the cubicle..

and just as the movie is about to get to the good part, it had to happen.

i immediately left my seat and went towards the comfort room located at the farthest left of the movie theatre. it was only then when i noticed that there were only atleast a handful of people scattered through out the seats inside. makes sense since this is an outdated movie. my friend had to drag me into watching it since i'm not interested with such flicks. and because i underestimated it, it turned out to be a cool one. maybe that's the secret on how to be happy in life, lowered expectations. haha. and just as the movie is about to get to the good part, it had to happen. i dashed towards the door, went towards the nearest urinal, unzipped, flooded the ceramics with my piss.

good thing that the movie or should i say the audio of the movie is being played thru that speaker mounted on the ceiling.

i turned my ears to hypersensitive mode so that i could atleast absorb the essence of the movie without the visuals. as i try my hardest to familiarize myself with the characters through the voices coming from that speaker, i noticed,

a mysterious sound.

what is that sound?

amidst the dialogues and the explosions heard from the speaker, there is this sound. and i'm sure it's not from the movie.

i zipped and went towards the sink to wash my hands. the sensor driven faucets didn't produce a splashing sound but more of a gentle, flowy sound so it didn't disrupt my focus on that mysterious sound.

knowing the skeptic in me, i just knew it was not something supernatural. but could it be?

it's not a long sound, more of a continuing sound.

it seems familiar but i can't seem to put my finger on it.

it sounded like a piece or maybe pieces of metal rubbing againt a particular material. paper? cloth? i'm not sure.

it had to be metal and what instantly registered on my mind was the kind of sound that comes from a wind chime. duh? there are no wind or chimes in the bathroom so i guess that's not it.

i seriously focused my sense of hearing to that sound even more. the quality of the sound is low and follows a certain beat.

ching, ching, ching, ching...

i scanned the area and yes, just as i thought when i first entered, i was alone. or am i?

then, suddenly, i noticed the sound is getting louder.

ching, ching, ching, ching....

i kept my focus and tried my best to trace where it is coming from.

i walked slowly, with my right ear pointing to the direction of the sound and as i do, i noticed that it doesn't only grow louder but the beat went faster.

ching, ching, ching, ching....

i am now standing infront of the 3 cubicles in the immediate left of the sink. my interest in the movie evaporated into thin air because the urge to know what that sound is is much more exciting than intergalactic space travel of some sort.

conviced that the answer is inside one of those cubicle, i've decided to give it a go and give in to the curiousity. and as i was just about to lift my feet for that glorious first step towards the truth, the sound stopped.

then cubicle no. 3 opened. the one on the farthest left.

a figure started to reveal itself as the door opens outwards

a guy. wearing a white polo and white pants.

across his shoulder are black rectangular things with stars on them.

he was zipping his fly.

he was too focused on his fly, he didn't even notice that i was looking at him.

then he slid his right arm on his pocket.

and there it is again, the mysterious sound. that isn't so mysterious anymore.

ching ching....

he grabbed some keys.

then, the guy finally acknowledged my presence by looking at me as well.

and in a split second, he looked away and bowed down.

then, another figure emerged from the same cubicle that the guy in white was in a minute ago.

a man.

in his i think late 30's or early 40's.

wiping his mouth with a piece of tissue.

2 guys in 1 cubicle.

inside women's comfort room.

an outdated movie.

that mysterious sound. following its own beat that started slow, then fast, then faster.

i get the picture already.

how could i be so naive.


i literally sprinted out of that room, went back to my seat and had a good laugh about it.

and so did my mom.

it reminds me of some friends.. lol