Night and Day

2 - Grave of the Dead River

The cold wind continues to penetrate the inside of Tom's sweatshirt. He feels the relief it has given as he just wants to shut his mind down.

Bakit ngayon pa? Nagsunod-sunod naman talaga, Tom thought as he continues to nurse his pain and anger. He can feel his tears start to well up again. In his heart he looks at the one person that he wanted to see right now.

He stops his thoughts when he sensed someone approaching. He looks up in panic and gazed at the young man in front of him.

Gio? he wishes.

Tom's heart lightened. His now cloudy eyes locked on the boy in front of him, who looked worried to see him that way. The young man increased paced to get close to him.

Pucha! Sino 'to? He panics as he turned out to be a different person.

He immediately stands up to break gaze. He looks away to wipe his eyes and to save himself from further embarrassment. The longing in his chest has turned into loud beating.

A jeep with his signboard stops instantly at them, as soon as the boy is almost beside him. Tom boards the vehicle, followed by the other. He sat on the right and the boy across him. He felt his cheeks turned red and wished for the cold wind again. The boy wears his earphones and looks at his phone. Tom calms himself down, as they reach the busy roads ahead.

Hindi sila nalalayo, Tom thought, Mas bata lang 'to.

He was still curious why the boy in front approached him that night. The boy looks like a student of another school. From Tom's observation, he might be at his first or second year. His eyes are gentle, not small like Gio's, but more like Robbie's. The other features are small, and he keeps his hair clean. His fair skin looks good on him as well.

He would occasionally turn his gaze when the boy looks at his direction, by the window on his back, as he fears that he might creep him out.

The jeep finally stops by the entrance to San Vicente. To his surprise, the boy gets off first. He follows him as they start to walk uphill.

Tom has made sure to leave a distance between him and the young man. The quiet night is thick, and so is the awkward space between them. The boy is occasionally brushing his hair back as the wind from the hills sweep the roads going down.

Tom checks on his broad shoulders, matching the physique. He is lean and athletic, but not very built like Gio's. Tom grins as he clears his mind from such thoughts.

The unknown companion turns on the left street. Tom stops unknowingly to look as the other walks away. He knows that there are a few boarding homes for students on that street.

The boy suddenly turns around to look at him. It took a while before he came to realize that they are looking at each other again. To Tom's surprise, he panics and continues his way up back home.

⸙

One morning, Tom takes himself in front of the shop owned by Robbie's family. The humble store which looks like an old wooden building, is located a few streets away from the busy Session Road, across the schools and universities dotted on the landscape. The lower ground serves as an art supply store. In the earlier years, Robbie's father used the space as a studio where the man takes his students for lessons, but now they have leased another space for that and catered the lot for student and art supplies. There are also stairs on the side of the structure which takes you to an upper level. This is used as a gallery for native artists' exhibits, as both Robbie's parents are officers in an organization, promoting the Cordilleran culture.