Chapter 2

Gian

THE LOVELY THING ABOUT TRAVELLING is that no matter how carefully you plan it, that plan is always bound to go wrong.

One time, I went to the north for a hiking trip which turned to hours of going back and forth to a river, fetching water for the people of some secluded village. It was worth it because they were all so sweet.

And then just a few months ago, we had a school trip where we were supposed to attend a three-day seminar about building structures in a beach hotel. Guess what I learned? Music.

I slept through most of the discussion, leaving me wide awake for late night walks. There was an old man who plays guitar by the seaside while drinking beer. He was kind enough to teach me the basics under the moonlight.

And today, I went to the capital and somehow ended up on a stranger's kitchen, being interrogated under a scrutinizing gaze.

"Have you never been taught that not touching anything without permission is part of basic visitor's etiquette?"

I smiled at the lady sitting in front of me. She's pretty, kind of skinny but not too much, with angelic features and a fair complexion. The dark brown locks falling just above her shoulder suits her greatly. It matches her eyes which, by the way, are currently trained on me with a look of extreme judgment.

"You're going to offer me coffee anyway. That’s part of the Filipino hospitality" I argued and took another sip, it actually tastes good.

She made another cup for herself. Now, we're having coffee in her four-seater dining table like two old friends. Except we weren't friends exactly, but we will get there.

It was fun teasing her. One minute she's awkward, the next she's territorial, and then she's back to being awkward. I wish I wasn't being too rude.

"Don't do that again."

"Are you really getting mad at me over a cup of coffee?" I asked in disbelief.

She took a deep breath before answering. "Put it this way, I really don't like it when people touch my things but since you're staying here I think that can't be helped. So here are my house rules."

I bit the inside of my cheeks to prevent myself from laughing. It looked like it physically pained her to say a sentence that long.

"You can touch everything except for three things. Personal ones are already excluded of course."

She looked at me as if waiting for my response before continuing. I opened my mouth to speak then closed it again. That may or may not have happened twice.

I do not even know where to begin with the questions. I want to ask what's included on the personal stuff but I feel like that should be common sense. On one hand, I am really confused. But on the other, I also don't want to look stupid.

Nod and smile, Gian. Nod and smile.

"Okay first one is my books."

"Not a friend of books," I replied.

I'm not much into reading, my attention span was just not meant for those kind of things. But I figured she'd be into books. There's a really tall shelf in the living room.

"Second is my plants."

 "Yeah I noticed you've got lots of them. I have a feeling a botanical business would be really good right now," I suggested, wriggling an eyebrow.

I earned a glare. Can she at least allow my jokes to land, come on.

"You're not allowed to touch them. If any of them died during your stay- no scratch that. They can't die."

"My mom loves plants. I help her out sometimes whenever I need extra money. So, I know a little about gardening."

"You still can't touch them."

"Fine."

It was cool though, I have to give her that. They seem to be well taken care of. It adds up to the fresh ambiance and aesthetic of the place.

"The third is my coffee." As if on cue, she wrapped her hands around her mug protectively.

She's never letting this go, would she?

I was just hungry and the aroma got me. Also, I was in a silly goofy mood.

I raised my hand again, missing school a little maybe. "Is it still 'your' coffee if I shared with the expenses?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean I'm not that much of an asshole to stay here for free. We can split the grocery expenses. I'll pay rent for the month or more and then- what the hell?"

She choked on her coffee.

"A-are you alright?" I asked, reaching out with hesitant hands but she made a gesture of sweeping them away.

I allowed myself to chuckle, if only to hide the discomfort. The look on her face was a mixture of disbelief and uncertainty.

"One month?!"

"Yeah?" I raised an eyebrow. "I mean we're lucky if it would last for just a month."

I doubt it man, it's tough out there.

"Y-yeah but I thought..." her brows furrowed, she was carefully choosing her words. "Where did you came from by the way?"

"Cavite"

"That's literally beside Manila! Why can't you go home?"

Raising both my eyebrows now.

"Sorry," she backtracked. "All I mean is that it's better if you're with your family. Maybe you can ask for help from the authorities."

"It's my fault that I chose to hang out here despite the threat of the virus. The authorities won't adjust for my hardheadedness."

"So I'll have to adjust for it instead?" she whined in a whisper.

"I heard that."

She just nodded as a reply, leaving my mouth hanging open.

~And I don’t know how it gets better than this. You take my hand and drag me head first, Fearless~

I glanced behind me, looking for Taylor Swift my beloved, and saw a phone ringing beside the kitchen sink. What's that doing over there?

~And I don’t know why but with you I’d dance, in a storm, in my best dress. Fearless.~

I’d dance with you too, Taylor, in any weather. I did an exaggerated lipsync of the next lyrics and Aera gave me a look of annoyance.

She stood to get it but not before glancing at the wall clock. She murmured something about seven hours which I do not understand because the time says 9:45.

So I've been here for almost an hour huh.

"Hi dad"

Oh shit, it’s the father. Would she mention that I’m here? Do I have to talk to him? Please, I am but a lost boy begging for shelter.

"Yes, I'm fine."

I sat properly on the chair again and pretended I wasn't listening. I fixed my gaze on the clear glass window in front of me. Aera was in the way earlier so I did not notice the view. The buildings towered even from afar, basking in the glow of city lights.

"Yeah, mom told me what to do."

I almost jumped when she reappeared on the scope of my vision. How does she move so soundlessly? I thought she would take a seat again but she simply picked up her mug. She turned to me, still listening to whatever the person on the other line was saying. Our eyes met for a brief second before the gaze shifted slightly. I've noticed she never looks at people in the eyes.

She was about to say something but decided otherwise, pointing to her room instead. I nodded and she left.

"She called me already...seven hours ago." That was the last thing I heard before the door was locked.

I stood up and decided to look around. I have been itching to do this since my arrival but I still have a bit of shame in me. The place is not that big but I find it picturesque.

It was clean and simple. The positioning of stuff and the little decorations were very appealing to the eyes. I considered getting my camera but I guess there's plenty of time for that in the next days.

I went first to the kitchen counter, looking up at the wooden shelf above it. There were different kinds of mugs on display. I love coffee but I never thought about collecting mugs.

My mom displays wine glasses in the kitchen anyway so there'd be no place for it.

There were a couple of different sizes. There's a blue one in the corner with little white clouds all over. It was really big. I'm pretty sure you'd drown with that much coffee.  There's another that was made of wood with heart carvings in the center. There's a complete set of plastic mugs in different pastel colors. I reached for a small posh teacup with intricate flower designs. Cute.

I went next to the living room. The couch was dark green. In between this and the television was a soft white patterned carpet against the wooden floor. The tall bookshelf I was talking about earlier was on the right side of the tv. I chuckled in amusement, seeing the books arranged in a color-coordinated way. This girl has a lot of time in her hands.

I crouched down, noticing something else at the bottom shelf. It was filled with customized notebooks and journals. I pulled out a medium-sized one with a transparent cover. It was filled with watercolor painting of flowers.

I didn't even realize I was holding my breathe while flipping through the pages. There were not enough words to describe how lovely it was. I'm pretty decent in drawing but I can never do painting for the love of God. 

I heard a door opening and my heart almost fell.

I immediately closed the notebook and shoved it back to the shelf. A folded piece of paper even fell out but I had no time so I just shoved it in my pocket. Aera emerged from her room and wow, she did not even notice me. She headed straight towards the kitchen.

"Gian?"

Hearing someone you just met call your name for the first time is always a total whiplash.

"Hey," I greeted, walking in casually.

"Uhm, I'm gonna go to bed. Do you still need anything?"

Hearing her actually try to be accommodating is a double whiplash. Where was the light-hearted aggressiveness earlier?

"No, I'm good."

She nodded and was about to return to her room when I remembered something.

"By the way, thank you for letting me in." I gave her a genuine smile. "Seriously."

"Yeah," she went silent for a second. "Turn the lights off when you're about to sleep."

I watched her disappear into her room once more. Then I went and plopped down in the couch. Minutes passed with me just staring at my reflection on the tv and sighing occasionally.

This is dumb.

I stood up and started pacing around for no particular reason. And then I almost slammed into the glass door so I realized I might as well go to the balcony. The night breeze was cold against my cheeks. There was a sweet scent wafting in the air, probably the flowers

The planting game definitely leveled up here. There were countless flower pots. Two wooden grids hang on the wall on both sides of the door, allowing a certain type of vine to crawl. It has little white flowers. I held unto the railings and looked down. You can see the whole neighborhood from here and it looks peaceful somehow.

A stark contrast with the chaos that I have dealt with on my journey earlier. This day was such a rollercoaster. I went through so many apartments looking for a place to stay. It was full everywhere. There were hotels but I cannot afford to stay long in there, unless I would ask my parents for money.

I let out a sigh and took a seat on one of the two steel chairs, releasing the day's adrenaline.

Thank God, I remembered Auntie Linda. This was a bit far from where I originally was. I got lost a couple of times and had to avoid barangay officials roaming around to enforce quarantine rules. Imagine my despair when she said that there were no empty units. I considered just curling up right there in her doorway.

And then she remembered that there was a tenant who doesn't have a roommate. At first I thought she had attitude issues and that was why no one wants to stay with her. But now it's pretty obvious that living alone was her choice.

Well, she might actually have issues, you never know. I shook my head, smiling to myself. She doesn't appear to be the best companion but I'd take one over none any day.

I looked up at the sky and got confused for a heartbeat, wondering where the stars went.

Until I remembered I was in a place with too much air and light pollution. It somehow doesn't make sense, there was something about this apartment that says it wasn’t meant for artificial neon lights but for the natural beauty of the universe. Aera definitely doesn't look like a Manila girl. It was as if she built her own world in the middle of a chaotic city.

But how can one live alone without even the stars for company?

I felt a vibration in my right thigh. The paper fell again as I was fishing my phone out of my pocket. I picked it up first before checking the caller.

Papa calling...

I muted it, letting the call go through voicemail. Not wanting to entertain any unwelcome thoughts, I unfolded the cream-colored paper to see what’s inside. I was greeted by a fine handwriting that I assume was hers.

What are your thoughts on the rain?

I think it’s awesome, how something can be so powerful and yet so comforting at the same time. I have so much love for the rain.

Power and comfort are two things that you would not often see in the same sentence. Power corrupts, that shit was from comforting. I wonder to whom this was meant for. Is it a letter for someone? It sounds too informal to be a school essay.

It can make the world stand still in a heartbeat. But despite that, it does not pressure you to do anything. You’d hear it softly hitting the ground as if it was whispering to you. ‘Slow down child. Today, you can stay at home and rest.’

It’s only four hours now until Christmas Eve. I would feel bad wishing for it but it would be lovely if it rained tomorrow too.

Merry Christmas to you, wherever you are.

I am not proud of the amount of time I spent just staring at the paper, trying to absorb everything. Holy hell, that was melancholic. Who wishes for rain during Christmas? I folded it back, promising to return it later. Would I even get any explanation for that?

I picked my phone up again. He stopped calling and left a message instead. I leaned back into the chair and closed my eyes.

Actually, it would be lovely if it rained tonight as well.