Chapter 55
Evening settled quietly over Kairi's room. Not dim, not heavy. Just ordinary. The ceiling light was on, casting a soft glow across scattered papers and open laptops.
Nakaupo si Kairi sa sahig. Her back was pressed to the side of her bed with her laptop balanced on her thighs.
Nakatingin siya sa screen pero parang wala talaga siyang nakikita.
The cursor was just blinking patiently in the corner of the document as if waiting for her to remember what she was supposed to do next.
Maya was on the bed above her, sitting cross-legged with her own laptop open. Si Zoe naman ay nasa desk na bahagyang nakasandal sa upuan habang ini-scroll ang paper nila.
"I can't believe tapos na talaga tayo," Zoe said, scrolling. "As in, done done. No more revisions. No more puyat."
Mahinang napatawa si Maya. "Hindi ako magce-celebrate hangga't hindi ko na-che-check ang bawat page twice. Baka mamaya, bigla na namang may nagbago na formatting o pages."
"Please," Zoe said. "We've stared at this thing for days. If there's still a typo, it deserves to be there."
Maya snorted, eyes still on her screen. "Zoe, no. Carefully. Page by page. Margins, headers, citations. I don't trust past us and I don't trust our table of contents to stay still. Gusto ko ng matapos ito!"
Their voices floated around Kairi, familiar and grounding in a way she barely registered. Hinayaan lang niyang mag-usap ang dalawa.
Hindi na siya masyadong nagsasalita nitong mga nakaraang araw.
Hindi dahil ayaw niya, kundi dahil tuwing bubuka ang bibig niya, pakiramdam niya may lalabas na kung ano, something raw.
Something na hindi niya kayang kontrolin.
So she stayed quiet. Present, but slightly out of reach.
Existing in the room without really being there.
Bumaba ang tingin niya sa screen, skimming lines she had already read three times. Her name. Zoe's. Maya's. The title, bold and centered. Then down the second page, panelists.
Her chest tightened just a little.
Zoe leaned back in her chair. "After nito, bind and signatures na lang bukas. Then we're free."
Maya nodded. "Sir Delfin, Mrs. Santos, Sir Philip, and—" napahinto siya bago bumalik ang tingin sa screen. "What about the other panelist?"
The room shifted.
It was subtle—the way the air seemed to still, the way Zoe's scrolling slowed before stopping altogether. Hindi na binanggit ni Maya ang pangalan. Well, she didn't have to.
Walang nagsalita sa loob ng ilang segundo.
Pero naramadaman pa rin ni Kairi, the way the silence bent toward her, waiting.
Zoe cleared her throat a little too quickly. "Ah—about that. Sabi ni Sir, iwan na lang muna nating blank iyong part na iyon. Since, you know...she hasn't been coming in."
"Right," sagot ni Maya habang tumatango, pero bumaba na ang tingin niya sa sahig—direkta kay Kairi na nakayuko sa tabi ng kama.
Hindi tumingala si Kairi. Nakatigil lang ang mga daliri niya sa keyboard. She heard the words at naintindihan niya, but they landed somewhere distant, dulled by repetition.
She hasn't been coming in. Parang simpleng pagbabago lang sa schedule. Another inconvenience.
Lumapit si Maya sa gilid ng kama, lowering her voice without meaning to.
"Kai," she said gently. "You good? Tapos ka na ba sa pag-proofread?"
Kairi blinked once, then twice, pulling herself back. She nodded. "Yeah. I'm done."
Her voice sounded normal. Too normal. Flat in a way she had learned to perfect.
Maya watched her for a second longer, na parang may gusto pang idagdag, pero tumango na lang ito. "Okay. Just...save it, yeah?"
"Mm."
That was all.
Bumalik na sila sa ginagawa nila pagkatapos, hanggang sa unti-unting nabuhay ulit ang usapan. Kung anong oras aalis bukas, saan magpapa-bind, at kanino unang magpapa-sign. The sound of keys tapping filled the room.
Kairi stayed where she was.
Ganito na siya since that day—quiet and distant na parang may sariling mundo.
She went to school. Sumasagot kapag kinakausap.
Tinatapos ang mga requirements. Sa labas, mukhang okay naman lahat.
Pero sa loob, time felt warped, stretched thin between moments she couldn't stop replaying and thoughts na ayaw niyang tanggapin at harapin.
Bumabalik pa rin ang boses ni Miss Herrera at the worst times. Not the sharp one. Not the angry one. The soft, careful tone she used right before asking Kairi to leave.
I hurt you.
I won't let it happen again.
Kairi pressed her thumb lightly against the edge of her laptop, grounding herself in the dull pressure.
She didn't cry. Not anymore. Nagawa na niya iyon—naubos na ang mga luha niya sa likod ng taxi, sa mga yakap ni Zoe, at sa mga oras na tulog ang buong bahay and she had nothing left to distract herself.
Now, she just felt empty na parang may hinihintay siyang may bumagsak, mabasag, o finally, mapangalanan.
Sa itaas niya, tumawa si Maya sa kung anong sinabi ni Zoe.
Kairi just kept her eyes on the screen, cursor still blinking patiently, as if nothing had changed at all.
A soft knock sounded at the door kasabay ng pagbukas nito.
"Kai? Girls?" Lara's voice followed, light but edged with expectation. "Dinner's ready na."
Si Maya ang unang tumingala. "Dinneeer!"
She closed her laptop halfway.
Zoe echoed it with a quick. "Coming, ate."
Pero hindi agad umalis si Lara. Nanatili siya sa may pintuan. Her eyes swept the room, then napako ang tingin niya sa sahig sa tabi ng kama—kay Kairi, nakayuko pa rin sa laptop at hindi kumikilos.
"Kai," Lara said, more directly now. "Kakain na."
Kairi didn't look up. Nakatigil lang ang mga daliri niya sa keyboard.
"Kairi," ulit ni Lara na may bahid na ng pagkainip. "Hindi ka pa raw kumakain simula kaninang umaga."
Wala pa rin.
Napabuntong-hininga si Lara, irritation sharpening. "Are you seriously not coming out again, Kairi Lei?"
Humakbang siya papasok ng kwarto, brows drawn together and ready to push the issue, but Maya was already moving. Bumaba siya ng kama at marahang humarang, a hand brushing Lara's arm.
"Ate Lara," agad na sabi ni Maya na naka-ready na ang malawak na ngiti at malambing na boses. "Anong ulam? Ang bango ha, umaabot dito sa taas."
Napakurap si Lara na sandaling na-distract. "Uh...chicken adobo. Tapos soup."
"Talaga? Na-miss ko naman ang chicken adobo ni tita," Maya said, eyes lighting up a little too much. "And soup sounds perfect. Kanina pa talaga ako nagugutom."
Zoe caught on immediately. "Same. I think my brain stopped functioning an hour ago."
Sumilip ulit si Lara sa likod nila—kay Kairi, na hindi pa rin gumagalaw. Her mouth tightened, but she let out a breath and nodded. "Fine. Baba na tayo habang mainit pa ang pagkain."
As Maya gently steered Lara back toward the hallway, nagpaiwan si Zoe sa loob.
"I'll talk to her," she said quietly.
Lara hesitated, then nodded. "Make sure she eats."
And then she disappeared down the stairs with Maya.
Tahimik na ulit ang kwarto.
Isinara ni Zoe ang pinto at naglakad papunta kay Kairi. Nagdahan-dahan siya, like she might spook Kairi if she moved too fast. She knelt in front of her, so they were eye level.
"Hey," Zoe said softly. "You okay?"
Kairi's jaw tightened. "I'm not hungry."
Zoe tilted her head. "You didn't even answer your ate."
"I heard her," Kairi replied. Her voice wasn't sharp, just tired. "Ayaw ko lang kumain."
Pinagmasdan ni Zoe ang mukha ng kaibigan niya—kung paano hindi umaalis ang tingin sa screen, kung paano nakakurba ang balikat niya like she was trying to disappear into herself. "Pwede ka namang bumaba saglit. Makisama ka lang."
"No." Doon lang siya tumingin kay Zoe, steady pero malayo ang tingin. "Please just...go."
Zoe frowned. "Kai—"
"I want to be alone," Kairi said, cutting in quietly. Hindi galit. Hindi pasigaw. Just final. "Please."
The word please hurt more than anything else.
Zoe held her gaze for another second, searching for something—an opening. A crack. But Kairi had already closed herself off again, eyes drifting back to the screen.
"...Okay," Zoe said at last, voice low. She stood slowly. "Pero nasa baba lang kami. If you change your mind."
Hindi sumagot si Kairi.
Zoe hesitated by the door, then slipped out, closing it gently behind her.
Nanatili si Kairi sa sahig kung saan mainit pa rin ang laptop sa hita niya. And the room was too quiet now. The sounds of dinner drifted faintly from below—plates clinking, voices overlapping—but they felt far away na para bang galing ang mga tunog o ingay sa ibang bahay.
She just stared at the blinking cursor, unmoving.
And stayed.