ang loob niya rito, mas lumalim ang bawat usapan nila habang inaalala ang mga masasayang nakaraan nila noong mga bata pa sila. Mula sa eskwelahan na kapuwa nila pinasukan, mga naglalakihang okasyon na ang bawat pamilya nila'y dinaluhan, mga pangyayaring naganap na hindi nila malilimutan... lahat pa rin ng mga iyon ay nakatatak sa kanila at patuloy na mananatili sa kanilang mga puso.
Waki also revealed to Harika that he already made six boxes of paper cranes, and since each box contains one hundred paper cranes, he needs to make four hundred more.
"Waki, seryoso ka talaga sa one thousand paper cranes, ano?" tanong ni Harika mula sa couch. Kapuwa sila nasa kuwarto ni Waki habang nagpapalipas ng oras noong weekend na iyon.
Napatingin ito sa kanya. "Uhm, yes..." He arranged the boxes in front of her. "Since nasimulan ko na ito nitong mga nakaraang buwan, I have no choice but to continue and finish it. And one more thing, I find folding papers as stress reliever these past weeks... so I don't care about if I will be granting a special wish by the Gods or not." He then chuckled.
Napangiti si Harika rito. "What I adored the most about you by doing this was your effort. Sa lahat ng lalaking nakilala ko—bukod kay Lolo Dad, ikaw iyong kaisa-isang taong naninindigan talaga sa isang bagay."
Little did Harika know Waki was staring at her with such admiration in his eyes. It was always the best time for him when Harika said something that made his heart pound. Masaya ito, lalo na sa mga saglit kagaya ng sandaling mayroon sila ngayon.
"Don't ruin that ancient tradition. Wala namang mawawala kung susubukan. And since you did most half of it... I'm pretty sure you're in the verge of making a thousand of it." Harika slid through the couch and sat on the carpeted floor searching for the boxes. "Maybe I could help you when I am still here."
Sumibol ang tuwa kay Waki. "That's a great idea! I'll teach you how to fold and make one," he said with a smile.
"Just bare with me. Maybe I could help you with it or I'll probably mess everything up." Harika softly chuckled. "Alam mo namang kakapain ko lang ang mga papel. Hayaan mo, magaling akong mapamilyar sa isang bagay... once na nasubukan ko at natandaan ang proseso, for sure makukuha ko rin kahit nakapikit pa ako," she joked around that made them laugh in unison.
"Of course you can do it! Gusto mo bang turuan na kita ngayon?"
Tumango si Harika at tila na-excite dahil medyo interesado rin siya kung paano gumawa ng paper crane. And then Waki took the origami papers. Wala nang gaanong aalalahanin si Harika dahil sukat na ang mga papel na itutupi niya, ang kakailanganin na lang niya ay ang agapay ni Waki upang matutunan ang paggawa ng isang paper crane.
"So the first step, you have to fold a paper diagonally, corner to corner until you make an X shape..." he sat down beside he and held her hand. Nagresulta agad ng hindi pantay na pagkakatupi ang unang hakbang na itinuro ni Waki sa kanya, but she managed to correct the right fold immediately. "Yup! That's the right thing," he said, convinced.
Magkalapit lang sila noong mga sandaling iyon. They're both unbothered about being too close, because what made them intact was the consistency of what they were doing, the interests and excitement that kept them going.
BINABASA MO ANG
The Sun in Her Eyes
Mystery / Thriller"You radiate comfort in my eyes." After a chandelier crash, granddaughter of an influential congressman Harika Levantine lost her vision following the death of him. When she became sightless, everyone around her turned fake, suspicious and traitorou...
