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I feel like I’m being punished.
It’s been so long since I’ve had to commute, & I forgot how annoying it was. Sobrang init, pinawisan agad ako. Buti nalang I wore a dress today. At least presko kahit papano.
Naglakad ako sa hintayan at nakitang marami ang nakapilang bus. Buti maaga pa so for sure konti lang tao. Pinili ko ang pinakadulong bus na naghihintay sa pila para siguradong makakapili ako ng upuan. Pagkapasok, tulog ang matandang bus driver. May tatlong pasahero na nakaupo sa harapan – dalawa’y tulog rin, yung isa naman ay busy sa phone. Napansin ko ang konduktor na nakahiga sa upuan na pang tatluhan.
Naisipan ko na umupo sa may likuran, two rows before the very last one. Pumwesto ako sa dulo nang pang-tatlo na upuan at naramdaman ang malakas na hangin mula sa aircon. Napapikit ako sa sarap. Ang naririnig ko lang ay ang malakas na buga ng aircon pati na rin ang may pagkalakas na tv sa pinakaharapan.
Pagkadilat ko, napansin ko ang konduktor na naglalakad papunta sa’kin. The top of his salt & pepper hair isn’t that far from the handle straps of the bus. Habang hinahalungkat ang laman ng aking bag for my coin purse, narinig ko ang pabulong niyang pagsabi, “mamaya ka na magbayad.”
Una kong naisip ay ang hindi pagkabagay ng dilaw at berde niyang polo sa maitim niyang balat. It’s a uniform, but still, ugly. His loose, dark blue jeans aren’t making it any better. May white na hand towel na nakapatong sa kanan niyang balikat
Umupo siya sa tabi ko, sabay ngiti sa’kin. Lowkey, I’m a bit weirded out. Bakit siya umupo next to me? Ang dami-daming space, pero tinabihan niya ko.
I smiled back for a second and looked out sa window, choosing to ignore my thoughts. Starting to feel a bit sleepy, sumandal ako sa bintana and closed my eyes. Malapit na kong makatulog, pero bigla kong naalala na I have to text my dad na nakasakay na ko. But before I could open my eyes & grab my phone, a hand rested on my thigh, a little above my knee. Kahit nakacover ito ng suot kong bestida, I can still feel how warm and big the hand is.
Hindi ko alam kung anong gagawin ko. Do I yell? Stand up and quickly go out without a word? Slap him?
Lost in thought, he slowly inched his hands higher and higher.
My heart is beating out of my chest at this point, pero hindi ako makagalaw. This has never happened to me. He slid his hand towards my inner thigh now, his fingers in between my slightly parted legs.
Anong plano niya? How far is he going to take this? And why am I not stopping him?
Pinisil niya ng onti ang hita ko bago dahan-dahan itinataas ang dulo ng suot ko. Seconds later, I feel the cool air on my legs while the hem of my dress is inches away from my underwear.
A part of me is saying ‘hindi to tama’ at ‘dapat ko siyang pigilan’, but an even bigger part of me wants to know what else he’ll do. The thought that we’re in a public bus is momentarily forgotten and I’m just completely focused on the warmth of the hand starting to inch closer and closer to my own warmth.
My reaction was completely involuntary. The moment his fingers brush up against my panties, my legs shut to a close, trapping his hand in between them. Hindi ko pa rin minulat mata ko, pero I heard a bit of laughter coming from him. He then kept softly wiggling his fingers against my clit.
Ang lalim na ng paghinga ko as my legs start to relax again. His now free hand moves to cup my pussy. The tips of his fingers reach my opening, habang ang palad niya’y nakapwesto sa ibabaw ng tinggil ko.
I gulp. Suddenly a loud voice pierces through the haze of excitement I was feeling. I open my eyes to see an old lady screaming into her phone.
“KAKASAKAY KO…