Collide / [Park Jay]

25

"Wow, Yerim! Are you sure you're alone here?" Hana said a few seconds after entering my apartment.

"Yeah, it's just me." Sagot ko at inayos ng kaunti ang throw pillows sa sofa. Noong nakaraang araw pa ako nagsimulang mag-ayos dahil pinaghahandaan ko rin ang pagpunta nila pero parang hindi pa rin ako satisfied. I guess I was just too excited because this is the first time I invited some friends to come over. Ganito pala ang pakiramdam.

"This building is quite expensive for someone who's living alone. Feel ko talaga anak ka ng mafia boss, ayaw mo lang aminin!" Sunhee insisted and we all laughed.

"Hindi naman. The security is very strict here that's why I chose this place. Also, malapit rin sa school at maraming establishments." Sagot ko doon.

"Still, this building is expensive! Tingnan mo nga, oh. Mag-isa ka lang dito tapos may chandelier ka pa?" Pang-aasar nila at sabay pang naituro iyon.

Napailing ako at natawa na lang rin bago ako dumiretso sa kitchen. Hinayaan ko na lang sila doon habang ako'y abala sa pag-iisip kung anong pwede kong i-serve sa kanila. I barely cook for myself ever since I moved here so I don't know what to offer. Nasanay na rin akong kumakain sa store kaya madalas ay hindi ko na napapansin ang mga stock ko sa fridge.

"Uh.. if you guys want to eat, doon lang ang kitchen." Sabi ko, medyo bigo nang muling lumapit sa kanila. "Hana, you said you know how to cook, right?" I asked. They're now setting up the television because they're preparing to watch a movie.

"Yes. How about you? Don't tell me.." Tanong niya kahit na parang alam na niya ang sagot base sa reaksyon ko. "Girl, what the hell? Paano ka nakaka-survive everyday?" Tawang-tawa sila doon.

"My mom sometimes send me home-cooked meals. Minsan rin nagluluto ako. But most of the time, nago-order lang ako or bumibili ng prepared meal sa convenience store kung saan ako nagwo-work." I told them. Amusement is all over their face now.

"One of the cons of living alone." Natawa na lang rin si Sunhee doon.

Sa school pa lang ay na-plano na nila ang mga gagawin namin for today at isa nga doon ay manood ng movies. It may seem "too basic" for others but for me, this is a whole new feeling because it's my first time hanging out with friends like this. And I can't even put into words how happy I am right now.

Eventually, we ended up ordering food for lunch since we're too invested in the movie that we're watching and no one dares to get up to cook something. Nang naghapon naman ay doon pa lang nagluto si Hana for our merienda.

"Pwede ka nang mag-asawa." Pabirong komento ko. She cooked pesto pasta and belgian waffles for us and it's so good!

"Sige, hanapan mo ako." Sagot niya.

We talked about a lot of things to the point that we didn't even notice that it's about to get dark outside. Gusto nga sana nilang mag-sleepover pero sa susunod na lang daw dahil hindi sila nakapagpaalam. Sinabi pa nila na pagplanuhan na daw namin iyon agad. Natawa na lang ako habang sumasang-ayon sa kanila.

"Thank you, Yerim. We had fun! Next time, pajama party na tayo. Promise!" Sunhee said while putting her shoes on.

"Yeah, definitely. Sobrang bilis ng oras! Nakakainis!" Si Hana naman ang nagreklamo doon. She's now in front of my vanity mirror, doing some retouches on her face.

"Don't worry, guys. Welcome naman kayo dito anytime. And thank you rin sa inyo, ha? I really appreciate your visit. I'm extra happy today." I sincerely told them.

It always feels nice knowing that you have people you can make good memories with. Ang gaan lang talaga sa pakiramdam. I just don't know how to express myself well but I'm really grateful to them. Surely, this is going to be one of the days I'll forever cherish.

Pagkatapos naming mag-ayos ay sabay-sabay na rin kaming bumaba. I have work today and medyo late na nga ako dahil hindi ko napansin ang oras. Mas natagalan pa ako dahil sa dalawang kasama ko na gusto pang libutin ang building namin. They even forced me to use the elevator kahit na sa kabilang side pa iyon ng building at sa second floor lang naman 'yong tinutuluyan ko. These girls!

"Next time nga, punta tayong rooftop. Parang masaya do'n." Natatawang suhestiyon ni Hana. Napailing na lang ako sa mga gusto nilang mangyari.

Kasalukuyan na kaming naglalakad papunta sa convenience store dahil doon 'yong sinabi nilang landmark kung saan sila susunduin ng driver nila. It may take a while so I asked them to wait inside the store, siyempre, para safe din.

Nauna akong pumasok dahil balak ko rin mag-sorry sa store manager dahil medyo late ako. He just laughed at me and told me that it's fine since part-timer lang naman ako at hindi daw dapat ako nape-pressure sa schedule ko.

Nang pabalik na ako sa labas para tawagin ang mga kaibigan ko, naagaw ang atensyon ko ng mga tawanan mula sa isang table sa dulo. I paused for a while because it was filled with familiar faces. Tiningnan ko silang mabuti na para bang may inaasahan akong makikita doon. I'm working here for weeks already and during my shifts, I've never seen him visiting the store like he usually does. Kaya siguro medyo nagulat ako na nakita ko ulit siya ngayon. Yes, I wasn't wrong. Kahit na likod lang niya ang natatanaw ko ay sigurado akong siya 'yon.

Nagkibit-balikat na lamang ako dahil hindi naman 'yon mahalaga. Ano naman kung nariyan siya, 'di ba?

I was about to call my friends when I saw them already making their way inside the store. Nasa kabilang section ako kaya medyo hindi pa nila ako natatanaw. At nang lalapitan ko na sila, bigla akong natigilan nang may muling maalala.

Jay is here.. so does my friends. And in a spur of a moment, my mind went crazy as I remember that they shouldn't see each other here. I don't know. It suddenly just feels like an instinct.

"Yerim-" I heard Hana calling my name but I guess, I was too blank to respond. I just walked past them, feeling the need to do something my mind tells me.

"Get up." I said calmly.

"Huh?" Jay looks so confused. Maging ang mga kaibigan niya ay ganoon din.

Hindi ko na alam kung paano iyon ie-explain sa kanya sa mga oras na 'yon. I immediately just grabbed his wrist and forced him to come with me so he can hide. He was behind me the whole time as I check my friends from the convex mirror. Nakita kong takang-taka rin sila sa nangyari pero ang mahalaga naman ay hindi sila magkita ni Jay dito, 'di ba?

Mayamaya ay lumabas na sila ng store, siguro ay dahil naroon na ang driver na hinihintay nila. Ilang saglit pa ay tumunog na ang cellphone ko dahil sa tawag mula kay Sunhee. I then realized that I'm still holding Jay's wrist so I awkwardly let it go before I answer the call.

"Is everything alright? Sino 'yong kinausap mo?" Bungad niya. "Anyway, the driver's here already kaya lumabas na rin kami. See you at school na lang and thank you again for today!" Dire-diretso niyang sinabi. Good thing they didn't ask me further about what just happened.

Pagkatapos noon ay natahimik na lang ako. Ngayon lang nag-sink in sa akin ang ginawa ko. Did I overreact?

"What's wrong?" Jay asked. He's probably mad now, right? What I did was really questionable. Bakit ko nga ba ginawa 'yon?

"S-Sorry.." Nahihiya kong sagot. I can't even look at him straight in the eyes.

"Oh, Yerim. Do you need anything? Shift mo na, 'di ba?" The store manager suddenly appeared behind us. Napansin kong napayuko si Jay. Maybe he's embarrassed. I don't know..

"O-Okay po. Papunta na rin po ako sa counter. Nakalimutan ko lang 'yong vest ko." Sagot ko, tinutukoy ang nagsisilbing uniform ko dito as part-timer.

Our store manager excused himself after that. Buti na lang talaga at mabait siya sa akin.

"Uh.. sorry for the inconvenience. I have to go now. Shift ko na kasi.." Paliwanag ko kay Jay. "Your friends are waiting, too. You can go back now." Sabi ko pa.

He stared at me for a while. Kita ko sa mukha niya na parang ang dami niyang gustong itanong. Well, I want to explain myself, too. But since magiging abala na nga ako ay hindi ko na magawa.

"At least.. let me know what happened." Sabi niya nang akma na akong aalis.

Even though I really don't know if I could tell him such embarrassment like this, I just ended up nodding. Bahala na.