Her phone chimed again,
It was an advisory from the building manager.
She gasped.
"Yung water, it's in the lobby na raw" She said
" Oh nooooo" She said as she sat down. The rain still hasn't stopped.
"Where did you park ba?" She asked
" 2nd floor ng parking, all good pa naman noh?"
" Yeah"
" Hala, I think I have to go down na para bumili pa ng ice and other stuff." She said as she tied up her hair and started preparing.
" Bababa ka?"
"Hm? Yeah. It's okay"
" But you're still weak"
" I can naman, madali lang yan. Batak to ng stairs pa ninth floor sa school noh" She winked.
" What about I come with you? I could carry stuff"
" Would that be okay?"
" Oo naman"
" Then come on, we need to hurry kasi baka wala tayong maabutan."
As they reached the lobby, she doubted if she's still gonna go. She saw the almost black water outside and immediately stopped walking.
" Fuck" She whispered
" Changed your mind na?"
" N-no ah"
" I'm scared lang madulas"
" Hold onto me" He said as he offered his arm.
They started walking towards the front door and he can her hear whisper "Ew" every step.
He couldn't help but chuckle.
" Save your breath, medyo madaming steps pa" He said
The convenience store is luckily opened, and they were able to get 3 bags of ice. She also got some other stuff like canned goods and butane and additional water and other stuff.
It's almost 1 and a half hour when they were able to reach her floor again. They're a bit tired but satisfied.
They got what they need and additional food has been secured.
She took a quick shower and tried to charged the power supply through solar panels.
" Grabe noh, sobrang unbelievable, ang lala bigla" He said
" I know"
" Sorry ha, mapapa extend pa yata ako ng stay" He said
" It's okay, I'm glad I'm not alone naman din" She smiled
" To be honest, I never expected someone like you na ganito ka prepared. Sobrang, grabe" He said
" Madali lang yan, kailangan lang praning ka" She chuckled " Do you eat nilagang baboy?"
" Hmm, yeah sure. Anything" He answered as he entered the bathroom to take a shower as well.
" Good, we will have that then"
She cooked the rice and started preparing the ingredients for the ulam.
While waiting, she did a quick inventory " Butane - 8 cans, Ice secured, food, all good. Water, good." She let out a heavy sigh as she played some news on her ipad.
" Malaking tsansa na magtagal pa ang baha sa buong Metro Manila -" She quickly changed and played some music.
To be honest, she never thought she would welcome Juan in her house. But being the kind girl that she is, hindi naman nya kayang tiisin kung may chance sya na makatulong. She's careful on whom she trust and let in her life. But she just doesn't know, she just took a leap with Juan. Siguro nga dahil wala namang may gusto na hindi tumulong on times like these.
Lilac was cooking on her balcony when Juan showed up, handing her a cup of coffee.
"thank you" she smiled
" is it charging ba?" Juan asked looking at the solar panels
" Hmm, oo naman. See here? It's charging" Lilac pointed at the small screen and went back to cooking.
