The Roommate Situation

Chapter 5

Alex

Napalakas ang pagbagsak ko ng pinto nang hindi sadya, probably because I couldn't feel my body anymore after an eleven-hour shift at the hospital. Eleven long hours, and half of them spent delivering babies and the other half spent with a patient that came in the ER with severe diarrhea. Ah, yes... blood and shit, my favorite combination.

Wala nang ibang nasa isip ko kundi ang kama ko. It's already 8 AM, pero laking gulat ko nang makita ko na nasa apartment pa rin si Gracie. Weird. She was usually long gone by now, baking something in her café by the time I got back from work.

"Morning, Gracie. Andito ka pa?" I remarked, asking the obvious.

She didn't answer right away, just stirred her cereal with a spoon, her gaze fixed on the bowl like it was the most fascinating thing in the world.

"Huy?" I prompted, taking a step closer.

Tumingala siya sa'kin pero may kakaibang lamlam ang mga mata niya. The usual sparks weren't there. "Yeah," she muttered, her voice quiet. "Just... taking a slower morning."

Something felt off. She wasn't exactly the kind of person to "take it slow," not when it came to her café or, well, anything. Kumuha ako ng upuan at umupo sa tapat niya, pilit na inaalis 'yung pagod na nararamdaman ko sa katawan ko.

"You don't look like you're having a slower morning," I said, leaning forward. "Para kang nanakawan ng cupcake or something."

She flinched, ever so slightly, pero bumalik din agad sa pagtitig niya sa bowl niya. "Wala 'to." Her shrug was casual, but her tone was about as convincing as a five-year-old trying to deny eating cookies. "Just... a sad scene in Gossip Girl."

Napataas ang kilay ko. "Gossip Girl?"

"Yeah." She nodded, too quickly. "It was... um, tragic. So tragic."

Sinubukan kong hindi siya tawanan. Hindi pala marunong mag-sinungaling si Gracie. Masyadong halata. "Tragic enough na pinaiyak ka buong magdamag?"

Her spoon froze mid-stir. For a second, akala ko sasabihin niya na 'yung totoo, but she let out a forced little laugh and waved me off. "What can I say? I'm an easy crier."

Hindi ako kumbinsido, pero ayoko rin namang pilitin siya. Kung meron man akong natutunan sa pagiging nurse, 'yun ay may mga tao talagang hindi sanay at handa na i-share ang kung ano mang nangyayari sa kanila, kahit pa halata nang kailangan nila ng makakausap at tutulong sa kanila.

"Alright," I said, standing up and stretching. "Hahayaan na lang muna kita maging malungkot d'yan. Pero kung kailangan mo ng makakausap, I'm a great listener. Comes with free nursing consultation."

"Thanks," she mumbled, her voice barely audible.

I hesitated, watching her for a moment longer. She looked so small, hunched over her cereal like she was trying to make herself invisible. Whatever it was, it wasn't nothing.

Pero ayoko rin siyang i-pressure. Napabuntong-hininga ako, tumalikod, at pumasok sa kwarto ko. Tinatawag na ako ng kama ko, pero kahit nakapikit na ako, I couldn't shake the image of her sitting there, looking like she'd just lost a fight with the world.

♡♡♡♡♡

It's my day off today so I had to make the best of it. Nakahanap ako ng gym malapit sa apartment kaya bumatak nanaman ako kakabuhat. After gym, I decided to drop by The Blissful Café, to grab a quick snack saka para i-check na rin si Gracie. Wala lang. Gusto ko lang masiguro na hindi siya tumalon mula sa 4th floor ng apartment complex namin.