STORY: THE BUS

January 01, 2008. Twas a fun-filled and splendid New Year's Day celebration along Ayala Ave for the city of Makati and ABS-CBN Foundation fund raising. After the overwhelming and earsplitting fireworks display to embrace 2008, I had no idea that sumffink might gonna 'appen as I go 'ome.   

I was with my friend by that time and after walkin' around Greenbelt, we decided to go 'ome because I still have a work by 12noon. I already expected that we will be 'avin' 'ard time lookin' for AC buses because twas holiday and only ordinary buses were lurking along EDSA. I don't remember if twas the first bus or the second bus that came and stopped before us. We decided to ride on the bus. But when we found out that we can't find any decent seats anymore, I told him, "there's no enough seats here. We should now get off." 

We decided to get off from the bus. And after a few more minutes of waiting along Ayala EDSA, another ordinary bus stopped before us. We rode on the bus comfortably til we arrived Guadalupe EDSA. My friend should be getting off in Guadalupe so he did and left me alone on the bus. Few minutes after he and other passengers left the bus and still along Guadalupe EDSA, the bus where I was riding, hit another bus. The latter bus was parked on the right side of EDSA but there were passengers inside.

Usually folks riding on ordinary buses are extending some parts of their body like their hands and even their heads as if flauntin' to the public. I dunno where it came from but we heard a voice screaming, "yung bata, yung bata!" I thought a baby or a child on the "parked" bus was hit by the bus where I was riding. Then a commotion followed. Some started to shout and to scream. Lil we know that the "parked" bus was already under "siege" of hold upper and they were already startin' to do unnecessary against the passengers of the bus. I can't exactly see what was goin' inside the bus but I saw a man wearing a jeans jacket standing (he was probably the hold upper).

I was so wired because twas the start of the year and I was by myself and I dunno what will gonna 'appen next. I was already thinkin' what if the man transfer to the bus where I was riding and get all the ffinks and stuffs we have? What if he has a gun or a knife and suddenly hurt me or anyone of the passengers inside? What if he kills somebody or me? I was so terrified. But what made me more nervous and upset were the driver and conductor. The hell was, both of 'em did not even bother to move, they didn't try to escape the bus from that horrific situation. The passengers were already screaming, "manong patakbuhin nyo na ang bus baka lumipat pa na yan dito!" Twas the same scenario I was afraid of.

If the passengers didn't yell the driver, he will not run the bus. I was relieved from that terrible and horrific situation when the bus was already away from the "parked" bus, away from the goon or goons. Then after a few minutes we saw that bus along EDSA, the conductor was throwing sumffink, most probably a cloth from the hold upper(s).

I realized that my friend and I were supposed to ride on the bus sieged by hold upper(s).