“You don’t need to do that,” I said and pulled my hand away from his grip.
He grimaced and held my hand firmly. “Be still.”
I pouted. He had been holding my hand for a while. I insisted that I would take care of my wound, but Japen was hardheaded. He didn’t let me touch the first aid kit. He was the one taking care of the open wound. There were times that I grimaced, but often, Japen was gentle.
“You can’t handle a knife, Azora. Next time, I’ll open it.”
I nodded but my forehead creased. “Then you should teach me how to open it using a knife.”
He finished cleaning up and covering the wound with gauze. Then, he stared at me. “I’ll do it, clear?”
I stared back at him. I narrowed my eyes. “I want to learn. Won’t you let me?”
He sighed. “You’ll only hurt yourself. You’re not used to this kind of work. Besides, there are people willing to do what you want, Azora.”
“I know, but I still want to learn it myself. I’ve wanted to explore since I was a child, but people didn’t want me to do it.” I heaved a sigh. “Just teach me, okay?”
In the end, he was left with no choice but to teach me how to open the can. At first, I struggled since I didn’t want to cut my other fingers. Japen was ready to take over, but I gave him a warning look and tried hard to open the can using the knife. I thought it would be easier if I had a can opener instead of an old pointed knife.
“Success!” I yelped and turned to look at Japen’s face. I quickly lifted the can in front of his face, but he just snickered while looking at it. I narrowed my eyes at him. “What’s funny?”
He shook his head and wryly smiled. “Nothing. Let’s go to the table. Have you eaten?” he asked and held my wrist. He ushered me towards the chair and guided me to sit.
“I had breakfast,” I said.
He sat across from me and poured the contents of the can into a bowl. My face distorted when I smelled the familiar scent of sardines. I cleared my throat. “Why not come with me? I’ll treat you to some chicken,” I said and smiled.
He looked at me, and our eyes met for a second. He then looked away. “I’m fine here, Azora. Do you want to eat again?”
I shook my head. I watched him eat the food on the table. The good thing was that there was still a handful of rice left in one of Japen’s kitchenware. It was what he prepared, as I didn’t have time earlier to cook rice. Besides, I didn’t know how.
“Do you need anything?” Japen asked after some time. He had finished eating and was washing his dishes. I wanted to help, but he shot me a glare that made me sit back in my chair.
“No, actually I wanted to pay you a visit. You didn’t answer my call last night, and I was worried.”
“Mmm…”
I held my chin for a moment. “Don’t misunderstand my intentions. I was just worried since last Wednesday. You embarrassed me when you slept inside the fast food stop. And you didn’t look too well, so I decided to come here.”
He stared at me. Not even a single smile was seen on his lips. I sat there, uncomfortable under his gaze. “Say something,” I said.
He then lowered his gaze. “Thank you for worrying, Azora.”
I heaved a sigh of relief. I didn’t want him to stare at me for a long time because it made my head dizzy.
“Don’t mention it.” I cleared my throat. “By the way, is Mang Selyo coming home soon?”
I heard him sigh. “Not yet. Not right now. But maybe next month.”
My eyebrows rose, but I didn’t say anything. Maybe something bad really happened in Bohol that Mang Selyo couldn’t come home this month.
“Okay,” I muttered under my breath.
After he ate his breakfast, I sent him back to his room. Japen was smiling from ear to ear when he sat down on his sturdy bed. He even looked at me with those smiles. I was dumbfounded for a moment. What was wrong with him?
“Problem?” I asked, a little annoyed.
He shook his head. “I just woke up in a good mood.”
I grinned and turned around to leave. Japen did not object. There was nothing unusual that morning. I just helped Japen when he needed something, and I went back to attending to my phone.
When noon came, I called for a food delivery. Well, I couldn’t afford to eat sardines for lunch. Besides, Dad revoked his order last time. My cards were not frozen at that time.
“I’ll pay you back later,” Japen said when he saw the packed food on the table.
I waved my hand in front of him. “No need,” I said and sat on the chair I had sat on earlier. He then sat across from me. We ate lunch silently, but I could feel that Japen was stealing glances at me from time to time. I just let him.
I stayed at Japen’s house all day long. Dad even called me when the afternoon came, asking about my whereabouts. I smirked a little at his question. I knew that he knew where I was. The university director said that Dad was keeping an eye on my safety outside the campus. I thought that he wanted me to say the truth, so I told him the truth.
“I will stay at Japen’s house tonight.”
I didn’t hear anything from him after I said those words, but a few seconds passed, and he told me to come home tomorrow.
Was he really giving me permission to stay at Japen’s place?
I smiled. “Okay!” was all I said before I hung up my phone.
I didn’t know what was up with him, but I just assumed that since I had gone to Japen’s house last time, he gave me permission to stay in that house for a night. After all, I wanted to give back to Japen for all the good deeds he had done for me. He was still my childhood friend, and my conscience couldn’t bear it if something happened to him when I knew I could help him out in the first place.