Dark Fairytale (Published under Cloak Pop Fiction)

Chapter 19: Trick or Treat

Chapter 19: Trick or Treat

My excitement must have caught him off-guard for he remained staring at me, surprised and bewildered. The silence between us made me fully aware of my arms around him. My action made things awkward for the both of us. Agad kong tinanggal ang pagkakayakap ng aking braso sa kaniya at nag-iinit ang mga pisnging nag-iwas ng tingin.

"I'm sorry. It was too selfish of me to ask you for my birthday nang hindi man lang tinatanong kung may gagawin ka sa araw na iyon. If you're busy, okay lang kung–"

"I'll be there," putol niya sa kung ano pa mang aking sasabihin.

Hindi ko na naiwasang muling mapatingin sa kaniya at nang madiskubreng matiim siyang nakatingin sa akin ay tila may mga dagang nagsimulang maghabulan sa aking dibdib.

"I thought you – I... I..." Hindi ko alam kung anong nangyayari ngunit bigla na lang nawalan ako ng kakayahan na bumuo ng isang matinong pangungusap.

"Your invitation surprised me. I had never really paid attention to someone's birthday. In my world, it is the death day we remember."

Gusto ko siyang tanungin kung anong klaseng mundo ang kaniyang tinutukoy subalit alam kong may limitasyon ang mga bagay na maaari kong malaman tungkol sa kaniya.

"How about your birthday? Aren't you celebrating it?" sa halip ay tanong ko. Isa siya sa mga taong itinuturin kong kaibigan. Siguro naman ay normal lang na malaman namin ang kaarawan ng isa't isa.

"My birthday –" Huminga siya nang malalim na tila pinipigilan ang sariling magbigay ng impormasyon bago nagpatuloy, "doesn't really matter at all. Yours must be coming soon to invite me now, though."

"Right. October 31st," sagot ko at saka bahagyang ngumiti. Hindi lingid sa akin ang pag-iwas niya sa tanong ko ngunit hindi sa lahat ng pagkakataon ay may taong interesado na malaman ang aking kaarawan. "But I think most people prefer to celebrate monsters on that day. I couldn't blame them. Halloween is really fun!"

I should probably stop speaking at this point. The more I talked about October 31st, the more I gave him reasons not to see it as my birthday. I mean – I receive more Happy Halloween greetings whenever it comes even I forget that it's my day as well.

I watched as the side of his mouth rose into a knowing smirk. Inihanda ko ang aking sarili sa maaari niyang sabihin. Totoo naman na masayang magkaroon ng Halloween parties. Ngunit hindi ko alam kung bakit ang kaniyang pagsang-ayon at pag-tutol ay mahalaga sa akin sa pagkakataong ito.

"Forget it. Ire-remind na lang kita kapag malapit na." Naikuyom ko sa aking tagiliran ang aking mga kamay. Why am I so nervous in front of him? And why do I keep belittling myself whenever I feel nervous? It just really sucks!

"I don't remember birthdays, Emily," sa wakas ay wika niya. "But of all the birthdays out there, yours is the only one I will never forget."

And that was how I died from a heart attack at a young age.

No.

I was still breathing – and that was enough assurance after my heart temporarily stopped beating. I wasn't going to die yet – not when my birthday was just around the corner; and definitely not in front of him for absolutely weird reasons. It was just this muscular organ of mine was inventing its own peculiar disease with erratic heartbeats and pointless nervousness as symptoms. It was the first time I had ever felt this way. There must be something wrong with my health.