Later Than Never

06

Girl from Nowhere

Sa mga simpleng oras na kasama ko ang aking mga pinsan, unti-unti na rin akong nakakasalamuha ng iba pang mga tao. I'm not naive enough to miss the oppurtunities when it's right in front of my eyes. How can I miss it? Parang ito nga ang kusang lumalapit sa akin. In my 3 days of staying here, I found out that the siblings is quite popular in the area. Hindi nga nagsisinungaling si Aiden na marami siyang kaibigan, at ang iba ay napakilala niya na sa akin. He is so nice for me to not feel left out whenever Aoife force me to be with them. They are making sure that I am...inside the circle.

Kaswal akong nakasalampak sa malamig na sahig ng sala habang nagbobomba ng mga lobo. Aoife beside me is also doing the same, Aiden, on the other hand, was hanging the balloons on the ceiling. Hindi ko alam kung anong teknik ang ginagawa niya. I just saw him put a double-sided tape on the top of it, then attached it to the ceiling. May makukulay pang mga string ang nakalawit.

Halos lahat ay may ginagawa. Pati yung Mama ni Zender ay nagluluto ng ilang handa sa kusina.

I just met Tita Arlene earlier, and she enthusiastically welcome me in her household. Pinakilala pa ako ni Zender bilang pinsan nila Aiden sa Mama niya. She was so beautiful! Ang kanyang hanggang batok na buhok ay nagbigay pokus sa kanyang maamong mukha. I can fully see the resemblance of Zender from his mother. Para sa akin ay mas kamukha niya ang nanay niya.

Now that I discover it, I can't take my eyes off to his son. Even just for a brief moment. Nagmistulan akong naliligaw tuwing hindi ko siya masilayan. He was busy accomodating all the things that needed to be done around. Kaya hindi na rin kami nagdalawang isip na tumulong sa mga kailangan pang tapusin. It was almost finish, actually. Sadyang gumana lang ang pagiging malikhain namin ni Aoife at hindi mapigilang magdagdag ng mga pang aliw sa mata.

Zender wasn't complaining, though. Kaya hindi ko mapigilang magsaya sa ginagawa. I just love decorating and fashion and art in general. And...he's supportive about it.

Sinubukan kong palakihin ang lobo ng hindi gumagamit ng pangbomba. I always see on cartoon videos that they use their mouth instead, so I wanted to try it. Kumuha ako ng isang piraso ng lobo, at sinimulang ihipan 'to. I stopped for a brief moment, then blow again. Ramdam ko ang hapdi sa bandang lalamunan ngunit hindi ko inalintana.

I keep blowing and blowing until I ran out of breath just to let it squeak. "Ang hirap pala..." Habol na hininga kong sabi. Marahil ay napansin ako ng iba dahil may narining akong tumawa.

My fingers slipped. Siguro ay sa daming lobo na rin na natali ko. It gives up on its own. Medyo namumula na rin.

"Tama na kakatingin! Mag-ayos na't baka may dumating ng bisita!" Paalala ni Aiden. Maingat itong nakatungtong sa pinagdikit na kamay ng dalawang upuan. His feet was barely fitting, so he was holding on a wall for more support.

Buwis buhay para kay Zender; yung theme ng party.

He was definitely talking to him. Kaagad kong binalik ang tingin sa kanyang bulto. I caught him sticking his toungue out again between his teeth. Sa ibaba niya ay may nakatambok sa kanyang bulsa. His both hands were in his short pockets, that's why. Unti-unti nitong nilabas ang isang daliri.