The crowd really made Dennise pissed, she really needed more space right now pagkatapos ng nangyari. Her tears already drought for something mushy things. A broken heart never really worthed for tears.
Ganito kasi ang nangyari, nahuli ni Dennise ang kaniyang girlfriend na may ibang babaeng khahalikan. Pagkatapos tinanong niya ang girlfriend niya kung anong meron sa kanilang relationship. Ang sabi nito ay wala lang ito, isa lang siyang kaibigan. Si Dennise na hindi talaga alam ang dapat niyang gagawin ay nahiya na lamang dahil all this time na akala niya ay she’s in a relationship with her. Sa harap pa ng babaeng hindi gusto ni Dennise.
Naghahalo ang kaniyang nararamdaman. Galit, hiya, at dahil don it broke her heart.
Pagkatapos noon, tumakbo siya palayo doon papunta dito sa crowd na ito. Akala niya kapag nandito siya sa ganitong maraming tao ay makakatulong ito sa kaniya, but it was the opposite. She really pissed off with people around her. Their eyes never looked nice at her, like they knew what happened to her. Is her broken heart could be seen by others?
She didn’t know what crowds for here. Maraming food stalls sa paligid niya. Inobserbahan niya ang paligid ng kinatatayuan nya. Hindi niya napansin na malayo na pala ang natakbo niya, nasa tabing-ilog na siya ngayon. Pero usually, hindi naman gaanong matao dito sa tabing-ilog. Tinignan niya ang fliers na nasa paligid.
“Fireworks festival?”
So nasa fireworks festival pala siya, maybe she should found a place that she could see the best with no many people.
“How about the bridge?” tanong niya sa sarili.
Dahan-dahan siyang naglakad papunta sa tulay, just to arranged her thoughts a little bit. So many things that appeared after what happened a while ago. Her friend’s face, their memories around, their high school life. Akala talaga niya she’s in a relationship with her, pero….
Bigla siyang sumigaw ng napaka lakas. Pinagtitinginan na siya ng mga tao sa paligid niya.
Bigla siyang tumakbo pagkatapos non. She hoped while running her thoughts should be clear enough.
It worked.
A little bit.
She arrived at the bridge. Not many people here. She stood blankly at the crowd far away. The sky slowly turned black, many lights turned on made it more pretty. She put her hand on bridge rail to enjoyed the view.
“Anong ginagawa mo?!” sigaw ng kung sino.
Napatingin si Dennise sa pinang galingan ng boses, it’s just only a person. a girl.
“Don’t do the stupid thing!” she screamed again with that worried face, she slowly walked closer, slowly with her hands reached in front of her.
“Anong ibig mong sabihin?” nalilitong tanong ni Dennise dahil hindi niya alam ang nangyayari.
“I won’t let you jump from there!”
“What?! Niloloko mo ba ako? Sino namang tatalon dito?”
“Huh? Hindi mo ba gagawin?”
“No way I do that. I just enjoyed the view here. Seems pretty nice to watch fireworks from here.”
“But your face is full of sadness there, I thought you will jump after I see that,” she explained from her perspective.
“Am I?”
“Yes, so gloomy.”
“Well, it’s gloomy madness.”
Pagkatapos non, nagtitigan sila sa isa't-isa, walang salitang lumalabas sa kahit na sino sa kanila. Hanggang sa biglang naglakad papalapit ang dalaga sa kaniya, tinignan kung ano yung tinitignan kanina ni Dennise. Tinignan siyang mabuti ni Dennise, like how nice skin she had, her eyes, everything.
“It’s really pretty,” sabi ng dalaga.
“Uh, yeah.”
“Anong pangalan mo? Ako si Alyssa, Alyssa Valdez.”
“Dennise Lazaro.”
“So anong problema, Dennise Lazaro?” tanong sa kaniya ni Alyssa habang ineenjoy nito ang night view.
Nagulat si Dennise sa tanong at parang ayaw niya munang pag-usapan ang nangyari. Pero habang mas tinititigan niya si Alyssa, somehow she could trust her. Sinabi niya ang lahat, hindi naman siya jinudge ni Alyssa pagkatapos niyang magkwento. She smiled to the black sky then to the black water which sparkled down there.
“At least you are not losing something that makes you a human,” sabi ni Alyssa habang nakatitig sa malalim na tubig sa ibaba.
“Huh? Ano yun?” nalilitong tanong ni Dennise sa sinabi ni Alyssa.
“An anger.”
“Huh? That kinda makes sense, but have you been angry at someone,” tanong ni Dennise, interested sa kwento ni Alyssa or something that she wanted to hear.
Tumingin si Alyssa kay Dennise, her eyes really had curiosity.
“I was,” sagot agad ni Alyssa.
“What that past tense thing? You can’t be mad right now or something?”
“Yup, I lost my anger.”
Napangiti si Alyssa kay Dennise. Yung kita na ang mga biloy niya. Hindi pa nakikita ni Dennise ang ganung klaseng ngiti kahit kanino. She is mesmerized by that.
“Such weird you are.”
After Dennise put her words there, the loud bang voice heard by them. They looked at the dark sky filled with lights which make unique shape patterns, colorful, in any sizes. The festival began, they enjoyed the fireworks view. Dennise could find that the fact she watched it with a stranger like Alyssa. Well, she’s cute and adorable looks, she couldn’t ignore it.
“Kailangan ko na umalis, nice to meet you.”
“Hmm, wait, can I have your number? Pwede tayong magmeet ulit,” tanong ni Dennise na medjo desperate na makuha ang number ng dalaga.
“Sorry to disappoint you, pero hindi na ako nagamit ng cellphone ngayon.”
“You are really weird you know?”
“I appreciate that. Just think that we destined to meet just for today, to fill your sadly broken heart here and watch fireworks. That’s more beautiful, isn’t it?”
“Well, I kinda not trust with destiny thing but for this one, I think I can trust you for that.”
“That’s more beautiful. So, paalam na.”
Pumunta si Alyssa sa kabilang daan ni Dennise. Tinignan ni Dennise ang dalaga hanggang sa hindi na niya ito makita. Pero napaka weird naman non.
Pagkatapos ng huling fireworks sa madilim na kalangitan, naglakad si Dennise sa may bridge. Habang naglalakad siya ay napatingin siya sa railings. Panay bulaklak at kandila. Tinignan niya ito at binasa ang mga mensaheng nakalagay.
Hope you find your happiness in heaven.
Rest well there.
Rest in Peace, Alyssa.
I miss you, it’s already one year without you in this world, Alyssa Valdez.
“So she’s really that weird being, huh?” tanong ni Dennise sa sarili o siguro kay Alyssa, maybe she could hear from here.
Dennise did something that rare to do in her daily life. She prayed.
“Thank you for being there for minutes.”
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Sending massive love
to all of you x
