Within the Walls

Chapter 20

 The both of us bolted through the hallway, not minding the rapid thumping of our footwear on the dark wood floor. Groans of annoyance erupted from inside of each door we passed, to which Aurelio and I shared a breathy laugh as we raced down the stairs. Our gaze never leaving each other, grinning all the way down stairs. The haunting weight in my chest disappearing from those dark brown eyes and a white smile. Remembering the times we were both together one evening. He got his mother’s warm and comfortable every, I though to myself.

 “Mabuti lamang ba ang lahat?” A stern yet inquisitive voice broke the silence in our dimension as the man from earlier asked if everything’s all right.

 With a frown on my face and rolling eyes from Aurelio–he turned his head to the man and nodded, I went a step further down which made see his full face in effect. The once warm and comfortable gaze was replaced with something cold, something soulless. I stared from my position, out of the open doors, kalesas roaming the streets accompanied with the clopping of their horses.

 “Shall we?” Aurelio placed a hand on shoulder, slightly startling me as I turned my head to see him. And there were those warm and comfortable eyes once more, peering down on me, enveloping in a shroud that made my cheeks warm and my stomach ran rampant with butterflies.

 I nodded in reply, craning to bring my hand up to touch his, but he retreated right away without my hands lifting even an inch. We run-walked to the door, peering from inside.

 “So, where did you think he’d go?”

 “I’ve never seen my dad here before, I thought you would know.”

 The atmosphere changed. His lips contorted into a hard line, and everything about him turned expressionless. “He should’ve stayed in your part of the town.” He hissed rather viciously, word like a whip crackling like the ones used in the kalesas.

 I just turned my head side to side, trying to examine every street he might have gone too. I don’t know what to reply, I want to ask but I don’t want him to get up and walk away from badgering him too much. As far as I can tell, he’s doing the same. We headed out to the streets, wandering through the streets in hopes to find my father.

 “Huwag po! Huwag po!” A distant sound of a woman’s cries jolted our heads to the side where it was heard. It wasn’t only the woman’s, mixed in were a high-pitched cries and screaming that I could only assume were from an infant. Seeing her clutching a white rolled-up cloth might be her baby. I felt my heart being pricked with a thousand needles when I shifted my gaze a little further from her, two Spanish guards pointing a rifle at the mother still crying for mercy.

 “Let’s not get mixed up–”

 “Are you just going to look away?” I snapped at him.

 “Look, they’re two guards–”

 “You can talk them out right? You did so when we met up.”

 He sighed, swinging his head to the side and back to the crying woman. “Let’s go.” He said as if he was being forced to.

 Aren’t you a revolutionary for Christ’s sake! You should be helping those people, did you just like being labelled as one for a title! I thought to myself, how I wish I can spat those words to his face. We tread the street to the crying mother. I don’t even want to look at Aurelio’s face for now as I developed a scowl on my face directed at the Spanish guards, preying on my people.

 A burst of energy surging through me as we walked near them until a black cloth-like dashed to the Spanish guards, the guards moaning in pain with what sounded like kicks and punches. The cloth fluttering back to the alleyway, leaving behind the two men clutching a part of their bodies while groaning. The crying woman still sat their shielding her baby. I raced towards her, turning my head side to side to see if anyone’s still there, then crouching to her level.

 “Inang, inang.” I shook her lightly. She looked up, clear horror in her face as she clutched her baby even tighter. I shook my arms in defense and saying I’m also a Filipino, in Tagalog.

 She breathed a sigh of relief, hugging with one arm as she held her baby a little looser with repeated thanks. She explained about her baby being sick and tried to get some medicine but stopped by the guards thinking she was holding something else.

 “Those bastards.” I muttered to myself, making sure she doesn’t hear it.

  I helped her stand up, noticing the baby’s cries replaced with giggling with hands reaching to my face.

 As we stood up, I put my finger on our grabbing hands, the baby immediately grasped it. “Aww!”

 The mother and I chuckled. I looked over Aurelio, who stood with an arm hidden behind him acting like my personal bodyguard. “Do you have medicine at home?” I whispered to him, to which I had to repeat as he leaned near me.

 He nodded and I looked back to the mother. “Mayroon kaming gamot, sama kayo sa amin.” I offered to give her medicine at Aurelio’s house. She smiled and said repeated thanks again.

 “Aurelio?” I gestured my hands to lead the way. He scoffed and went in front of us.

 The mother and I chatted as walked through the streets, her name was Gloria, she was a widow since two days ago, crying as she remembered her husband hasn’t been home since he went out to get some bread. A sudden flashback hit me to the night we met my dad, shivering from what happened. The baby was actually a she and the mother said she’s going to name it Ligaya as well. I felt a warm feeling in my heart as I took at a closer look at mini-Ligaya. Hair still not growing, brown skinned. A morena, I noted to myself, I couldn’t see her eyes since she was sleeping but she looked really cute to which I remarked to her mother. 

 “We’re here.” Aurelio announced as we stood in front of the door, he knocked three times and the door swung open.

 The servant greeted us, the mother and I waved our hands while Aurelio simply nodded. We ascended the stairs, the mother in amazement at how big the house was since she told to us she only lived in a simple hut in the insides of Intramuros.

 “Aurelio, where do you keep the medicine?”  

 “Head straight on the bedroom hallway, the door at the end.”

 I nodded.

 “Aurelio, may pinapasabi si Ginoong Liwayway.” The servant beckoned for Aurelio, from what I heard, was about something like a message from his father. Aurelio looked at us, I gestured my head to go the servant and that we can handle it. He mouthed an ‘okay’ and descended the stairs.

 “Halina Gloria, bigyan na natin ng gamot si Ligaya.” I smiled, telling them to let’s get the medicine.