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On a hot and humid Friday afternoon in the summer of ‘88, Irago, Odo and Pakal
were passing the time drinking gin under the shade of the walls of Bamboos that line the small creek of their hideout in Basag.
Pakal as always is very animated in discussing and bragging about his latest conquests, a boast that Irago & Odo knew
were next to impossible for they knew that Pakal is a certified henpeck when it comes to women nevertheless they tolerated
his claims so that they will have some things to talk about and laugh and have some fun at the same time. Pakal went on his
claims that almost all of the house helps and maids in the neighborhood have fallen prey to his irresistible charms, a fact
that Odo and Pakal knew that it was all air and not a single grain of truth in it. They were able to listen to his tall tales
without challenging him to prove his claims because they needed some topic that will help them forget the somber atmosphere
brought by the fact that some of the their buddies have left for the big city otherwise they would have none of Pakal’s
wild stories. They would have challenge him instantly to put where his mouth is, right there and then.
They have agreed to follow the rest of the gang to Metro Manila but when they
ask permission from their parents, many were against the said idea. So, here they are in the middle of the afternoon drowning
their sorrows over several bottles of the colorless alcoholic drink trying to weigh their options. Irago, had already made
up his mind and was just trying to get the consensus of the two. It did not take long for him to decide for he saw this as
a way to finally break away from the clutches of his domineering siblings who blamed him for everything in the death of their
mother while giving birth to him- of course Irago has nothing to do with this for his mother actually died of complications
from Eclampsia. He understood and accepted the fact that his siblings were consumed by blind hatred of having their mother
untimely taken away from them but they have lost sight of the fact that it was Irago who suffered the most with her untimely
death. So, he decided to leave rather than lost his last ounce of respect for his siblings.
Odo, on the other hand was at first reluctant to leave. Being the good son
that he was, he wanted to actually help his mother earn a living by selling candles and other religious items on Sundays in
the Churchyard but he find out soon enough that her mother has other plans of her own as well. He found out to his astonishment
when he went home this morning her mother sleeping with Dayunyor, the mechanic in the nearby automotive in their shanty and
made it a point that she is determined to have the man live with them. Having made her point to him, his decision to go away
from the place that he only known since birth came easy.
Pakal, have no plans at all of leaving for Manila for he was determined to
court Biring, the dusky maid of the owner of the only grocery store in the town. His gut feeling was that his feelings for
her would be reciprocated, what with her having given him for free the three bottles of Markang Demonyo that they’re
drinking at the moment. In his mind, he was hoping that he could finally lose his virginity and become a certified Barako*
in no time. He was caught in a dilemma for his heart and crotch wants him to stay in Basag but his mind wanted him to go with
Irago and Odo to Manila and be reunited with their comrades in arms...
One early evening in that fateful summer of 1988, they boarded an ordinary
dilapidated red St. Jude bus for a one- way ticket to the City of Man.
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