1. KRISHNA

"Krishna! Krishna! wake up. darn it, will you wake up or I will drag you down" Rosing shouted to the sleeping Krishna.

Rosing is a 60-year-old plump lady with curly hair and a smoker. She's in a bad mood because she lost big money in the casino.

"KRISHNA! GET UP NOW! OR YOU WILL BE SORRY!" Rosing's mouth is just like a machine

gun shooting bad words and curses without caution. as if Krishna is a slave and not her daughter who she raised.

Well, it is common knowledge that Krishna is just an adopted daughter, that Rosing saw a baby beside the trash bin near the river on a rainy night in August 2000. She just named the child Krishna because of the necklace that the baby is wearing that looks like K although it is like a symbol or something that Rosing did not manage to search. She just got the baby and is back home from the club she is working.

She is a dancing girl at the bar near the slum area in Tondo, Manila. She is very fond of Krishna knowing that in time someone rich will be looking for her because Baby Krishna is covered with an expensive cloth with a necklace with a weird pendant.

Tondo, Manila is a very poor city. An urban community with lots of people thriving to survive. Many of her neighbors had to do lots of work to get something to it. She grew up in this slum area. ISmall and temporary homes are built with just galvanized heat and plywood as walls. The houses are adjacent to one another that even ta loud snore can be heard by her neighbors. It is a common thing with these things and the community just gives a shrugged about Rosing's ill-mannered.

Some of her neighbors wanted to help her but how can they help her when they are in the same poor condition.

KRISHNA'S POV

"Oh God, I wish that my life will be different, I may be born with power, with influence, or been born to a rich family. I am not Cinderella in a fairy tale but why did you condemn me with this life. Mother is very cruel to me. I suffered a lot in this life" Oh God, please help me erase this pain that my mother caused me." Krishna cried in sadness and in pain. Emotions came rushing to her angelic face. She is witty even though they are poor. She is a strong lady but cried from time to time because of her mother's bad words and curses that can be heard every day of her life.

Loneliness came to her but still, she never thinks of ending her life because of this forsaken condition that she is in. She always believes that there is always hope in every suffering.

Krishna breathed deeply to remove all negativity and start her day. She is not too good today. All her bones are like cracking up. Her muscles are in pain. And she feels a little hot today.

"I might catch a fever or flu" she sighed.

She got up and prepared to go to the market to sell her goodies to earn a living. She is a vegetable and fruit vendor. Every day she got up early to go to the market and leaves the market at night.

How she wished to have a better life and that she will have time to look for her biological parents. She always

has this little emptiness whenever she thinks about her roots, where she came from? She just got a piece of necklace with a weird symbol and the piece of clothing she was wrapped into. With K in it.

Krishna was picked up by Aling Rosing when he once threw garbage. Unfortunately, Aling Rosing was left by her boy friend who thought that Aling Rosing had a family who was only twenty-four years old.

All its bitterness was directed at Krishna who was now sixteen years old.

At first, Krishna studied in a public school that was almost next to their house but unfortunately, he stopped because they needed to earn money to buy food and other necessities.

Although Aling Rosing is gorgeous even in the beginning Krishna loves her.

Their relationship only changed when Aling Rosing married Mang Badong- their rowdy and bully neighbor who did nothing but drink and hang out.

So Krishna is currently raking in the market and selling eggplant.

"eggplant! eggplant! buy it now! ..it's delicious...it's still cheap. Buy it now, customers.."

And the life - market of our hero has already begun.

"My God, I pray that I can sell all these eggplants so that I can go home early" Krishna spoke weakly. As she sat on the corner with just a sack lying down where her eggplants are displayed.

"Lady, how much is your eggplant?" asked the old man.

"It's only ten pesos" answered Krishna and the old man smiled.

“ You still haven't changed, your suffering will end...

Every tick of the clock, your destiny will be fulfilled.

Be careful with everyone you meet

Because many desire

Your life is over." said the old man.

When Krishna turned around the old man was gone.

"Huh? reacted by Krishna. In a second the old man is gone.

The inexplicable events were ignored by Krishna because you know, he might be mistaken for Sisa. (a character in Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo)

A/N: Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo are the two novels written by Dr. Jose Rizal- a Philippine national hero.

Krishna is used to haggling, haggling, and general market noise... Tondo Market means a lot, the common transaction of buying and selling something. The cheapest product is the bargaining of the seller and the buyer. Many people came to Tondo Market to get the products at the cheapest price. Many of the customers came from provinces and nearby areas. Tondo is also a place of delicious foods like eng bee tin where the famous hopia is sold. Chinese restaurants and many others make Tondo a booming city of economy. That is why many illegal squatters and slums wanted to be in Tondo to look for a job and make money. On the other hand, it is also a place where riot and gangster groups came to get money easily.

Maybe she got a high fever and started hallucinating.

After a while, a girl is shouting her name. Dress like a gangster and boyishly charming.

"KIYAH.....! BESPREN!" shouted AJ.. (short for Alliah Jane).

" tsss! Who did you fight with again?" Krishna asked with raised eyebrows.

"Tasyong Tangkad chased me" gasped, the drinker's mouth fluttered.

"Phew" what is this bess??? AJ complained

"You are just complaining " it's just coconut juice," replied Krishna.

AJ keep sipping her coconut juice. The chasing and hiding....is very tiring

"bessy, I need to hide" AJ said after gulping the last of her juice.