Saving Humanity

Chapter Twenty-Four: First Watch

Chapter Twenty-Four: First Watch

Felicity

After almost an hour of travel, the military truck stops in front of a seemingly innocent house. It seems innocent, until you realize that it is situated in the middle of nowhere. I'm amazed. Hindi ko akalaing may mapuno at tagong lugar pa pala sa Rizal.

Si Ian ang unang bumaba. Iginala niya muna ang paningin niya sa paligid bago ako alalayan. Sumunod sa akin sina Andre at Pauline.

"Nandito na tayo," the stranger says with a smile. "Home sweet home."

It is a two-storey house, one that is similar to the typical ones that you see on Hollywood movies. It has a modest, minimalistic design and large enough to house a family of ten.

"Kayo ba talaga ang may-ari ng bahay na 'to?" tanong ko.

"Oo naman," sagot ng lalaki. "Si Papa ang may-ari nito."

Tumingin-tingin kami ng mga kasama ko sa paligid. Malaki ang kutob kona iisa lang ang nasa isip namin. This is a perfect place to hide .With the tall trees and lack of nearby houses, I'm pretty sure that those aliens will have a hard time finding us. We can be safe here. That is if the owners of this house can be trusted.

"Hell, we can be murdered here and no one will ever know,"Pauline whispers. The stranger doesn't seem to hear her. "Well, if anyone's awake to go and look for us, that is."

"Lumalalim na ang gabi," saad ng lalaki. "Pumasok na tayo sa loob para makapagpahinga na tayong lahat."

Hindi na niya hinintay pa ang mga sagot namin. Kaagad na siyang naglakad papasok ng kanyang bahay.

Tumingin ako kay Ian. "Ano sa tingin mo?" tanong ko. "Can we trust him?"

He sighs. "Nandito na tayo. Let's just go inside and hope for the best."

Pumasok kaming lahat sa loob ng bahay. The front door takes us directly to the living room area, where the stranger is comfortably sitting on a couch while wiping his rifle with a piece of cloth. He looks up as we enter.

"Welcome, welcome," he says, gesturing to a longer couch that is adjacent to where he's sitting. The two furnitures are separated with a low table in the middle. "Maupo kayo."

Naupo kami. Nasa kanan ko si Ian, at nasa kaliwa ko naman si Pauline. Katabi niya si Andre na lumilinga-linga sa paligid.

"If I remember correctly, you told us earlier that you live with your family," Pauline states, suspicion written all over her face. "Wala akong nakikitang ibang tao dito kundi tayo lang."

Tumawa ang lalaki. Itinigil niya ang paglilinis sa baril niya at diretsong tumingin kay Pauline. "Sa tingin mo ba nagsisinungaling ako? Relax. Nasa taas sila, natutulog. Makikilala ninyo rin sila bukas."

"Ilan kayo dito?" tanong ko.

Iginala ko ang tingin ko sa paligid. Katapat namin, sa likod ng lalaki ay may malaking salamin na nakadikit sa pader. From there I can see our reflection, as well as the 40-inch television on the wall at our back. Sa kaliwa namin ay may maliit na pasilyo. Sa tingin ko ay daan iyon papunta sa kusina at hapag-kainan.

"Si Papa, si Kuya, ako, 'yung asawa ko, at dalawang anak namin," sagot ng lalaki sa tanong ko. "Wala silang ideya na magdadala akong ibang tao dito. Hindi naman nila ako masisisi. Ngayon lang ulit ako nakakita ng mga tao na gising, katulad namin."

"Why are you awake?" Ian inquires. He is wearing his usual curious expression. "Hindi ba kayo naapektuhan ng...kung anong nagpatulog sa mga tao?"