"Nanay Nene, ikwento niyo nga ulit yung puppy love ni Aly." Ara said while eating their lunch. Alyssa just glared at her.
"Ah yun ba? Naku, etong si Alyssa, ke bata-bata eh may gelpren na noon."
"Nanay Nene naman eh!" Alyssa blushed.
"Naalala ko noon, may bata kang binigyan ng kwintas, hindi ba?" her nanay Nene continued. "Noong bumalik na kami ng Maynila ay panay ang iyak nitong si Alyssa dahil hindi na raw niya makikita yung kaibigan niya."
"Pero hindi man lang niya inalam ang pangalan nung bata! Antanga lang, bro." Ara teased Alyssa.
"Shut up. I was just five years old then, playing is more important than names! Besides, I thought we're still gonna see each other again after that." Alyssa tried to defend.
"Alam mo ba Ara, huli na nung nalaman kong sinuntok niya yung batang lalaki na umaway doon sa gelpren niya? Eh mas malaki sa kanya yun, kaya sinuntok din siya pabalik. Kaya dumugo yung ilong niya."
"Awwwe, ang sweet mo pala noon pa man ate Ly." Bea, nanay Nene's daughter, said.
"Hahahahaha! Bakit 'di ko alam yan? Seriously, bro?" Ara laughed while holding her stomach.
"Pero hindi siya umiyak sa harap nung batang babae. Hanggang sa kailangan na namin umuwi. Nung kaming dalawa na lang ay saka pa siya humagulgol sa iyak dahil masakit raw ang ilong niya."
"What the fuck!? HAHAHAHAHA! Pasikat ka pala sa girlfriend mo, bro eh. Kunwari hindi nasaktan pero deep inside naiiyak na." Ara was clearly loving this.
Alyssa just smiled sheepishly as she remembered that day.
"Yaya, ma-mashakeet po." Alyssa cried while holding her nose.
"Naku, kanina eh ang tapang-tapang mo pero ngayon iyak ka naman ng iyak. Bakit mo kasi sinuntok yung bata?" her yaya asked as she was cleaning the blood on her nose before they get home and make her dad freak out.
"Because he's bad, and he's hurting that girl! Ow! Dahan-dahan naman, yaya." Alyssa said with tears in her eyes.
"Ikaw talagang bata ka." her yaya just shook her head amusingly at Alyssa.
"I like her, yaya. Can we go back there tomorrow?" Alyssa smiled like she was not feeling any pain.
"Oo naman. Babalik tayo doon bukas."
"Yehey!" she jumped giddily at the thought of seeing her Wonderwoman again.
But she never had the chance.
- - -
After their entertaining lunch, well entertaining for Ara that is, Alyssa went to the park where she used to play. She invited Ara but the latter declined and just went on sleeping.
Not so long, she saw the playground where she used to run around and have fun with kids she just met right then. Then suddenly, a flashback went in her head.
"Stop crying na, please." Alyssa wiped the little girl's tears.
"I wanna be strong, too." the little girl muttered.
"Be my Wonderwoman then." Alyssa grinned as she offered her hand to little girl.
"But I'm not strong like you." the girl sniffled trying to stop crying.
"You're strong now because you're not crying na." Alyssa assured the little girl.
The little girl took Alyssa's hand and held it tight. She's now considering Alyssa as her saviour, her superhero, her knight in shining armor. She pulled Alyssa in a tight hug.
"I like you." the little girl whispered.
"I wonder where that girl is now." Alyssa whispered while looking at the playing kids.
She saw two little girls holding hands while running through the grassy part of the playground. After running, the other girl was called by her mom so she waved goodbye at the other girl who was left alone smiling. She remembered the girl again.
"See you tomorrow, Superman!" the little girl shouted.
Alyssa waved her hand frantically at the little girl. "Bye, Wonderwoman!"
"I'll wait for you, okay?" the girl shouted again.
"I'll be back! I promise!" Alyssa shouted back.
But again, she never did.
She was walking and looking around when she noticed a short-haired girl sitting on a bench. All alone as she was looking far away. Thegirl was holding something on her chest as she slowly closed her eyes.
Alyssa walked towards the girl. She was just so interested all of a sudden. She tried to sit beside the girl, but the girl didn't even look at her. The girl's eyes were still closed.
"Hi." Alyssa said.
"Hello." the girl answered but still wasn't turning to Alyssa.
"Lagi ka bang tumatambay dito?" Alyssa is trying so hard to start a conversation. She's not usually like this.
"Yes. Araw-araw akong nandito. May hinihintay kasi ako." the girl smiled but she wasn't looking at Alyssa at all.
Maybe she doesn't like to look at people's faces when she's talking. Alyssa thought, so she just shrugged it off and looked at the direction the girl was facing.
"Bago ka rito 'no?" the girl asked her.
"Why do you say so?"
"Yung boses mo. I haven't heard of it for a long time." she smiled.
Alyssa turned her gaze to the girl beside her. She stared at the girl's features. Her nose, eyelashes, her closed eyes, her lips curved into a smile, her chin slightly lifted up-she couldn't deny it; this girl beside her is beautiful and very familiar.
"I used to play here one summer when I was a kid, pero biglaan kaming lumipat ng Manila."
The girl just hummed and nodded like she was listening to a story like a kid. Alyssa couldn't take it anymore; she offered her hand in front of the girl.
"I'm Alyssa Valdez."
The girl finally opened her eyes and then faced her, looked intently into Alyssa's brown eyes. She smiled ever so softly which made Alyssa feel butterflies in her stomach. She was still holding something on her chest. She took Alyssa's hand using the one she used while holding the thing on her chest.
Alyssa's eyes widened at the thing dangling from the girl's neck. It was her 'powers'-her necklace. She returned her eyes to the girl's face and she was welcomed by the loveliest smile she has ever seen.
"And I'm Mika Reyes. What took you so long, Superman?"
- - -
A/N: No harot pa rin. Chill lang.
Wonderwoman's POV next...
