A Happily Ever After

𝓟𝓻𝓸𝓵𝓸𝓰𝓾𝓮

It was supposed to be a typical Sunday afternoon.

I am only supposed to accompany my mother in buying groceries, I only planned to spend the rest of the day by myself inside my room. It was supposed to be a typical, slow, and chill Sunday.

But everything went a little different when I saw the newly opened book shop just a few blocks away from my home.

Nagpaalam ako sa nanay ko na may titignan lang ako saglit sa kanto ng street namin at hindi na rin ako naghintay sa kung anong sagot niya. Basta alam ko nalang ay lumabas muli ako ng bahay na suot suot pa rin ang pang-alis.

Hindi naman kalayuan ang bookshop na iyon kaya nakarating ako doon ng halos ilang minuto lamang.

I stopped for a while and just stood there, studying the area like a curious cat. The bookstore is not inside of a small room as I was expecting. It was just settling in the tiny space between two commercial buildings. Wala nga ring ilang signage o ano ang naka-display sa harapan na pwedeng makita agad kahit nasa malayo ako. Mas kapansin pansin 'nga rin ang gulo sa magkabilang buildings — ang ingay ng mga taong kumakain sa karinderya sa kabila, at ang malakas ng pagpukpok ng kung anong metal sa vulcanizing shop sa kabilang building. Wala tuloy ako naging ideya kung paano ko pa napansin ang bookstore na ito, dahil mukha 'bang pinilit lang ito na magkaroon ng pwesto para makapagbenta.

I continued to study the store. From here I can see a few woods supporting the poor iron sheet roof and the planks of wood lying on the ground. Thick and tiny vines crawled their way across the soiled walls like blood vessels on a human's skin.

Mali pala ang tanong ko, paano ko 'nga ba hindi mapapansin ang lugar na ito? There's something with the sloppily stack of books that's pushing me to come and take a look. There's something about this place and how it sits quietly in between two busy places. It's like a wallflower, patiently waiting to be noticed by someone.

That someone is going to be me. So I finally gathered my senses and stirred. I took a careful step and went inside.

A lightbulb casted out boring shades of oranges and illuminated the stacks of paperback books in browns and yellows. Stocks of books are jam-packed literally everywhere — on my left and on my right. The stack continues up until it's only a few inches away from touching the iron roof. The smell of old papers drifted in the tiny space that made my chest bloom happily.

The planks of woods creaked and rocked as I walked over one another. I took my time to breathe in the fragrant earthy scent. The warmth from being surrounded by stacks of old books wrapped me, easing all the mild tension that's been building up in me since early morning.

I sighed. I've been to a lot of bookstores and book sales, but I've never seen a place as jam-packed with books like this one. Napakaliit lang ng tindahan na ito pero bawat espasyo ay nasakop ng mga libro.

Ilang maliliit na sinag ng araw ang tumatagos mula sa butas ng bubong that gave more ethereal ambience to the small space. Na-imagine ko agad ang mangyayari kapag umulan, they must have a better roof in places like this.

This place is really messy, very small, not the best to be comfortable in, but I feel utterly happy. There are no decorations nor any interior designs. Just the books, the lightbulb and the tiny rays of sunlight, yet it feels so surreal.

"Pili ka na, ija."

I turned and almost lost my balance because of the rocky planks below me. Isang matandang lalaki ang bigla lumitaw sa gilid ng store na para bang sumulpot nalang siya sa anino ng mga libro. Halos bilang na lang ng kamay ko ang puting buhok niya sa ulo. Ang kanyang simpleng puting shirt at isang jogging pants na hindi umabot sa pinakasakong niya ay lalong nagpakita sa kanyang payat na balangkas.