Ace of Clubs

Wish Granted?

6 months later

It's funny how pretending becomes second nature once you've done it so many times already. A day pretending that everything was fine became two, and then three, and then it became a week then a month. In the blink of an eye, 6 months had passed without anyone knowing what transpired that night.

Or the nights before that.

No one knew about the marriage, or the divorce, or anything that happened in between. Good, they both thought. It's better that way.

But even when pretending has become second nature, it doesn't make things easier. Mornings would start slow with the reminder that they've lost something they want so badly to have, forcing them to get out of bed so they won't have to think about that again.

Evenings would be even worse. They would lie in their separate beds, sometimes crying, most of the time just staring blankly at the wall or the ceiling. But the heaviness and the ache never really goes away.

It goes on and grows the more time passes by.

Risa didn't know if it was in her dreams or it was one of the nights where it felt so difficult that she had trouble breathing, but she remembered begging the universe to give her just one more day with Leni as her wife, or as her lover, or whatever she was as long as they get to spend a day together without thinking about what would happen tomorrow.

Kahit hindi na isang buong araw. Kahit isang lunch or dinner lang, or isang street food date like we did before, isang date lang tapos balik na ulit sa dati, she remembered thinking.

She remembered how she gasped for air like she was drowning in her sobs, clutching her chest tight and her mouth shut because no one could hear her crying or they would ask why.

Leni, on the other hand, stayed awake most nights, working instead of resting because that was the only way she could stop herself from wallowing too deep in her thoughts. She would wake up and the kids would ask if she had gotten enough sleep. She'd say yes, but everyone knew she was lying.

Like Risa, she too, begged the universe for at least one more moment with her where they can be together without fear or worry for what happens next. Kahit isang oras lang, kahit isang yakap lang, okay na ako.

Maybe the universe won't listen like it didn't when they asked for a way to make things work. Maybe it will. Nobody really knows. But still, they asked every night for that simple request.

"Ma'am Leni, sorry po pero isang room na lang daw po 'yung available dito sa hotel na 'to. Kailangan niyo po mag-share ni Sen. Risa."

Maybe the universe does listen.

"H-huh? Paano kayo?"

"May na-book po kami sa katabing hotel kaso 2 rooms lang po kasi ayun na lang 'yung available. Isang room po para sa amin tapos isa po para sa staff ni Sen."

"Ah gano'n ba..." Leni shared an alarmed look with Risa, who seemed frozen on her spot after hearing that.

"Sorry po talaga, okay lang po ba sa inyo? Nagkamali po kasi 'yung original na hotel na pagsstayan po natin dapat tapos ito po 'yung pinakamalapit and pinakamabilis na nahanap namin."

"O-oo naman, okay lang," Risa smiled kindly, voice shaking. What was happening?

"Kung okay kay Sen. Risa, sa akin din. Kaysa naman wala."

The staff thanked them and apologized for the inconvenience, then handed them the keycard to their room. Leni accepted it and reassured that it was not a problem.