He and She

Chapter 7

"Are you avoiding me?" Nagulat ako sa sinabi ni Caleb ilang araw matapos ang hearing ni Winona. Naipanalo namin ang kaso pero it was already a sure win dahil na rin sa talino ni Winona plus the hard evidence of the devilish deed they made. Sa ngayon, unti-unting bumabangon si Winona sa pagkakadapa at kinakalimutan ang nangyari.

I turned to Caleb who was standing at the door of my office. "Of course not."

Hindi na busy ngayon sa office at for sure, araw-araw na naman akong kukulitin nito.

"Talaga?" He said and closed the door behind him. "Bakit parang ramdam ko na iniiwasan mo ako? Is it because of what happened at the bar? Am I finally getting to you?"

I scoffed. "Grabe, lakas mo. And what made you think that?" I raised a brow.

Unti-unti siyang lumapit sakin at hinawakan ang kamay ko. I jerked at I hated that kasi alam kong ramdam niya iyon.

"Because I make you nervous." He smiled at halos malaglag na naman ang puso ko.

"Of course you make me nervous. Paano ba naman, lagi kang manyak-hold sakin."

He laughed and it echoed the whole room. "Ikaw lang naman ang minamanyak at mamanyakin ko."

"And Should I jump in joy after hearing that?"

He laughed again. "Come on, Sam. Date me."

"Are you asking me out or ordering me to go out with you?"

"Depends. Kung ano ang makakapag-yes sayo."

This time, I laughed genuinely. Grabe talaga ang kulit ng isang ito. "Fine. One date." I motioned number 1 sign.

He grinned widely, showing me his perfect white teeth. "Great! See you later."

I decided to go on a date with him. One more date. Napagisip isip ko na rin na kailangan ko nang magmove on. It's been two years and I know he won't be happy seeing me this miserable. And Caleb a great start.

After office hours ay pumunta kami ni Caleb sa Racks to have dinner. Nothing fancy tonight since biglaan and we made no reservations. I ordered a well done steak with red wine and salad for appetizer. Ganoon din and kay Caleb.

Everytime he spares me a look, I feel like melting. Piercing sobra ng mga titig niya. Nakakatunaw. We were casually talking about work and hobbies like we were on a blind date pero nahinto iyong casual talk when the topic was Yale university.

Ang tagal niya na pala akong minamanmanan. I never knew! He even knows where I always sat at the library! I teased him being a stalker and he proudly admitted to it. Kung pangit lang ito mangingilabot talaga ako.

"May boyfriend ka that time." He paused. "Martin Copuz, right?"

Natigilan ako doon. I slowly gazed at him.

"Kaya ang hirap pumorma sayo noon kasi ang guwapo ng boyfriend mo. You were together since sophomore year. What happened? Nagbreak na ba kayo?"

I did not know how to answer. Pati pala yun ay alam niya. Sabagay, hindi ko naman nilihim ang relasyon ko kay Martin. Were a huge item back then. SC president ba naman eh.

"We didn't break up." I said. I saw how his face fell. "He died. Two years ago."

Nanlaki ang mga mata niya. "I-I'm sorry."

I smiled. "That's okay. I'm at peace with it."

"Is this why you kept on turning me down? Kasi if you really are at peace with it, you wouldn't have turned me down before."

I sipped on the glass of my red wine. "Kaya nga nandito ako di ba? Kasi I wanted to show that I am already at peace with what happened."

He smiled. "I can't imagine what you have gone through. And I'm pretty sure that it's not a simple death and I know you went through a lot. I don't want you to feel pressure, Sam. Gusto kita. Sobra-sobra. Sa totoo lang, mahal na nga kita eh."

Naramdaman kong nagblush ako. Lintek naman tong lalaking to, grabe ako pakiligin!

"Pero I don't want to rush you."

"You're not after labels? Like being official?"

He chuckled. "Of course I wanted to be your official boyfriend and brag to the world that you're mine. Pero right now, I can be whatever you want me to be."

I reached for his hand. "Thank you. For being so understanding. Someday, I'll tell you about it."

He nodded and gave me a smile. "You don't have to. I'm not after your past. I want to be your present and your future."

It was a date well spent that night. At dahil hindi naman ako prepared sa pagyaya niya ng date, nagdala pa tuloy ako ng sasakyan. Hiwalay kami ng sasakyan pero he insisted na magconvoy sakin hanggang sa makauwi ako.

Nangmakarating sa parking lot ng Azure, sabay kaming bumaba ng sasakyan. I invited him up to our unit para makapagkape man lang. Hindi ko alam pero parang ayokong matapos ang gabing ito. I feel so high and alive.

Ilang units pa lan bago ang samin ni Cha ay naririnig na akong nababasag na pinggan at nagsisigawan. Kinabahan ako. It sounded like it came from our unit. Tumakbo ako papalapit at nagulat sa nakita ko ng buksan ko ang pinto.

Si kuya nagtatago sa likod ng sofa habang si Cha naman ay may hawak ng isang plato na tila ipambabato kay kuya. The whole house was a mess. Madaming nagkalat na bubog at unan. Ang mga upuan ay nakabalandra din.

"Cha! kuya!" Tawag ko.

"Sorry for the mess. Clean up later." Ngiti ni Cha. Bumaling siya kay kuya at nanlisik ang mata. "Get out!"

"Cha, come on! Let's talk! Please!" Pakiusap ni Kuya.

"Putangina! Ayokong makipagusap sayo! If you're going to apologize, you're way too late for that!"

Nahihiya ako sa nangyayari. Talagang nasiksihan pa ito Caleb. "Sorry." Nilingon ko siya.

He chuckled. "No worries. Some other time, maybe?"

I smiled and nodded. He gracefully exited the scene after giving me a quick kiss on my cheek. Grabe, kakilig. Nakanakaw pa ng halik.

As soon as he left, I was finally sble to concentrate on these two. I shot them both a death glare.

"At talagang balak niyong sirain ang unit na to?!" I yelled.

"Usap lang, Charity! Kahit ilang minuto lang!" Pakiusap ni kuya.

Nanlisik ang mga mata ni Cha. "Punyeta Red, kausapin mo mukha mo!"

"Hanggang kailan ka magtatanim ng galit diyan sa dibdib mo, ha?" Tanong ni kuya. "Hindi naman maganda yan, Cha. Ang gusto ko lang makapagusap tayo ng masinsinan. Yung walang galit, pambabara at pambabato ng gamit kasi masakit." Hinimas ni kuya ang sentido niyang may malaking bukol. Nakita kong lumambot ang mukha ni Cha panandalian. Guilt? Or worry perhaps?

"Pero kung yun ang ikakasaya mo, sige, batuhin mo lang ako, hindi na ako iilag. Just promise me you'll talk to me after." Yumuko si kuya ang kitang-kita ko kung paano tumulo ang kanyang luha. "Kasalanan ko lahat, pangga. Sorry. Putangina ko kasi eh!"

Tuloy tuloy na umagos ang luha ni Cha. She walked towards my kuya and reached for his hand. "Tara, sa rooftop tayo."

I smiled. Finally, makakapagusap na rin silang dalawa.