Guardian Evil

CHAPTER 70: The Balete Drive

WHISTLING ON A SILENT ROAD THAT NIGHT, the pedicab driver drove his way home when he passed through the balete drive. Of course, he’s just ignoring the place not until he heard something crying from the distance. Then, he saw someone standing underneath the balete so he stopped for a second.

“Ineng, are you okay? It’s already dark at night. You should go home,” the pedicab driver said but the girl just kept on crying so he slightly went down his pedicab to approach the girl. “Ineng, you can ride on my pedicab so I could take you home. Your parents must be worried.”

The girl slowly turned her head towards the pedicab driver and with her pale, b****y face, she spoke.

“Tulungan n`yo po ako…”

The pedicab driver shrieked in so much fear as he rushed to his pedicab and drove away, almost hit himself on the electric post in the process.

Romina and Luciel looked at Marivic in utter confusion. They just attended her birthday yesterday and since it’s already her 18th birthday, Romina knew that Marivic was so excited to meet her guardian angel that night.

But this is not the reaction they’re going to see on her today.

Romina and Luciel looked at each other and as Luciel shrugged, Romina asked her best friend. “Hey, Marivic, are you okay?”

With a sigh, Marivic responded. “You won’t believe who my guardian angel is.”

As soon as she mentioned that, Romina’s eyes settled at Marivic’s back and there, she saw Simeon waving at her.

“Huh, so he did reveal himself to her,” Luciel muttered.

Right. Romina remembered. Marivic had this love-hate relationship with Simeon because when Simeon pretended to be their schoolmate and be friendly-friendly with Marivic, the guy became Marivic’s opponent in their school-based quiz bee and Simeon defeated her on that quiz bee.

The fact that he’s from the ‘least competitive class’ in their grade and yet he managed to defeat her hurt Marivic’s pride.

Simeon slightly touched both of Marivic’s shoulders and the latter low-key nudged his hands off and Simeon pouted because of it.

“She really did hate you that much, huh?” Romina said to Simeon and with a sad face, Simeon nodded.

“Eh? Are you saying something, Romina?” Marivic asked her.

“Oh, uh, no, nothing,” Romina awkwardly laughed as Luciel tried to hold his laugh at Simeon who seemed so lonely because Marivic straight-up ignored him like that.

“Stop laughing, Luciel!” Simeon spoke to him.

“Sorry, I can’t help it.”

Marivic sighed once again as she sat in front of them. “You must be really, really lucky with your guardian angel, huh? You don’t seem stressed about him or her.”

“Uh, about that…” Romina and Luciel side-eyed each other before Romina looked away just to talk to her best friend who looked so sulky right now. “Anyway, it’s just your first to summon your guardian angel. Who knows? Maybe he’s just nicer than the guardian I have.”

Luciel immediately looked at her in a shock and pained expression and immediately pointed himself. “Did you just compare me…” then he slightly pointed to Simeon who looked so enthusiastic the moment Romina tried to praise him in front of Marivic. “Did you just compare me to this bastard of an angel, huh, Romina?”

Romina shook her head as she tried to quiet Luciel down.

“Thank you so much, Romina,” Simeon said to them.

Sighing for the nth time, Marivic spoke. “Well, if that’s the case then I’ll give him a chance.”

Happy about what he heard from Marivic, Simeon immediately held Marivic’s shoulders but his human kept on nudging him away but that didn’t stop him from being happy over the fact that she’ll give him a chance to prove himself as a great guardian angel to her.

“Have you seen Simeon’s face that moment? Damn, he looked so pathetic,” Luciel kept on laughing as he walked together with Romina outside the school. Since the whole teacher’s board had their meeting so they were dismissed early. “He looked like a kicked puppy. So pathetic! Hahahahaha!”

“You can’t say something like that to Simeon when you obviously experienced that in the past. Prsh,” she told him.

“But compared to you rejecting me that time, this Marivic is really good at ignoring someone so Simeon must really have a hard time pleasing her,” he shrugged.

“You’re acting like you’re not friends with Simeon, huh?” Romina said, chuckling.

“Correction, in the past.”

“But be honest, you’re actually caring for him.”

“I’m not!”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever floats your boat, Luciel,” she said, waving her hand as if she’s dismissing what Luciel was trying to tell her. “But you know, I think Marivic and Simeon’s dynamics to each other fits them really well. I really think that Simeon really fitted to be Marivic’s guardian angel. I just felt it.”

“Well, they’re both stubborn that’s why,” Luciel said, shrugging.

“You’re also stubborn.”

“I’m not!”

“Oh! There’s fishball and kwek-kwek!” Romina immediately pulled Luciel towards the street food stall and talked to the vendor. “Two serves of fish ball and kwek-kwek, manong.”

“Okay,” the vendor replied and he immediately re-heated the fish balls and kwek-kwek.

“And two serves of gulaman as well, manong.”

“Sure.”

After re-heating and serving the orders which are the two serves of fish ball and kwek-kwek and two glasses of gulaman, Romina paid the vendor and gave the first serving of fishball at Luciel. “C’mon, try it.”

Luciel looked at the human street food on his hand and smelled it. He, then, slowly ate one and while chewing, he spoke. “I barely taste anything.”

“It’s really, really delicious.”

“I told you that human’s taste is different from us demons so don’t expect me to relate to you, you know.”

“Ugh, just stop complaining and eat up. Just bear with it,” Romina said as she drank some gulaman.

“It must be really scary, you know, what happened to Mario.”

Romina and Luciel looked at the pedicab drivers who were also eating fishball and kwek-kwek.

“It’s the balete drive. Of course, we should expect some paranormal activities that usually happen in that place,” one of the pedicab drivers said.

“I heard that that white lady that most of the drivers encountered there often caused accidents to them.”

“It’s scary. But I think it’s better than actually encountering a kapre. That’s much more terrifying. Hahaha.”

“It’s weird though,” one of the pedicab drivers said. “Most of the stories I’ve heard from our friends who encountered that balete ghost is that that ghost kept on asking for help. I wonder what happened to her in the past to ask some help from the living.”

“Dude, you’re seriously sounding so weird right now. Hahahaha!”

“Ikain mo nalang `yan ng kwek-kwek, pare. Gutom lang `yan. Hahahaha!”

“Seriously, though!”

Romina and Luciel looked at each other and silently continued eating.

On a silent road that night, the pedicab driver drove his way home when he passed through the balete drive. He was just passing a certain place not until he heard something crying from the distance. Then, he saw someone standing underneath the balete so he stopped for a second.

“Ineng, hey, it’s already dark at night. You should go home,” the pedicab driver said but the girl just kept on crying so he slightly went down his pedicab to approach the girl. “Ineng, your parents must be worried. You should go home. It’s dangerous for a girl like you to stay outside at night.”

The girl slowly turned her head towards the pedicab driver and with her pale, b****y face, she spoke.

“Tulungan n`yo po ako…”

“AAAHHH!!!!” The pedicab driver shrieked in so much fear as he rushed to his pedicab and drove away, almost hitting himself on one of the trees in the process.

Trying to reach him with her pale, b****y hands, the girl spoke. “T-Tulungan n`yo po ako…”