yuanfen (completed)

torpe

       

The friends screamed and ran away to the next room when Dei's phone rang at midnight. When it finally stopped ringing, Dei slowly approached the phone and looked at the screen. It was still the same anonymous number.

Annoyed, Dei finally messaged, "Who are you?" and went to sleep.

"I'm sorry. I just wanted to say hello." Was the message Dei received the following morning.

Thinking that it was a prank, she ignored the message.  The calls also stopped.  Soon after, Dei forgot all about it.

Dei returned to Resurge a week later. She was quietly working at her desk when a knock startled her out of her thoughts.

"....Good Morning Ms. Dei...I'm sorry to disturb you...there's a delivery for you..." Grace appeared by the door.

"Good morning.....delivery?"

"Yes ma'am...." Grace said as she entered the room and laid a box on Dei's desk.

"From whom?" Dei said as she took the card from the box. It was empty. Only 'Dei' was written on the small envelope. "handle with care" was scribbled on a sticky note which Grace removed when she put the box down.

"It was just delivered, Ma'am...."

"....ahh....okay.....thanks...." Dei said as she returned the card into the envelope.  She lifted the box's lid and found a cup of coffee and some snacks.

Baffled, Dei said a quiet 'thank you' to her benefactor and enjoyed the snacks.

Dei entered the hospital cafeteria for lunch. She approached the counter as Bel, the lunch lady, greeted her. "Hello Ms. Dei....what will it be?"

"What's the special?"

"We have ham on ciabatta and squash soup...."

"Okay....I'll have that...."

"Anything to drink?"

"Just a bottle of water, please..."

"Okay....here you go...."

Dei takes her food tray and scours the area for an empty table. She thinks she sees an empty seat in a far table and she starts walking to it. Just as she walks past one table, a guy stands up, taking his trash with him and offers the seat and table to Dei. "Thank you..." She says, without looking up.

"....I'm not too keen on the squash soup...." The guy says as he walks away.  Dei looks back at the walking figure and studies his back for a while.  She turns back to her food, shaking her head.

"It can't be. He's in the States already...."  Dei sighs.

"Haay Chuck! Ano? So magpapaka-torpe ka nalang ng ganun? Malay mo kung single pa rin sya? Paano mo malalaman kung di mo kausapin? Oo na, sangkatutak na na text at calls ang nagawa mo pero may nangyari ba? Tangina! After all these years, torpe ka pa rin!"

"Dei" the message read.

"Yun lang? Dei lang?" Meng said as she plopped on the sofa beside Dei.

"Oo..."

"Ilang days na yung message?"

"3 days?.....3 days.....after kung nag-lunch sa hospital....."

"May unusual ba na nangyari that day?"

"Wala naman.....sandwich at soup lang ako like always....puno yung caf.....may guy na naka-cap at salamin na nag-offer ng table nya kasi tapos na sya.....nothing out of the ordinary..."

"Baka yung guy...."

"Sino?"

"Yung guy na nagbigay ng chair nya sa yo....baka sya yung nag-text...."

"Paano? Sino sya?"

"Baka from one of your conferences....lectures...."

"Sus me! Ang dami na nun.....and besides, karamihan sa guys dun sa conference, kung hindi matanda, sobrang bata or gay...."

"Ayaw mo?"

"Grabe sya!" Dei said, hitting Meng on the arm.

"Bes....matagal ka na walang boyfriend.....I'm just helping you realize stuff...."

"........"

"Ikaw rin, baka manuyot nalang yang kengkay  mo ng di na didiligan.....kelan ba last nakipagbeso kay junjun yan?"

"Hoy!"