Hate List

No. 8.5: Water

Hate List
No. 8.5 : Water

I pop my eyes open. I don't know what hurts more: my head or my head or my head. Oh, I know: my head.

"Sera?" Ayi. I can't see her clearly. But I'll know the shrill voice anywhere.

"Mmmm?" ungot ko sa kanya habang pinipilit kong umupo galing sa pagkakahiga. The mattress dips nang umupo siya sa tabi ko. "Drink this. It will make you feel better," bulong niya habang nilalapit niya ang baso ng tubig sa mga labi ko. I don't know if it's just my imagination but I got a slightly bitter aftertaste at the last drops of water. But I know Ayi wouldn't drug me. Would she? I cough at the unpleasant thought.

She rubs my back to comfort me. "How are you feeling?"

"Fudging shitty like hell. It's like the damn world is going 360 degrees on me," I spit out. Yeah, that perfectly describes it.

"Oooh, such elegant language, baby kitten."

"Putocuchinta ka, Herald. Ang daldal mo."

"Whoa, my baby kitten had gone bad. I like it." He said the last sentence like he's savoring every letter it has. And seriously, with the world going all carousel on me, it was more annoying than usual. Kumuha ako ng unan ako ibinato sa asshole na yon. Pero dahil siguro nahihilo ako, hindi ko natamaan si Herald. I can't clearly see him but I know he's smirking at me. Malala na talaga ang saltik nito.

"What time is it?" tanong ko sa kanila. One pet peeve of mine is seeing an absent mark on my class attendance.

"Around two in the morning." sagot ni Ayi.

"Ano bang nangyari sa akin? The last thing I remember, kumakain ako ng Chili-Choco cupcakes. Tapos ngayon, parang dine-dysmenorrhea yung ulo ko."

I give up. Ihiniga ko na ang sarili ko sa kama. Seriously, kahit nakahiga, para akong wina-washing-machine? Ipinikit ko ang mga mata ko.

"Hindi mo ba talaga naaalala?" tanong ni Ayi. There is an edge to it that I don't like even one bit. Kinabahan ako ng konti.

"Kasi---"

Pinutol ni Ayi ang sinasabi ni Herald.

"I think it's better if we don't force you to remember. Ipahinga mo na muna yan."

I can hear brutal dragging on the background. Ayi shouts a muffled goodbye as she shuts the door of our room.

I would definitely like to force myself to think but a constant drowsiness seemed to punch me asleep.

*********************************

I wake up, feeling a little better. But still disoriented.

"Drink this." Nagulat ako. The voice seems familiar. But because I'm quite hazy and the room is too dim for me to see, I can't put a finger around who this person is. The familiarity of the person's warmth enveloped me. I can trust this person. Kinuha ko ang water bottle mula sa kanya. What startled me even more is the water. Unlike what Ayi gave me earlier, this one is crisp and cool. It cuts through the roughness of my throat, slowly easing the nausea I'm experiencing. Ibinigay ko pabalik yung water bottle.

"Keep the bottle under your pillows. You might get thirsty. You better?" the person coolly tells me.

I nod. Only to realize that that action is useless when this room is nearing pitch black. "Yes," I compensate.

Inalalayan niya akong humiga ulit. "Sleep. You'll gonna need it..." The person pauses an awkward bit. "Babantayan kita, I promise."

I think the person didn't quite realize I've heard this but I heard it. Clear as blue sky. He adds in a pained whisper, "I missed you so much."

I know I'm supposed to freak out but instead, content fluttered in my heart.
Again, I quickly drift away to dreamland. Only now, hindi dahil sa weird drowsiness o sobrang sakit.

I am lulled to sleep by the scent of cucumber soap and the sea.

*********************************

Short mini chappie. Okay redundant pala yun. Haha. Alam kong sirang plaka ako pero thank you sa lahat ng nagbasa. :D