Multimedia: Trace and Laureen
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《Present Life》
August 19, 2022
Tuesday | 3:25AM
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"Happy Birthday."
Trace's voice echoed inside the car.
August 19, 2022
The moment Laureen saw the date, it felt as though the world around her had begun to spin.
Then came a voice. Faint, almost distant. Unclear, yet painfully familiar.
"Thank you... my Annys."
It wasn't a voice filled with bitterness. It was the voice of someone finally learning to let go.
Lorenzo's.
It was August 19, 2001, Laureen doesn't know it...
habang nakatayo si Lorenzo sa harap ng puntod ni Annys at sa wakas ay natutong pakawalan ang sakit, that was also the exact day she was born.
As if somewhere between grief and acceptance...
one soul finally learned how to say goodbye,
while another quietly began.
"Laureen, are you mad?"
Nabalik siya sa wisyo nang magsalitang muli si Trace. Nakatitig ito sa kanya ngayon, naghihintay. Parang hindi mapakali hangga't wala siyang sagot.
"I'm sorry, nawala sa isip ko. Andaming nangyari ngayong gabi--"
"Trace," she cut in softly. "It's okay, nawala narin sa isip ko." At parang doon lang siya nakahinga nang maayos.
Bahagyang bumagsak ang tensyon sa balikat ni Trace, napapikit siya sandali at mahinang natawa.
Ganon na lamang ka-big deal sa kanya 'yon.
Because for so many years... ngayon lang siya pumalyang bumati kay Laureen at exactly 12 midnight.
"I'm sorry, I also forgot." napatingin siya kay Laureen na ngayon ay diretsong nakatingin din sa kanya.
Then she smiled softly.
Not forced. Not confused. Just warm.
"Happy birthday, Trace."
Natigilan siya.
Parang may kung anong marahang tumama sa dibdib niya.
Because suddenly... everything made sense.
August 19th
The same date.
The same midnight.
The same strange feeling of familiarity he could never explain every single year.
And somehow... hearing it from her felt different tonight.
"Wow..." Pareho silang napalingon sa biglang pagsingit ni Cleo na nakasilip na pala sa bintana ng kotse. "Sobrang bessy goals niyo naman."
Napakurap si Trace habang si Laureen naman ay bahagyang natawa.
"So anong kwento ng friendship niyo?" Biglang bumukas ang pinto sa kabilang side ng kotse dahilan para mapalingon sila kay Yuen na kakapasok lang. "Mag-best friend ba Mom niyo tapos sabay silang nabuntis? Sabay nanganak? Ganon?"
BINABASA MO ANG
The Life That Echoes
FantasySome love don't end. They linger-soft, distant, and aching like echoes that refuse to fade. Lorenzo once had a love that felt like forever. Annys was his home, his future, his everything. Until death took her too soon, leaving behind a silence he n...
