A Little Bit of Sunshine

37

Kabanata 37: Fate Lets Us Reunite Again

"To all passengers of Canada Airlines flight 122, thank you for entrusting us your flight experience."

I wasn't able to explain how I felt the moment I stepped foot in Alveolar City Airport. Para bang naghalo halo na ang nararamdaman kong saya, kaba at excitement about being in my country again.

Pagkatapos kong maayos ang Resignation ko sa ospital, wala ng nangyaring despidida party para sa pag-alis ko kahit na paulit-ulit na nagi-insist sina Lolo at Auntie. I didn't waste my time and took the earliest flight to the Philippines.

Its been so long since I came back so I felt like a stranger while feeling the heat of the sun, looking at the new buildings, and every little things that our car happens to pass by in Alveolar City. Napakarami ng nagbago at hindi na pamilyar sa akin kaya hindi ko alam kung matutuwa ba ako.

Si Mama ang sumundo sa akin from the airport and she arrived so early that she had to wait for more than an hour. She said that she don't want to be late because of her excitement. Naramdaman ko naman yung nang i-welcome niya na ako with tightest hug that she could give.

When Mama started driving, hindi ko mapigilang maalala si Sunshine. Kumusta na kaya siya? Si King, Happy, Queenie, Bryle at sina Japhet, at John nalang ang nakakavideo call ko but I never dared to ask them news about Sunshine.

Ano kayang natapos niya? Saan na siya nagtatrabaho ngayon? May boyfriend na ba siya? Fiancé? What if she's getting married already? Or baka may anak na siya?

I bit my lip before letting my elbow rest on the car's window. Dapat ba nagtanong muna ako bago ako umuwi? I might regret my decision about giving up my job and high salary in Canada just to be at the rock bottom again.

"You look bothered, Hanson. Do you want to ask me anything that concerns you?"

Tumingin ako kay Mama using the mirror and she smiled immediately when she caught my eyes. Napabuntong hininga ako at nagdalawang isip kung sasabihin ko ba sa kanya ang mga tanong na tumatakbo sa isip ko.

"Kumusta na po siya Mama?"

Mama flashed out a melancholic smile. Hindi ko alam kung bakit ganun ang ngiti niya. But it gave me enough idea about what's going on.

"She's doing really well with her career as a DJ, Hanson. She took up BACom in college and graduated as cum laude at Alveolar University. She became a lot stronger than before and claimed those success by her own." I blinked a few times when I saw Mama's tears starting to flow from her eyes.

"Did something happen Mama?"

"A lot of things happened, Hanson." Mama wiped her tears before letting out a heavy sigh.

"Pagkatapos mamatay ni Enzo at pagkatapos mong umalis, Sunshine completely changed. She was totally wrecked and depressed but I was not there to help her during those hard times dahil nagalit siya sa akin. Tinataboy niya ako kapag nakikita niya ako, sinisigawan, at sinasabihan ng masasakit na salita. She blamed me for his father's death at kahit na yung pag-alis mo'y sinisi niya din sa akin."

My grip on the bag that I'm holding tightened. Mama never mentioned anything about this while I'm in Canada. Napansin kong iba yung kilos niya pero inunahan din ako ng takot para magtanong.

"I'm sorry Mama. I'm so sorry."

"It's okay Hanson. Ayos lang naman na itaboy ako ni Sunshine ng ilang ulit. Natanggap ko yun because she's been away from me for the past years."