One Last Time

Kabanata XXXVIII: IRRITATION

Irritation.
___________________________________________

NAGISING AKO SA INGAY na naririnig ko mula sa baba. I'm sure galing 'yon sa kusina. At kung anong nangyayari kung bakit umabot hanggang room ko ang ingay, wala akong ideya. Bumangon na ako at dumiretso agad sa banyo. My room has its own bathroom, so I didn't need to go downstairs.

After finishing my morning routine, I finally went downstairs to find out what is going on in the kitchen.

There, I found Andrei wearing an apron and standing in front of the induction stove. Wafting to the air is the delightful aroma of fried eggs and bacon wafted through the air, that made my stomach growl.

Lumapit na ako sa dining table at nakitang may nakahain nang pancakes at hotdog doon. But what really caught my eye was the coffee that was served.

A small smile crept onto my lips. I'm not sure if it's in our mother's genes or what, but Andrei and I share similar tastes when it comes to coffee. I remember back then when he used to brew coffee to sell to his classmates and asked me to be his taste tester. Unang tikim ko pa lang sa kape niya, nagustuhan ko na ito.

Humila na ako ng upuan sa harap ng mga nakahain, making a bit of noise that caught Andrei's attention. Malapad ang ngiting nilingon niya ako. "Good morning, Sis," he greeted.

“Morning,” walang ganang bati ko na inilingan niya lang.

Inabot ko naman na ang tasa sa harapan ko at sinimulang humigop doon ng kape.

“How's my coffee?” tanong ni Andrei na lumapit na sa lamesa. He's holding a plate with the bacon he fried earlier.

“Good,” sagot ko bago muling humigop ng kape.

Tumango naman sa'kin si Andrei at umupo na sa tapat ko, kaya magkaharap na kami ngayon. Ngayon ko lang din napansin na basa pa ang buhok niya, halatang kaliligo lang. Anong oras kaya nagising ang isang 'to?

Binaba ko ang hawak kong tasa saka tumikhim. “I didn't know you learned how to cook,” I casually remarked.

“Are you proud?” He eyed me while wearing a teasing smile.

Hindi muna ako agad sumagot. I picked up the fork to my side at tumuhog ng hotdog gamit ito. Pagkatapos ilagay ang hotdog sa plato ko, I finally looked at him. “A little. Congratulations on that little milestone,” kusang lumabas 'yon sa bibig ko.

Napatitig naman sa'kin si Andrei, bakas sa mukha ang gulat sa narinig.

Ngumiwi ako sa isip. Nagulat din ako sa nasabi ko. Given how I had treated him before and last night, I suppose he didn't expect me to say something like that.

“T-Thank you...” he stammered. He tried to turn his face to the side, pero dahil kaharap ko lang siya... nakita kong namula ang mga pisngi niya.

I smirked internally. He's blushing at my praise, huh?

Tumikhim ako. “Thank you also for preparing our breakfast. I appreciate it.”

I saw his cheeks redden even more.

“Uhhm...” was all he could manage to respond as he attempted to nod at me.

Inilingan ko lang siya at pinagtuunan na ang pagkain. He did the same. We peacefully had our breakfast as if we had a calm conversation last night.

Bago tuluyang matapos ang breakfast namin, tumikhim si Andrei. Maingat siyang tumingin sa'kin, parang tinitimbang ang ekspresyon ko. When he saw my calm expression, he cleared his throat again. “So, I was just thinking about what I said last night regarding Mom. I'm not trying to defend her or anything. I understand that you're still upset about what happened, but I just want you to see things from her perspective. I want you two to reconcile. Besides, it's been so long since you've seen each other.”