LOUIE (COMPLETED)

12: Promise

"I said chips."

"Those are chips."

But these are French Fries. The staff behind the glass and polished counter is giving me a flummoxed eyes. I was about to open my mouth then I recalled I'm in London...

"Oh, my bad," I said, holding the back of my neck, chuckling. "I'll take it. Sorry. How much is it?"

He just titled his head before muttering the price and leaving me with a bowl of it and big sauce beside it. The pub grew more in terms of noise and cluttering of every cutleries used and needed to be used by future customers. It's not that big but it is enough to accommodate anyone who just wanted to stay for a while or wait for someone that's late because they're about to enter the theater stadium right beside this pub.

I'm one of them.

Ava, Akiro, and others are almost twenty minutes late and if I hadn't made a choice to enter this circular pub with high ceiling and dim lights, basang sisiw na ako sa labas.

"The play will start five minutes before the time slot, where are you at?" I hissed at my colleague through phone call.

"Told you, we're caught up with rainy traffic!" there's a rumbling sounds and plummeting drops on his line. "If we didn't arrive five minutes, just go inside! Leave the tickets at the front door!"

"Fine." then I dropped the call.

Distracted, I suddenly ordered a small drink just to push down the food I took. The same waiter gave it to me and smiled before looking away. Though my eyes stayed at his back... he's not the English guy I've been wanting to see...

True to their words, wala pa sila kaya pumasok na lang ako sa kabila. The rain abated a little but the symptoms of heavy traffic can still be felt. After leaving the tickets at the kind plump woman at the entrance, I head inside, cross a long hallway before turning left and right. A wooden door was just opened and closed and the view of magnificent high and gleaming chairs rose to the ground and stage that is still covered with red curtains welcomed my face.

After capturing it on top where I am, I sent it to them and was informed they're few meters away. This area is just like the pub; half-funnel shaped with every sides taken with brown chairs that is perfectly aligned and put into high that it gives an illusion if you topple where I am, you'll be sucked into the middle where the stage is handsomely arranged and built-up.

Those chairs are slowly getting occupied by people that followed me after entering and though we've got reservations, meaning, we have our very own seats, I don't want to make a way to it and let the people who took theirs watch my ass as I pass by.

A slow Mozart composition is playing while everyone is taking their own seats. I watched as my Instagram story gets posted; A video that I 180 degrees took to show everyone the state where am I with the caption: You'll hate it but I will love it if you're here.

Yeah, I've been fooling myself for almost a year and a half already... Baka nga... dalawang taon na.

"Finally," I muttered with a grin while watching the seats beside me finally filling up.

Ava's the one who first to took one; her hair color did change but it's always tied in pigtails. Akiro followed and so on. I just realized that it's only them needed to fill this middle row and seeing it's all filled up, made my heart flutter and sank at the same time.

"I hope they don't flash those lights repeatedly at this spot, " said Ava. "Remember the last play we watched in Paris? Ghastly. I thought I paid for a prop lights to dance in front of us than for a play I didn't enjoy, either."