"Did you follow me?"
He didn't answer.
Hindi ko pa napangalanan agad ang mga emosyong umatake sa akin nang magsimula siyang humakbang palapit.
"Anong ginagawa mo rito, Cedric?" Pinagmasdan ko nang mabuti ang pagtayo niya sa harapan ko, arguing with myself if I would freak out or hear him out first.
The corner of his lips rose for a lazy smirk. Bahagya niyang inginuso ang phone ko matapos. "You didn't reply."
Kumunot ang noo ko. "Why the hell would you follow me here?"
Balewala siyang nagkibit-balikat. Sa sarkastiko at may panunuyang tinig ay sinabi niya ito, "Do you prefer me approaching you while you're with Terrence, then?"
He chuckled but there was no humor laced in it. Mariin ang sunod niyang titig sa akin at ang pang-aakusa ay unti-unting bumabalatay sa ekspresyon.
"Guess your cool-off's really done, huh? How sure are you that he change for good this time?"
"We're trying to work it out," matabang kong tugon.
"He slept in your apartment last night, didn't he?" Sinundan ng isang matigas na tango ang pag-igting ng panga niya. "I can see how he's all over you all the time. Going strong, ah? Gaano kaya magtatagal?"
Napabuntonghininga ako sa pagsuko.
Fine. I'd been wanting to talk to him about this too.
Magsasalita na sana ako ngunit natigilan nang magsimulang pumatak ang ulan.
"Let's talk somewhere."
Tinakbo ko ang pinakamalapit na pwedeng silungan. Cedric followed me until I entered a nearby café. Bilang lang ang tao roon kaya't tanging mahinang background music lang sa café at tunog ng ulan sa labas ang rinig.
The place looked murky with the dark enveloping the street outside. Patay pa ang karamihan sa mga ilaw sa loob ng café dahil tanghali pa lang kaya't medyo madilim din. The air was dry inside too.
Binilan ko si Cedric ng frappe kahit hindi siya sumagot nang tinanong ko kung ano ang gusto niya.
"I decided to give Terrence a last chance."
He scoffed. "Lucky bastard."
"I don't know about you but I believe that everybody deserves a chance." I looked at him from across the table.
Nanatili siyang tamad na nakasandal sa kinauupuan at hindi nagbago ang sarkastikong ekspresyon.
"Too many chances at that, Eunice. Sigurado ka bang hindi mo 'yan pagsisisihan?"
Bumagsak ang mga mata ko sa sariling cup ng frappe bago dahan-dahang umiling. Habang pinakikinggan ang kalmadong musika kasabay ng pagbuhos ng ulan sa basa nang kalsada ay marahan ko itong sinabi, "My dad had an affair with a girl the same age as my older brother... my mom knew about it but didn't do anything. It's not that it was okay for her, she just didn't know how to stop him."
Nanatiling tahimik si Cedric kaya't nagpatuloy ako.
"Hanggang sa nag-uwi ng girlfriend si Kuya para ipakilala sa amin... and you know what's fucked up? My dad's mistress turned out to be my brother's girlfriend. We didn't know it at the time but there was something strange about the two of them all the while when she's there. Lalo na nang nagalit si Dad at nagtalo sila ng kapatid ko pagkatapos... I remember them having a huge fight that night that my dad ended up punching Euan.
"I was fifteen then and I had no idea what they were fighting about. Lumayas si Kuya nang gabing 'yon at hindi na siya umapak pa ulit sa bahay.
"My brother and I aren't that close like other siblings—or should I say, we used to be but not anymore. I remember hanging out with him when I was a kid. But when he entered junior high, things got different—we stopped talking. Just like that. We got awkward with each other since. It felt like he was caging himself away from us and honestly, I didn't know how to talk to him... it sucks now that I think about it because I wish I tried."
BINABASA MO ANG
The Other 'I'
General FictionFed-up with Terrence's cheating on their more than a year relationship, Eunice decided to cool things off between them -- for she can't find the courage to end it in the midst of her indecision and overwhelming emotions. But as she struggled to try...
