Hello And Goodbye

Chapter 9: Congratulations

"Congratulations! You made it." 

Ito ang magiliw kong bati kay Tricia as I walked up to her on her graduation day with a bouquet of flowers. Sobra akong proud sa kanya. Pagkatapos ng lahat ng sakripisyo, sleepless nights—juggling between her studies and being a mom, she finally made it. I've seen her cry a lot of times, pero hindi siya sumuko. I made sure to be available as much as I could. Pagkatapos kong grumaduate last year, I joined my dad in his company. Right now, I'm taking on the role of VP of Sales and Marketing.

"Thanks, Matt," nakangiti niyang tugon as she received the flowers.

Dada!!

Automatic akong napangiti nang marinig ang maliit na boses na 'yun. Saktong paglingon ko ay nakita ko siyang mabilis na naglalakad papunta sa akin. I think he was trying to run, but his little feet couldn't afford it as of yet. I squat, habang inaantay ko siyang makarating sa akin. My arms are open wide.

Dada...

"Hi there, my cuddle bunny." Agad ko itong niyakap at binuhat. "You miss Dada this much, huh?"

"Yea..." ito ang cute niyang sagot.

"Well...dahil d'yan, Dada will buy you more stuff. What does my bunny want this time?"

"Matt, you might want to stop spoiling him," si Tricia.

"Who will spoil my son if not his dad?" I argued.

"Just in case you didn't notice, malapit ng mapuno ang kwarto niya ng mga laruan. Next time, pahirapan na tayo sa paghahanap sa kanya dahil natatakpan na siya ng mga toys niya."

Ang kwarto na tinutukoy ni Tricia ay ang dati nilang guest room na ginawang nursery room when Zach was born.

"Oh, I know. Dada will buy you a new house," magiliw kong wika kay Zach. Isang hampas sa balikat ang natanggap ko mula sa mommy nito.

"Congratulations, anak," si Tita Meldy. Yumakap at humalik ito kay Tricia. Siya ang kasama ni Zach papunta dito. I came straight from the office after my meetings.

"So, let's go?" aya ko. I reserved a venue to celebrate Tricia's achievement. Isang 5-star restaurant ito na ni-rent ko for the whole night.

"Tricia--you and Zach, go with Matthew. Nakasunod lang ako sa inyo," wika ni Tita.

"Are you sure, Ma?"

"Of course."

"Okay, drive safely. See you at the venue," paalam ni Tricia.

Limited lang ang guests na inimbitahan ni Tricia. Most of them are her classmates nitong huling taon niya sa college. She's adamant about keeping Zach a secret from the people who know us. Natatakot siyang may makapagbanggit ng bagay na ito kay Jackson.

"Thanks, Matt, for this. Alam kong malaking pera ang ibinayad mo dito. We don't have to close down the restaurant, though. A few tables are enough."

"This is my way of appreciating your hard work. Sobrang nakaka-proud na kinaya mo. And about the amount I paid, don't mention it. It's nothing."

"Oh, yeah. For a minute, I forgot about your great fortune. Pwede ka ng maging sugar daddy," biro niya sa akin.

"Can I be your sugar daddy?"

"I thought you said you weren't qualified."

"So what then? Should I pick a minor to qualify?"

"Do you do minors?"

"Diyos na mahabagin, Tricia! Of course, NO!!"

Malakas na tawa ang isinukli niya sa akin when she sees the horror in my face. While looking at her, I realized that we really have grown. We still crack some silly jokes, but the things we experienced in the past made us mature early. Alam kong mas higit ang impact nito kay Tricia, but I made sure I was with her throughout. I couldn't let her go through all the pain alone. Nakikita ko ang saya sa kanyang mukha kapag tinitingnan niya si Zach, but she lost a certain fondness in her eyes. I just couldn't pinpoint it exactly.