09

_____

I WOKE UP this morning to see Amethyst brushing her bed.

"The hell are you doing?" I asked, all groggy, scratching my eyebrows. Hindi ko makita ang mukha niya. Her long hair was covering her face. I was about to suggest for her to cut her long hair when she spoke.

"Shut up, douchebag," sabi niya. Napakurap lang ako. When I looked closely, I noticed she wasn't wearing anything aside from her shirt — well, my shirt, technically, which is long enough to cover her thighs. I felt like shit because my face warmed like hell.

"What — b-bakit wala kang shorts?" The hell was she planning, waking up without shorts? She woke up and randomly decided to strip and brush her bed? At 6 AM in the morning?

She still did not reply, so I decided to shut up. Man, her hair is so long, it's covering the sides of her face. Gusto ko na lang sanang tanungin kung ano ang binu-brush niya sa couch pero nanahimik na lang ako. Maybe she spilled some coffee or something, but the thermos is empty. I frowned.

Seriously . . . what the hell is up?

"Ugh, please . . ." she murmured, but I could hear her. Huminga na lang ako nang malalim. I boiled some water and decided to pee, so I went to the comfort room. But before I could even touch the door knob, a brush flew across the room to hit me on my goddamn face.

"Aw!"

"Don't you go there!"

Sapul ako sa noo ko mismo. Sakit! I looked down at the brush on my floor and towards Amethyst, breathing heavily, her face as red as an apple.

Something was up.

"P-Pads."

I didn't quite get it. "What?"

"Mavin," she said, red on the face, almost crying. "I need pads!"

—

THAT BROUGHT ME here to ate Jiha's house. Man, I'm running late, but here I am . . .

Seriously though! A woman would know when it would come, right? Did she lose track of the dates? Whatever. I'm sure she's uncomfortable right now. Kung nahihiya na akong manghingi ng pads sa kapitbahay ko, mas malala ang nararamdaman ni Amethyst. Pinigilan kong 'wag matawa. That was an awesome facial reaction she did right there. Maybe I'd tease her.

Bumukas ang pinto at naabutan ako ni ate Jiha na nakangisi. Nagulat ako doon kaya bigla akong napatawa nang alanganin. "A-Ate."

Inabot niya na ang kamay niyang may hawak na kung ano. Nang tingnan ko nang mabuti, maliit na square na puti lang ang nawari ng mga mata ko. Ate Jiha is smiling awkwardly. "Sorry, Vin! Isa na lang ang natira, e."

What? Do girls need more than one?

"A-Ayos lang, ate. Nakakahiya na nga."

"Ano ka ba! Masaya nga ako kasi may kasama ka na sa bahay n'yo," tumatawang sabi ni ate Jiha saka sumandal sa pintuan. "So? Anong klaseng babae ba ang ate mo, at baka bisitahin ko siya mamaya . . ."

Nanlaki ang mga mata ko. "H-Ha? Ate, naku. T-Tulog 'yon buong araw. Gising na gising 'yon buong gabi, eh. Kaya . . ."

"Eh? Ano ba'ng trabaho ng ate mo?"

Shit. "Um, writer po."

Tumawa bigla si ate Jiha, kaya napatawa na lang din ako bago ako nagpaalam. Nang maisara na niya ang pinto, napahinga ako nang maluwag.

Napatingin lang ako sa hawak ko. Hay. Amethyst doesn't have to be embarrassed with this — period for women is normal stuff. It's not disgusting or anything, it's part of a female's human body. I have to make her feel comfortable . . . somehow. She was panicking as fuck earlier!

Pagkapasok ko ng bahay, wala siya sa sala. I figured she'd be at the bathroom, and I was right, because its door is locked. Kumatok ako.

"Amethyst?"

The door suddenly opened, but only about three inches. Mabilis na lumabas ang kamay niya saka hinablot ang napkin na hawak ko.

After a few moments, she opened the door again. She's still red.

"D-Don't worry about me," sabi niya. "Hindi ako masama magka-period. I don't need medicines, or anything . . ."

Napakurap lang ako. "Well . . . I see."

"B-But I need two packs of pads."

Napatingin ako sa kanya. "Two packs?"

"Yes!" she said suddenly, her voice raising. "H-Huwag ka nang magtanong! Pumasok ka na!"

I held her arms, trying to hit me. "Calm down, okay?" sabi ko. Amy sniffled. "Huwag ka na ngang mahiya! It's not like your menstruation is contagious —"

"I stained the bed!" she said, really on the verge of crying.

"SO?! Did you really expect me to be disgusted?!" sabi ko. Napatigil naman siya. "I-Isn't that normal stuff? Staining beds, shorts, underwear—"

She ran towards the kitchen. "God, Vin, shut up!"

"Just calm down!" sabi ko, natatawa. She's being such a child. Ang sakit na ng tiyan ko kakatawa. "Don't worry about the bed." Huminga ako nang malalim saka pumunta sa kusina, katabi niya. I fixed my cup for my coffee. "Stop feeling bad about something you cannot help."

Hindi na siya sumagot. She just turned her back on me and slumped on the bean bag, in front of the TV. She's pouting. God.

"How long can it hold it in?"

It took awhile before she answered. "S-Six hours."

—

TWO PACKS, SERIOUSLY? How much blood do girls produce from their vagina? Kung may kaibigan lang sana akong babae . . .

My eyes suddenly spotted Cinna, sitting with her friends on one of the tables on the school grounds. Man, she's so beautiful. Her hair is so beautiful, and she's growing back her bangs, too, though I like the previous one. Cinna looks like the type of girlfriend that will make all your friends jealous.

Habang nakatitig sa kanya, bigla kong naalala na ngayon pala kami pupunta ng workplace ng Mama ni Amethyst. I guess I'd be late, then, sa coffee shop, but Cinna would be there, so I shouldn't worry. Kailangan, hindi malaman ni Cinna na bibili ako ng napkin. Well, I could always reason out that it's for my 'cousin', but I hate lying. Napainom na lang ako sa coke ko saka napatingin sa paligid.

Ashmore High is going on normally, and not much has happened after Amethyst Cambray's death. From time to time there would be a flock of students in front of the bulletin board, looking at her photo, talking, sad looks on their faces, and then continue walking. Minsan naririnig ko pa ang pangalan niya sa cafeteria, but whispers of her name will die away, like they think she is. Dead.

"Lalim naman ng iniisip mo."

Halos malaglag ako sa kinauupuan nang biglang umupo si Cinna sa harapan ko. Why does she always appear like this? Our eyes met, and she smiled.

"Ikaw lang pala."

"Expecting someone else?" she asked. Tumawa lang ako saka umiling. "Nga pala . . . sorry, kasi hindi ako pwede nitong nakaraan."

As expected from Cinna, being the sweet girl that she is, tumawa lang siya. "Bakit ka naman nagso-sorry para do'n? Tuloy naman mamaya, 'di ba?"

I remembered the napkins I have to buy. "S-Siyempre."

"Alam ko these are tiring," sabi ni Cinna. "But . . . we'll push through. Okay?"

I've always liked Cinna, and her knowing that I am in love with her best friend is kind of making me restricted from doing things that will give her a hint. Bukod pa ro'n, alam kong sa loob loob niya, may nararamdaman pa siya para kay Oliver. I hate our situation — napakalapit ko na sa kanya pero pakiramdam ko, napakalayo pa rin.

The rest of the day followed, and I found myself sitting on the passenger seat of her car.

"Hindi ko talaga alam na may sarili kang kotse."

She laughed, driving the car out of the parking lot. "Bago lang din naman 'to. Saka para rin hindi na ako masundan ni Oliver."

"He . . . follows you?"

Hindi agad nakasagot si Cinna. She started speaking, but she closed her mouth. "It's very complicated."

So we both hide things from each other. That's not a surprising fact, given the circumstances. Naging malapit lang naman kami ni Cinna sa isa't-isa dahil kay Amethyst, dahil sa coffee shop, at wala na higit pa ro'n. There are not enough reasons for us to trust each other fu—

"Oliver believes that Amethyst is alive."

Napalingon ako agad kay Cinna sa sinabi niyang 'yon. She's breathing unsteadily, at mas napahigpit ang hawak niya sa steering wheel.

"B-B-Bakit?" I asked, my heart beating fast.

"He's a freak," sabi niya. We're finally on the main road. "An obsessed freak. He just used me para mapalapit kay Amethyst and now that she's dead, wala na siyang paggagamitan pa sa 'kin." Cinna gulped. "It broke me enough, alam mo 'yon? It was my best friend that he really loved. Hindi ako. And now he suspects me of hiding her from him?"

Hindi ko alam ang isasagot. Napatahimik na lang ako dahil wala ako sa posisyon para magsaad ng opinyon. I don't know how Cinna really feels.

But I'm bothered. Oliver following Cinna is dangerous, given how much of a freak he comes out to be. Hindi ko kayang makampante kahit pa may kotse nang gamit si Cinna. I can't help but to let out a sigh.

I have to be extra careful. If Oliver discovers that Amethyst is alive and she is living in my house — malaking gulo ang papasukin ko. I have to tell this to Amethyst.

"Sorry," Cinna whispered, but I couldn't reply anything. I looked at her trembling hands, her reddening eyes, and it hurt a part of me. She's forcing herself not to cry.

"Cinna," sabi ko. "We'll fix this soon enough."

To which Cinna replied with a sniffle and a smile.

We stopped on the Ashmore post-office, pero hindi agad kami bumaba. Cinna peeked from the window of her car, para bang nakikiramdam, saka ako tiningnan.

"You know what," sabi niya sa 'kin, "sa tagal ng pagkakaibigan namin ni Amethyst . . . hindi ko pa nakakausap nang maayos ang mga magulang niya."

Napakunot ang noo ko. "Really?"

"K-Kahit sa bahay nila, hindi pa ako nakakapasok." She straightened her back and sighed. "I think she's really mysterious, after all . . ."

I pictured them together, drinking milk tea, reading magazines, sharing some showbiz gossip, while Amethyst hides secrets that she chooses to not share with her best friend. Amethyst Cambray, to me, is like . . . the typical popular girl, outgoing and fun, but all this seemed to fade into thin air as Cinna and I start to dig even deeper to this 'investigation'.

As of now, here are all we discovered:

First: Oliver and her father is acquainted, but Amethyst never knew. Or at least she pretends so.

Second: Amethyst's father, as she told me, is sweet and caring. Pero ayon sa katrabaho nito, babaero at sugalero ito while the man from their 'casino' said everyone's afraid of him, but not so much that they'd try to kill him, or at least he says so.

Third: Tanya never gambled, but we found her on the same place that Mr. Cambray visits. Tanya has been acting weird ever since the Cambrays' death. As far as I know, Tanya has never been involved with them — but I may be wrong.

Fourth: Amethyst's bruises. Where the hell did she get those? Hemophilia? Anemia?

Is it . . . abuse?

Agad akong napailing. No, it can't be.

"We'll be late kapag hindi pa tayo tumuloy," Cinna said and softly chucked. "Tara na?"

Cinna and I got out the car, and entered the post-office. Pagkapasok na pagkapasok namin, amoy papel agad. May mga nagkalat na mga kahon. There are shelves, around, too. Busy ang mga tao. A few people are sitting, probably waiting for documents they asked for, so Cinna and I decided to sit for a while.

A few moments later, a woman saw us. Her hair is curly, only about five feet short, and she has glasses. Her brows knitted at the sight of us.

"You're the interns from Colleville town?"

I wasn't really kidding when I said that this town is so small, even the tiniest detail or rumor will crawl incredibly fast. We really have to finish this interview first.

"Ye—" Naputol ang sasabihin sana ni Cinna.

"Galing ba talaga kayo sa Colleville town?" Pinaningkitan kami ng mga mata ng babae. "Parang pamilyar kayo e . . ."

"Um . . . yes. W-We are really from Colleville town." Cinna looked at me, urging me to fake a laugh, and we did. "We'd just like, um, to interview . . . a close friend of Irene Cambray?"

The woman looked at us in scrutiny through her rectangle framed glasses. She sniffled. She tilted her head towards the door outside and she walked towards it. Sumunod kaming dalawa ni Cinna.

The woman that we met is Mrs. Cambray's friend, and she said we should call her Vilma only.

We asked her the usual. Kaibigan na niya si Mrs. Cambray nang ilang taon na rin, pero aminado si Vilma na hindi pa niya 'to gaanong kilala. Lagi silang magkasamang kumain, minsan nagdadaldalan, but their friendship never went past that. It was as if they're friends but a huge barrier is there between them.

"But Irene," sabi niya, "always comes to work drunk."

I was taken aback. After a few information that we gathered from her husband, I was honestly expecting a nice feedback about Mrs. Cambray.

Lagi siyang lasing?

"Oh, ano? Naisagot ko naman ang mga tanong ninyo, hindi ba?"

This Vilma woman is short-tempered as hell. "Last question, ma'am. May mga kilala ba kayong puwedeng gawin sa Cambrays 'yon?"

Napatitig lang sa akin si Vilma. After a few moments, she decided to speak. "Sasabihin ko sanang ang asawa niya. Lagi silang nag-aaway e," sabi niya, "pero kasama kasi ito sa namatay. Kaya kung may papatay man sa kanila, panigurado akong malalim talaga ang galit ng taong 'yon." She sighed. "Bakit n'yo ba 'to iniimbestigahan, ha? Halatang aksidente lang naman ang nangyari . . ."

—

BECAUSE THE MURDERER probably wanted it to look like an accident. I'm stupid at this kind of things, but I'm doing this anyway, and I'm sure, with Cinna beside me, malalaman ko kung sino ang gumawa sa kanila nito.

Somehow . . . somehow I feel as if we're getting there. We just acquired new information again, but I don't think it's enough for us to move forward.

"Irene Cambray is always drunk, and is not in a good relationship with her husband," sabi ni Cinna saka napakagat ng labi. "Vin, we're going nowhere!"

"R-Relax, Cin. Believe me. Malapit na tayo," sabi ko. Napakagat ako sa kuko ko, nakatingin sa labas.

"I don't know, Vin," sabi niya. "We don't have enough leads. Mr. Cambray gambles, Mrs. Cambray is always drunk, but so what?" She ran her hand through her hair and sighed. Her shoulders slumped. "Vin . . . what if . . . what if it really is just an accident?"

"No." I rubbed my nose. "No, don't give up just yet."

She sighed again, her eyes locked on the road, though they scream worry. Pero nag-iisip ako. It's not like we're going nowhere because our leads aren't enough. It's because we're doing our investigating game wrong.

"Cinna," sabi ko. "L-Let's go back to the hardware shop."

"What?" sagot niya. "W-Why? Napuntahan na natin 'yon."

"Also, if you can, squeeze something out of Oliver."

"Oliver?"

I knew she'd say it with that tone. "Yes, Cinna. Please. For Amethyst. He might know anything."

Cinna sighed again, for the nth time.

"Please."

"Okay," she said.

Bumuntung-hininga rin ako. "The first time I went to the hardware shop, Penny told me about this mistress," sabi ko. "I never had the chance to ask more about her, pero subukan pa rin natin."

"Yes. Okay," sagot ni Cinna. Napalunok siya.

"Then the last thing we should do," sabi ko, "is to visit the crime scene itself."

Cinna tensed. "H-Her house?"

"Y-Yeah . . ." I said, and bit on my nails again. "We'll ask around, too."

She raised her chin and sighed. "All right."

I am so unsure of this, but these are what I should do. We should do. Investigating about this incident isn't really my forte as a person, but here I am, sitting on the passenger seat of the car owned by the cutest girl in town, thinking of people that might have murdered the Cambrays.

But before I could even dive deeper into the topic . . . I must purchase Amethyst Cambray some napkins.

—