11.2 Sa kabila
Teresa is reading a book (1.1) , while riding on the LRT on her way to her son’s condo (4.1). He had just started working and has opted to move out and live independently. He had always been a serious boy (10.4), thinking of academics first and now his job. This worries the mother even more. She’s paying him a visit today. He doesn’t like to call home, which makes her think of things all the more. She thinks of him as David in the story David and Goliath (7.6). Which is what she names him, seeing him from the glass pane the day she adopted him. He was so frail with snow white skin (9.6). She knew at that moment that she had to help him in fighting the goliath of life: “He can’t possibly do that on his own, she thinks”
A boy playing with a toy truck enter the women’s cart. He is sits beside the mother on the seats in front of him. He tinkers with the toy and the truck goes beep beep beep (3.1). She is reminded of the day they lost all their savings at an ATM. A knife was pointed at her, she couldn’t do a thing. It was her life, or the money as they say. The money which was supposed to be for the tuition of her son. He started working because of this, and the Teresa had to live with a parlorista lady-like friend (5.6). The lady-like friend didn’t like the idea of the son living with him. His son chose elsewhere.
The train got tighter and people were crowding around. As she was reading through, she suddenly sees the boy with truck picking out the pocket of an office worker. She didn’t notice at once, but she did. She looks to the boy and she snatched back her phone. The girl was shouting and preaching to the mother, how irresponsible she was to bring up such a boy. She listens in but slowly loses interest and continues on with her book, she doesn’t like being disturbed. She didn’t want to be part of this or anything else. She was thinking: “Been there, done that”