“Subject 43, Katalina. Step forward.” I blinked several times before stepping forward. The man in the white suit and headgear pointed a scanner to my wrist, which why I immediately pulled the uniform up.
He scanned the barcode and when my identity was confirmed to the mini-screen in front of us. He nodded at me and said, “30 minutes break. After that, you’ll be cleaning the thirteenth facility. Now, proceed.”
Agad akong umalis sa harap nito bago pa ako tuluyan na matitigan nito. Pumila ako sa canteen saka naghanap ng puwesto kung saan maaari akong mag-solo, nang may umupo sa aking tapat ay agad akong nag-angat ng tingin.
“Hi,” bati nito.
Hindi ko ito pinansin dahil namomroblema pa ako kung paano ba ako kakain sa sitwasyon ko ngayon. Oras na tanggalin ko ang facemask na nagkukubli sa mukha ko’y makikilala nila ako, lalo na’t ako ang hinahanap nilang lahat.
“You’re not Katalina, are you?” I looked to the man with a baffled face.
As he slowly removed his facemask, a familiar face welcomed me.
“Nate?” I exclaimed. He surprisingly covered my mouth and carefully looked around.
All of a sudden, he pulled something on the table, making us secluded from the others. Our bodies were suddenly covered with polyester walls, yet it was just a tiny space and we are still sitting in our seats.
“What the hell are you doing here, Amira? And where the hell is Katalina?” He whispered.
“Ano ‘to?” Tanong ko. Iimik sana siya nang may marinig kaming ingay sa labas at pag-upo sa aming lamesa.
Sumipol ang nasa labas saka ito umimik, “Couple lounge agad? Are you for real, Nate?” Damn, I’m in the wrong person to disguise with.
“Bakit ka nandito? Alam mo naman sigurong delikado ka kay Tito August ngayon!” Inis na singhal nito saka hinigit pababa ang aking facemask at sumenyas na kumain ako.
Nakangiwi ko s’yang tiningnan at pinanood, “Alex and Peter didn’t actually get those military suits by themselves, aren’t they?”
“Of course, it is all on me— Wait, you’re with your nut-head brother? Dapat ay hindi na ako nag-tatakha, after all, it is your genes na. ‘Yong bunso may sapak sa ulo, ikaw ‘yon, Amira. Tapos ‘yong kuya parang tanga at syempre nagmana sa tatay na mismong pamangkin, ako ‘yon ay sinali sa kanyang munting experiment.” Natatawa akong pinanood ang aking pinsan habang nagrereklamo sa ‘kin.
Nathaniel Fernandez is my cousin from my father’s side. He was attending a university here in Besodiah, so I was no longer baffled why he is here. But I can’t still imagine that my father would use him for his wicked antics as if they don’t have the same blood running in their veins.
At sa tulong nina Alex at Peter ay nakapuslit kami sa lugar na ito. Nagpanggap kami na pinagagalitan nila kami dahil upang mapansin kami ng ibang officers sa lugar na ito, it was a tricky strategy that our little Spencer came up with.
“So, who’s this Katalina? Your girlfriend?” I teasingly asked.
“Yeah, and where is she by the way?”
“At the underground base… Tito Tristan and the others are studying how they will remove the capsules out of their body,”
After finishing our food, I immediately covered my face with the facemask again. The divider automatically disappeared, simply exposing us both.
“Isn’t it too early for mukbang, Nate?” Napangiwi ako sa ilalim ng facemask dahil sa dinami-dami ng pwedeng kasama ni Nate ang ay nakakaasar n’ya pang kapatid.
BINABASA MO ANG
OUTCAST (PUBLISHED)
Science FictionPUBLISHED UNDER IMMAC PPH After an unexpected apocalypse, Amira and her friends found themselves trapped inside the border of Luzon, in which the virus was spreading rapidly. And in order to keep living, they needed to reach the capital of Luzon, an...
