May 14

There will always be airheaded and stupid people in this world.

Life won’t be complete without those kind of people tho. And what’s the worst in that, is, they’re not just adding pollution in the air, yet they are also harming other human beings.

Kumuyom na lang ang mga kamao ko habang iniisip ang nagyaring pagsabotahe sa eroplano. Sinong tao ang walang awa na magagawa ang bagay na iyon? Ang i-sabotahe ang eroplano kahit alam n'yang maraming buhay ang malalagay sa panganib? Hindi s'ya tao, kundi hayop.

“Mayora, let’s go,” tawag sa ‘kin ni Zalysha kaya tumango na lamang ako.

Bukas na ang mismong araw ng botohan at hindi ko maipagkakaila na kinakabahan nga ako.
Pagkarating sa opisina ko sa City hall ay agad akong sinalubong ni Mr. Minerva. Seeing the grin in his face is damn annoying!

“Good morning Mayora!” He greeted me with a smile. Tipid lang naman akong ngumiti at tumango sa kan’ya.

I edged my way towards my chair and sat on it comfortably. Tiningnan ko ang mga papeles na maayos na naka file sa divider ko.

I took out the papers about my ongoing project. Napangiti na lang ako matapos malamang malapit nang matapos ang ospital na ipinapatayo ko sa isang bayan. Maybe I should take a peek on this one before I leave this office.

“Mayora, a businessman came here yesterday, asking permission if he could build his business,” wika ni Mr. Minerva na pumukaw ng atensyon ko.

“What is his business about?”

“Casino,” kumunot ang noo ko sa sinabi n’ya.

“Where is that businessman?” How could he have the guts of asking permission from a Mayor for his illegal business?

“Maybe on his way now. I declined his proposal yesterday saying na ikaw na lang ang tanungin, besides you’re the mayor,” wika ni Mr. Minerva. Tumango na lang ako saka muling ibinalik ang tingin sa mga papeles.

Time flies so fast at heto na ako ngayon, aalis na sa posisyon ko. I can even still remember my image as a young and an unkempt girl back then.

From where I started to dream big things. From where I tasted the bitterness of life’s tragedy. From where I first opened my eyes in the cruel truth. I have seen different things in life, some was tragic and some was a little bit good.

I never thought that I will be a soldier someday. And I never thought that it will also be the reason for my family’s death. After winning that daft war, after killing their commander and even their leaders; that eventually cause them to avenged the death of their leaders and the worst part is, they avenged in a worst way.

They didn’t kill me, instead, they chose to massacre my family. And that was beyond killing me.

Dahil sa pagkamatay ng pamilya ko ay para na rin akong pinatay at ibinaon ng buhay. But despite of those tragic things, I still managed to stand up again and build my walls more stronger.

Because life is not just about waiting for the rainbows, it is about you chasing the aperture of silver lining. Isa iyon sa mga prinsipyo ko.

“Mayora, may gusto po’ng kumausap sa ‘yo,” Zalysha’s voice and a knock from my wooden door took me out from my trance.

“Let him in,” tipid kong sagot, saka inayos ang kwelyo ng checkered na suot ko. A man in a suit came in with a vape on his right hand and an envelope in his left hand. Judging from his look, I knew who he is.

“Good morning Mayora,” bati niya sa ‘kin.

“Good morning. Have a seat,” tipid akong ngumiti sa kan’ya sabay senyas sa upuang na sa harapan ko.

“Hindi na po ako magpaligoy-ligoy pa, I’m Marciano Adventes and I’m here to ask permission for my upcoming business Mayora,” he said. What a straightforward dude, good thing I am too.

“My vice-mayor told me about your upcoming business. Was it casino huh?” Pormal kong wika ngunit mauulinigan pa rin ang bahid nang sarkasmo sa pagbanggit ko sa uri ng negosyo n’ya.

“Yes Mayora,” he answered with his head held high. Again, judging from his look, no wonder if ganoong klase ng negosyo ang gusto n’yang ipatayo. From his vape and even the tattoos in his hands, I can certainly classify him as an addict of that thing.

“Well, I’m sorry to disappoint you Mr. Adventes, but you came in a wrong place. Oo at bukas ay aalis na ako sa pwesto ko. But I will reassure you that there’s no way I’ll be letting that business exist in my city. Not in my city, not in my territory,” I firmly answered while giving him a blunt look. I saw how he heave a deep sigh of disdain.

A casino is not a good kind of business, dahil sa halip na tulungan ang taong umangat sa buhay ay lalo lamang nitong ibabaon ang tao sa hirap.

————

Saglit akong nagpunta sa headquarter ng partylist namin bago pumunta sa ospital na kasalukuyan kong ipinapatayo.

But before I could even open the front door, I felt a pair of eyes eyeing my every demeanor. I toured my eyes in my surrounding and only see nothing.

As usual, the place is still calm and serene, maybe because of the presence of the trees. I can still feel the pair of eyes but I chose to ignore it. Maybe my system is just playing some tricks.

“Good morning grumpy man,” I greeted Mr. Guanzon after seeing him heading towards his office.

“Good morning kiddo, what brought you here?” He asked sarcastically.

“Tsk I wanna check some things, by the way what are you doing here?” Balik kong tanong sa kan’ya. Nagkibit-balikat naman s’ya saka tiningnan ang ilang mga files sa mesa n’ya.

“Oh I see,” nakangiwi ko na lang na wika. I bid goodbye to him, and then walked out.

Malayo pa man ay natatanaw ko na ang isang building sa ‘di kalayuan. Alas-dyes pa lang ng umaga kaya’t marami pang mga construction worker ang nagtatrabaho rito.

Papatapos na ang building at sa katunayan nga ay kailangan na lang ipatag ang mga sinementong ding-ding nito.

“Mayora,” Engr. Remran greeted me.

“When will it be able to use Engr. ?” Tanong ko sa kan’ya habang iginagala ang paningin ko sa buong construction site.

“Maybe on June 5 Mayora,” I nodded in his words. Engr. Remran was my classmate back then in highschool.

Weird as it may seem, but after all the years, we still have seen each other. And come to think of it. Aren’t it funny how a lad who always skip art classes and curse math became an engineer? Well life always got surprises.

I was all alone in my office inside the municipal Hall and sorting things out and putting it inside the boxes. I halted for a moment and grabbed our family picture and stared at it deeply.

"'Nay, ‘tay, mga kapatid ko. Bukas na po ang eleksyon. Bukas na po ang magiging simula nang pagkamit ko sa mga pangarap ko. Sana nandito po kayo, I’m sure you’ll be proud of me, right ‘nay, ‘tay? Calliope, Augustine look unti-unti nang natutupad ni ate ang mga pangarap ko. Maging ang pangako ko sa inyo. I swear I’ll give you the justice that your death deserves."

With a heavy heart, I slid it inside the box. If there’s only one thing I want to get back from life, then it is the presence of my family — their life.

Pansamantala akong tumigil nang maalala ang isang bagay. I took out my phone from my pocket and traced Mr. Guanzon’s name.

“The number you have dialed is out of coverage area, please try again later.”

Muli kong pinindot ang call button pero ganoon pa rin ang nangyari. Nakakatatlo na akong tawag pero hindi n’ya pa rin sinasagot. This isn’t him, I know that grumpy man. He may be stupid but his phone is part of his body. There’s no chance of him not picking my call.

Nang muli ko s’yang subukang tawagan ay wala pa ring nangyari. He still don’t pick up his damn phone! So I decided to leave a message for him instead. Ngunit nahagip ng mga mata ko ang isang text na galing sa unknown number.

:You’re doing good baby? Best of luck sa election bukas bring home the beacon baby..

Napangiwi na lang ako matapos mabasa ang text n’ya. With all the corny words and emojis, his message looked like a piece of shit. And why is he calling me baby?

Shut the fvck up General, you’re trying to flirt with me aren’t you? Then earth you Steaks!:

With all my mighty fingers I replied at him, trying to keep my fingers from pressing too hard.

:Sa wakas! What a miracle! You replied Mayora! And nope I’m not flirting with you instead I’m dating with you.

How could he reply this fast?

Pinipigilan ko ang sarili kong mga daliri na magtipa nang sagot para sa kan’ya. But I guess my fingers went me down.

The heck with dating! You are desiring things General Steaks!:

I tried so hard to keep myself from smiling. But what the hell is going on with my body? Why can’t they obey me?

:Yes I do, and you are my desire Mayora.

And in just a glimpse I found myself suppressing a smile while holding my giggle. What the fvck!?

This is so absurd, what is happening with the toughest and coldest personality I created? Did that damn General just broke my walls? And how could he defeat my guards that fast?

————

I can’t even hear my own breath, instead, my heart’s beat thundered over my whole system. I can even barely feel the tension and even the deep breaths of my comrades, while their eyes are sharply locked at the TV.

It is May 15, and yes the election has already started. Walang paglagyan ng kaba ang sistema ko. Seeing the number and the news anchors inside the TV while counting the votes, is damn tremulous!

But wait, where’s Mr. Guanzon? Iginala ko ang paningin ko sa mga kasama kong tutok na tutok sa TV. Pero hindi ko nasumpungan ang kulubot na mukha ni Mr. Guanzon.

“

Where’s Mr. Guanzon?” Pasimple kong bulong sa katabi kong si Zalysha. Pero sa sobrang tutok n’ya sa TV ay mukhang hindi man lang n’ya ako narinig.

“Zal, where’s Mr. Guanzon?” Pag-uulit ko.

“I don’t know Mayora kanina pa po s’ya wala,” kumunot ang noo ko sa sagot n’ya.

“Can you please look for him inside his office? Or at least call him?” Tumango s’ya sa ‘kin saka tumayo at lumabas.

Lalo pa akong kinabahan ngunit ngayon ay may halo ng dahilan sa pagkawala ng presensya ni Mr. Guanzon. Out of all the people here, Mr. Guanzon is the most excited in this election. So how could he dare not to watch it or at least watch with us?

“Out of coverage area Mayora, wala rin po s’ya sa office n’ya,” balita sa ‘kin ni Zal. Napatango na lang ako saka bumuntong-hininga. I grabbed my phone and checked some messages from him. But still, I got none. This is absurd!

Ayaw kong sirain ang momentum ng mga kasama kong nanunuod. Kaya pasimple akong lumabas, ramdam ko naman agad ang pagsunod sa ‘kin ni Zalysha.

“Where on Earth is that grumpy man?!” I muttered. I can’t contain it anymore, I’m starting to worry about him. Mr. Guanzon was like a father to me. And me, being worried to his sudden absence is not questionable.

Mag-aalas sais na ng hapon at andito pa rin kaming lahat sa headquarter. Nakatutok pa rin sa TV at naghihintay ng resulta, but my mind is not in there.

Simula pa kahapon ay hindi ko na s’ya nakontak, what could’ve happened to him? Saying that I’m worried is an understatement.

I immediately grabbed my keys and went outside from the conference room, I can feel Zalysha following me.

“Just stay here Zal, I’ll go to Mr. Guanzon’s house,” bilin ko sa kan’ya. Akto pa s’yang ibubuka ang bibig n’ya para magtanong pero inunahan ko na s’ya.

“Just please stay here,” I firmly said and then leave her and went out to my car.

————

Exhausted and worried. That’s how I define my mood right now.

Pagkarating ko sa bahay ni Mr. Guanzon ay tanging ang kasambahay n’ya lang na si manang Ipil ang nadatnan ko. And the worst part is kahapon pa raw hindi umuuwi si Mr. Guanzon. Where could’ve you been grumpy man?

“MAYORA!” Agad akong napangiwi at napatakip sa tenga ko dahil sa sigawan na sumalubong sa ‘kin pagkapasok ko sa conference room. Kahit si Zalysha ay nagtatalon at nagsisisigaw. What is happening?

“Mayora, look!” Mr. Alejandro uttered vigorously. He pointed his fingers in the TV’s direction. At nang tingnan ko ito ay pakiramdam ko ay huminto ang paligid at tumigil ang mabilis na pagtibok ng puso ko.
This is impossible!

Hindi ako makapaniwalang higit isang-daan’g-libo ang boto na lamang ko kay Senator. Perez. And that only mean one thing. Nanalo ako!

Parang gusto kong maiyak at kagaya ni Zal ay magtatalon sa tuwa. Lalo na nang makita kong nanalo rin si Mr. Guanzon. Our partylist even got the fourth rank. Mr. Alejandro won too but not Atty. Maligmat. Maging ang mga kasama kong tumatakbo sa pagiging Senador ay nababakas ang tuwa sa kanilang mga mata. Two of them lost but the rest win.

“Oh my God Mayora this is a celebration!” Natutuwang wika sa ‘kin ni Zalysha.

“Where’s Governor Guanzon?” Tanong ni Atty. Maligmat na s’yang nagpatigil sa ‘kin. Damn!

Hindi ko alam ang sagot sa tanong n’ya, dahil kahit ako ay hindi ko rin alam. Malabong mawala na lang nang basta-basta si Mr. Guanzon lalo na’t ngayon mismo ang araw ng eleksyon. At isa pa bakit hindi s’ya makontak?

I can sense something not good happening right now. After all, this is the day of the election. The day of judgement for those candidates. And I know how some politicians are thirsty of power and wealth. And now that Mr. Guanzon is gone. Could there be something bad happened to him?

|End of chapter 11|
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