It was in the last week of June when the Pineda family decided to move to their new house.
Vic vividly remembers it.
Nakaupo sya sa tapat ng bahay nila habang nagbabasa ng huminto ang makina ng truck sa kabilang bahay. A Natural curious creature she is, she peek and the first person she saw was a smiling child, carrying her mini dollhouse and was currently belting Taylor Swift's Love Story.
The child parent's might have entered already pero nakita nya ang batang babae na nakatayo lang at nakangiti habang tinitignan ang bahay na nasa harapan nya.
The girl must've been around 6 years old, have dark raven hair, bright expressive eyes and with a smile than can definitely win anything.
"Sana dito magiging okay na si mama at papa."
She heard the girl whispered..
Amused. Nanatili sya sa kinatatayuan at nakangiting pinapanuod ang batang babae hanggang sa makapasok na eto sa kabilang bahay. Moments later, she did the same thing..
"Salamat naman at may nakabili na ng bahay sa kabila. That thing was starting to be an eyesore.." Narinig nyang sabi ng mama nya presumably, sa papa naman nyang wala ring choice kundi makinig sa asawa nya.
She decided to go up in her room para dun na lang magbasa as the noises of people carrying things to and fro was distracting her from reading but halfway in stairs, narinig nya ang pagtawag ng ina sa kanya.
"Vic.. "
She sighed and grudgingly took her step back para harapin ang ina.
"Come here kid, let's meet our new neighbours." Her father said instead.
"Pwede bang next time nalang pa? I'm reading the book you gave me yesterday at nasa climactic part na ko ng libro.. dont wanna ruin my mood." She said pouting.
Her father chuckled understandingly and just nodded his head while ruffling her hair.
She gave a weak smile and after wishing them well at meeting their new neighbours, she hurriedly climb the stairs and locked herself inside her room.
Truth be told, she's just nervous to meet the girl she just seen.
--
A week later at di na nya ulit nakita pa ang batang babae. Magkatabi lang naman ang bahay nila and sometimes she's preeping below, hoping to see the girl again but to no avail.
Nothing changed. But that was just what she thought.
Even though she's only eight, she had some trouble sleeping. Almost late at night did she always find herself tossing around the bed, searching for a more comfortable position to aid her sleep .
Silence usually reigns during midnight but not since last week.
She now always heard some muffled cry and God knows how much it creeps her out.
Nasa bandang likuran pa naman ang kwarto nya at malapit sa kakahuyan.. well, not necessarily a forest.. just a cluster of trees planted to make their subdivision greener and eco-friendly.. may mini playground din dun na minsan nyang ginagawang tambayan noon.
At first, she's thinking na guni guni lang nya ang naririnig. But night after night, she's hearing it and was now contemplating on what to do.
This night proves to be no different. She's tucked in bed already with a book in her lap as her company for the night when she heard it again.
A whimper. Then a cry.
She's sure as hell na di na sya nag dedelusyon sa naririnig nya so with a brave heart and shaking fingers, she stood up from her bed, wear her favorite jacket, get her beloved flashlight and off she went..
