WHEN WE FLEW

RASTRO 26

AUTHOR'S CORNER

First of all madaming thank you po for reading. Reaching again 1k is like reaching a dream. Chos 😅

Madaming salamat 🙏
Sana lahat ay nasa mabuting kalagayan 💙🌻

🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻

💙🌻

- Althea-

SIX YEARS EARLIER

My room is Alice's now. Alice's room is my room.

We graduated. We moved in together. We're in college now.

See? We've got this.

Bachi brings in the last of the boxes from the car.

"Where do you want this one?" she asks.

"What is it?" Alice asks her.

She tells her it looks like a box full of her bras and underwear. She laughs and tells her to set it next to my dresser. Bachi does.

Bachi likes Alice. Bachi likes that she's not holding me back. Bachi likes that she wants me to get my degree and finish flight school.

Alice wants me to be happy. I tell Alice I'll be happy as long as I have her.

She tells me, "Then you'll always be happy."

My dad still hates me. My dad doesn't want to hate me. They're trying to accept it, but it's hard. It's hard for everyone.

Alice doesn't care what everyone thinks. She only cares what I think, and I only think about Alice.

I'm learning that no matter how difficult a situation is, people learn how to adapt to it. My dad and her mom may not approve, but they'll adapt.

Alice may not be ready to be a mom, and I may not be ready to be a mom too, but we're adapting.

It's what has to happen. If people want peace within themselves, it's necessary.

Vital, even.

•••••••🌻

"Althea."

I love my name when it comes out of her mouth. She doesn't waste it. She only says it when she needs something. She only says it when it needs to be said.

"Althea." She said it twice.

She must really need something.

I roll over, and she's sitting up in bed. She looks at me, wide-eyed.

"Althea." Three times.

"Althea." Four.

"It hurts."

Shit.

I jump out of bed and grab our bag. I help Alice change clothes. I help her to the car.

She's scared.

I might be more scared than she is.

I hold her hand while we drive. I tell her to breathe. I don't know why I tell her this. Of course, she knows to breathe.

I don't know what else to tell her.

I feel helpless.

Maybe she wants her mom.

"Do you want me to call them?"

She shakes her head.

"Not yet," she says.

"After."

She just wants it to be us. I like this. I just want it to be us, too.

A nurse helps her out of the car. They take us to a room. I get Alice whatever she needs.

"Do you need ice?" I get it for her.

"Do you want a cold rag?" I get it for her.

"Do you want me to turn off the TV?" I turn it off.

"Do you want another blanket, Alice? You look cold."

I don't get her a blanket. She's not cold.

"Do you want more ice?" She doesn't want
more ice. She wants me to shut up.

I shut up.

"Give me your hand, Althea." I give it to her.

I want it back. She's hurting it.

I let her keep it anyway.

She's quiet. She never makes a sound. She just breathes. She's incredible.

I'm crying. I don't know why.

The doctor tells her she's almost done. I kiss her on the forehead.

It happens. I'm a mom. She's a mom.

"It's a boy," the doctor says.

She's holding him. She's holding my heart.

He stops crying. He tries to open his eyes.

Alice cries. Alice laughs.

Alice tells me thank you.

Alice tells me thank you. Like she wasn't the one who created this.

Alice is crazy.

"I love him so much, Althea," she says. She's still crying.

"I love him so, so much."

"I love him, too," I tell her.

I touch him. I want to hold him, but I want her to hold him even more. She looks beautiful holding him.

Alice looks up at me.

"Will you please tell me his name now?"

I was hoping he would be a boy so I could have this moment. I was hoping I could tell her what her son's name is, because I know she'll love it.

I hope she remembers the moment she
became my everything.

Althea is going to show you the way to Mr. Mercado's class, Alice.

"His name is Merc."

She begins to sob.

She remembers.

"It's perfect," she says, her words mixed with tears.

She's crying too hard now. She wants me to hold him.

I sit on the bed with her and take him.

I'm holding him. I'm holding my son.

Alice rests her head on my arm, and we stare at him.

We stare at him for so long. I tell Alice he has her red hair. Alice says he has my lips. I tell Alice I hope he has her personality. She disagrees and says she hopes he's just like me.

"He makes life so much better," she says.

"He sure does."

"We're so lucky, Althea."

"We sure are."

Alice squeezes my hand.

"We've got this," Alice whispers.

"We've so got this," I tell her.

Merc yawns, and it makes us both laugh. Since when did yawns become so incredible?

I touch his fingers.

We love you so much, Merc.

👉 RastroForKeeps 👈