400 Days After Fina

Day 760

400 Days After Fina by JellOfAllTrades
Epilogue

The refreshing greenery of the province is a welcome change from the polluted and sometimes overwhelming environment of Metro Manila. Trees lined up the edge of the highway with the occasional houses here and there. Other vehicles passed by on the opposite lane but other than an obnoxiously loud sports car overtaking us an hour ago, the drive back to Calauag is fairly uneventful.

On the right side of the road, the trees gave way to a few houses and then came into view a black gated area on the foot of a mountain. I slowed down the car and drove right in through the arch that had a sign that read Villa Felisa Memorial Park.

I stopped the car beside the small chapel in the middle of the cemetery and Angel quickly unbuckled her seatbelt and reached for our stuff on the backseat. There was a thud as something fell at the back and Angel bent to pick it up.

"Hey, dahan dahan lang." I tell her, fascinated by the tempting view of her butt in the air. I bet she'll squeak if I slapped her ass but maybe there's a chance she'll moan. Either way, I turned the engine off and removed my seatbelt, choosing not to act on my malicious thoughts. There's an appropriate time and place for that and it's not here.

"Dalian mo na jan habang hindi pa masyadong mainit yung sikat ng araw." She replied with a voice filled with excitement.

"May payong naman tayo?"

She just rolled her eyes at me and handed me the basket of white lilies we had picked up for her best friend. "Nasaan na yung lighter?"

"Compartment,"

Angel opened the compartment, grabbed the red lighter inside, dropped it in our plastic bag of candles, and opened the car door. Once outside, Angel took a deep breath of the fresh Calauag air. "Finally!"

I put on my sunglasses and grabbed an umbrella for Angel. "Mamaya ka mag-finally jan. Nasa sementeryo tayo."

"Tara na kasi!"

We closed the car doors and I turned on the car alarm. As we walked away, I moved closer to Angel and opened the umbrella over her. She then held onto my arm and together we made our way through the dusty tombstones, cracked statues of angels, moss-covered crosses and haunted-looking mausoleums. The whole cemetery was silent and deserted except for us.

"Nai-imagine mo pa rin bang kasama mo siya minsan?" Angel asked.

"Hindi na," I replied, remembering the countless times I had called out to my first love for support.

"Napapanaginipan mo pa rin ba siya?"

"Hindi na rin."

We stopped in front of a cross half-covered in green moss. It needs a little bit of cleaning but the inscription was still readable.

In loving memory of
Fine E. Romulo

"Hi, Fina," I said to the cross, placing the basket of white lilies beside it. "Long time, no see."

"We miss you," Angel muttered, kneeling beside me and handing me one of the candles from the bag. We lit three candles before standing up and stepping away to admire Fina's final resting place.

Two years have passed since she died but sometimes it still feels like yesterday when we would meet at the seaside playground and talk until the sun sets. I still remember perfectly how her long black hair would flutter against the sea breeze, how her intelligent brown eyes would look at me like she can see through my soul, and how her smile could cheer me up instantly. She was a joy to be around with and she was gone too soon.