"Soulmate"

"Soulmate" (Chapter 5)

This day…I decided to bring her out….mamasyal sa lugar na iniwan niya noon….kahit

pa wala akong alam about this place, nagtanong ako….naalala ko pa nga how Marian and

Nica smiled when I asked,

“Hmmm…san madalas pumunta dito si Ate nyo nung bata pa siya?”

“Kuya naman, mas matanda sa amin si Ate Julie kaya pano namin malaman?” Marian

quipped,

Oo nga naman….but then another voice sufficed,

“You wanna know where my niece hangs out when she was young?” I turned around to see

Tita Marcia…she walked towards us and said,

“Sa Isdaan.”

“Huh?”

“Ah….sa Isdaan pala….hihihi.” The young girls spoke in unison. I simply scratched my

head in wonderment. But still, at least, I am getting somewhere.

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Di ko akalain na may lugar pa pala na ganito katahimik…kaganda. We need to walk for

roughly 30 minutes to reach this place and di ako nagtaka why Julie was a frequent visitor

nung bata pa siya.

You can feel the breeze as it gently brushes against your skin. From afar, you can see the rows

of fields…which are golden yellow at this time of the year. Harvest time daw, sabi ni Nica

and the palay grains are just good enough for harvesting. As we walk past semi-muddy roads

and unpaved pathways…the more I began to realize that Julie hailed from a simple yet

wonderful province. And while her heart harbors so much pain…there is so much about this

place that left a mark in her character- her bubbly personality, her impulsiveness…her

affinity for good literature and interest in reading…all of which may have started in this town

where her home has once been.

“Pagod ka na noh?”

Di ko namalayan na di pala ako kumikibo which caused her to finally awaken me in my

stupor. I smiled,

“Ako? Nope.”

“Sus, hindi daw, yan kasi mokong, ang galing mong mag-aya dito yun pala di ka tatagal,

hahaha! Tagaktak nang pawis mo oh,haha!”

And just like that, she wiped those drops of sweat in my forehead, using her fingers…ewan ko

ba, I instantly remembered those days when we first dated…how naturally sweet she is….

“Uy, bakit ba ganyan ka makatingin ah, may dumi ba ko sa mukha?” She again spoke

smiling. All I could do was look down and gave a soft smile.

“Lika na, malayo pa daw, sabi ni Nica.”

“C’mon Mokong, I can reach that place even with my eyes closed. Haha! But wait, pano mo

naman nasabi na malayo pa aber?”

“Look, on our right, yung mga palayan. Then on our left was this shallow stream…sabi ni

Nica, once we reached this part, we need to walk pa until we reach that hidden passage beyond

that wooden fence. Kala mo ah.Hahaha!”

“I must say, I’m impressed, kala ko sa pambababae ka lang magaling eh,hahaha! Tara na

nga.”

And since I knew that arguments like these always lead on I, losing, I just shook my head and

followed her lead.

After a few more minutes….what I saw simply marveled me…

“Wow.”

Seeing his face lit up like a kid is just priceless. I’ve known Elmo years ago and while we dated

and stopped dating after three months….bigla kong naisip…what if di ako umalis nung

gabing yun…what if pinaubaya ko ang sarili ko sa kanya….but as I remember that fateful

evening, that pang of pain struck me anew.

“Wow, pretty…this is something. You always go here alone?”

Nakita ko siyang lumakad papalayo sa akin…totoo nga, tila walang ganong nagbago sa

lugar na to…the shallow stream always leads to this beautiful and serene river…and kahit pa

mahirap siyang puntahan, kahit pa konti lang ang taong nakakapunta dito….it’s nice to

know that nothing almost changed.

Sinundan ko siya ng tingin at tulad ko, nung bata pa ko….my steps will always lead me to

this makeshift hut that I guess, provided shelter to kids who frequently visited this refuge. I

smiled kasi I am seeing my younger self in Elmo…how he took his slippers off…how he sat

near the river’s edge and had his feet soaked….even his smiles remind me of my younger self,

too.

“Pretty! What are you waiting for?! Dito ka!” He shouted and as I try to ward off the

memories of my past due to last night’s breakdown…I hurriedly joined my best friend and

allowed myself to be taken away…by my childhood and its good memories….again.

“Hmmm…..pretty?”

Di ko na alam gano kami katagal na nagtatampisaw dito…ang alam ko lang, the silence

between us is not deafening at all. I lived in the city all my life and while I travel most of the

time, finding a place like this in the heart of a small native town is surprising to me.

“Why? Gusto mo nang bumalik?” She asked, I shook my head.

“No.”

“Then what…”

Habang nakaupo kami…at habang dinarama ang simoy ng hangin….I found myself

saying,

“Julie…sorry….for that night….for forcing myself…”

I heard her soft laugh…which bewildered me, di ko tuloy naiwasang tingnan siya…with her

hair being swept by the wind…with her cheeks naturally rosy and tinted….my gaze then

shifted from her eyes…down to her nose then to her lips.

“Moe…please don’t feel sorry for me…I don’t need it. Alam ko nagulat ka sa nalaman mo

but pity is the last thing I need.”

“Who said na naaawa ako sa’yo….actually, I’m proud of you, Julie.”

Tiningnan niya ako and for the first in a long time, ngayon lang kami ulit naging

ganito…yung tila ba totoong-totoo…walang halong biro…walang halong humor, asaran

or basag trip na tono…

I continued,

“Julie…I loved you before….and now….I love you even more.”