Bumalik kami sa kanyang condo pagkatapos matunghayan ang pagtaas ng araw. We bought a food through drive-thru. Sa loob kami ng sasakyan kumain at pagkarating ng condo niya ay bagsak kaming dalawa.

Hindi ko alam kung saang lupalop na kami ng mundo pumunta nang madaling araw. Muntik pa kami mawala!

Umuwi ako nang maghapon dahil pareho kaming may trabaho. In those months, Geo continued his board review while I continued with my own career. When November came, Geo took his board exam. Hindi na nagtagal ang paghihintay dahil pagkatapos ng ilang araw ay lumabas na ang result.

Of course, he's Geo! He passed the exam and is in the Top 1!

Marami rin mula sa Galileo's University and nakapasa. We celebrated that day with his friends. I wanted to ask him about his family, pero ayoko naman siyang pangunahan. I hope that someday, he will open up to me about it.

No'ng December ay nakakuha na siya ng Engineer's Liscence while on January, he had his oath-taking together with his friends. I don't know what to feel that time dahil halos lahat ng mga kasama niya nang araw na yun ay kasama ang mga magulang. I was supposed to go with him, to walk with him, but my manager forbidded me kaya si Tita ang sumama sa kanya in behalf of me, kasama yung tinatawag niyang Ate Ice together with Orion, Stella, and Kuya Diego.

"Are you ready?" Umangat ang kilay ko.

"Ba't ka nanghahamon?" Naningkit ang tingin ko.

We're now inside a plane. We took the Business Class para wala masyadong may makapansin sa'kin. We're going towards Canada because both of us wanted to see the Northern Lights together. We're also celebrating our birthday together there nang naisipan namin ipagsabay na lang, pareho naman kami ng birthmonth.

"Alam mo ba kung ano ang papasukan natin sa oras na makarating tayo?"

Umismid ako at napailing. "Pinagsasabi mo? Syempre, malamig do'n."

Bigla siyang tumawa at sumandal sa'kin, hindi nagtagal naramdaman ko nanaman ang ngipin niya. Muntik na ako sumigaw kung hindi lang niya tinakpan ang labi ko. Inis na kinurot ko ang kanyang braso kaya siya naman ang napahiyaw. Nahihiyang nagtago ako sa bintana habang tinakpan ang mukha.

"Huwag na huwag mo'ko kakausapin. Hindi kita kilala, gago ka," mura ko.

I sticked with my words when we went down the plane. Kinakausap ko lang siya kapag may kailangan. Hindi pa rin mawala sa pakiramdam ko ang hiya. Ano bang trip no'n? Nakakahiya! Ramdam na ramdam ko kanina ang mga tingin nila. Lumapit pa ang isang flight attendant upang magtanong kung anong problema.

Ang hina lang kaya ng kurot ko!

"Shi, Sorry na! Nabored ako!" Tinignan ko siya sa likod at pinanlakihan ng mata. Napatigil siya sa paglakad at dinaanan ng linya ang kanyang bibig. Bigla siya ngumiti at kinuha ang bagaheng hawak ko.

After we processed our book reservation, hinatid kami sa kwartong kinuha. Patuloy siya sa pagsuyo sa'kin ngunit hindi talaga siya nagsasalita hanggang sa lumabas kami upang kumain. Kahit nang tinanong siya ng waiter kung ano'ng oorderin niya, tahimik pa rin siya. Ako tuloy ang nag-asikaso ng lahat.

"Sa'n ka?" Tanong ko ng bigla siyang tumayo. Kumibit-balikat siya at inirapan ako.

Umawang ang labi ko sa ginawa niya. "Luh, ano'ng trip mo? Magsasalita ka o hindi talaga kita sasagutin?" sambit ko upang tumigil na siya. Hindi ko na naririnig ang boses niya eh!

Bigla siyang tumawa at lumapit sa'kin. Saglit na pumikit ang mata ko ng hinalikan niya ako. Binigyan niya ako ng ngiti bago umalis.

Akala ko, magsasalita na siya pagkatapos no'n, ngunit nakabalik na kami ng kwarto at tahimik pa rin siya. Tanging hininga lang niya ang naririnig ko. Hindi ko na siya ginulo at bahala siyang mapanis ang laway.

Gano'n din siya kinabukasan. Buong araw ay nasa kwarto lang kami dahil mamayang gabi ay aalis kami papuntang Midnight Dome at doon magpapalipas ng gabi.

"Magsalita ka na nga, hindi naman ako galit." Pilit ko. Kagabi pa'to, hindi talaga ako pinapansin. Tanging halik lang ang lahat ng sagot niya.

"Alam mo, chansing ka. Kung gusto mong humalik, magsabi ka lang, papayag naman ako." Naningkit ang tingin ko ng bigla siyang tumawa.

"Gago ka, akala mo ba maganda sa feeling na tumahimik bigla ang madaldal na tulad mo?" Pabirong sinuntok ko ang kanyang gilid. Hindi pa rin siya matigil sa pagtawa hanggang sa hinawakan niya ang pisngi ko at hinalikan ng malalim.

Tsk, style.

Pagkatapos namin kumain, dumiretso kami sa Midnight Dome. We only rented a car para hindi hassle sa'min ang gumala rito. Hindi pa madilim habang paakyat kami kaya kita pa namin ang daan.

Nang marating ang tuktok, hindi gano'n karami ang taong nando'n. Ilan s kanila ay nagtatayo ng tent. Naghanap kami ng magadandang lugar upang matunghayan ang langit tsaka nagtayo ng sarili naming tent.

We prepared the charcoals and wood we brought to grill some hotdogs and meat. Inayos din namin ang mini table na dala namin upang lagyan ng kaunting pagkain, nasa gitna ang cake. The dancing flames slowly can be seen as the night came as we set up the things. I didn't waste any time and documented that moment.

"Happy Birthday," sabay naming bati sa sarili. Pareho kami natawa at nag-umpisang kumain.

It's been fourteen days since his birthday while it's been four days since mine. We were supposed to go here before my birthday, ngunit dahil pagkatapos ng kaarawan ko ay oath-taking niya ay linipat namin ang petsa.

"Can you tell me about northern lights?" Tanong ko sabay tingin sa harap namin.

The color of blue and green flames continuously danced in front, na tila hindi sila napapagod. "Did you know that there are some myths that those flames in front of us are the spirits of the dead?"

Lumingon ako sa kanya. His eyes are glistening as it's glued in front of us. That's what I usually saw every time I see him talk about astronomy-related stuff. I slowly smiled.

"Well, iba-ibang klaseng pagpanaw ang iba't-ibang lugar. The Cree call them the 'Dance of the Sprits'. Few also believe, like in Finland..." He lifted his finger to prove his point. "They say that the lights were caused by the firefox... running," bigla niya pinatakbo ang dalawang daliri.

"And that..." he pointed the aurora in front of us, lumingon ang ulo ko habang palipat-lipat ang tingin sa kanya at sa aurora. "Tumatakbo sa nyebe at nag-iwan ng bakas and that's it."

He suddenly clasped both of his hands. "But since you're with someone like me, I'll talk about science." Both of us chuckled at what he said.

"Sure," tumango ako sabay kagat ng hotdog.

"Obviously, in able to see the northern lights, the sky should be dark. Why? Because they are actually affected by the sun."

Tumikhim siya bago nagpatuloy habang patuloy naman ako sa pagkain. "Since it begins aat the sun, which... burns with so much energy that itsuperheats the gasses around it. Tiny particles, or pieces, of the sun blasted away from it at speeds of over 450 miles or... 270 kilometers per second." Kumuha siya ng isang hotdog tsaka sinubo.

"Those..." Linunok niya ang kanyang kinakain. "Those particls is called the solar wind and... nakadiretso rito ang daan. Hiwaan mo nga ako ng cake." Ngumiwi ako at ginawa ang kanyang utos.

"The solar wind can disrupt satellites and be harmful to astronauts n space, but the earth is protected because of its magnetic field. The earth has a molten iron core that rotates quickly and turns into a giant magnet. Thanks." Wika niya pagkatapos ko linagay sa harap niya yung cake.

"The magnetic field around the earth is called the magnetosphere, and like a magnet, it has a north pole," he pointed to the north. "And a south pole," he pointed to the south before he inserted one big slice of cake into his mouth.

"Dahan-dahan. Tayong dalawa lang naman ang uubos niyan."

"Kaya nga, may kasama akong uubos. May kalaban ako," ngumiwi ako tsaka siya inirapan. "Kahit sa'yo na yan, sungak-sungak." Wika ko na kinatawa niya.

Muli umihip ang hangin kaya mas lalong humigpit ang kapit ko sa suot. Sa isang iglap, nasa tabi ko na si Geo at pagilid akong yinakap habang ngumunguya.

Nang maubos niya ang cake sa loob ng bibig niya ay nagpatuloy siya. "Halos lahat ng mga particles ng araw. Sorry, hindi ko alam tagalog ng particles," natawa ako sa ad niya.

"Most of its particles are deflected by the Earth's magnetosphere, but some make it through to bombard the atmosphere. As those electrically charged particles strike the atmosphere," he lifted both of his arms. "They excite the oxygen and nitrogen atoms, causing them to light up in the colors of the aurora." And he clashed his right hand with his left fist. He quickly opened it and placed his right hand in front of my face which I quickly dodged.

"So, why is the color of aurora usually green and blue?" Tanong ko sabay tingin ulit sa harap. Umawang ang labi ko nang unti-unting dumausdos ang aurora.

He explained that the color depends on the intense solar activity. At an altitude of roughly 60 to 150 miles, where there are significant concentrations of oxygen, the majority of solar particles normally crash into our atmosphere. At these heights, the oxygen becomes "excited," which makes the aurora seem green. Green is the most common and predominant Auroral color due to the eye's enhanced capacity to detect the green color spectrum.

Blue and purple are also colors that are seen less frequently and again, they tend to appear when solar activity is high. While we can rarely see yellow and pink because they are essentially a combination of red with green or blue.

"The aurora usually stays fifteen to thirty minutes, minsan nga sampu lang. But if we're lucky enough, it can last for hours. It depends on the magnitude of the solar wind." Sagot niya nang mapansin ang reaksyon ko sa nangyayari sa harap.

I suddenly remembered the plan I had when I decided to go here, where the northern lights are. Hindi pa naman nawawala ang aurora sa harap namin.

I always dreamed to confess under the northern lights. I don't know why. Those dancing flames are just fascinating to see, they add a magical feeling to a moment.

"Geo..." Bigla akong dinagsa ng kaba. Binaba niya ang basong kakainom lang at tinaasan ako ng kilay.

Once again, I glanced at the northern lights before I faced him. "It's been years since you courted me and I couldn't find the right time to... give you an answer." Pakurap-kurap na amin ko. He stiffened in front of me.

Lumunok ako bago nagpatuloy. "I... wait... hindi ko alam pa'no sabihin 'to. Just..." Bigla akong napapikit. "Just read between the lines. Bahala ka na umintindi." Mabilis kong tinakpan ang mukha dahil sa iya.

The words I secretly practiced for weeks suddenly vanished. Hindi ko alam kung bakit ganito kakaba ang naramdaman koupang sagutin siya. Ilang beses akong napamura dahil mas nakakahiya ang kakagawa ko lang. Gago.

Biglang may humila paalis ng dalawang kamay ko sa mukha. Mas lalong palakas ng palakas ang kaba ko nang nagtagpo ang aming tingin. Bumaba ang tingin ko sa ilong niyang namumula at sa mata niyang kumikinang. My heart suddenly melted from what I see.

"What are you supposed to say, Uni?" He softly said, slowly cupping my face.

Mula sa kanyang mata, bumaba ang tingin ko sa kanyang labi pabalik sa kanyang mata. His gaze is like sipping my heart, soul, and mind which suddenly made me say what I was supposed to say.

"I... I can be your universe," I whispered. Naalala ang isang sulat niya sa isang papel.

_

https://www.theaurorazone.com/about-the-aurora/the-science-of-the-northern-lights/the-northern-lights-colours