Adelaide: Today For Tomorrow

Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Gunshots.

Someone fired once, it went twice, thrice...

Dahan-dahan kong iminulat ang aking mga mata. It was dark. May liwanag na nagmumula sa bintana sa harap ko pero sakto lang ang liwanag para makita ko ang paligid. Umalingawngaw na naman ang putok ng baril.

Inilibot ko ang tingin ko sa kwartong kinaroroonan ko. Konti lang ang mga gamit na naroroon. May maliit na cabinet sa gilid. May mga nakapatong na mga unan at kumot rito. There's a full length mirror in the other corner. There's a dresser, drawers and all of them are painted white. May maliit na couch sa paanan ng kama at nakita ko doon ang backpack ko.

Where am I?

Then memories flashed in my mind. Hindi ko nasundan ang pagtulo ng luha ko. My brother and my mother is dead. I put my hand in my chest. It felt so heavy. Parang may nakadagang mabigat na bagay sa dibdib ko. I won't see them again. They died because I was too late.

Bumangon ako, ramdam ko ang sakit sa beywang at likod ko. Pero mas masakit parin ang dibdib ko. I looked at myself in the mirror. My wavy blonde hair with a touch of brown from its roots looks disturbing. It spreads across my face. Namamaga ang mata ko at namumula ang pisngi ko.

Somehow, I am thankful for the people who shoved my ass to their truck but waking up with a heavy heart and bad memories, sana iniwan nalang nila ako doon.

Pinahiran ko ang luha sa aking pisngi. I'm still on my jeans and sweater. Dahan dahan akong bumaba sa kama. I winced when I felt a strike of pain on my left leg. Tinignan ko ito at nakitang namamaga ito ng kaunti. I don't know why, hindi naman ako nadapa noon o hindi ko lang namalayan.

I slowly walked towards the sliding window that is covered with curtains to prevent the light from fully coming through. May malalaking bahay akong nakikita sa malayo, ang iba ay nasa gitna ng mga punong kahoy, ang iba ay may mga tanimang nakapalibot sa mga bahay but most of them are trees. There are corn fields from afar.

Smoke emitts mula sa di kalayuan, it formed a tornado shape gray cloud in the sky. Behind it is the orange with a touch of pink sky, telling me that the sun is about to set.

And for once, I thought that the world is still a safe place. And maybe there are still other places out there that is safe to live. It looked serene but gunshots ruined my wistful thoughts.

"Gising ka na pala." Malalim na boses ng babae ang nagpalingon sa akin.

Sa sobrang gulat ko ay muntik na akong matumba. Buti nalang ay nakahawak ako sa bintana. She gave me an apologetic smile.

"I didn't mean to scare you. Sorry." Agap nya.

"O-Okay lang po. By the way, thanks for s-saving me." I can't help it.

Kusang lumalabas ang lungkot sa boses ko.

The woman in front of me seems like in her mid forties. She has a brown hair in a pixie cut. The outer strands of her hair falls in the back, some strands are dyed into blonde. She has a really good voice that sounds like a news reporter on CNN. It is big, deep and clear. She's wearing a sweat pants and a hoodie jacket that fits her upper body. I can see her muscles through it. And... She screams authority.

"If you are really grateful, why don't you join us for dinner?" She smiled.

Para bang wala lang nangyayaring gulo sa labas ng pader. I admired her for that.

"Sure." I answered, almost a whisper.

"Call me Selena. I'm Selena Fournier." She said nang makalapit na ako sa kanya.