Every Tick of Serendipity ( Ruler of Fate Series #3 )

KABANATA 29

Kabanata 29

The twenty-ninth tick

I look for some mini towels after that — binasa ko 'yon at piniga: ang isa ay pinunas ko sa katawan niya, habang ang isa naman ay ipinatong ko sa noo niya. Hininaan ko rin ang air conditioner kagaya ng sabi ni Mommy, for him to sweat daw. I made sure to wipe his slightly wet skin din with a dry towel before ko siya kumutan ulit.

After that, I started preparing the ingredients needed for the adobo that Mommy told me how to make.

"What's this?" My nose scrunched, in confusion, "Why does he have two salt ba?" naguguluhan kong tanong matapos makita ang mas maliit na lalagyan kaysa sa na-unang kinuha ko kanina.

"This isn't white sugar naman..." I mumbled and looked at the sugar that was literally a stock — not opened yet — on his kitchen cabinets.

I shrugged and place the bigger container back. "Maybe he's using this... Uh..." I looked for its name, "Ajinomoto-small one para hindi heavy." dagdag ko bago ilapag sa counter niya 'yon.

"Pepper..." I pointed at it, and the next ones. "Leaves..." My mouth formed an 'o'. "I mean laurel..." I chuckled. "Salt... Vinegar... Soy sauce..." My forehead creased, "What do you call this one?" bulong ko nang makita ang chilli, but in a bigger size. "It's green... So maybe, si..." My head tilted. "Siling green?" I nodded my head slowly. "Yup!" A smile formed on my lips when I remembered it.

I crossed my arms, "I have pork na rin and it's wash too." I pouted, "Should I call, Mommy? I feel like I'm missing something..." I tilted my head to the other side. Dumaan ang ilang minuto na tinitignan ko lang lahat ng sangkap na sinabi niya.

I gasped, "The garlic and onion nga pala!" my hand clapped as I said that. Nilibot ko ang tingin sa buong kusina niya. I went to one of his mini baskets and took one onion. Aabutin ko na sana ang garlic nang may maisip. "Mommy sometimes divides it, eh." My lips turned into a frown because of that. "She told me nga pala na four lang..." I shook my head and tore some gloves from the whole garlic. "Buti nalang I remembered, kasi I'm almost close in ruining this adobo..?"

Ngumiwi ako nang kuhanin ko ang knife at chopping board niya. "First... Durugin daw yung garlic." I said, while doing that. "Then, minced it daw... So, durog." I pursed my lips and started chopping the garlic down, with my body slightly away from it — only my right hand was holding the knife, and the other one was raised. "As in durog na durog..."

"That looks okay naman na." I said when I saw no chunks anymore. I shrugged and took the onion. "Peel daw muna yung skin sabi ni Mommy."

My nose scrunched when I smelled the aroma coming from it. I started sniffing as I put the onion down. "This stings..." I pouted.

Sa bawat hiwa ko ng sibuyas ay padagdag nang padagdag ang panlalabo ng mga mata ko. I started crying, so I reached for the onion because I couldn't cut it na with my one hand lang. Next thing I knew, I felt a pain in my finger tips. "Aw..." Ngumiwi ako at pumikit. Nang idilat ko ang mga mata ko, nakita ko ang maliit na hiwa at dugong lumalabas mula ro'n.

I bit my lip when I felt the skin around my wound feel more painful. It's as if it were throbbing a bit. I went to the sink and let the water wash away my blood, even though it added to the sore.

Pinagpatuloy ko ang pahihiwa nang wala ng lumabas na dugo mula ro'n. Again, along with the pain in my finger, my eyes started tearing as I sliced the onion. "Why does this make me cry ba..." I sniffed and stomped my feet. "Cooking is hard..." I pouted. "And I'm just slicing palang naman."

Binitawan ko ang kutsilyo nang masugatan nanaman ako. This time, it's a lot longer, and the blood is madami na rin compared kanina. I ran back to the sink, with my twitching lips, and let the water clean my wound for me.