"u may com 2 d airport if u wish 2 see me, wont be stayin too long, maybe 1 wk only, wil be celebrting gran
family gathering n i promised 2 attend", she sent him per SMS.
"No problem, wil be at d airport when u come", he replied.
Carmen was not too sure if he really meant what he wrote. As the aircraft of Philippine Air Lines landed at
Bancasi Airport, Carmen's eyes wandered through the crowd. Dressed-to-kill, he stood there waiting for her.
She gave him a hug that came deep from her heart.
"Butuan of my dreams, here I come", she thought as she inhaled the warm December air while waiting for her
baggage. The maddening crowd gave her a feeling of being at home again. Beside her was the prince of hearts.
"I have my jeep with me, I'll take you home." This was self-understanding for both of them. For all others
maybe questionable and unbelievable. Her brother, who wondered why he is at the airport, suggested that she
better take the backseat. She sat at the side of the backseat where he could see her through the mirror.
While driving, Eduard explained he was at the airport to send someone off and accidentally heard of her
arrival so he waited to see her. He could help transport her luggage home. This was his version for the
unbelieving and wondering.
"How was your flight?" he asked. "It was a tiring but pleasant one", she answered. To think of almost 14
hours just sitting in the airplane all the way from Rome to Manila. Her connecting flight to Butuan was on
the following day. It was a two-day travel for her.
He understood that she was there for some more important event than just seeing each other again. No calls,
she just had to be left alone with her family and relatives. She knew, too, that he would understand.
A three-day fun induced euphoria with her family and relatives kept Carmen from calling him. He just
remained silent and maybe just waiting. He didn.t want to disturb. She admired him more for his unspoken
reasons which she knew intuitively. He was in the air that Carmen breath while in Butuan, anyway.
"Just call me anytime if you need something to get done before you leave, I'll be there", he assured her.
Before her departure, Carmen had to call Eduard to ask for some favors. His designation as her driver and
classmate was always his "intro" everytime they got inside an office, bank or shop to follow-up documents
she needed to be cleared before leaving. In one of the offices, his friend remarked after his introduction,
"Taya biong!" (Tell it to the marines!)
Did he explain uncompromisingly to keep her from gossips which may spread around the city? Carmen may seem
to have the complacent air of superiority that often mars a naive self-made woman. Did she leave that
impression behind her? She would be very sorry if he would think likewise.
Things are not what they seem.
"Tuna sandwich and halo-halo special for me", he ordered at "The Tree Garden." How about you?, he asked.
"Likewise", she answered. They ate in silence.
"Hmm, taste good!", she tried to break the silence. "They make the best tuna sandwich and halo-halo here",
he continued. "Ka paspas mo sab mokaon! (you eat too fast)", commented Carmen. "Yes, I enjoy the taste more
if I eat fast", he answered. She smiled and thought, "Huh, is that so?"
He seems to feel the comfort he gives Carmen everytime he is around. He could make her laugh anytime or just
keep quiet or talk about trivia of everyday life. She enjoys just sitting beside him even without saying a
single word. A good listener and less of a talker, her nature is familiar to him since their gradeschool
years.
The time has come for Carmen to leave for Rome.
"Eduard, I'm leaving, will you be at the airport to say goodbye?"
"Yes, don't worry, I'll be there to see you off", he replied.
She was sure he'd come even if it would be on the eleventh hour.
He did!
She left softly, her heart happy, seeing him left behind. Her dreams remained with him in Butuan.
"I know in my heart of hearts that this is not the last goodbye...", presumptuous, Carmen leaned back on her
seat as the aircraft gained altitude and sailed above the clouds.
In her monologue she resolves: "Cheer up, Carmen, though your dreams remained in Butuan and may remain just
but a dream, at this very moment of reality you can identify yourself with this poem."
