After Her 18th (Ongoing)

Third💎

"How's motherhood?" Aileen was sitting in front of me, looking tired.

"Hindi ko alam kung paano mo nakaya nung ikaw ang nasa posisyon ko." Nandito kami ngayon sa restaurant malapit lang sa kumpanya dahil may meeting pa ako mamayang alas-kuwatro.

Kami palang dalawa ni Aileen ang nandito, we're still waiting on Ari and Abby na hindi namin alam kung saang banda ng mundo sila inilagay.

"Ky was not really a crier when he was a baby, kaya hindi masyadong mahirap alagaan. When I called, sabi ng asawa mo palagi raw umiiyak si Xander nitong nakaraan."

"Hindi siya nagpapakarga ng ibang tao, kahit sa papa niya. Umiiyak kapag hindi boses ko ang naririnig. My maternity leave isn't gonna last until he's old enough to understand that I cannot be beside him all the time. Hindi ko alam kung anong gagawin namin."

"Hey, don't beat yourself up for it." Raising a kid is not easy. There are so many adjustments we have to settle within our lives that we have to accept. And no one is always perfect on their first tries.

"Ky wasn't easy with meeting strangers too. Since he grew up in the states, pag-uwi naming rito, kahit sa pamilya namin hindi siya nagpapakarga. You just have to let him get used to the other person's presence. He's still a baby, he's more on sense than thought."

"Xander just needs getting used to. Hindi naman talaga agad-agad gumagaan ang loob ng bata sa taong hindi siya sanay sa prisensya. Babies will always feel comfortable with their mothers first, but that doesn't mean they won't ease up to other people along the way." I remember when I skipped a class because Ky was crying nonstop, and I had an exam earlier that day that's why late ko na nabasa ang text ni yaya Mels. Turns out, nilagnat pala siya, so I missed quite a bit of my lectures kasi nag-absent ako para maalagaan siya. Buti nalang tinulungan ako ni Draco na mag catch up.

"Maybe Kyro's process was a bit faster, but that doesn't mean slow progress isn't progress. Nasaan si Xander ngayon?"

"At home, kasama ang papa niya." Sagot niya.

"See? You can leave him alone with his dad. Hindi ka pa naman tinatawagan ng asawa mo para umuwi dahil umiiyak na naman ang anak niyo, diba?" Tumango naman siya, "You just need to give them time to get used to each other na wala ka. You'll just be surprised, one day he'll prefer his dad over you."

"What's with all the seriousness? I thought we're gonna talk about a party?" Sabay kaming napalingon sa bagong dating.

"Abby!" Sabay kaming napatayo ni Aileen para yakapin siya.

We lost touch with Abby for the longest time after college, as fate would have it, the bitch vanished due to the audacious risks of her job, only to resurface three years later as a married woman.

So, yes. She had a lot of answering to do.

"Ano bang pinag-uusapan niyo?" Anito nang bumalik kami sa pag-upo at tumabi siya sa'kin.

"Xander." Sabay naming wika.

"Ooh. Who would've thought we'd get to the point where we talk about baby problems." Natawa kaming tatlo dahil tama nga naman. Sino bang mag-aakalang tatagal kami ng ganito? Our friendship went through so much the past ten years, but look at us now? We're sitting in a restaurant, on a Thursday midday, to plan a birthday party while we talk about our children.

"So? Baby giving you a hard time?" Aileen told Abby what she told me, and our friend expressed how she had the same problems with Iris—her daughter—back then as well. But the kid grew up to become so bubbly and friendly you wouldn't think she was a cranky baby.

Like I said, kids have their own pace, and we're just helping them to find what's comfortable for them to settle in. As parents we don't control them, we let them figure things out on their own by guiding them, making sure their chosen paths won't harm them in any way.