Loving You For No Reason

Beginning

There's nothing quite like coming back to a place that hasn't changed to see how much you've grown. Xamuel couldn't exactly remember the last time he visited back to an old place, specifically the country he spent the ups and downs of his youth.

Xamuel adjusted the plane's air conditioner to a higher temperature when he felt himself shivering by simply imagining the things he had been avoiding thinking of for the past years. His left hand lazily pulled down the window's shade to prevent himself from daydreaming.

He was aware that his flight from America to the Philippines would be long, so he reminded himself not to be emotional this early. He wasn't supposed to be gloomy or anxious, but his nerves refused to cooperate.

He instinctively grabbed his phone from his pocket when he felt it vibrating. It was an incoming call from his loving wife, Klassey, who was left home with their children.

"Hon, na sa plane ka na?" his wife asked curiously the second he answered the call.

"Yes... we're about to take off any time now," Xamuel replied with a small smile visible on his face. Just hearing his wife's voice was enough to make him feel at ease.

"Good! Balitaan mo ako once you already landed in the Philippines."

"Sure, sige. I'll take pictures, too, para ipakita sa mga anak natin."

His wife was unable to answer directly. Instead, he heard one of their children shouting something from afar. "Be back on the said date raw, sabi ng anak mo. She already misses you!" Klassey interpreted what his daughter said, which made Xamuel chuckle.

"Yes, hon. I'll be back in five days," he assured them.

"Okay, hon. Ingat palagi, we love you!"

Their conversation ended as soon as he said "I love you" to his wife afterward. He didn't want to switch off his phone yet, so he put it on airplane mode to avoid disturbing his surroundings. He couldn't help but think about it again now that he was on board and had nothing to do but wait for the plane to take off.

"Thirteen years na rin pala ang nakalipas," bulong niya sa sarili nang napagtanto kung gaano na katagal simula noong opisyal siyang lumisan sa bansang nakagisnan.

Hindi ito ang unang pagkakataon niyang magkaroon ng oportunidad na bumalik sa Pilipinas. Maraming lumipas na pagkakataon si Xamuel upang bumalik sa bansang iniwan sa loob ng mga nakaraang taon ngunit tila hindi niya kayang tumapak muli sa lupa nito. Ngayon niya lamang naisipang bumalik dahil negosyo nila ang nakasalalay. Walang ibang pwedeng utusan o gawing pamalit sa kanya kaya hindi na rin siya nakaiwas.

Maraming naiwan si Xamuel sa Pilipinas at isa na roon ang mga matatalik niyang kaibigang sina Lion, Frost at South. Lahat naman sila ay may sari-sariling social media accounts kaya kahit papaano'y nanatili silang konektado sa isa't isa pero hindi na rin sila gano'n kadalas mag-usap.

Noong nalaman ng mga kaibigan niyang babalik si Xamuel saglit sa Pilipinas ay daig pa nila ang mga kasapi ng isang patimpalak sa saya. Natuwa rin si Xamuel sa kanilang naging reaksyon kaya naman nahikayat na siyang tumuloy. Hindi napansin ni Xamuel ang pagsilay ng kanyang ngiti habang iniisip na makikita niya na muli sila pagkatapos ng isang dekada.

Sa loob ng nagdaang mga taon, tanggap na ni Xamuel ang katotohanang maraming nagbago hindi lang sa kanya kung hindi sa kanilang apat na magkakaibigan. Simula noong nangyari ang paglisan ng isa sa kanila, pinilit na nilang pakonti-konting tanggapin na hindi na sila mababalik sa dati.

Xamuel frowned when he noticed his phone lit up. He held it in his right hand just above his thigh. His eyes narrowed as he struggled to read the notification that had suddenly appeared. He knew he couldn't receive messages or calls now that his phone was in airplane mode, which made him determined to find out what kind of alert was sent through.