P R O L O G U E

Background color
Font
Font size
Line height

Etoile Series 1:

"Touchdown."

Mariin kong pinikit ang mga mata nang maramdam ang pagbaksak ng Soyuz, a spacecraft.

"Touchdown confirmed at 5:31 am Central Time, 6:31 am Eastern Time and 4:31 pm at the landing site. Geo Correo, Diego Sullivan, and Emett Delgado are back home 7 months after leaving the planet."

Huminga ako ng malalim nang marinig ang tunog ng pagbagsak ng aming sinasakyan. Hindi rin nagtagal ay bumukas ang hatch na nasa gilid ko. I am in the upper part; below me is Kuya Diego, and below him is Sir Emett.

"How do you feel, Geo?" Kuya Diego asked. Our researcher and at the same time an astronaut.

"F-Fine..." hindi siguradong sagot ko. Hindi rin ako sigurado kung para saan ang tanong niya.

I feel like throwing up.

Kuya chuckled. I closed my eyes while taking the visor off.

"That's normal," he chuckled.

From here, I saw the recovery crew, who will help us out. They drag me out first from the inside. The moment I went out, the air that hugged me felt new. Parang gusto kong langhapin ang lahat ng hangin. And at the same time, there are still butterflies in my stomach.

Hindi ko maramdaman ang paa nang makaupo sa dulo ng hatch. "So, how's the flight, Geo?" I heard Hercules' voice. Nandito rin pala siya? I thought he was in the Philippines.

"Ba't ka nandito?" instead, I asked.

Saglit kami nagkatinginan bago ko naintindihan ang ibig niyang sabihin.

Tumawa ako habang hinahayaan ang mga Team Med na i-check kami. Minamasahe rin ang mga daliri kong walang BP. Hindi rin biro ang biyahe mula sa labas ng Earth at pabalik. Nakakapanibago. Parang ngayon lang nagparamdam ang muscles ko.

Our muscle fibers contract when we are exposed to an environment with low gravity. Bilang resulta, nagiging mahina ang ating katawan kaya, nage-exercise rin kami sa kalawakan. Being in space is somehow the same as being on Earth. Being active is one way to be healthy.

Tahimik lang ako buong magdamag na nag-iingay sila. Sumasagot lang kapag importante.

"Congratulations for a successful land, Geo." bati nila habang bitbit ako papuntang tent. I nodded.

Sinunod nila ang dalawang kasama ko at pinatabi hindi kalayuan sa'kin. All of them are noisy. Talking about the experience and feelings, and how happy they are that we made it.

Habang ako, hindi ko pa rin magawa.

I missed how the air touched my skin, just like how the sun kissed me. I missed how flat the land felt. I miss hearing the noises from a crowd of people: the chirp of the birds, the whoosh of the air, and the smell of the earth.

But most of all, I miss her.

Her voice, her smell, her laugh, her face, her kisses, her hugs... everything.

Hindi nagtagal ay dinala nila kami sa isang tent to measure our performance. We were separated because, hindi kami kasya sa isang tent.

Nakadapa ako sa mat. Nasa gilid ko naman ang ilan sa mga kasamahan namin. I tried to stand up, but I almost fell if no one was assisting me. Hindi nagtagal ay medyo nakayanan ko na rin lumakad. Ilang beses din ako muntik matumba.

Nakakapanibago. Parang bumalik ako sa sanggol at kailangan matutong maglakad.

After that, we went to the facility center to properly check our condition. Naging mahirap nang ilang mga linggo, ngunit hindi nagtagal ay nakayanan ko na rin maglakad ng maayos, unlike the first time I landed here. Kaso, medyo masakit pa yung paa ko.

Being in space for a long period of time doesn't only affect our muscles and joints, but also our bones, cardiovascular system, and eyes. Because when we launch into space, our blood moves upward from the legs to the upper body and head.

My eyes are staring intently at the stars twinkling and shining upon the earth. Mula dito sa lupa ay makikita mo ang pagkinang ng iba't ibang uri ng bituin. Some stars luminosity from here looks so bright, while others look weak, and some seem to be fading.

Hindi ko alam kung ilang oras na ba akong nakatitig sa labas ng bintana. It's been months since we landed on Earth. Kakabalik ko rin galing Kazakhstan kung saan kami bumaba. I stayed at our agency's headquarter.

Hindi ko kayang... umuwi.

Staring at the night sky made me feel like she was with me. It's a good idea that the window here is full height; I'll be able to see her clearly if I stargaze.

Tinaas ko ang kanang kamay at sinubukan abutin ang isang bituin na sobrang liwanag. I tried to reach it, but I know that no matter how many times I try, I cannot reach it.

I can't reach it if I won't do anything.

But I tried looking for her. And I can't find her.

People around me told me to move on and accept the truth. But I can't.

Because I won't.

As long as I am still here on Earth, I'll believe that she'll be back.

Pinunasan ko ang luhang naramdaman nang may biglang kumatok.

"Geo?"

"P-Pasok!" sigaw ko bago sinarado ang kurtina at umayos ng upo sa kama.

"Geo," nag-aalalang tawag ni Giacomo. Nagkatinginan bago ako umiwas.

"Ano?" He closed the door and took a step closer to me. Tumigil siya sa gilid ng kama.

"I heard the Celestial Mission will continue. Now that you're... here," seryoso niyang sabi. Tipid akong ngumiti at tumango.

I know.

"Aren't you happy?"

How could I be if the person I dedicated this to isn't here?

"Of course I am." pagak akong tumawa.

"Geo-"

"I know... hindi mo na kailangang sabihin. Umalis ka na," tugon ko tsaka humiga. Alam kong nasa loob pa siya at may gustong sasabihin, ngunit hindi nagtagal ay dinig ko rin ang pagbukas at sarado ng pinto.

I sighed.

Paulit-ulit lang naman ang sasabihin nila. Na aayusin ko raw ang sarili ko. Na hindi niya magugustuhan ang ginagawa ko.

Ngunit bago siya lumabas ay may huling binilin siya na hindi ko pa rin mapaniwalaan.

They told me that three times before, but they were wrong. They didn't find the body. Nang nasa kalawakan naman ako ay sinabi ulit nila 'yon. Hindi na ako naniniwala dahil parang pinagmumukha nila akong tanga. They're keeping my hopes up, tapos hindi naman pala totoo. They're playing with my feelings.

I look at the ring on my left fourth finger. Hindi ko na pinigilan ang luhang kusang umagos nang maalala ang araw ng pagsuot niya sa'kin ng singsing.

I slept late but woke up early. Dahil hindi ako makatulog ng maayos, I decided to go to the Corvus Museum in the meantime while waiting for our work hours to start. It was still dawn when I went out. May susi naman ako, kaya nakapasok ako.

I entered the Horizontal Dome Planetarium. This dome inside the planetarium is quite large; it's one and a half hectares wide. Inside the Dome Theater is where we show and present educational and entertaining shows about astronomy and the night sky, or training in celestial navigation. In other words, humans can experience seeing other objects that we can't see on Earth, like other planets, moons, black holes, and everything beyond the Earth.

Umupo ako sa gitnang upuan. I pondered.

Hindi na ako nagtagal at dumiretso ng opisina at nagpatuloy sa trabaho.

"Nandito ka pa? Uwi na!" I glared at the sudden entrance of Orion. I rolled my eyes before I brought it back to the computer to do my research.

"Geo," tawag pa niya.

Kung bakit siya nandito kaaga ay hindi ko alam. Hindi pa naman umpisa ng trabaho. Our job usually starts at eight in the morning. I didn't mind him standing in front of my table. Manggugulo nanaman.

"Ano ba? Bakit ka ba nandito?" I complained. It's seven in the morning.

Binalik ko ang tingin sa ginagawa, pero dahil kay Orion ay hindi ako makapag-focus, lalo na sa tingin na ibinibigay niya sa'kin.

"Marami na ang nagsabi na banned ka na rito kapag hindi ka man lang magpahinga."

Nagpatuloy ako sa pagresearch. I also checked the data in WSAA, our agency, which stands for World Space Aeronautics Administration.

"Geo, you need to check your health! She won't–"

"Ano? Dahil kailangan? Dahil hindi niya magugustuhan? Orion, kung uuwi man ako, ano naman ang gagawin ko ro'n? Matulog at managinip na magigising ako na katabi siya tapos bigla akong magigising sa katotohanang 'yon!? Mas pipiliin ko pa na mag-trabaho kaysa umuwi!" singhal ko.

"Sa tingin mo ba magugustuhan niya ang ginagawa mo sa sarili mo!? Hindi ka na kumakain ng maayos! Walang tulog na maayos! As if I don't know what you're doing in the ISS! Kung wala siguro sina Kuya Diego ro'n b-baka--baka–" Hindi niya natuloy ang sasabihin. Bumigat ang hangin sa paligid namin.

His eyes are bloodshot, and if I can see mine, I'm sure both of us shared the same expression.

Umiwas siya ng tingin at napahilamos. He turned his back and groaned from frustration before he held his hips with both of his hands.

I turned my back and looked at the scenery outside. It's just a vast sky and field that met.

Huminga ako ng malalim.

"Geo, you need a rest," pagod niyang sabi.

Hindi na ako umangal pa dahil pagod na ako. Nang tumango ako, rinig ko ang paghinga niya ng malalim sabay lapit sa'kin.

He hugged me, and that's when I was able to cry harder. Like the cloud when it was heavy, rain poured.

_

(。・ω・。)ノ♡


You are reading the story above: TeenFic.Net