KUYA Migo was overprotective before.
He's worse now.
"Kuya!" she shouts, shoving him when he follows her back to Blue. "Okay na ako, please!"
Oh, how she loves, loves, loves her kuya, pero tangina, nakakabaliw siya this past week!
He scrunches his eyebrows. "Sure ka ba?"
Maureen sighs, putting a hand over her forehead. "Kuya, my God. I promise I'm fine na. Please leave me alone, para kang bodyguard."
Ate Jiya bites her lip and reaches out to hold her hand. "Mau, your kuya's just worried."
She knows and she understands, which is why she's trying to be patient.
Pero hindi na nakakapunta si Kuya Inggo sa condo niya! Ano ba! Gusto niya na ulit ng landian!
Landian na walang label, bobo ka talaga, Maureen.
Shh. Quiet.
"I'm fine," Maureen says with a sigh, reaching up on her tiptoes to hug her kuya tightly. "Thank you...and kina Kuya Inggo, Kuya Cas, and Kuya Anton. I'll call you and I'll go to you if I need you, but for now, please stop following me. You know I love you, right?"
Kuya Migo huffs and hugs her back. "Tawagan mo 'ko agad. If I don't answer, call Valle, Inggo, Buenca, or Cas—kahit sino sa mga kaibigan ko. Update mo 'ko paminsan-minsan."
Maureen also hugs Ate Jiya before she goes inside her condo.
And texts him.
coast is clear.
He's been waiting for her text.
Sumigaw si Maureen sa kilig when she receives his reply, and then runs to the bathroom to check her appearance.
Kuya Inggo: b there in 5.
As much as Maureen tries to tell herself to stop assuming feelings on Kuya Inggo's end from this...this 'thing' they have going on, hindi rin nakakatulong si Kuya Inggo, e.
He ties her hair for her when it gets in her face while studying, brushing his fingers along her nape. He taps her hip with his hand when he leans over her to grab a glass from the cupboard. He lies down on her lap and opens his mouth while she's eating cheesecake so she can feed him a piece.
Sana ikaw na lang kinakain niya, 'no, banat ng devil.
In love na in love na nga si Maureen before, itong pinaggagagawa ni Kuya Inggo...delikado siya. Mag-ready na siya ng tux bukas kasi dadalhin na siya ni Maureen sa courthouse. Wala nang, "Do you, Maureen Salas, take Inggo de Paz—" bullshit.
"I do, Father!" na kaagad.
Para kasing hindi naman niya ginagawa 'to para madala lang siya sa kama ulit. Hindi gano'n si Kuya Inggo, e. He wouldn't spend so much of his time and effort investing pieces of himself in her, and taking pieces of herself with him, kung para lang sa katawan niya ang habol niya.
Hindi gano'n si Kuya Inggo.
Ito iniisip niya habang nag-aaral sila for finals sa swimming pool. Maureen's feet are inside the water habang nagfo-float si Kuya Inggo.
Because he was stressed, he wanted to come here. Then he asked her to help him study.
"Spare receptor," sabi ni Maureen, looking at his index cards.
"Extra receptors for a certain signal," Kuya Inggo answers quickly, still lying on his back with his eyes closed in the water. "Considered 'spares' because they do not need to be occupied to produce a signal, useful when an antagonist that binds to the receptors is present."
HUHUHU. He's so smart, kanina pa siya naiiyak sa loob-looban niya because of his chemistry talk.
Maureen clears her throat and moves on to the next, furrowing her eyebrows. "Pharmacophore," she says slowly, not sure if she pronounced it right.
Kuya Inggo grins, opening his eyes to glance at her. "Specific portion of a drug-like compound that allows it to react and bind with its target receptor, enzyme, et cetera. Depending on the target, it can be one or more functional group."
"Sure ka bang kailangan mo pa mag-aral?" Maureen huffs, moving on to the next card. Bwisit. Gwapo na nga, matalino pa. Ba't 'di na siya mag-propose, punyemas.
Kuya Inggo huffs out a laugh and swims closer to her, still smiling boyishly. His hands wrap around her ankles, and goose bumps spread over her entire body. "Amazed ka na sa 'kin, Rinn?"
"You're so yabang."
He winks at her. "Isa pa. Yung medyo mahirap, gusto ko ng prize kung tama ako."
Maureen raises an eyebrow, biting her lip when his hands travel up to her calves under the water, then back down again to her ankles. "Anong prize?"
Kuya Inggo's eyes drop to her mouth before going back to her eyes. He murmurs, "Gusto ko ng kiss."
Maureen doesn't even blink, even as her heart stops. "List the desirable requirements for a lead compound," sabi niya in a rush, praying to God na alam niya ang sagot.
He's looking into her eyes while his hands go up her knee and thighs. He squeezes them, and then slides them further down between her legs, tracing the seam of her shorts.
Shit.
"Bioavailability, solubility, structure, and stability."
"Explain each."
"Bioavailability is said to be good if it satisfies Lipinski's Rule of Fives," Kuya Inggo rushes out, eyes going to her lips. "Solubility: compound must be soluble to some extent in both polar and non-polar solvents since it must transverse through the lipid bilayer of cells. Structure: compound must have capacity to bind with its receptor, able to form either electrostatic bonds or covalently bond with its target, depending on the action intended. The stereochemistry of the drug must also be considered."
He pulls her into the pool with one, firm tug.
Maureen squeals, but then he presses himself to her, caging her against the wall, and breathes, "Stability: drug must be stable right after administration and must have a good shelf life. Now, I want my kiss."
Maureen stares at him. She can hear her heart beating so loudly. "How do I know tama lahat ng sinabi mo?"
The smirk his mouth forms is so arrogant and hot. "I could've given you the wrong answer and you still would've kissed me, Rinn, 'wag na tayong maglokohan."
The audacity!
Tama siya, pero the audacity!
She pushes his chest when he dips his head down. "Wait. Kinikilig ako."
His laugh is so loud it soaks her heart.
And her shorts.
*
R18 na po ang susunod na update SHSHHHSHS
BINABASA MO ANG
And Then You
RomanceInggo de Paz has a long line of girls waiting outside his door. He never thought Maureen Salas, his best friend's little sister, would be one of them. DISCLAIMER: This story is written in Taglish.
