Mizpah: Jillian

Chapter 1

"Anong kailangan mo?" tanong ng isang ale.

Binubugaw niya ang tinitinda niyang ulam habang nagungulangot. I tried not to show any signs of disgust expression from my face but my nose drawned up and wrinkled.

"Ang arte..." she uttered.

I tucked my hair in the back of my ear and gulped.

"Uh, where can I find an affordable house here?" I asked.

Kumunot ang noo ng ale at napakamot ng ulo.

"Ano!?" A hint of annoyance was evident from her.

"Saan po ako makakahanap ng murang bahay dito?" I said.

Itinigil niya ang pagbubugaw niya sa kanyang tinitindang ulam.

"May kilala akong nagpapa-upa ng apartment. Gusto mo bang tignan?" she suggested now, calmly.

Apartment? That's too small for me and also there's no privacy for me. The walls are usually thin and my neighbors are literally on top of me.

But I guess I can see it for myself, right?

"Sure," I answered.

Kinuha niya ang cellphone sa bulsa ng apron niya at tinawagan ang kakilala niyang nagpapa-upa ng apartment.

While she was busy for her business, my eyes looked around. I guess this is what many people called karenderya. It's small and the tables were made of woods and the stools were made from plastic.

Nakita kong umalis na ang isang babaeng estudyante sa lamesa. May natirang ulam pa sa kanyang kinainan at dinapuan kaagad ito ng langaw. Again, my nose was drawned up  and wrinkled. Dirty.

"Tessie, saan ka? May naghahanap kasi ng pwedang mare-rentahang apartment. Wala ka? 'Yung anak mong si Marigold? Ah, sige. Hihintayin namin siya."

Ibinalik ko ang tingin ko sa ale na nasa harapan ko. Ibinalik niya sa bulsa niya ang cellphone niya.

"Pupunta na dito 'yung anak ng may-ari," I nodded. "Baka gusto mo munang kumain? Tanghaling tapat na oh."

I quickly shook my head. "Okay lang po."

Tumango naman ang ale at pinaupo ako sa stool habang hinihintay ang anak nang may-ari. My cellphone rang and I just got a text message.

From: Cale
Where are you, Jillian? Hindi ka raw pumasok kaninang umaga sa klase mo.

I ignored Cale's text message. I turned off my phone and put it back inside my sling bag.

"Magandang tanghali, Manang Deng..."

"Magandang tanghali, Marigold. Lapitan mo lang 'yung babaeng maputi. Siya 'yung naghahanap ng apartment."

I overheard the conversation between the two. I stood up and grabbed my two suitcases. The lady who just came looked at me, smiling.

"Hi, ako pala si Marigold," she introduced herself.

"Jillian," I introduced.

Her beauty is the definition of morena. She has a dimples, average-sized nose, thick brows, red lips, and a black medium length hair. She's wearing a denim shorts paired with a black spaghetti strap top underneath her white cardigan. She's a bit taller than me.

I noticed that the men who just came in the karenderya were looking at her. They also made a whistle sound while looking at her toned legs.

Ugly cat callers!

Tinignan niya ang mga maletang dala ko.

"Tulungan na kita," she offered.

"Yeah, thanks."