Chapter 21: Prophecy

After leaving Sir Enriquez's home ay ipinagpatuloy namin ni Jeremy ang pamamasyal. He said it's his gift for me- his precious time. Hindi ko rin naman ako naghahangad ng ano mang bagay na matatanggap. Well, his time is more than enough.

It was almost five in the afternoon when we returned to Bridle. Napansin ko ang isang itim na kotse na nasa harap ng gate at nakasandal doon ang isang tao na hindi ko inaasahang makita na naghihintay doon. He looked so bored habang nakapamulsang sumandal sa kotse. Base sa pagkakatagpo ng kilay niya, he's kind of pissed. Nang mapansin niya ang isang bato sa kanyang paanan, inis na sinipa niya iyon at muling sumandal sa kotse. His messy yet fashionable hair looks even messier when he pulled it out of frustration. His presence screams that he is a dangerously handsome devil. Kinuha niya ang cellphone mula sa kanyang bulsa, nagdial ng numero at ilang beses na bumulong ng pagmumura. He was about to get inside his car nang namataan niya kami ni Jeremy na kakababa lamang sa taxi. He let out an annoying smirk and closed his eyes na tila ba tinatantya ang natitirang pasensya sa katawan.

"Bestie, hindi ba si Ryu yan?", bulong ni Jeremy sa akin. Hindi ko siya sinagot at patuloy lang na lumapit sa kay Ryu.

"Saan ka galing? Bakit ngayon ka lang? Bakit hindi kita matawagan? Did you off your phone? You're not answering my messages!", sunod-sunod na tanong niya. Well I assure everyone that he doesn't sound angry. He is VERY angry.

"Wetwew", Jeremy whistled and immediately zipped his mouth when Ryu glared at him. And mind you, you wouldn't want Ryu glare at you because he's really scary. "Uh, Bestie pasok lang ako sa loob." Bago ko pa siya mapigilan ay agad na siyang tumakbo papasok sa loob ng gate at iniwan akong mag-isa sa harap ni Ryu.

"What?!", singhal ko sa kanya nang nakatunghay pa rin siya sa akin.

"Aren't you supposed to answer my questions?", iritado niyang tanong.

At bakit naman kailangan kong sagutin ang tanong niya? Ano ang pakialam niya kung saan kami nagpunta ni Jeremy? At hindi talaga niya ako matatawagan dahil ninakaw ni Victoria ang cellphone ko. I just got a new one today, Andi and Rese's gift for me at tanging kay Jeremy lamang ang nai-save ko doon after we exchanged numbers kanina. Pero bakit ba siya nandito?!

"Why would I?"

Muli niyang pinikit ng mariin ang kanyang mga mata. His fist were also clenched na tila ba kanina pa siya nagpipigil ng galit. "I need answers."

"Ayoko nga."

"Don't test my patience Amber", banta niya by I just roll my eyes. Ano namang gagawin niya? Susuntukin ako? Babarilin? Tsk.

"I lost my phone", sagot ko sa kanya at nag-iwas ng tingin. Argh! Bakit ba ako nakikipagtalo sa devil na ito?!

"Without informing us?!"

"Ano ba ang ipinagpuputok ng butse mo? My phone is stolen few days ago and I just got one this morning. At bakit ba nandito ka na naman?!" Who told him to wait anyway? Ang problema sa mga tao ngayon, gagawa ng kung anu-ano and then blame it to others.

"Look, it's not that I want to be with you okay? Mom asked me to take you out on your birthday so I am doing you a favor-" Hindi ko siya pinakinggan.

"You could just lie that you took me out even if you didn't." Simple problem, simple solutions. Ganyang lang kadali ang buhay.

"Ah! Just shut up. I am not that kind of son so even if I don't want to see your annoying face, I will follow what Mom said", wika niya at hinila ako papasok sa loob ng kotse. Nanlaki ang mga mata ko at agad na kumapit sa pinto ng kotse bago pa niya ako lubusang maipasok sa loob.

"Hey, where the hell are you taking me!" I held tightly on the door samatalang patuloy lamang siya sa pagtulak sa akin but my strength doesn't even half his kaya tuluyan niya akong naipasok sa loob ng kotse. He immediately closed the door at tumakbo sa kabilang side. Pumasok siya at agad na ini-lock iyon. I tried opening it but I can't.

"I'm taking you to hell", naiinis pa rin niyang wika. I felt my blood boiled and rushed towards my head. Out of frustration, paulit-ulit na sinuntok ko ang dashboard ng kotse until I heard a cracking sound.

Of course it's my fist! Asa naman akong ang kotse iyon! I made a face when I felt the pain in my fist. I will not rant because it is my fault and I would give this devil a satisfaction of calling me stupid for what I did. Tinigil ko na lamang iyon at umirap sa likuran. I almost jumped in my seat nang mapansing may nakaupo sa backseat ng kotse. It was the reaper Mnemosyne.

"What the hell?! Nandiyan ka pala?!"

Okay that was a silly question. Nandito nga siya obviously so no need to ask about it.

"Yes, I'm here. Hello Amber, hello Babe", masiglang bati niya. I thought I was the only one who was surprised to see her ngunit base sa reaksyon ni Ryu, I am sure that he's surprise to see her too.

"What the hell are you doing in my car?", iritadong wika ni Ryu. His voice roared inside the car at kung ibang pagkakataon ay malamang natakot na ako sa tono niyang iyon. He sounded like a boss, demanding answers from his subordinates.

"Oh, correction. Not your car, this is a reaper's car", she stuck her tongue out at Ryu and looked at me. "I heard it's your birthday, Happy birthday Amber!" She reached for me kahit nasa harapan ako and she kissed me on my cheek. "Sorry, I haven't got any gift for you but I'm sure to give you one."

"Mnemosyne, what are you doing in this car?!" Oh, so it really isn't his car so he dropped off the "My" car thingy.

"I overheard you talking with Tita Sweet on the phone so I decided to tag along. I hope Amber doesn't mind."

I let out a fake smile at her. "Yeah sure, I don't mind at all."

"Thank you Amber! And oh, thanks for taking care of my Ryu", she said cutely. Geez, MY Ryu. Mnemosyne is really possessive.

Ew. I didn't take care of Ryu. We never care for each other. Kulang na nga lamang ay magsakalan kaming dalawa.

Binuhay ni Ryu ang makina ng kotse. "Call Poseidon or Artemis to pick you up. I will drop you in the nearest coffee shop."

"But Babe-"

"Ryu."

"Ryu Babe, I want to be with you", wika ni Mnemosyne. Hinawakan niya ako sa braso and gave me a look with all the "puppy eyes". "Amber! Tell him to bring me along!"

This is so unfair. Why does she looks so cute in all those act? I cannot imagine myself doing so. Uh, I wanna puke as I picture out myself. I don't understand why she's crazy over Ryu. Fine, he's handsome ngunit hindi naman siguro iyon ang meter stick ng tao sa pagpili ng taong gugustuhin diba? Ryu is 300 meters below the ground far from being a lovable person. He's a devil with all his hellish attitude! Walang paki sa kapwa, selfish, rude and enumerate all other bad traits, it will make up the person RYU.

And Mnemosyne is a doll. Beautiful as a doll but with all the wits and intelligence. Full package kumbaga ngunit inaaksayahan niya ang kagandahang iyon over Ryu. I don't think the devil is even worth it!

"Tsk, annoying!", he smirked at her

"Basta Amber, I think we two can be good friends. Alam ko namang babantayan mo si Babe para sa akin", she said at hinawakan ang kamay ko. Good friends? Me and this reaper?

So she wants me to be Ryu's bodyguard. Great.

"Err, I don't think-"

"Tell me if there are other girls lurking around him, I would ripped that girl's head", she said seriously which made me swallow a lump. "Just kidding."
Tumawa siya ng malakas pagkatapos niyon. Eh? Mnemosyne is weird.

"Mnemosyne, you have to get off-" Ryu was immediately cut off by her.

"And oh Amber, since we're going to be friends, call me Stefanie or Stef, alright?"

Dahan-dahan kong itinango ang ulo ko. "Okay Mnemo- I mean Stef."

"Great! So where are we going?", nakangiting turan niya but it seems like she's talking to Ryu than to me.

"Where do you want to go witch?", Ryu asked with his eyes still fixed on the road.

"I thought you're taking me to hell." I rolled my eyes. He looks so annoyed, I can tell by the way he smirks.

"Okay, to the Mall then."

Mall? Tsk. Yeah Ryu, kadarating lang namin ni Jeremy galing sa mall. "Uh, mall again."

"To a restaurant."

Hello? Halos hindi na nga ako makahinga dahil sa kabusugan.

"I'm full."

"Just tell me where the hell you want to go!", iritableng singhal niya. I always wonder why he's always irritated. Daig pa niya ang babaeng may dalaw.

"Babe! You're so rude to the birthday girl! Alam ko na! Let's take her to a bookstore! I'm sure she would love that, hindi ba Amber?"

Bigla na lamang napa-preno si Ryu. I almost scream ngunit wala lang iyon sa kanya. He looked at Stefanie at the back with his glaring eyes. "Stop calling me Babe or else I will shoot your head!"

Coo! Ryu pikon! Kung ako si Stef ay malamang natakot na ako ngunit mukhang sanay na siya sa pagiging pikon ni Ryu. She just pouted and shoved his head back on front. "Oo na! Just drive."

Kahit tila naiinis pa rin ay nagpatuloy na lamang si Ryu sa pagda-drive. Gaya ng suhestiyon ni Stef, they took me to the nearest bookstore. Pagdating namin ay humiwalay agad ako sa kanila at naglibot doon. Ah! This is heaven! Being in a place full of books reminds me to my old self. I realized that I am very far from the old me. I was young and naïve. Silent and to some I do not exist. Or maybe I do but only as a nerd. I never engage in any fight. Not interested in any affairs at school since I do not like much attention. Nakatambay palagi sa library. I cannot say that I missed my old self. That Amber is a weakling. I let people give me names such as nerd and the likes. That Amber cannot defend herself. She let everything slide and does not even take time to make them realize that she's not as what they think she is.

The new Amber is not like that anymore. She needs to be strong no matter what. Well, she isn't that strong but she's trying to be. She won't let people step on her. She now exists. Though she doesn't want attention, she always got one. The new Amber is no longer a weakling and I will not revert to my old self just to please people. Who cares if they does not like me anymore? If I will be back to the old me, maybe because I want to and not because people told me so. The pain of having a broken heart is not so much as to kill you, yet not so little as to let you live. Hindi ako maiintindihan ng ibang tao dahil wala sila sa sitwasyon ko. If they have been in my shoes, I think they would be as I am now. They would never understand it until they experience it.

Hindi naging madali ang buhay ko. It is tragic and so confusing. What we want we don't get, what we always want to have we lose, with whom we want to be we cannot, what we get we are not satisfied with, what we expect never happens and what we hate to happen always repeats. Minsan ay gusto kong kamuhian ang sarili ko. Why does it turns out to be like this? Gusto kong umiyak pero walang luha na lumalabas sa mga mata ko.

I ended up buying so many books. Many books after all, Ryu offered to pay and I guess it's not everyday that a devil will make such offer. Or it could be Mom giving him budget for me dahil wala ito. When we went out the bookstore, I was happily checking out my books nang lumapit sa amin ang isang babae. Her weird clothes and jewelries told me that she's some kind of soothsayer. Nababalot ng shawl ang kanyang mukha at may suot siyang malaking backpack. I don't know why but her face seems familiar ngunit hindi ko lamang maalala kung saan ko siya nakita. I noticed a scar on her face which looks like a scar from a burn. When she approached us, agad na humarang si Stef sa harapan namin. Reaper duties.

"Anong kailangan mo?", she asked the woman in a fierce voice. Gone was the sweet toned woman that I talked to a while ago.

"Ibibigay ko lang ang kapalaran ng batang ito", sagot nito at akmang hahawakan ako ngunit bago pa niya ako maabot ay nailayo na ako ni Ryu. He pulled me closer to him that I end up being slammed on his chest.

"The last time a soothsayer approached us, it doesn't turn out so good", sagot ni Ryu.

Good that he still remember it. Yup, the last time that a soothsayer approached us it really doesn't turn out so well. We were chased by some ugly goons and Ryu was shot. It was the first time that he brought me to the mansion and I met the seven reapers. It was also the time that Gray smashed the door and punched Ryu in the face. Ayaw ko ng isipin pa ang araw na iyon!

She looks so young at mukhang nag-aalangan ito. I freed my myself from Ryu's grip at hinawakan sa balikat si Stef upang bahagya siyang umatras. Kahit nagtataka ay ginawa pa rin niya. I met the eyes and the girl and she's the one to look away.

"Anong kapalaran ko?"

Hindi naman talaga ako naniniwala sa nga manghuhula. From the word itself HULA, there is no assurance that it is true I heard so many stories about it which says it is true. Their prophecies sometimes happen though.

"Sandali Amber", Stef said. "Paano naman namin malalaman na isa ka talagang manghuhula and you're not a phony who just want to fool us?"

Sinagot niya ang tanong ni Stef pero nakatingin siya sa akin. "Then let me read things about you. Dumaan ka sa matinding dagok sa buhay. Maraming tao na ang nawala at muntikan ng mawala sa iyo. Madalas kang tumutulong sa iba ngunit ikaw ang napapahamak. Espesyal sa iyo ang isang binata. A man who loves mystery-"

"Tama na!", I said and waved my hands in front of her. A man who loves mystery, tss! "What do you want?"

"Mag-ingat ka", wika ng babae. "Be very careful in the future, something bad might happen."

What kind of prophecy was it? Tsk. I don't know but I found myself scared of what she just told me. Mag-ingat? Ibig sabihin ay may mangyayaring hindi maganda sa akin?

Itatanong ko sana kung ano ang ibig niyang sabihin ngunit hinila na ulit ako ni Ryu. "Witch, you believe in that?", he said clicking his tongue. "Tayo na."

He tried to pull me ngunit hinawakan ulit ako ng babae. She handed me a small box like the size of a shoebox. Hindi ko napansin kanina na may dala pala siya. Probably it was in her backpack na dala-dala.

"Buksan mo lamang iyan pagdating mo sa inyo", wika ng babae bago ako tuluyang hinila ni Ryu papasok ng kotse. The box was light kaya imposibleng may delikadong bagay na laman iyon gaya ng bomba o kung ano man. I just hope there are no insects or worst, snake inside.

"You're taking that box with you? Really?", Ryu asked me. Pinalipat-lipat ko ang tingin sa box, sa kanya at kay Mnemosyne na nakatunghay sa akin. I looked around, searching for that woman but cannot find her. Mukhang nakaalis na ito. Yumuko ako at napabuntong-hininga.

Am I really taking this box for real? Naniniwala ako sa babaeng iyon? Sa huli ay nagpasya akong humakbang patungo sa isang basurahan na nasa labas ng bookstore. Itinapon ko ang box at bumalik sa sasakyan kung saan naghihintay sina Stef at Ryu. Maybe nothing important is in such box.

"Where do you want to go next?", tanong ni Ryu.

"Home. I'm tired."

I was out the whole day at napagod talaga ako. Pasado alas otso na nang gabi and I was surprised that I stayed inside the bookstore for an hour or two. I forgot about my two companion at masyado akong nag-enjoy sa sarili ko. I'm sure they got bored waiting for me. Bahala sila, it's their choice to take me there at mabuti na rin na hindi sila nagreklamo.

"I would suggest that one too. We'll go out if there isn't an extra baggage next time", wika ni Ryu at bahagyang sinulyapan si Stef mula sa rearview mirror. He drove back to Bridle at agad akong nagpasalamat sa kanila bago ako pumasok sa gate ng Bridle. Tiredly walking towards the dorm with my books in my hand, I can't help but think about the woman and the box. She looks really familiar ngunit hindi ko talaga maalala kung saan ko siya nakita. Posible rin naman na may kamukha lamang siya. Another thing that keeps me preoccupied is the box. I am really curious kung ano ang laman niyon. Probably papers dahil magaan lang naman iyon. Fortune list. Some soothsayer give some to their clients. Mukhang nagmamadali din ang babae kanina. Iwinaksi ko na lamang iyon sa isip. The box must contain list of fortunes na madalas nilang binibigay sa mga nagpapahula sa kanila.

I stopped from walking nang mapansing nasa harap na ako ng gate ng dorm. I was thinking so hard about the box and the woman that I didn't notice that I arrived already.

I almost drop my books when I noticed the person standing beside the gate. Nakasandal ito sa pader at nakayuko while his foot was kicking every stone near him just like Ryu kanina. He slapped something in his arm at gayundin ang ginawa niya sa kabilang braso.

Mosquitoes.

Idiot! Bakit ba siya naroon? Of course malamok doon kaya hindi nakapagtatakang panay ang hampas niya sa braso. Good thing he was wearing pants instead of shorts. Nakayuko lamang siya at mukhang walang balak na umalis doon. He looks so pissed as he continued slapping mosquitoes on his arm.

"Balak mo bang magka-dengue, malaria o di kaya ay filariasis?", I asked in a loud voice kaya napaangat siya ng tingin at malawak na ngumiti. He slowly walked towards me and sighed in relief.

"Thank goodness you're already here", he said and when he stepped towards me, I can clearly see him by the lamp post's light. Puro pantal ang leeg niya at may iilan din sa pisngi. The red bumps were even more visible in his arm at sigurado ako na dahil iyon sa mga kagat ng lamok.

He reached for my arm and pulled me closer to him and gave me a tight hug. I felt my cheeks reddened because of what he did. "I thought I will not have the chance to greet you a happy birthday today. Happy Birthday Amber."

I felt my lips voluntarily smiled. Ahhh, this Gray Ivan Silvan. A stupid guy who doesn't mind about being bitten by mosquitoes just to greet me a happy birthday. So stupid.

Stupidly sweet.

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-ShinichiLaaaabs