The Possibility Of You And Me

CHAPTER 17: ANDREA

It was not easy for my sibling and me to leave the center that had temporarily become our home for two weeks. We had grown quite fond of the place, especially the three mothers who took care of us. Fr. Jowie picked us up at nine in the morning, and we would be staying at the church with him for a week. The construction of our room in Fr. Jowie's house got delayed because his sibling, whom he had assigned to oversee the project, fell ill. But that's alright. What's important to me is that Oteph and I are still together.

As we left the center, I couldn't help but cry, especially when my sibling and I bid farewell to Mrs. Verna and Ms. Teresa. I couldn't fully comprehend how we had grown attached to them in such a short period. My only concern was Mama Flora. She locked herself in the comfort room and didn't show herself to us. Despite Mrs. Verna calling her multiple times, she didn't come out of the CR. I knew it hurt her that we were leaving the Center. That's the hardest part for volunteers like them, the attachment to the children they grow fond of. They are well aware that children like us are only temporary in the center, but they still choose to love us who aren't their own. So, when they find new families to adopt the children, they are the ones who get hurt first. But they repeatedly go through that pain just to make the children feel loved, cared for, and mothered when their parents have deprived them of love. Their hearts are truly noble, and I will never forget them. Oteph and I will return to that place someday.

"O Andrea, are you and your sibling okay there?" Fr. Jowie asked me.

"We're okay, Father," I replied and looked at Oteph, who was sitting beside me in the back seat of his car.

"Let's go so we can have lunch at my residence at the church. Manang Saling cooks delicious food there, which is why I gained some weight," Fr. Jowie said, pinching his growing belly.

"Alright," I replied, forcing myself to smile. I noticed Oteph was quiet. He was looking at the front of the center where Mrs. Garcia, most of the children from the center, and some unfamiliar volunteers and staff. Mrs. Verna and Ms. Teresa were also there, but Mama Flora was still nowhere to be found.

Oteph stood up and looked out of the car window, waving his hand and shouting goodbye. I noticed Ben, who is also known as Pidoy, trying to catch up to the car. He was sobbing because Oteph had become a close friend. I sighed deeply, feeling the heaviness in my chest. When our car exited the gate, I saw a familiar face peeking through the center's gate.

"Mama Flora..." I muttered. She was standing behind the gate, quietly following our car, her eyes swollen from crying.

I wanted to ask Fr. Jowie to stop the car, but it felt like I had lost my voice, and I couldn't contain my tears. Oteph hugged me when he saw me crying. Meanwhile, Fr. Jowie drove in silence, but I could tell he was watching us, siblings, through the rearview mirror of his car.

"You will meet Gem Ver tomorrow, Andrea," the priest suddenly told me.

"Huh? Father?" was my confused response, unsure why Fr. Jowie mentioned my best friend.

"I said, you will meet your friend Gem Ver tomorrow because you will both start school," Fr. Jowie explained.

"Oh, yes Father. I'm a bit nervous, though. I'm worried I won't be accepted in this class," I said to Father Jowie.

"Me too, sister. I'll be starting school tomorrow as well," Oteph chimed in, listening to our conversation with Fr. Jowie.

"Of course, we'll go to school together tomorrow, just like we used to," I happily replied to my sibling.

"Yay!" Oteph replied cheerfully, clapping his hands.

"How did you and your FRIEND Gem Ver meet, Andrea?" the priest asked, emphasizing the word "friend."