The Choices We Make

Chapter 2

Yanna

Emerald Avenue is closed to motorists every Sunday. Kiosks for food, clothes, and novelty stuff littered the sidewalk as lively music blared from speakers stacked near the Ortigas Park. A group of residents of the business district wearing their zumba clothes did stretching exercises while waiting for the instructor to begin the free class. 

Yanna had slowly rounded the block once, making sure to check all the items in each kiosk just to entertain herself and to pass time. She would have gone for another round but no matter how she willed it, her lungs couldn’t keep up anymore. But at least she was able to get some fresh air.

It wasn’t the ideal environment to breathe in fresh air but for Yanna, it would do. Besides, there were a lot of perks that came with living in the heart of the city. Sure, the cost of living in the business district was high, but everything else was a walk away--malls, church, hospital, park, gym, school. No traffic, no wasted time on long travels. Plus, she could burn calories! All of that, to her, defined a comfortable life -- for everything to be within reach.

“You’re back so early, Ate!” Her cousin, Lucy, opened the door before Yanna did. She looked like she was going somewhere based on the light make-up, tight-fitting shirt, a pair of ripped jeans and rubber shoes she wore.

Yanna waddled into the unit and sank on the sofa, her hand automatically rubbing over her belly. “You’re going out?”

“Yeah.” Lucy applied lipstick, smacked her lips several times and smiled at her reflection against the mirror nailed on the wall. 

When Yanna surprised her parents telling them she was in her third trimester (just because she couldn’t hide her bulging belly anymore), they were too excited to rope in Lucy, a relative they helped put to college. She graduated with a vocational course last year and had been looking for a job in Cebu. From what she had told Yanna, Lucy was not accepted in any of the job posts. So Yanna’s parents thought her cousin could temporarily help with the chores until the baby was born before she looked for a permanent job.

Yanna’s eyes homed in on the unwashed dishes by the sink, the hair strands on the floor, the dust collecting on her furniture, the cobwebs that had started to form on one corner of the ceiling. She didn’t want to imagine how the spare bedroom which Lucy used was faring. “Job hunting?”

“Nah, just going out with a new friend. Anything you want from the mall, Ate?” she asked without looking at her.

“No, thanks. I’m good. Have fun though.”

As soon as Lucy had left, Yanna heaved a deep sigh and stood up. She was in the nesting phase, it seemed-- the need to clean every square inch of the place, and put everything in order. All to prepare for the baby. It was better that Lucy had gone out so she could tidy up her unit. But it would take her hours to finish everything considering her limited movement. Hopefully, her cousin wouldn’t be home soon.

She had just turned on the vacuum when her phone let out a familiar tune she had assigned for her parents. With a smile, she aborted cleaning in the meantime, sank back on the sofa and picked up the video call from her mother who lived halfway across the globe. 

When her parents migrated to the US, Yanna was already over 21 and therefore, couldn’t be with them. Left behind, she decided to try a career as a corporate employee because looking for a nursing job in the country was like fighting for a needle in a haystack. Plus, she didn’t want to pay so she could practice her profession. It was her parents’ first heartbreak.  The second was when she refused their offer to file for her petition for migration because she started to love what she was doing and that she was compensated and recognized for the work she did. Something they didn’t quite understand.