Leaf and Shadow by Cyan Abad-Jugo

Author:Cyan Abad-Jugo [Abad-Jugo, Cyan]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9789712729287
Publisher: Anvil Publishing, Inc.
Published: 2017-10-10T00:00:00+00:00

• • •

Late that evening, Louie dreamed. The Balete Tree had come to life, looking like a gnarled old man, but ten times as tall, and dark of skin, blood-red of smile. He sucked on a huge tobacco and smothered the air with its thick smell. Smoke rose into the leaves that were his hair, and as Louie watched the smoke, he found himself staring into a pair of gleaming eyes. Several shadowy arms sprouted from the trunk, all entangled and run through with veins. They reached for him, wrapped around him, plucked off the slice of cake he held in his hands.

“I told you not to tell those tales,” Lola scolded Old Manang the next day. “There is no such thing as a kapre, and there is certainly none living in that tree right now.”

They were all cranky from lack of sleep, Louie having roused the house with his screams, and demanding that they all accompany him to the kitchen while he ate the fourth corner of cake.

“Señora,” Old Manang said, “whether you believe or no, it is best to play safe. We must keep away from that tree.”

Ate Jen picked at the fatty corner of her beef tapa, then mashed it with her fork. She frowned at the oil that smeared onto the plate. “If it’s so bad, why don’t you just cut it down?”

“Shush! Whoever even threatens to cut it will be cursed for life,” Old Manang cried, crossing herself and turning to Lola for appeal. Her eyes narrowed as she caught Lola crossing herself, too.

“I am thanking the Lord for our breakfast,” Lola said, closing her eyes.

Nobody noticed the usually voracious Louie stare at his pile of fried rice and egg, under which he had hid his tapa. Nobody noticed the way Andrew whispered beside him, not touching his breakfast either. “I didn’t go back to sleep last night,” Andrew told him. “Guess where I went instead.”

Louie did not move.

“Come on, Louie,” Andrew urged, tugging at him.

Louie cringed, trying to avoid the grayish spot on his brother’s left hand. He grabbed at his sleeves and hugged himself.

“I went to that tree, and guess who I met. GUESS!”

Tears formed and threatened to drop from Louie’s eyes.

“It was very dark,” Andrew continued. “I could barely see. And then the tree moved and a dark shape—”

Louie whimpered.

Andrew snorted. “Oh he isn’t so bad. He said he loved to listen to the wind for news. He knew we were coming this summer. He remembered you as a baby, and then he saw yesterday that you had grown.”

Louie finally turned, just his head, and Andrew saw that a tear had fallen on his left cheek. “What did he look like, Kuya?” Louie asked. “Like an old man?”

Andrew shrugged. “I did not see his face. It was very dark. Maybe he has no face.”

Louie yelped. His plate crashed on the floor, and everyone turned to see the mess, rice and tapa turning gooey where the broken yolk of sunny-side up oozed.

“Andrew,” Old Manang scolded.

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