Kabanata 03

Tumatagaktak ang pawis ko habang bahagyang tumatakbo sa blankong daan. Walang katao-tao, mga nakaparada lang na sasakyan sa gilid. Hinihingal kong binagalan ang pagtakbo, catching my breath immensely.

The cold wind bore in my skin. I shivered as it touched me. I was wearing a black sando with a light-weight leggings so it was easy to get cold, and that’s why you need to run faster so that you will heat up more than how the temperature seeks you. I was doing it, alright, napagod lang ako dahil kanina pa ako nagjojogging dito.

I took my bottled water and drank it as I sat on the wooden bench. The street light are still flashing their luminescence spontaneously. Maaga pa kasi. Sa pagkakatanda ko, bumangon ako ng 4:30 para lumabas muna at tumakbo saglit. Masyado yatang maaga pero mukhang ayos na rin ‘yon. May mga gagawin pa akong schoolworks. Tinambakan na nga iyong desk ko, e’.

Napatingin ako sa bulsa ko nang magvibrate iyong phone ko. Kinapkap ko iyon at inilabas. I held at my old samsung unit phone. Mukha nang luma at kailangan nang palitan pero gumagana pa naman kaya ayoko na muna. Ayokong gastusin iyong ipon ko. Hindi naman ganon kaimportante na para bumili ng bago.

Kumunot ang noo ko nang mabasa ang isang text message galing kay Creed.

Creed :

Where u

I unconsciously looked at my surroundings, wondering if someone is peeking over me. Baka sinusundan ako nung lalaking ‘yon dito, ‘no.

Nagtaas ako ng kilay habang nagtytype, madaling araw pero gising pa rin siya.

To Creed :

Langit. Chikahan kami ni san pedro.

After typing, I already got up and started to jog more lightly. My feet hurt a little bit but I didn’t mind. I am running much slowly now. Kanina palang ako nagsimulang tumakbo pero napagod na kaagad ako. Maybe it was because this week was really stressful. Ang daming ganap sa acads, grabe.

Napakasarap magpabagsak nalang.

Huminto ako nang magvibrate ulit ang cellphone ko.

Creed :

Ayos yan

I smirked. I can literally imagine his pissed face right now. Dagdag pang nagpupull ‘yon ng all-nighter kaya siguradong inaantok na at mabilis maasar.

My phone vibrated again.

Creed :

Gusto kong kape

Ako :

Bili ka

Creed :

Buksan mo coffee shop niyo, bili ako

Umirap ako. Demanding!

Ako :

Sino ka ba

Creed :

Sorry ah, eto lang kasi ako

Humagalpak ako sa tawa. I bit the inside of my cheeks to contain my laughter. I typed again, teasing him more.

Ako :

Oo nga, sino ka ba

Seen.

I continued to run around the park near my apartment. The sky was already having mixed colors of orange, a sign that the sun is yet to set. Paminsan-minsan akong humihinto para umupo sa bench.

There were already some who are going out of their houses. May mga nakaunipormeng pang airport at call center, inaantok pa ang mga mukha.

The sun was starting to come out, too.

I walked for a bit before finally deciding to go back home. I just took a shower and brought myself into a cup of water while looking at my school works.

Hindi naman gano’n karami. Pero mahirap sagutan iyong iba. Kaya naman sinimulan ko na ring sagutan ang iilan. Paminsan-minsan akong napapahinto dahil nalilito sa concept ng lesson pero natapos ko pa rin naman.

The others are a literal difficult so I just skipped some of them. They require such ample effort to get finished. Nakakatamad din, ‘no. Ayoko namang maburn-out sa pagsagot ng mga ‘yon. Besides, pwede namang sagutan iyong ilan sa ibang araw.

Mahirap mag-aral, totoo ‘yon. Lalo na kung hindi mo gaanong napagtutuunan ng pansin.

That’s studying, anyway. It’s either you do it or you die.. brutally. Nonetheless, the methods you suffered to pass are hardly irrelevant.. as long as you passed, you passed.

We remain a prisoner to the ineffective concept of education. And usually, most things we thought to be just the right stuff to nurture education are actually the ones that hinder knowledge to pass through..

Patuloy na mangyayari ‘yon, panigurado ako. At hangga’t walang sapat na solusyon upang makagawa ng pagbabago, magpapatuloy ang gano’ng sistema — walang hanggang schoolworks, exhausted na estudyante, pagod na guro.

I got my backpack and rode a tricycle to the café. Hindi naman gano’n kalayo. It was a bright morning when I arrived. Maliwanag ang sikat ng araw pero hindi naman nakakasilaw. That was 7:00 when I opened the coffee shop.

An empty space greeted me after unlocking the doors. Inilagay ko ang susi sa bag at inilapag iyon sa kusina. I then went and washed my hands in the faucet while looking at the whole café.

The glass doors were a little bit foggy, dahil na rin siguro sa mahinang ulan kagabi. I will need to wipe those immediately. I wrote the sequence of things I will do afterwards chronologically. Iniisip ko ang mga ‘yon habang hinahayaan ang tubig na dumaloy sa kamay.

Nang matapos ay inilabas ko na rin ang mga syrup sa fridge. The cold wind in it blew in my face. I brought them out and started to brew the coffee too. Its aroma immediately attacked my senses. I inhaled, the nostalgic smell of this drink remains pleasing and.. complete.

Isinabay ko na rin ang pagpunas sa counter at iba pang gamit. They weren’t that dusty at all, I just wiped some unnoticeable dirt off before continuing my opening shift.

When the coffee was done, I immediately got a cup and poured it in there. Binuhusan ko na rin ‘yon ng fresh milk. Nagkape na ako kanina sa apartment pero halos kaunti lang. It’s a little heavy in the stomach and it’s not something you would want to have before having a morning run. I continued to drink the coffee with my every intervals sweeping the floor.

Masarap humigop ng kape kapag gantong oras ng umaga. Even better when the sun just rises up. I don’t know.. coffee just taste like something that completes a whole morning. The caffeine is nostalgic and is such an energy-bringer.

I flinched when my phone rang.

“Hello..?” The other line spoke. I looked at the name registered.

“Ba’t napatawag ka the?” Sagot ko kay Marisse habang naglalakad pabalik sa counter. Nilapag ko ang phone sa tabi ko habang chinicheck ang mga inumin.

“May nakita ka bang flashdrive d’yan?”

“San banda?”

“Sa may mga lamesa d’yan.. naiwan ko kahapon… andyan ba?”

“Teka, tignan ko.”

Iniwan ko ang ginagawa at sinilip ang mga sinasabi niyang lamesa. I looked at them one by one but found nothing. Wala rin naman akong naalalang nakita kaninang flashdrive.

“Wala naman dito ah..”

“Wala ba?.. Tignan mo nga sa counter.”

“Wala rin dito.” Saad ko habang kinakalikot pati yung mga floating shelf.

“Ano ba laman no’n? Hala ka..” Baka may mga importante pa namang files do’n. Scariest dilemma talaga kapag nawawala iyong flashdrive. Literal na pagpapawisan ka.

“.. baka may kung anong hindi maganda ro’n, ah?”

“Gago ka, wala ‘no. Mga files lang na pinasave ni Ms. Tessa. Mga biography yata nung mga nag aapply sa coffee shop. Kase nga, ‘di ba, medyo hirap din diyan sa counter.. need ng ta-tao minsan.. kaya naghahanap sana niya.” Tumango ako.

I filled the portafilter with ground coffee and flattened it before putting it in the machine. Nirestock ko na rin yung iba pang kailangan at finill-up iyong mga hoppers. Chineck ko na rin iyong mga condiments pati cups at lids.

“Lagot ka.. nawala mo.” I also dialed in the espresso machine.

“May copy naman yata si Ms.”

“..yata..” I emphasized that while laughing.

“Ewan ko sa’yo, Eli. Goodluck nalang sa shift mo, hahaha.” She ended the call right away, probably to contact Ms. Tessa about it.

Diniligan ko na nang bahagya iyong mga halaman. Pinunasan ko na rin iyong mga glass sa pastry. Some touches and I opened the café afterwards.

After a while, someone came marching in. Nagtaas ako ng kilay kay Creed. Suot ang isang gray na pants at white t-shirt, umupo siya sa isa sa mga upuan. He looked.. tired. Nakabagsak ang buhok at may suot na salamin.

“Natulog ka ba?” Tanong ko.

“Uh-hmm..” He spoke nonchalantly. He placed down a gray duffel bag in the table. Galing yata ‘to sa gym. He often go in there. Two to three times in a week, usually.

“Ilang oras?” Pag-uusisa ko. I just texted him a while ago while jogging and now he’s infront of me. Natutulog ba talaga ang mga kalahi nito?

“30 minutes..”

“Tapos nag-gym ka na? Wow! Bilib na talaga ako sa energy mo.”

“Uh-huh,” he scowled. Yumuko siya sa mesa. Ipinatong ang ulo sa siko, mukhang pagod.

Iniwan ko siya ro’n at nagpunta sa counter. I prepared a hot coffee for him to wake his senses up. He went here after going to the gym, probably not wanting to sleep yet. Nakakabilib lang ang endurance niya.

Pinagmamasdan ko siya habang naglalagay ng gatas sa kape. Dinagdagan ko na ‘yong espresso para naman gumising ang diwa niya.

“Oh,” inabot ko ‘yon sa kaniya. Inangat niya ang ulo at tinignan ako sa mga mapupungay na mata. He looked a little sleepy. I wonder why he came here instead of coming in his condo to sleep.

“Para naman gumising ‘yang kaluluwa mo.”

“Nagpunta ka pa kasi rito. Dapat natulog ka na lang do’n.”

“Ayoko. Boring.” He sipped in his coffee. At times I see him wearing glasses but not that often to get used to it. He’s definitely different when wearing glasses. I can’t point it out significantly.

“Matulog ka na lang do’n sa condo mo. Hindi yung ginagawa mong hotel lobby ‘tong café. Hindi ka VIP, ‘oy.”

“Mas masarap matulog sa mga gantong lugar.” He smiled at me. That one looks so evil. I can’t help but fight the urge to hit him with the espresso machine.

“Sa iba ka nalang manggulo, ‘wag dito. May mga café naman diyan. Do’n nalang.” Pilit ko siyang itinaboy.

“Ayoko nga, their coffee’s mediocre.”

“At yung samin?..”

“Masarap naman.. kapag hindi ikaw yung nagtitimpla.”

“Tanginamo,” I mouthed.

There was a world war 3 boiling in the middle of us but a group of students came in already.

I took their orders while Creed stood up and got a book from our little bookshelf. I saw him picking a To Kill A Mockingbird book before he settled down in his former seat. I don’t mind, anyway. Besides, that book is really good. They say that’s what pushes some who read it to take law as their course. It’s that powerful. Haven’t really read it fully, but I had a slight peeking in its content.

“Uh.. two oreo frappe and one iced americano, please.” The girl smiled at me. Tumango ako at isinulat ‘yon. Nakita ko pa ngang sinilip nang bahagya si Creed bago ko prinepare iyong order nila.

Nagpunta lang ako sa blender at kinuha ko iyong mga kailangan para sa oreo frappe. Nagbuhos lang ako ng isang cup ng yelo sa blender, ¾ cups ng vanilla ice cream, 3 tbsp ng chocolate chips, isang cup ng milk, 2 oreo biscuits, at 2 tbsp ng cholocate syrup.

Inistart ko na rin iyong blender matapos ‘yon. Para naman sa iced americano, isinalang ko lang ‘yong tatlong shot ng americano habang naglalagay ng yelo at malamig na tubig sa cup. Nang matapos ay binuhos ko na rin yon at nilagay iyong lid. I prepared the three orders before serving them.

We do not often serve orders, it’s just that the customers were currently a few so I had the energy to serve it to their table.

Nang balingan ko si Creed ay nagbabasa pa rin siya ng libro. It’s the same book he got earlier. May mga nakalabas nga lang na highlighter at iilang libro at isang wooden bookstand. Mukha siyang unapproachable kaya hindi ko na lang din pinansin.

Gano’n lang ang ayos niya hanggang sa dumami na rin ang customer. Naging busy na ako kaya hindi ko na rin siya masyadong nababalingan ng tingin. Being the only barista was a little hard since customers were a bit much today. Akala ko kamalasan lang ang nahahatak ni Creed, pati pala mga customers. He was unconsciously being a celebrity here. Hindi nga yata niya napapansin.

The girls looked in his table. With his glasses and a unapproachable aura, he looked a little scary.. but interesting. I bet girls would start to flock over him in a minute or two.

I was in front of the blender, preparing a cookies and cream order when my phone vibrated. Itinigil ko na muna ‘yon at tinignan ang message. It was from an unknown number.

Unknown Number :

Your package no. 11356 is now infront of Na Synechísei Café [given address]. Please pick it up now — Elisha Brielle Varseza [receiver].

Napakunot ako ng noo. Wala akong maalalang may inorder akong kahit ano. Hinayaan ko na muna, baka prank message lang. But with my name on it? It’s kind of suspicious. Nevertheless, I still continued preparing the order. Inilapag ko na iyon sa counter at tinawag iyong pangalan na nakasulat.

When I looked outside, I saw a delivery truck in there. My heart doubled. Maybe someone was shitting with me? The usual prank where they send you a package tapos ikaw yung magbabayad? Kadalasan pa naman sa mga ‘yon eh gawa-gawa ng mga walang magawang matino sa buhay. There also are existing instances where creepy dudes are the mastermind behind it, geez.

Despite those, I still went out to find out what’s happening. Naabutan ko ang isang lalaking nakapang delivery attire na naghihintay sa labas. He looked like he was waiting out here for a while. With the looks of it, I’m pretty sure someone has made deals with the devil to comnect with me. Nandamay pa nga ng delivery crews.

“Sino pong hanap nila?”

“Ah.. nandyan po ba si Ma’am Elisha Varseza? Kilala niyo ho ba ‘yon?” Tanong niya sa’kin.

“Ako po ‘iyon, bakit po?” Binalingan ko ng tingin ang loob ng café. May mga pending orders pa naman do’n. Ayoko sanang iwan pero kawawa rin ‘yong mga delivery kung paghihintayin nang matagal. Napasapo nalang ako sa noo nang marealize kung anong nagawa ko.

“Delivery po para sa inyo.” He handed me a brown envelope. I looked at it with both confusion and curiosity.

“Kanino po galing?”

“Wala pong binanggit na name, e’. Pero Ma’am, bayad na po ‘yan. ‘Wag kayong mag-alala.”

I took it absent-mindedly. What could be the contents of this one? Documents, random shits, pictures, whatever. I thought of all of those right after the delivery left. Kalaunan ay tinigilan ko na rin dahil naalala ko iyong coffee shop.

Oh my god.

Dali-dali akong pumasok sa loob. I was panting when I got in. Nanlaki ang mga mata ko nang makita kung sino iyong nasa counter.

Creed, with still his glasses on, was wearing an apron while taking orders in the counter. I stood there, both amazed and stunned of the sight before me. Is this for real? Really? Creed Ignacio working on the counter? Nagkusot ako ng mga mata bago naglakad papunta sa kaniya.

“Wow..” I still can’t process things. I was speechless. I mean, I know he knows a lot of things but I never thought he was this.. brilliant to be a barista. Besides, I thought he was just all bad things compiled but he seemed to erase that thought of mine. May ambag din pala ‘to. Akala ko puro papogi lang alam, eh.

“Lumalabas habang maraming order, masama ‘yan ‘oy.” Umiling-iling pa siya habang nag-iislice ng blueberry cheesecake.

“Sumbong kita sa owner, tsk tsk. Walang responsibility. Hindi pinaprioritize ang trabaho, kung ako ‘yan, sinesante na kita.” Aniya pa.

“Gagong ‘to, ah. May nagpadala lang d’yan, ‘no. Kala mo naman inabandona ko na ‘tong coffee shop.” Pagdedepensa ko sa sarili.

“Nagdadahilan pa, oh.” Kunyari pa siyang nagsusumbong. Umirap ako at itinuloy na ang paggawa ng drinks. It was so careless of me to ignore the coffee shop for just the delivery. God, I was out of my mind. I held at my head, as if pulling back some strings to get me back on my senses.

I just panicked, okay? May mga nababalitaan kasi akong napaprank ng ganyang padeliver kaya akala ko eh pati ako ay nadamay. Muntik ko pang mapabayaan ‘tong coffee shop. I was so immature and I was not thinking. Pinukpok ko nang bahagya ang sarili at nang maibalik ang isip sa reyalidad.

“Nagpupukpok pa ng sariling ulo. Guard, oh.” Hindi pa talaga tumigil ‘tong isang ‘to. Ang sarap itapon paalis. Pero aminin ko man sa sarili, iniligtas niya ako sa katangahang ginawa ko. If it was not because of Creed, maybe I got my reputation destroyed in here. At hindi lang ako, pati ‘tong buong coffee shop. Pucha.

We continued serving and I must admit that Creed was that of a good help. Naalala ko ngang nakwento niya noon na naging barista na rin siya noon for fun kaya may input na siya sa ganitong trabaho. Isa pa, ang daming nagagwapuhan sa kaniya kaya palaging nag-oorder dito. Akalain mo nga naman, may kwenta rin pala mukha nito.

“Ano ‘yan?” Tanong ni Creed nang makita iyong kinuha kong envelope. Nagkibit ako ng balikat. Maski ako’y hindi alam ang laman no’n. Too busy to think about it; duty should be the main priority here — at kung sino pa ngang nagquote no’n kanina ay siya pang mas excited buksan ‘yon kaysa sa’kin. I rolled my eyes shortly.

“Buksan ko na ah?” Hinayaan ko nalang din. Ang kulit ng isang ‘to, eh. ‘Kala mo naman sa kaniya pinadala ‘yon.

“Masarap ‘yong cheesecake n’yo rito, ah.. nagustuhan din ng boyfriend ko. Pwedeng matanong kung sinong nagbake no’n?” Napaangat ako ng tingin nang magsalita ang isang babaeng sa tingin ko’y mas matanda lamang nang ilang taon kaysa sa’kin.

I smiled and nodded courtly, “ Uh.. ako po.. maraming salamat po kung nagustuhan n’yo.”

Ngumiti siya pabalik, “Can I have the copy of the recipe? Nanood na akong ganon sa internet pero kakaiba yung sa inyo rito eh..”

“Sure, Ma’am.. uh should we just e-mail it to you po? Or can you wait?”

“As much as I want to, I’m quite in a rush.. just email it to me. Here’s my email address.” She wrote it in a paper and gave it to me. I smiled back. I really appreciate those who appreciate the cakes I bake. Madalang lang may magsabi nang ganon nang bokal.

Malapit sa puso ko ang pagbabake. The satisfaction of seeing the outcome of my hardwork is priceless. I wanted to bake for the people close to me. It’s one of the things I want to show how much I appreciate them.

It’s a good thing Ms. Tessa supported me with this one.. I mean, I have barely no experience in baking. Noon naman ay nakakapanood ako kay lola kapag gumagawa siya ng cupcake. Pero madalang lamang iyon. Limitado lang ang kaya naming ibake. Dagdag pang wala ring gaanong kagamitan para ro’n.

Totoo ngang mahirap abutin yung mga gusto nating mangyari. Mga pangarap. They require us to toss some coins or pull out our cards.. and that it’s all risks that we take.. there’s no assurance that they will ever get true.. that they will ever get fulfilled.. and I think that’s just what makes our life more.. interesting.

“Gago, bigtime ka pala.” Kinalabit ako ni Creed. Binalingan ko siya ng tingin. He showed me two entrance tickets.

“Ano 'yang mga ‘yan?” Kinuha ko ang mga ‘yon. They are tickets to a university basketball match next week. And they are costly too. Nanlaki ang mga mata ko.

Sino namang magpapadala sa’kin nito? Wala naman akong kilalang basketball player. Sure, there are a few athletes — swimmers, soccer players, and such. Napaisip din ako na pwede namang hindi basketball player ang nagpadala pero wala naman akong maisip na pwedeng magpadala ng mga ‘to.

“Ano ‘yang papel?” Turo ko sa hawak pang ibang papel ni Creed. He handed it on me too. Napakunot ang noo ko nang mahalatang note ‘yon. It was handwritten. I can’t believe I exaggerated myself because of these papers. Nagawa ko pang lumabas at kabahan, ganito lang pala ang laman.

Pinasadahan ko ng tingin ang papel. Written in it were words which made me roll my eyes. Really.. unbelievable..

watch my game, will you? :(

Napasinghap ako. A few words and I knew what devil has connected lines to send me these.