Say That You Believe

/5/ He Doesn't Believe

/5/ HE DOESN'T BELIEVE

Whomever believes in
Him shall not be perished
but have an eternal life

- John 3:16

KHEL'S POV

As the classes ended, sinundo ako ni auntie sa driveway ng school. She's riding her car at the driver's seat and I hopped in to take the seat beside her.

It's evening, close to twilight. Sky's fading with pinkish orange and blue. While on the road, busy sa pagda-drive si Aunt Kyla habang ako'y tahimik lamang sa passenger's seat.

I gaze into the window, looking at the flock of birds flying across the evening sky. Do you know that birds evolved from the group of meat-eating dinosaurs called Theropods? Fascinating how the process of science turned hideous creatures into beautiful winged animals.

"Khel, how's school?" aunt suddenly asked.

"Fine." Hindi ko inalis ang aking mata sa bintana, habang nakasandal sa upuan at nakakrus ang mga braso.

"And what specific fine is that?"

Aunt Kyla is the type of aunt who's very caring. Sometimes, she cares too much to the point that it annoys me. For some reason, she doesn't have a child. That's why, on behalf of my parents' death, she takes responsibility for me and treats me like her own son.

"The normal fine," I replied with a sigh.

"Hmm..." Tumango-tango si auntie habang kinokontrol ang manibela ng kotse. "Which means nothing exciting is happening? The same, old and average school life, huh?"

She knows me too well.

In my peripheral vision, I saw Aunt Kyla shaking her head while clicking her tongue. "Oh, my boy. When will you start enjoying life? You're already senior high school at legal age. You should do fun things!"

"Like what?" I scoffed and sarcastically raised my eyebrows. "Go to party? Waste my time bonding with people who are contributing nothing in the community?"

"Well---"

"I'd rather plant a seed today that will guarantee to bear a fruit tomorrow. You know I hate wasting my time," I answered.

"Yeah, I know but..." aunt stopped talking before she released an exasperated sigh. "Bahala ka. Malaki ka na. You know what you're doing. Just don't push yourself too much. Aiming for high grades is good, but aiming for beautiful memories are the best. Remember that."

Pagkatapos no'n, hindi na ulit nagsalita pa si Aunt Kyla. I also didn't speak. We're quiet inside the car for almost three minutes.

Maya-maya pa'y huminto ang aming kotse sa tapat ng intersection lane. The traffic light above blinked red, indicating for the vehicles to wait behind the crossing line.

As the car stopped (wating for the traffic light to turn green) at the side of the road, I saw a spacious plaza nearby the area.

That plaza has so many people. There's a big stage and an ocean of audiences below it. Above the stage, there's a band performing a song. But what catches my eyes is the vocalist of the band, the woman who's singing on the stage.

That woman's wearing a T-shirt imprinted with words: JESUS, MY SAVIOR. And when you listen carefully, you can hear what she's singing together with the band and the audiences.

- - -

"I BELIEVE, I BELIEVE! I BELIEVE, I BELIEVE, JESUS! I BELIEVE, I BELIEVE! I BELIEVE, I BELIEVE IN YOU~"

"Through You, I can do anything. Oh, I can do all things. 'Cause it's You who gives me strength. Nothing is impossible~"

- - -

It's a worship song. Obviously, the entire people and performance happening in the plaza were meant for their religion. Christianity, which is the most populated religion in the world, by the way.

After a seconds, nag-green ang traffic light. Muling umandar ang sasakyan, nilagpasan namin 'yung maingay na plaza at tinahak ang entrance papasok sa subdivision.

After what I heard and saw, I frowned as though I've never been disgusted in my entire life.

Poor people. Nothing's more stupid than worshipping someone who doesn't even exist.

I mumbled, "What a cult."

***

That night, around nine o'clock, I found myself at my room's not-so-large balcony. Cold breeze touching my skin, under the moonlight, and the quiet neighborhood below my eyesight.

Nakahawak ang isang kamay ko sa parapet ng balkonahe, habang ang isa'y nakahawak sa body-tube ng aking teleskopyo.

Yes, I have a telescope. It's standing near the balcony's edge, with lenses pointing to the dark sky. Hence, after peeking at the telescope's eyepiece, tumayo ako nang tuwid at tumingala sa langit.

"Amazing," I commented underneath my breath.

I really do love stargazing, mostly when I'm bored inside the house or when the night sky's clean and starry, like what it is now. Those stars are so compatible with the moon's beauty. Beautiful universe, it is.

"KHEL..."

Out of the blue, a voice called my name. It's definitely not my aunt because what I heard was a voice of a 'man'. Gentle yet deep voice.

Napalingon ako sa likod, kaliwa at kanan. But I saw no one. Not even a shadow. Mas lalong kumunot ang noo ko. Nakakapagtakha. Who called me?

"Am I hallucinating?" asking myself.

No one's around, so there's none probability for someone to call my name. Well, perhaps I've misheard the wind. Subsequently, I just shook my head and fixed the bridge of my eyeglasses.

Muli, tumingala ako sa langit. I was astonished because the moon and the stars seemed glowing brighter than recently. But what really made me stunned... are the clouds.

Those cumulus clouds washed the dark space and suddenly formed two familiar faces. The cloud at the middle formed a "lion's face", then the cloud at the right side formed a "lamb's face".

I blinked thrice, fixing my eyeglasses to see if my eyes aren't tricking me. And it's real! The clouds clearly formed with faces of lion and lamb!

It's... Majestic.

The lion and the lamb.

_________________________________________

A/N:

The song mentioned in this chapter was entitled "Nothing Is Impossible" by Planetshakers.

Enjoy!