Phone Call

The following three days in the mansion were uneventful. With Anita around, it had always been kept clean and tidy so we just changed the curtains and bed linen. Most of the time we were out in the garden pulling out the weeds or trimming the plants. Anita had natural talent for growing plants having been born in an agricultural province so Mom had taught her basic landscaping principles instead.

Mom loved to be in the garden surrounded by all the beauty of nature. She had a degree in architecture major in landscaping.

When I was young, Mom gave me some seeds. She didn't tell me what kind of seeds they were but instructed me to dig a hole in the soil and lay them there.

Everyday we would go to the garden to visit the the seeds that I planted, watered them and talked to them.

"Grow little seed. Grow into a beautiful healthy plant." I would say these words every morning to the seeds while watering them. Mom would stand behind me and pat my head while I crouched beside the plot where the seeds were planted while Dad watched us from the gazebo.

After four weeks, the seed had grown into a plant. The first time I saw several long, thin, green string beans hanging over the leaves and branches, I was ecstatic. That was the time Mom revealed to me that I had planted and grown a string bean.

I looked up at Mom and smiled at her. Because the morning sun was shining above her head it looked like she was covered with a crown of gold. From that position, Mom with a sweet smile, looked like a garden fairy, radiant and beautiful with her wavy long hair swaying against the cool gentle breeze.

Without a word, I hugged Mom's waist tightly. In turn, she bent down and wrapped her arms around my small shoulders. It was the most wonderful morning of my life.

Since the mansion was unoccupied for the most parts of the year, Dad had not bothered to buy a car nor maintained a driver. Therefore, Anita and I decided to take the cab to the supermarket to buy food stuff and ingredients to stock up the cupboards and refrigerator.

It was Thursday morning when we went to market. By the time we got home it was almost noon. Having been out for the first half of the day, there was no prepared food for lunch. The cupboard was almost bare but there were still packets of noodles there.

"Have you been eating noodles all the time?" I asked Anita with a worried look as she took two packets from the cupboard.

"Sometimes... when I'm too lazy to cook as I'm the only one here anyway." She answered as she started to boil some water on a cooking pot to put the noodles in.

"Then why don't we add some chopped cabbage to make it more nutritious," I suggested as I took out the cabbage from the shopping bag. "And of course drop some eggs there, too."

"Sure." She nodded as she took the vegetable from my hands and washed it on the sink. When she was about to chop the vegetable, she paused as if she just remembered something. "Someone called over the landline and asked for you last night. I didn't bother to tell you because it was already late and I figured you must be tired from weeding out the garden and must have been sleeping already."

I was indeed dead tired last night and probably fell asleep as early as nine o'clock in the evening. However I was not expecting a phonecall from anybody except from Dad and Mom. I knitted my brows in bewilderment. Who could have called me on the landline? Was it Brenda, Lizzie or Molly? Grandma or Uncle Ben? 'Hmm. I wonder what they want'.

"Was it one of my relatives? How about friends?" I asked curiously. My girl friends have been to the mansion once or twice before. Because I was rarely at Jasmine Garden, I had never thought nor intended to give the telephone number to anybody since I wouldn't be there most days therefore, it must have been any one of those people I mentioned.

"Uhm...well, it was a man." Anita's delighted expression made my brows crease deeper.

"Man?!? I never gave our phone number to just anyone what more to a man. "My voice trembled in apprehension. I had always been wary of strangers especially men. I racked my brains trying to remember if I made a huge security breach somehow.

From the time I started to live with grandma I had always taken precaution in dealing with people. She was very particular with the social class or status of people our family interacted with. For some reason she never trusted people beneath her social standing hence, she had been known in the community as a proud and domineering Zapanta matriarch.

"Well he said his name was Aaron Mercado and that you and him were classmates." Anita raised her eyebrows with a feeling of misgiving as well.

I bit my lip and recalled the incident that afternoon after taking the exams at A University. "Yeah, I do have a classmate by that name. But as far as I can remember I have never given him the mansion's phone number. Unless...."

Unless one of my three best friends had given him the number. Recalling that I had them swear to keep it a secret, I wondered who among them had the courage to give it away without my permission.

With a darkened expression on my face I went to the living room, grabbed the receiver, held it over my ear and dialed Brenda's number. When no one answered, I tried calling Lizzie's and Molly's homes as well.

I was able to connect to Molly's home number but was told that she was still in school. I thanked the person on the other end and slowly hung up the phone.

Instantly, I realized that it was a schoolday and had been absent for four straight days now. My irritation towards my friends had subsided but was replaced misery.

Feeling pathetic for hiding in the mansion, far away from people I care, I sank numbly on the sofa leaning my head over my hand. I looked out the window in a daze replaying on my mind the events of that fateful Sunday.

Soon Anita came out from the kitchen to tell me that lunch was ready. It was already twelve thirty by the time we started to eat the noodles garnished with eggs and vegetables.

"Hmmm. This is yummy," I said as I scooped some soup from my bowl. It must have been hunger that made me forget about my annoyance a moment ago so that even home-cooked noodles made my mouth drool. "I rarely eat this kind of food."

"Really? But you were the one who suggested to prepare these and add some vegetables." Anita chuckled in disbelief.

"Because it would take some time to prepare proper lunch and I was starved."

Suddenly Anita became quiet as if pondering on something. "Say, do you think your parents would scold me for serving you noodles? You've been used to eating healthy dishes, you know."

Anita had seemed serious but her words made me laugh heartily. She raised her brows at me then pouted.

"Then maybe I shouldn't tell Dad and Mom that I had been eating chips and junk food as well?" I said straight-faced.

Anita's eyes widened in disbelief. "You do? I never thought you would be that sneaky."

"Well, should I change the kind of friends I'm hanging out? You wouldn't want me to feel out of place among them, would you?" I asked Anita testily. I had loved to tease her like she was an older sister. "Then I would be alone and lonely...."

"No, no, no! That's not what I meant. I'll help you keep your secret." Anita shook her head like a bell with a guilty look as she saw my puppy eyes.

"Okay," I said, eyeing her with a look of suspicion. I glanced at Anita who had already tilted her head to finish her food. I had wanted to continue teasing her but she looked really unhappy as if she had offended me.

My heart went our for her and when I couldn't take it any longer I blurted. "Actually, Dad and Mom already knew about my junkfood cravings. They were just tolerating me."

Anita lifted her head and stuck out her upper lip as if she was about to cry in annoyance. "You...you.."

Having not been able to spill out what she had been meaning to say, she laughed heartily with the realization that I had been actually pulling her leg. I started to laugh as well which really helped make me feel better.

Later that night, Aaron had called at seven o'clock, two hours earlier than the first time. I was watching TV that time in the living room.

I had not wanted to take the call when Anita placed the receiver on my hand as soon as she informed him that I was still awake. Glaring at her I was forced to put the receiver over my ear.

"Hello?" I heard a deep baritone voice at the other end of the line.

"Hello." I answered back as my heart pounded and my palms sweated. I did not speak after but listened intently for any sound over the phone.

"Julie?" He softly said my name.

I remained quiet, so quiet that it felt like I wasn't breathing at all.

"I'm sorry about what happened last Sunday. I did not mean to be rude to you and...and leave just like that." There was a crack in his voice. "Why hadn't you come to school? Are you mad?"

Mixed emotions engulfed my whole being that I suddenly felt a lump form inside my throat. I had tried not to make a sound but it only made my breathing difficult. I bit my lip as no words came out my mouth for my mind suddenly went blank.

"Julie, let's meet. I need to see you." There was a pleading tone in his voice.