I smiled at her and I took her hand. Her hands felt soft and cold. It was a bit wet dahil dun sa ininom niya kanina but I didn't mind. Pakiramdam ko nga mas basa pa yung kamay ko dahil pasmado but Mikha also didn't seem to mind. It felt nice. Inalis ko na yung kamay ko and Mikha wiped her hand on her shorts.
"Bakit naman balik tayo sa pagtawag mo sa 'kin ng stranger?" sabi ko sa kanya.
"Wala, I just remembered I stopped calling you that."
"You should have stopped calling me that a long time ago, actually." sabi ko sa kanya and she chuckled. "And you actually called me that sa Baguio."
Naglakad na kami and it was actually hard to walk since our feet were sinking in the sand while we were walking. Minsan feeling ko masusubsob ako dahil sobrang lubog ng paa ko sa buhangin.
I kept steadying myself by holding on to Mikha's shoulders kapag parang ma-out of balance ako. Ang hirap pag clumsy ka. Pero ang hirap din talaga maglakad at feeling ko madadapa na ako anytime kaya tawang-tawa sa 'kin si Mikha.
"How's your book coming?" tanong niya.
"Halfway there, pero marami pa rin sigurong kulang. I haven't been writing lately."
While we were walking, nararamdaman ko na tumatama yung mga kamay ni Mikha sa 'kin. She wasn't talking and she was still just looking at the sea. I wonder what she's thinking. I walked a bit faster pero nagulat ako nung may humawak sa braso ko.
"Bubby." sabi ni Mikha.
"Hm?"
"Can I..."
"What?"
"I've been wanting to do this ever since we got here and I..."
Nakita ko na namumula si Mikha at hindi siya makatingin sa 'kin. I bit my lip as I tried to stop myself from smiling.
"Mikha Lim, just say it." sabi ko sa kanya.
Miks wasn't looking at me at halata mo na hindi pa rin siya mapakali.
"Can I hold your hand?"
"Ayoko. Basa. Ayaw mo kaya ng pasmado." sabi ko sa kanya. She chuckled.
"I want to." sabi niya.
I didn't respond. I just took Mikha's hand and I intertwined my fingers with hers. She finally smiled. Hindi ko alam kung bakit pero there was this warmth in my chest and parang nalipat sa 'kin yung kaba ni Mikha kanina. There was this thumping in my chest and I feel like I'm holding my breath. We both just smiled at each other and we continued to walk.
Ngayon lang ata ako naconscious ng sobra habang naglalakad na may kahawak kamay. Most of the time, it would just feel natural, but this time, not only does it feel natural, it feels familiar. As if I've held on to Mikha's hands for the longest time. I felt her thumb ran over the side of my hand and I did the same. Mikha smiled.
We're about to go home tomorrow pero parang ayaw ko pang umuwi. Sana kaya kong hilahin yung oras para mas bumagal pa. I'm sure Mikha would like to go back soon. Sure kasi akong pagod siya at kailangan din niya magpahinga, after all, maaga silang gumising para mag-surf, tapos nagperform pa sila. Pero Miks kept walking and I just followed her.
"What have you done to me?" sabi niya sabay napailing na lang siya. I raised my eyebrows.
"Huh? Alin?"
"I'm not like this. Never like this." sabi ni Miks.
"What do you mean?"
She just smiled to herself pero wala na siyang ibang sinabi.
