“Stop! ” I told him then pushed him away from me. Kanina medyo magaan pa paghampas niya‚ ngayon‚ parang namemersonal na. “Masakit‚ Sylvestre. Sa totoo lang. ” dugtong ko at tinarayan siya.
“Sadya. Am trying to execute you so you won't murder me anymore. ” sagot niya at muli akong hinampas.
“Hayop ka talaga. ” sigaw ko at nang magkaroon ng pagkakataon ay agad kong hinila ang kaniyang buhok. Serves him right‚ paunahan na lang kami kung sinong mamamatay ngayon.
“Aray! Hoy‚ masakit! ” sigaw niya habang pilit na tinatanggal ang pagkakahawak ng kamay ko sa kaniyang buhok. Nang makawala sa pagkakasabunot ay tinitigan niya ako nang masama.
“Ano? Gaganti ka? Kanina ka pa nanghahampas. ” sagot ko at tinitigan din siya ng masama.
“Tama na iyan. Baka magkasakitan kayo. ” Pang-aawat sa amin ni Kuya Jollester saka kinuha ang unan kay Kei. Ayaw pa sana itong bitawan ni Tukmol subalit wala na rin siyang nagawa pa nang hampasin ni Kuya ang kaniyang kamay.
“Kanina pa sila nagkakasakitan‚ tanga. ” sagot naman ni Beyonce na kanina pa pasalit-salit ng tingin sa amin ni Keian.
“Eto kasi‚ ” we said in chorus. I glared at him. Ako na naman daw ba ang sisihin.
“The more you hate—”
“The more you wanna burn them alive‚ ” pamumutol ni Kei sa sasabihin sana ng kaniyang kaibigan.
“The more you wanna scratch their skin off their body‚ ” dagdag ko naman.
“Because your ear loves how they scream. ” sagot naman ni Kei.
“And their loud cries begging for mercy defines music for you. ” sagot ko sa kaniya na may kasamang diin sa bawat salitang binabagsak ko.
“HOY! ” sigaw sa amin ng dalawa pa naming kasama.
“Maghiwalay nga kayong dalawa. Hala sige‚ baka magpatayan pa kayo. ” tarantang sabi ni Beyonce at hinila ako papalapit sa kaniya.
“Kaya nga. Ayokong makasaksi ng live na patayan. ” dagdag pa ni Kuya at umupo na sa tabi ni Tukmol.
“Boring‚ ” buntong hininga na sabi ni Kei nang makaupo na sa tabi niya si Kuya sabay hampas ng unan dito. Talaga bang kaedaran niya lang sila? Bakit parang bata siya na nasa katawan ng matanda? Grabe kung umasta eh. “Tinitingin-tingin mo riyan? " sabi niya sa akin at tinaasan pa ako ng kilay.
“Oh‚ baka mag-away pa kayo‚ ha. ” awat agad sa amin ni Kuya Jollester.
“Maglaro na lang tayo‚ ” pagpapakalma sa amin ni Beyonce.
“Ng? ” sabay na tanong namin Keian. Nagkatitigan naman kami nang masama.
“Ahmm brain teaser? ”
“And then anong twist? ” tanong ko naman.
“Truth or dare sa hindi makasagot? ” sagot sa akin ni Kuya Jollester.
“Aight. I’ll start. ” sagot sa amin ni Beyonce. We nodded in unison. “What can you hold without ever touch? ”
“Breath‚ ” sagot ko.
“Wait lang. Huwag ka agad sumasagot. Magbibigay ako ng sasagot‚ be. Kapag hindi niya nasagutan‚ paparusahan niya. Ganun. ” paliwanag niya sa akin. Sorry naman‚ pabida eh‚ haha.
“Two baseball teams played a game. One team won but no man touched base. How could that be‚ love? ” bakit naman may pa-call sign? Akala ko ba mind game ito? Jusko.
“Babae sila lahat‚ basic. " sabi ni Kuya habang hinahawi ang kaniyang buhok. Yabang ahh‚ pero yeah‚ ‘di ko na-gets iyon agad.
“Next next. What month of the year has 28 days in it‚ Ash? ” biglaang tanong sa akin ni Beyonce.
“February? ” alinlangan kong sagot sa kaniya.
“Sure na ba? ” natatawang tanong niya. Bakit‚ mali ba ang sagot ko?
“Yes‚ February‚ it is. ”
“Wrong‚ ” sabi naman ni Kuya na may kasama pang pag-cross ng kaniyang mga braso. Ha? Bakit? Is it because may leap year pa?
“All of the months have 28 days‚ ” sagot sa akin ni Kei na may kasama pang pagbuntong hininga. Wow‚ para naman akong failure niyan. Sorry naman‚ fast talk nangyari eh.
“Truth or dare? " tanong ni Beyonce saka ngumiti ng malaki sa akin.
“Truth‚ ” sagot ko na lang.
“Tanungin mo na lang ng mga pang-genius na tanong. Mukhang wala naman siyang tinatago sa atin e—” naputol naman ang sasabihin ni Kuya nang biglang sumingit si Beyonce.
“May gusto ka ba kay Keian? ”
Napangiwi naman ako sa tanong niya. Sayang question mo. Sana nga tinanong mo na lang ako ng makabuluhang tanong. Susko.
“Over my dead body‚ ” I said nonchalantly. Keian stared at me. Asa naman siyang magkakagusto ako sa kaniya eh puro sama nga ng loob binibigay niya sa akin.
“Aight. Sabi ko nga. Akala ko lang naman. ” Kumakamot sa ulong sabi ni Beyonce.
“Kaya nga. Daig ni’yo pa ang magkasintahan kung magharuta—”
“Correction. It’s an alitan and not harutan you say‚ ” I cut Kuya’s words while trying to emphasize the word alitan on it.
“Almost the same. Parang bonding na rin iyon. ” nakangiting pagsasangayon ni Beyonce sa sinabi ni Kuya.
“Walang bonding na gustong magpatayan‚ ” sagot naman ni Kei. I think I heard that words before. Hindi ko lang matandaan kung saan ba.
“Siya‚ magtatanong na lang ako . What has 13 hearts but no other organs? Ikaw naman sumagot‚ Kei. ” turo ni Kuya Jollo sa kaibigan.
“A deck of cards. Question‚ What comes at the end of everything‚ Beyonce? ”
“Nothingness? ” Keian shooked his head to her answer. “Death? ”
“Common sagot mo. Riddle kaya ito. ” natatawang sagot sa kaniya ng kasintahan.
“But anong pinagkaiba ng nothingness at death. Bakit mo pinaghiwalay? " tanong ko kay Beyonce.
“Magkaiba iyon‚ ” sagot niya sa akin.
“Oo nga‚ ano nga pong pinagkaiba? Isn’t death similar to nothingness? Or do they resemble each other? If the universe is not on a cycle‚ it is impossible for something to exist without being birthed by nothingness. ” sagot ko pabalik.
“There is no such thing as nothingness‚ ” sagot sa akin ni Keian.
“I know. Nothingness is a different something‚ therefore‚ it is not empty at all. My point is‚ anong pinagkaiba ng death sa nothingness. " paglilinaw ko naman.
“Sabi mo nga‚ birthed by nothingness. Therefore‚ nothingness is the beginning‚ and death is the ending. ” Keian said.
“But ending is nothing also‚ ”
“Hatdog‚ Ash. Huwag mo na pahirapan sarili mo. Ganito na lang‚ isipin mo na lang‚ the existence itself is a paradox of the existence of death or the nothingness. So yeah‚ Antinomy paradox. Huwag mo na i-solve pa. ” natatawa nang sagot ni Beyonce. Well yeah‚ made sense but ahh. Yeah‚ whatever.
“Next question‚ please. ” naiinip nang sabi ni Tukmol.
“Tom and his younger sister were fighting. Their mother was tired of the fighting and decided to punish them by making them stand on the same piece of newspaper in such a way that they couldn't touch each other. How did she accomplish this‚ buddy? ” tanong ni Kuya kay Keian. Hindi ko gets. Naglaro kami before nung paper dance and there’s no way na hindi man lamang magtagpo ang kanilang mga balat. Well‚ unless if malaki iyong newspaper?
“As is. Is there any hidden meaning behind? Or a hidden answer? ” walang ganang sagot ni Tukmol. Hatdog talaga ito kahit kailan.
“Bruu naman‚ ” sabi naman sa kaniya ng kaibigan habang nakatampal ang kaniyang kamay sa kaniyang noo. Sino ba naman kasing gaganahan sa sagot ni Kei?
“What? May iba pa nga bang sagot? ”
“Di ba may awang sa ilalim ng pinto? Pinasok doon nung nanay nila ung diyaryo. Basically‚ nakatayo ung magkapatid each side ng pinto so hindi talaga magtatagpo ang mga balat nila. ” paliwanag ng kaibigan.
“Well‚ sorry to burst your bubble‚ kahit pa ipagtabi mo sila‚ they couldn't touch each other. ”
“Cause we are humans? ” sagot ko. Mukhang gets ko pinaghuhugutan ni Tukmol.
“Malamang naman‚ Ash. Mukha ba tayong hayop? "
“Nope. But we are the highest form of animal. And yes‚ since we are humans‚ we are made up of atoms. ” sagot ko.
“Atoms never touch each other due of the nuclei’s repulsive forces. Only a pressure provides us the sensation of touch‚ which is caused by repulsion forces operating on the areas that have come into contact. ” dagdag naman ni Kei.
“And two atoms cannot come into contact because of interatomic repulsive interactions. If I touched you‚ on a microscopic level, our skin would resist each other with that force so therefore‚ it does not touched each other. On a macroscopic level‚ para lang siyang nagta-touch. ” pagpapatuloy ko habang nakatingin sa dalawa naming kasama na ngayon ay nakatunganga na sa amin.
“Therefore‚ I can touch anyone without actually getting touch at all? tanong ni Beyonce. I nodded.
“Tulog yata ako nung tinuro iyan‚ ” sagot naman ni Kuya Jollo at humikab pa.
“Hindi ko matandaang tinuro iyan sa klase‚ ” dagdagpa ni Beyonce.
“Edi kayo na matalino. Basta ako tao lang‚ tapos wala pang inaapakang tao. Ay wait‚ so kapag tinadyakan kita‚ ibig sabihin hindi talaga kita tinadyakan kasi hindi naman nag-touch eh? ” natatawang tanong pa ni Kuya.
“Hindi mo nga alam iyan eh. Therefore‚ may ibang tao rin na hindi nakaaalam na we couldn’t actually touch each other. If you kicked someone who never know about this thing‚ well sorry‚ but on his perspective‚ your foot reached‚ and yeah‚ touched him. ”
“Atom could still touch each other depends on how touch define. It is about the sense of words. If we mean touch as an influence‚ and atoms influenced another atoms‚ therefore‚ atoms’ touched. ”
“Ewan ko sa inyo. Bahala na kayo riyan. Sakit sa ulo. ” natatawang sagot ni Beyonce. “Sige‚ ito na lang kaysa riddle. Ahmm‚ mind game talaga ito. Read it somewhere down website. May mag-asawa‚ na nag-away. Tapos out of outrage‚ nasaksak nung lalaki yung asawa niya. Then dumped her body sa lugar na siya lang ang nakakaalam. He checked the area‚ wala namang nakakita so far‚ tapos yung ginamit niya sa pagpatay‚ tinapon niya na rin. Basically‚ he cleaned everything that might use againts him. Kinabukasan‚ may tumawag sa kaniyang pulis na sinabing nakita yung katawan ng asawa niyang patay na. Pagkarating niya roon‚ pinosasan siya agad ng mga pulis. Bakit? ” haba nun ahh. Medyo magulo but yeah‚ will analyze it.
“They pulled a fast one on him. They found the body of his wife‚ doesn’t specify the place‚ only the killer would know where it was‚ so if he went to the place without the police revealing where the body was‚ then he proved that he is indeed the killer. " sagot ni Kei. Ang bilis niya namang sumagot.
“Ash‚ may sasabihin ka pa? ”
“Umm the police might have never known where the body was‚ but knowing that he is the last person that the wife could have possibly made contact with‚ then he is one of the primary suspect even if they did not know about the fight that happened between the couple beforehand. They might have followed the husband when he went to the place he assumed where the police would be. That arrest also served as the lead in finding the wife’s body. ”
“Hmm sagot ni Kei ang tama but yeah‚ your answer also made sense. But honestly‚ saan galing talino ni'yo? Feel ko tuloy ambobo ko. ” kunwaring naiiyak na sagot ni Kuya Jollo.
“Ito‚ tanong. What was there before the Big Bang? ” nakangising sagot ni Beyonce.
“I am a Christian‚ " sagot ni Kei.
“And I believe in Science. ”
“We don't wanna apear to any Scientific or religious argument. People have a different beliefs‚ a nonsimilar judgement. ”