"AHHHHH!" Panting, Jenny woke up from her nightmare. The door opened soon enough and the light in her room was turned on.
"Hey, are you okay?" Sasha approached her friend and sat on the side of the bed. "Did you dream again?"
Jenny nodded softly as she sweated and trembled while hugging her knees. "I was too young, back then. I should've forgotten about it. But why is everything still so clear in my mind? It's so unfair!"
She comforted her crying friend. "If you have no memory of your past, can you give justice to the death of your parents?"
"But that won't bring them back to life!" She growled at her friend and vented her anger at her.
"Are you giving up?" Sasha asked sadly.
She quickly wiped away the tears and shook her head. "No. I've come this far to just give up."
"Good. You are about to carry out your plan of revenge. We’re midway. A little more patience."
Jenny looked up at the friend she had leaned on for a long time. She met her mother, who she considered as her second mother. Those times, she was so lost without any direction to take. They lived in a street too and she was adopted, even though they had no home of their own. "Thank you for always being there."
"Don't mention it." She took the pitcher over to the bedside table and poured water into the glass. "Drink first to calm down."
"Thank you." She said shortly. When Jenny finished drinking, she put it back on the bedside table.
"Go back to sleep. I will stay here with you."
Jenny gave her friend a big hug before going back to bed. She closed her eyes until drowsiness pulled her away. Sasha's presence helped her sleep well.
"Aren't you hungry yet?" Sasha asked her dazed friend who was sitting.
Jenny was recalling the past and only came back to her senses when Sasha came over and sat down next to her. "I'm full."
"You only ate a little. You might get sick." Sasha rebuked her.
Jenny refocused her gaze into the distance and did not reply to Sasha.
"What are you thinking again?"
"Nothing. Just don't worry about me." She replied emotionlessly to Sasha.
Sasha sighed as she stared at her friend's sad face. "Fill your stomach before we leave."
Jenny glanced at the watch she was wearing. They have already planned to leave and go to Manila. A few years had passed since she left the city where she grew up together with Sasha and her mother. She met two who, like her, were also wandering the streets. She had nowhere to go nor a place to live in. But still, God sent her to them and she started a new life.
She thought that she would be able to forget her complicated and painful past forever. But it was like a shadow of her young mind.
She grew up with so much hatred in her heart. Until she planned revenge. And her friend knew her plans.
"Take care. Especially you, Kailani…" Nimfa talked to the two ladies.
Jenny winced from her seat. She was still not accustomed to her new name as Kailani. She watched Sasha's mother who entered the small living room holding the tray containing some bread and a steaming drink.
"Even if you hide from me the real reason for your departure, I know I can't stop you. I will just pray for your safety." Nimfa said sadly when neither of the two spoke.
Jenny and Sasha glanced at each other. Perhaps the old woman heard them talking about the matter.
"Kailani, don't let your anger get the better of you." She sat across them. "God has mercy. I never stop praying that justice will be done for your deceased parents."
"Yes, Mother Nimfa. Thank you for everything." Jenny said gratefully.
"Wait, will we never meet again? Why are you thanking me?" Nimfa joked with the young lady to alleviate her sadness.
Smiling, she took her second mother's hand and squeezed it. "I should say that every day because the time may come when I will lose the opportunity."
"What are you saying, child? You will come back here together still. Do you understand?" She instructed the two.
"Of course, Mom!" Sasha said quickly and hugged her mother. "You know Kailani is always like this. She's just dramatic. Let's eat."
Jenny understood her friend's meaningful glance at her. She just didn't want their mother to worry about them.
"Looks like what you prepared today is delicious, eh?" Sasha changed the subject. "What is this? Farewell party?" Sasha joked with her mother.
"Those are just bread!" Nimfa glared at her daughter.
The two laughed together with the old woman.
"Eat a lot."
"A lot? But there are only four pieces?" Sasha complained to her mother.
Nimfa laughed, followed by the two. They will surely miss such scenes. Even though their lives have been on a roller coaster, they were happy when they were together.
...
"WELCOME back to your hometown!" James's cheerful face greeted Shasha and Jenny.
Only Sasha responded to James’ warm greeting, who picked them up at NAIA. Jenny ignored him and immediately went straight to the car.
"Did I say something wrong?" James asked Sasha in a whisper.
"Jet lag," Sasha said to the young man.
"But I'm telling you, don't dream or even fantasize about her. Zero chance. Believe me."
"Here you go again," James complained to his childhood friend. The three met when they stepped into high school. They also went to college together. They were inseparable, even when they started training for combat.