Glance of his (24)

Ayesha Point of View

I was on top of Vener. He's holding my back to support my weight. My nose smells his familiar perfume. I could feel his heart beating fast, even mine. His shoulders were stiff at the time, but they loosened a split second later.

It was just an accident, I thought but it made me feel much better. It was an awkward position but I realized one truth that whenever I was near him or so close to him in no space, I always conveying strange sparks.

Every second seemed to be slipping away at this point. Only my rapid heartbeat was audible to me. I was embarrassed by what had happened.

Despite the silence, there was a sense of security knowing that he would catch me when I stumbled. For a little moment, his warmth and presence provided me with peace knowing that our position was too awkward and some persons witness what had happened.

"Thank you," I whispered before I left from pinning him down. He stood up.

We both removed the dirt in our clothes.

"Sorry," I blurted out.

"It's okay. It happened," he responded as his gaze shifted back to me after a few seconds. A warm smile escaped his lips, and I realized that my face was also burned as a response. And as the concerned voice approached, we both stood in quiet while my heart and mind racing.

"Ayesha, are you okay? Are you not hurt?" Ron exclaimed as she examined me carefully. I felt shame about what she was doing and act reckless so I assured her that I'm really fine. Why worry about me? Nothing should bother me because I was not hurt and someone caught me. What should be concerned now is Vener! She looked at me from head to toe and shifted her attention to Vener asking if he's fine. He answered her with a nod. Ron heaved a sigh as a relief.

"How is your heart? Don't you feel the fast rhythm that seems to be running in a marathon? Don't you feel the strange spark?" she said that only the two of us can hear. She even poked me in the side. I glared at her and that I want her to bury me in the ground now.

"Ma'am, sir, " Uncle Tom said that caught our attention. "Let's go around the farm right away and pick vegetables for dinner and corn for snacks."

Hearing about corn made me forget what had happened. I feel enthusiastic.

Uncle Tom lead the way. When we got to their farm, I was stunned to see such a huge farm. I was raised by a family owner of a farm but not that extensively like this. It's just a short area of the farm that can provide enough grains for our family.

Every time I step on a farm, I become like a child again.

He led us all around the field and gave us a taste of what all farmers do on daily basis. As if there's no trace of the typhoon. From my pocket, I pulled out my cell phone and took a picture of the farm and its beautiful scenery. In a blink, I posted it on my social media account.

They even allowed us to pick vegetables and plucked corn. It reminds me that I always insist that I want to go to the farm to do this kind of stuff when I was still a child but my parents won't allow me because of my condition. This time, I did it even if Ron warned me.

"This is citrus, right?" I asked when I noticed it when we go around the coffee farm.

"Yeah because we'll do multi-cropping. When we harvest coffee, it takes a long turn to grow back again so in between, they got something to harvest. So, the farmers will still have income," Vener explained.

After our trip to the farm, we headed to a modern take on the traditional "Bahay Kubo" bungalow house. It was near to the farm. Uncle Tom and their family were the caretakers.

In the evenings, after dinner, we went to the spacious backyard and played board games. We even sat in a circle around a warm fire and told creepy old stories. The stories were interesting and varied from drama to tragedy. Some of the stories were only wild guesses and I don't know if some part was believable.

"Are you okay?" Ron, who was seating beside me on my left, asked me now and then but my response was the same. It was not necessary to tell her that my joints hurt. I don't want to ruin the atmosphere.

I felt someone sat on my right and Vener came to my view handing me a grilled sweet white corn. He gave me two and gave the other one to Ron.

"Thanks," I beamed and began to eat until finished. "It's really tasty."

I began to feel cold as time goes by even if there was a fire in the middle that warm us. It seems Vener notice it so he put a cloak on my back to soothe the cold. He even handed Ron a cloak but Ron just put it on her side and went near Uncle Tom.

"Thank you," I sincerely said. He's a keen observer.

After a while, from storytelling to music jamming. Matthew began to strum his guitar while Ron sings a song.

"I didn't know that she has an angelic voice," Vener commented. I agreed with him. Ron has that talent. It's funny to think that we are different in all aspects but we remained friends and stick close more than blood-related sisters. "Your lucky to have her."

"No, she's lucky to have me," I rebutted. Then, we both laughed silently. I looked at him but his facing in front. I suddenly recalled what Aunt Beatrice shared. Looking at him closely, I can not believe that he has already a lot of burden on his shoulders. One thing is that his parents are doubting his decision.

"Do you love what you are doing?" I suddenly said. It was supposed to stay in my mind but I voice out what my thoughts are. He faces me with a confused look. "Don't mind my question."

"Yeah," he paused. "Doing what career I want and doing what my grandfather wished made me happy. This isn't about responsibility or anything but it was my decision. Looking at those students we are shaping, it is nice to hear that we part of their journey. Here, it's so nice to look at them. Come to think of it. This is not all about doing business, it's all about seeing someone drinking coffee or what. It is a part of our lives."

He was committed. He has passion and it was his hidden character that others can not see. After that, a long silence filled between me and Vener, only the happy song sang by Matthew can be heard.

Out of blue, Vener sings the last line of the song and stared at me intently straight in the eyes while singing "I still don't know what to say, what to say."