The Girl who Lived

38. The Diary

I grunted in frustration when my laptop’s screen turned black. Ang kabang aking nararamdaman ay napalitan ng pagkainis. “Sheep! Bakit ngayon pa na-low bat?”

I briskly walked to my wardrobe afterwards. Kung tama ang pagkakaalala ko, doon ko itinago ang charger ko dahil ayaw ko iyong makitang pakalat-kalat.

Puno ng mga bestida ang wardrobe ko kaya kailangan ko pang hawiin iyon para madali kong makita ang aking hinahanap. But when I found the charger, I also saw something else.

Mayroong maliit na pinto sa loob ng aparador ko.

Judging by its size, I bet that a cat can only get in. I wondered why a door like this even existed. May tinatago ba ito sa loob?

Driven by my curiosity, I decided to twist the small knob. Mas lalo akong nagtaka nang malamang nakakandado iyon.

Pero nang maalala kong may mas importante pa akong kailangang gawin ay bumalik na ako sa aking mesa. After plugging in the charger, I quickly opened my laptop again. Pero uminit naman ang ulo ko nang mabasa ko ang nakalagay sa screen.

“Downloading software updates? What the fudge? Nananadya yata ‘to eh!”

Napabuga na lang ako ng hangin bago padarag na sumandal sa aking upuan. I just tried my best not to smash my laptop on the floor. The download speed was snail-paced so I tried to find my phone instead. Doon ko na lang papanoorin ang videos. Nang umikot ako para kunin ang cellphone ko sa aking kama ay may nahagip ang aking mga mata.

The neck of the china doll that was displayed on my bedside table was shining. Katabi iyon ng aking alarm clock na hindi ko rin naman nagagamit noon dahil si Klein ang parating gumigising sa akin bawat umaga.

Tumalon ako sa aking kama para mas mabilis akong makalapit sa manika. My eyes bulged when I realized what was glinting on the pretty doll’s neck. It was a golden jewelry with a freaking key as its pendant! May hinala na agad ako kung para saan iyon!

Gamit ang nanginginig na daliri ay kinuha ko ang susi mula sa kuwintas ng manika. I was trembling, not because of fear but excitement. Gusto ko nang malaman kung ano ang laman ng maliit na pinto.

Halos madapa na ako habang tumatakbo pabalik sa harapan ng malaking aparador. I inserted the key and when I twisted it, I smiled satisfyingly when I heard a clicking sound. But dismay was evident on my face when I saw what was hidden inside the door.

Ano ba talaga ang inaasahan kong makita?

But I still grabbed all of the journals inside the compartment. Hinihingal kong binaba ang lahat ng mga iyon sa aking kama. Mukhang mga talaarawan ko iyon. But why would I keep all of these locked out?

I opened the first diary that I saw. My lips curved into a smile when I saw a cute handwriting. The letters weren’t aligned but they were readable though. And when I read the first entry, I saw that it was dated back almost twelve years ago.

September 1, 2008

Uhmm... hello, Diary? Papa gave you to me on this day. He told me that Mama in heaven also had her own Diary when she was young. At dahil idol ko si Mama at alam kong binabantayan niya ako araw-araw ay magsusulat din ako! Kaya sana maging friends din tayo, Diary!

By the way, it’s my seventh birthday! Can you greet me?

I was smiling all throughout while flipping the next pages. Hindi ko alam kung mawiwirdohan ba ako sa sarili ko dahil parang tinuturing kong imaginary friend ang diary ko noon. But still, it’s good to finally know something about my childhood.

Bumilib naman ako nang mapansing parang araw-araw ako nagsusulat noon. Hindi ko alam na ganito pala ako kasipag. The entries seemed to get longer each passing day. My nose even bled because of what I was reading. A seven-year old can really write in English at this young age? Unbelievable! Ano ako, genius?