BORROWED TIME

26

"Oh ano? Ready ka na?"

I said as soon as I finally entered her room.

"Wow. Hindi ka man lang ba talaga marunong kumatok?" walang emosyong tanong nito sa akin.

"Hindi mo naman ako pagbubuksan ng pinto kahit isang daang beses pa akong kumatok. At isa pa, why knock if I have your room's key with me?"

Tsaka ko pinaikot-ikot sa daliri ko yung susi ng kwarto niya.

She rolled her eyes on me and wheeled her wheel chair towards where I was.

"Tsk. Tabi!" masungit niyang sabi tsaka diretsong lumabas ng kwarto niya habang pilit na pinapagulong ang gulong ng wheel chair niya.

"Wow ha? Kaya mo nang mag-isa ganon?" I asked her as I followed her outside her room.

"Tsk. Bilisan mo na lang diyan. Gusto ko nang umalis." she told me as she waits for me para matulungan ko siyang bumaba sa hagdan.

"Eto na nga po mahal na reyna. Bibilisan na." pang-aasar ko rito pero inirapan niya lang ulit ako.

Edi wow. Siya na may magagandang mata 🙄

Dahan-dahan ko naman siyang tinulungang makababa sa hagdan and then I pushed her wheel chair outside of their house where kuya Loel is waiting for us.

Nang makasakay kami, tahimik lang ang naging byahe namin. Paminsan-minsan sinusubukan kong silipin si Bea sa backseat pero isa lang ang tingin ng mata niya. Sa labas lang ito nakatingin and still wearing her poker face and unreadable facial expression.

Hindi ko namalayang nakarating na kami sa park kung hindi pa ako kinalabit ni kuya Loel. Nakatunganga lang kasi ako. Iniisip ko kung paano ko nga ba mapipilit si Bea na kausapin ako at makihalubilo sa iba.

"Jho, just text me if you're going home na ha?"

I just nodded at kuya Loel and bid my goodbye.

I started to push Bea's wheel chair to roam around the spacious park when I found ourselves stopping at the big tree we've seen when we visited this park for the first time.

"Ang laki talaga ng punong to noh, Bea? It's like, it has been here for many years now. It had passed a lot of disasters and calamities, and yet, it is still standing strong. Parang hindi man lang nahirapan. Kahit na ilang beses magka-sakuna, nakakaya niya pa ring tumayo." I told her as I tried to touch the big tree and feeling the breeze of the wind blowing.

"Siguro, kung tao lang to, siya na ang pinaka-matibay na nilalang sa mundo." she just looked at me with boredom.

"Kasi tignan mo to." I said as I went to the part of the tree where there was a scrape. "May mga galos at sugat siya. May cracks pa nga oh. Pero hindi pa rin siya natutumba at namamatay. Kahit maraming beses na siyang nasasaktan, this tree just don't give up easily. Mabuti pa siya noh? Because not everybody is like this tree. Was hurt but still alive and growing. Hindi kagaya ng mga tao, na minsan, pag nasaktan na ng sobra... Hindi na kayang bumangon pa." I said as I touched the scraped part of the big tree.

I waited for her to talk pero nabigo ako dahil hangin lang ang bukod-tangi kong narinig sa ilang minutong katahimikang hinayaan kong mag-hari sa pagitan namin.

I decided to just watch the kids playing on the slides in the park pero hindi pa rin ako umaalis sa tabi ng puno.

On the other hand, si Bea naman, malayo lang ang tingin. I wonder what she's exactly thinking and I'm still trying to find answers to a lot of questions running in my head for the past month.

Nung mapagtanto kong wala akong mahihinuha sa katahimikan ni Bea, I decided that we should just go home instead of watching other people's movements in the park.