Sweet Obsession

Chapter 19

"I know, my lady. It's okay, you don't have to do that." Lalapit sana si Richard pero agad ko syang sinamaan ng tingin.

"Stop right there! Subukan mo pang maglakad ng isang hakbang, tatamaan ka sa'kin." Banta ko, nakasimangot dito.

He admit his defeat and then deeply sighed. "Please, be careful. Don't get hurt."

Tango lang ang ginawa ko habang naghahalo ng niluluto ko kuno. As I walked into the kitchen, I wanted to apologize to him but since he was cooking, I'll attempt to make up for it with the food.

Of course....I'm not actually sure about this either. Wala pa talaga akong exprience sa pagluluto, maliban nalag sa hotdog, egg at noodles.

Pero mas lalo aatras ang lakas ng loob ko kung pagprito na ng manok ang usapan. But my pride is still there...kaya push nalang ang magagawa. Kung kaya ng lalaking 'to, ako paba na babae, diba?

I mix the gravy and the chicken. Hinuling lutuin ni Richard ang manok kesa sa pagsangag ng kanin. Yummy right? However, I'm mentally exhausted right now.

"S-Sure kabang ganto kadami ang mantika?" Alanganin kong tanong sa nakangising lalaki habang nakangalumbaba ito sa kitchens counter.

"Yes. But are you really sure, my lady?"

Kahit ilang beses na nyang naitanong 'yan, kitang-kita ang page-enjoy sa mukha nya. Iisipin ko nalang na ibang dahilan kung ba't ganyan ang itsura nya.

Masaya ba syang may natitigan syang isang magandang dilag? Sus, makikita nya pa ang hidden talent ko, nahihiya tuloy ako. Argh!

With confidence, I replied. "Of course." I'm not freaking sure! Mukha ba akong may alam dito?! Kung oo, ang galing ko naman umakting!

Bumalik ang atensyon ko sa pinapakuluang mantika. Ang dami. Nagtipon-tipon ang mga mantika at bumaha na. I feel sorry for the chickens.

Nang kumulo na ito, dahan-dahan kong ibinaba ang hilaw na manok. Agad nagsitalsikan ang mga manika nito. Ahh!

"Oh shit!" I jumped in shock. Damn, tumatalon ang mga mantika!

Hindi ko alam kung saan ako pupunta dahil halos lahat ay nandoon ang mga mantika! I'm not that damn lucky, so it got on me. Hindi ko na magawang mapansin kung saan banda para makalayo lang dito.

Ngunit nagulat ako nang may humablot ng pulsuhan ko. He looks at me after inspecting it. "See this? I told you to be careful. You're so hard headed, Mui." As he observed my swelling skin, he stated to me in a serious manner.

Tumingin nalang ako sa ibang direksyon. Even though I know I should have apologized to him, I just want to cook. Ayon lang naman ang plano ko pero nasira pa dahil sa bahang-bahang mantika na 'yan!

Pina-upo ako ni Richard sa upuan. Binalikan nya ang pinrito ko, dinagdagan nya ito ng ilang manok habang pinahinaan ang apoy at tinakpan ito. He then approached me and examined my hand once more. He's kneeling infront of me.

Sa ganoong posisyon, kitang-kita ko ng malaya ang kanyang mukha. His solemn face as he studied my hand made me want to chuckle. It's simply swelling.

Nang tumaas ang ulo nito sa'kin, agad akong umiwas. Narinig ko ang buntong hininga nya at tumayo. Nang bumalik sya, dala-dala na nya ang medical kit.

Habang inaayos nya ang namamaga kong balat, hindi naman ako mapakali. He always makes jokes about me, smiles, then smirks, or gets ominous. However, neither of those describe his current mood, which worries me.

Nakakatakot naman talaga ang pagpapalit-palit nya ng ugali pero 'yong bigla nyang pananahimik? Hindi ko pa nararanasan 'yon. Now, I fucking understand the power of silent treatment.

Dahil kasalanan ko naman talaga, tatadyakin ko na ang pride na 'yan. "I'm sorry." I almost whispered. "I just want to to cook. Alam kong kasalanan ko din kanina 'nong nasa kwarto tayo. Since it's all my fault, I can't help but feel conscious. It's not my position to say that to you. At sa ngayon, kasalanan lang 'yan ng mantika. The end." I clarified right away. He seems to hold both of my hands. I can see every emotion in his eyes when I stare at him.

"My lady, don't apologize. When you said those to me, at first I'm seriously hurt." Mariin akong napapikit. Of course masasaktan sya. Maliban nalang kung manhid sya. Naramdaman ko ang daliri nya sa baba ko at pinaharap sa kanya.

"My lady, open your eyes," I did what he told me to. His beaming face was the first thing I saw. I can see the tenderness in his eyes. "If I'm in that position, I'll experience doubts too. If there are still doubts in your heart, the fantasies in your mind will never end, my lady. And if you want to try cooking, you can count on me." Pagtawa nya. Nahampas ko ang balikat nito ng wala sa oras.

Sinamaan ko sya ng tingin, "Magkakatrauma ata ako sa kawali at mantika dahil doon." Seryoso ko syang minataan. "Dahil sa sinabi mo, switch kaya tayo ng position 'no? At mafeel mo ang nararamdaman ko?" Sarkastiko kong saad sa kanya. I could tell this idiot didn't take me seriously since he simply smiled and shook his head.

"It's okay, my lady. We'll remove the doubt from your heart." All of a sudden, I can hear my own heartbeat. What the heck...

"Anong ibig mong sabihin?" I nervously asked him.

All he did was smile and gently pressed his face into mine. Richard rashly but gently planted his lips on mine. Nang makabitaw na sya, marahan nyang kinagat ang ibabang labi ko at bumulong,

"I will finally court you, my lady." A shaky voice I heard from him. Nervous? Excited? Anticipaton?

Yet at that moment, I am quite certain of one thing. My consciousness is going to disappear.