WE ARE PECULIARS (TAGLISH)

A STORY OF PECULIARITY

I ordered a hot black coffee.

"Can I sit here miss?" a man asked. I nodded as a response. Kasabay dun ang pagdating ng order ko bitbit ng isang waiter. Dire-diretso ko iyon na ininom at hindi alintana ang temperatura nun.

The waiter and the man were shocked by what I just did.

"What?" patay malisyang tanong ko. Sa tingin ko ay hindi sila makapaniwala sa ginawa ko.

I can't blame them. Sino ba namang normal na tao ang iinom ng umuusok na kape ng diretso?

Well, I'm not normal.

I ordered another coffee and continued watching how the rain gracefully poured outside the window.

"How did you do that?" he asked in disbelief.

I just shrugged and ignored his confusion.

"I'm Alvin," pakilala niya sakin at inilahad ang kanang kamay.

"Nella," simpleng sagot ko. He initiated a conversation and I enjoyed his company.

He's comfortable and fun to be with. So, I told him my rare condition, Congenital insensitivity to pain with anhidrosis (CIPA).

He was shocked at first and later on he confessed that he also had a rare condition called Hemophilia. It is a rare disorder in which your blood doesn't clot normally because it lacks sufficient blood-clotting proteins(clotting factors).

He is home-schooled because of that condition.

"So we are peculiars, I can say," he jokingly said that made me chuckle afterward.

I can't feel pain while he can't heal properly.

Starting that day, we became close friends.

Ako ang madalas pumupunta sa bahay nila dahil delikado kung siya ang lalabas at makipagkita sa akin.

Without a certain reason, I started liking him not just as a friend that's why I promise myself that I will protect him by his vulnerability.

At dahil madalas ako pumupunta sa bahay nila, Alvin's mother provided a room for me para hindi hussle kung babiyahe ako araw-araw.

Until one day, I saw him with someone. Nakapatong ang babae sa kaniya.

I presumed that the girl accidentally fell on top of him to make the issue less a problem for my feelings towards him.

When they saw me, they immediately got up. Nag-aalala akong lumapit kay Alvin at sinuri kung may sugat ba siya.

Fortunately, wala. I looked at the girl, standing in the corner.

She is the daughter of a new maid. I stared at her eyes and saw something. Hindi ko mawari kung ano iyon pero masama ang kutob ko.

I approached and asked her if she's okay. Her name is Bella. Natatawa nga ako minsan dahil magkalapit lamang ang pangalan naming dalawa.

Bella at Nella.

Sa pagtatagal ko sa bahay nila Alvin,naging close na din kami ni Bella. Napapansin ko ding mas nagkakalapit sila ni Alvin.

I feel jealous sometimes, but I would just tell myself that they're just friends.

Magkatabi kaming natutulog ngayon ni Bella. Hindi siya nakatanggi kanina nang imbitahan ko syang matulog sa kuwarto ko kasi sinabi kong magtatampo ako kung hindi siya papayag.

When midnight came, naramdaman kong bumangon siya, I pretended to be asleep and waited for her to close the door.

Dahan-dahan ko siyang sinundan and I saw her entered Alvin's room. I felt nervous by the thought of her going in Alvin's room at midnight. I almost jumped in horror when I heard a loud shredding of broken glasses. I abruptly swung the door open.

"B-Bella, what are you doing?!" hindi mapigilan kong sigaw.

She is holding a broken glass from a mirror at itinutok ito kay alvin.

"Bella calm down. Let's talk about this," pagpapakalma ni Alvin.

She just cried and mumbled different inaudible words. It was like she's chanting something to control herself from something.

"Put that down Bella. I swear to God if you hurt him, I will never ever forgive you. Bawal siyang masugatan kaya ibaba mo na 'yan please," I demanded, hiding the nervousness.

Dahan-dahan akong lumapit. I saw her eyes widened in fear and anger.

"Stop!" she shouted at agad linapitan si Alvin at inambahan ng saksak.

"Nooo!" I exclaimed and covered Alvin from her attack.

"Nella!" He shouted as Bella stabbed me.

I can't feel pain. I can't feel any pain.

Bella was shocked by what she did. She stabbed me in the chest. Dumating ang ibang may-bahay at kinuha si Bella ng kaniyang ina.

"Pasensya na po kayo! May sakit po ang anak ko na tinatawag na paranoid schizophrenia. Ako nalang po ang parusahan niyo," she said.

Now I understand.

They panicked when I fell pero agad akong nasalo ni Alvin.

I can't feel any excruciating pain, but I can feel my body weakening. "A-Alvin." I can barely state his name.

"Nella you shouldn't have done that," he cried.

"Ang bakla mo.D-Diba, isang sugat lang sayo, posibleng mamatay ka kaya sinalo ko. I can't feel after all."

Lumuha si Alvin at tiningnan ako ng malungkot.

Hinawakan ko ang pisngi niya at pinilit na magsalita, "U-Understand Bella. She also has a rare condition, just like us," I muttered having a hard time catching my breath afterward.

"We are peculiars Alvin and it's just us who can understand our situation." I felt him kissing my lips lovingly before darkness swallowed me.

END