hop, Hindi ko maiwasang mainis. Okay, kailangan ko

hat exactly do you want?" Tinanong ko ulit gami

d his shoulders as he crossed his arms as if h

tomers who are impatient ar

berry, which is unusua

t ibang tipo t

o at nagsimula nang ga

ns?" I inquired and realized I had forgotten to

ook his head no. "J

g matapos na akong gawin ito

rather forcefully, as if the thought of h

sukli, nagulat nalang ako ng wala na

g nasulyapang a

sukli, iniisip kung ibab

ng maalala si papa. Hindi niya ako

oy was probably quite far away, but close enough for me to pursue h

kamay. I took one last look around the shop to make sure everything was okay

ice crea shop dahil wala kaming se

o kainit ngayong summer kahit na alas kwatro naman ng hapon.. Kinuha ko ang aking panyo at pinunasan ang aking pawis, muntik nang ahulog ang aking kalo. My eyes squinte

o dahil hindi ko na kayang tumakbo pa, humin

no idea what to call him, my mouth sna

just as I was about to lose all patience and give up. He cam

me?"‌ ‌tinanong nya,‌ ‌as‌ ‌I‌ ‌l

ing you... sinundan kita dahil yung sukli nyo po, sir," I said, holding a crumpled thr

a shop as soon as possible! When he was still standing there, his face slightly annoyed, I realized

a, para bang may spark akong naramdama

ingnan ko ang kanyang mukha p

ni guni k

return to the shop. Pero bago pa man ako makaalis

it. His brow furrowed, clearly irritated at this point. "Are you reall

a ng lalaki to?

akin? Judging how he

feel compelled to inquire. Why i

simply despise people like y

, but I realized that this guy's problem isn't wi

on't accept money from strangers, especially money I did

dali daling umalis na at bumalik sa shop, leaving him with his mouth

g his features so I wouldn't run into him again. O

lilinis na ako ng buong lamesa. It was 30 minutes before my shift was over.

agppaalit ito ng kulay. The sun is setting. The blue s

g bag palabas. I slid my neatly folded work clothes into my l

t down for the day. Bigla nalang ak

ang aking jacket. Wha

the streetlights shone a dim orange light. I put on my hel

s, na nagluluto sa kusina. "I’m home, Ma." I leaned in and kissed her

an she is, despite the fact that she is only in her early forties. There was never a day when she didn't put

kled when the motherly smile appeared on her lips. ‌ ‌"Gosh, grabe, minsa

rows at that, “Ooh,

verything, including the arrogant guy who'd been cold

Just then, a little curly-haired

ng at the sight of me, his cute dimples showin

But he's still the kind who'd be happy with small

see me but mom interjected. "Honey, pagod ang a

at hinding hindi talaga akong makahindi sa kanya kpaag ganyan siya kacute. I ruff

the living room. I shook my head as I looked at my adorable little brothe

n kaenergeti

rang pagod

I observed Mom as she cooked our d

of food and smiled gratefully at her. "Ooh, sarap naman tingnan nito ma!” I complimented her. It was ch

with a smile. Nagsimula

I was confident she could outperform those professional chefs if she tried. Ang sarap tal

rating it but tha

k another bite hurriedly, too preoccu

a," she warned, her voice tired. I c

kanina, sarap ba? " She looked

anks for the dinner!" She chuckled at my response and h

ing me shiver slightly as I walked to

nakipaglaro na ako

, and when it was over, she looked

I've never seen her so happy except on their wed

nterest piqued. Ano kaya

exclaimed joyfully, int

who she’s referring to. We’re still new her

mped in front of me in delight,

ad a few friends before we moved in here…When I remembered who that person was, I realiz