Napangiti na lang ako habang naglalakad kami and sa totoo lang, hindi ko matingnan si Pat cause I'm sure she'd notice how flushed I look. Ang sarap hawakan ng kamay ni Pat. And I feel like we're both starting to feel relaxed with it. Naglakad lang kami pabalik ng condo para balikan yung wallet ko tapos pumunta na kami sa coffee shop.
Pat's hands were small and they fit mine perfectly kaya madali lang din hawakan yung kamay niya. You know how you walk with someone while holding their hands and you need to adjust the level of your arm para mahawakan mo yung kamay niya? It was different with Pat. Kasi kahit super relaxed lang yung position ng braso ko, I can still hold her hands and I noticed how relaxed her arm was too. As if our arm length was made for this. Or maybe it's just me romanticizing things that I'm not supposed to.
Pumasok na kami sa coffee shop and napansin ko na andaming tao. Usually wala na masyadong tao kapag ganitong oras dito, but today the place was packed. Sabagay, it's been a while since I was last here. And I think biglang naconscious si Pat kasi bigla niyang inalis yung kamay niya.
"O why?"sabi ko sa kanya.
"Wala."sagot niya but I can tell she was bothered by the stares that people gave us when we entered.
"Nasasanay na akong hawakan kamay mo wifey ah. Baka mamaya nyan di ko na yan bitawan."sabi ko sa kanya just to ease her out.
"Umorder ka na nga!"sabi niya tapos naghanap na siya ng pwede namin upuan.
I just ordered my usual coffee drink and inorder ko rin yung drink ni Pat. I glanced at her and she was looking at me too and we both just gave each other a toothless smile. Kinuha ko na yung drinks and on the way to the table, nagulat pa ako when people came up to me for a photo. Napangiti ako when I realized na some of them knew me because of Runway Hits, while some of them saw me during the EP launch.
Paglapit ko kay Pat, napansin ko na she was hugging herself and I can tell na nilalamig siya sa pwesto namin. Malamig pa naman yung kape na binili ko for her and I saw her rubbing her hands together.
"Giniginaw ka?"sabi ko sa kanya and she nodded. Di ko alam kung paano ko siya tutulungan but my hands were warm enough kaya I sat down beside her and hinawakan ko yung kamay niya and placed it inside the pocket of jacket. Ang lamig naman pala kasi talaga dito. Akala ko maiinis si Pat, but she just smiled at me.
"Paano mo nalaman na ito yung favorite kong coffee dito?"tanong niya.
"Hmm... gut feel. I just feel na you are a cold brew person."sabi ko.
"Bakit naman?"
"Cold ka eh."sagot ko sabay kinurot niya ako.
"Aray! Grabe ka naman wifey. Baka magpasa yan ah."sabi ko.
But if I am to be honest, this is one of the spots where I usually see her. It wasn't an intentional thing. Nagkakataon lang na every time andito kami ng Runway, andito rin siya and siya yung laging nasa harap ko when I order and she always order the same drink. I remember the first night I saw her here and how I almost left the queue para magtago kasi bigla akong kinabahan nung narealize ko na siya yun.
I probably had the largest crush on Pat and seeing her made me feel extra nervous. Nakakatawa pa na when I realized it was her, napaatras ako and di na sana ako yung o-order. And how I would always wait for them to call out her name para malaman ko pero iba-iba yung tawag sa kanya. And I realized now, na kaya pala ganon, kasi iba-iba talaga nicknames niya. Kaya pala dati it's Tricia, Trish, Pat, Bea, Bernadette cause sometimes she would use her sister's name. And nung narealize ko na magkakaibang pangalan ginamit niya, I realized that it's pretty much unreliable.
