CRIMES AND MYSTERIES 3: AKO SAPATOS

IX. NEW CHAT MATE

IX. NEW CHAT MATE

~Lou’s journal~

Nagising ako mula sa isang napaka-censored na panaginip na kasama si Fille.  Nakangiti ako agad sa pagdilat ko pa lang.  Gulat na gulat ako nang mapansin kong kumot lang ang saplot ko.

Nasaan ako at kaninong kwarto ang tinulugan ko? naisip ko.  Hindi agad nagrehistro sa utak ko ang mga nangyari noong nagdaang gabi.  Darn!  JR was supposed to hack Maruja, the suicide victim’s account.  What happened?  Why is my mind blank?  What happened to me?

Napalingon muli ako sa paligid.  I wasn’t in my own house.  I was somewhere else, but I had no idea where.  The walls of the room were painted in pink.  This must be a girl’s bedroom.  Pero bakit ako naririto?

Agad akong bumangon at nagbihis.  Napansin ko ang isang laptop sa tabi ko.  Bukas ito.  Someone must’ve left it habang may ka-chat pa ito.

The username of the chatter who just left a message caught me by surprise.  This is impossible.  How could the chatter be - ?  I ignored the crazy idea forming in my mind.  Binasa ko ang message.

                   edinasevastova: nasaan ang anak ko?

Edina Sevastova WAS Nastja’s mother.  And she had just committed suicide.  How could she chat?  At sino ang tinatanong niya?  Ako?  It’s effin’ creepy, I know.  Another message appeared.

                   edinasevastova: kasama mo siya kagabi diba?

How the hell did she know na kasama ng CMG si Nastja?  Oh I know.  This isn’t real.  Someone’s just pulling my leg.  Maybe JR, or Jhake.  Or it could be Kei.  But neither JR nor Jhake knew about Nastja’s mom’s name.  So maybe the chatter was really Kei.

edinasevastova: mahal ka ng anak ko.  wag mo syang lolokohin.

How amusing!  Mahal ako ni Nastja?  Maybe this is Fille or Anjo’s idea of a really good laugh.

Biglang nag-ring ang phone ko.  It was Fille on the other line.

“Bakit?” kaswal na tanong ko, nag-iisip kung paano siya babarahin.  Kung iniisip niyang matatawa ako sa joke nilang pananakot, she is clearly mistaken.

But the tone of her voice was quite alarming.

“Ano ka ba naman, Lou?  Nasaan ka ba?  Bakit hindi ka umuwi kagabi?  Ba’t hindi mo sinasagot ang mga texts ko?”

Napangiti ako nang maisip ko ang panaginip ko noong nagdaang gabi.

“Nag-aalala ka na sa akin ngayon, Cainglet?  Wow!  That’s news to me.”

“Siyempre naman ‘no.  Hindi ka umuwi eh.  Tapos bigla ka pang nawala kagabi sa bahay nina Maruja.”

Wow heavy!  Nag-aalala siya sa akin… But wait, did she mention Maruja’s house?  It dawned on me.  I don’t remember leaving from Maruja’s house.  So I must be still in there.  Yeah, I am still here.

“I just – fell asleep last night. I – I’m still in here,” I said.

“What?” she asked.

“I said I’m still in Maruja’s house.  Bakit?  Do you miss me that bad?  Gusto mong makipagdate sa akin?” I said.  I noticed the lap top screen blinking again.  There was a new message.

                   edinasevastova: don’t flirt with other girls.

                edinasevastova: don’t break my daughter’s heart.