“Am I late?”tanong ni kuya noong pumasok siya sa loob ng bahay. We are celebrating my graduation here in Pangasinan, kasama namin ang mga kaibigan namin dito.
“Attorney, why are you late?”tanong naman ni Markus na galling sa kusina, talagang dala niya pa iyong coat niya.
“Congrats, Ericka”niyakap ako ni kuya tapos meron siyang inabot sa akin na maliit na box.
Binuksan ko ito sa harap niya at nakita ko iyong necklace na may stethoscope na pendant. Napangiti ako sa binigay ni kuya.
“Few more years doktor ka na”he said then I hugged him tight.
“Congratulations din sa inyo”he sat on his favorite chair and grab some food. Wala sila mommy ngayon, nasa Batanes siya para sa Medical Mission. Si daddy naman ay nasa Law firm, may tinanggap kasi siya na Pro-Bono case.
“Are you gonna prepare for your board exam?”tanong ni kuya.
Tumango ako. “We’ll stay in Laguna, kuya. Sabay-sabay kaming magrereview for our board exam”
“Can we talk later, Ericka?”
Kinabahan ako bigla sa sinabi ni kuya. Hindi pa niya sinasabi kung ano ang papagusapan namin pero parang alam ko na. I know that he dropped the case he was investigating for me. Gusto niya na protektahan ako sa pamilya ni Twixx.
After we ate Dinner, naabutan ako ni kuya sa may rooftop.
“Can we talk?”he asked.
“Alam ko naman kung ano ang papagusapan natin, kuya”I chuckled.
“This isn’t a joke, Ericka”
“Who says that I’m enjoying the place where am I right now? I’m in a tightrope where death is coming for me, kuya, alam mo iyan”kuya sat on the bench while looking at the stars.
I leaned my back on the wall, facing at him.
“You need to stay here…”he said.
“Para walang mangyaring masama sa’yo”
“Axel is protecting us, kuya”kuya arched his brows. “Twixx is protecting me”
“From his father?”
“From his family, kuya”
Umiling siya.
“Stephen is reinvestigating Irene’s case. You know what happened to him?”my lips parted. “He received a lot of death threats, Ericka”
“His life is in danger. That’s why I beg him to stop reinvestigating the case!”mahina pero madiin niyang sinabi.
Nakikita ko rin sa mga mata niya iyong galit na ngayon ko lang ulit nakita.
“If he listened to me, I know that you will also”dugtong pa niya.
“Naiintindihan mo ba ako, Ericka?”
“Kuya…”
“Ericka, am I clear?”
“If I will stay here, dapat sila rin”sabi ko sa kanya.
“Hindi ko pwedeng iwan sa ere iyong mga kaibigan ko, kuya”
Silence.
“They protected me first. I want to return the favor, kuya”he stood up and patted my shoulders.
“Then let’s protect you and your friends”he said before walking away.
I looked up on the stars and smile.
“Thank you,”
BINABASA MO ANG
What If We Try?
General Fiction(What If Series #3) Ericka Ivy Tan's dream was to become a doctor and top the board exam. She was a consistent honor student every since she was young and she was always on the top of everything. But her perfect dream changed when she started her Co...
