"Tumutugtog ka pala?" tanong ko. Nakaupo lang kami ni Basti sa may terrace nila habang umiinom ng kape. He looked at me and shook his head. Pinapaalis niya ako kanina pa pero hindi naman siya nagagalit kapag nag-stay ako. Hinatiran tuloy kami ng little sister niya ng kape.
"I don't," he replied and sipped his coffee.
"Sus, display lang 'yan?" I asked and raised an eyebrow. Totoo naman, e. Obvious naman na tumutugtog siya ng gitara. Bukod sa basketball posters, may mga poster din siya ng iba't-ibang banda. Complete niya rin ang iba't-ibang klase ng gitara. May ukulele, bass, electric at acrostic. See?
"I never play again since I left Foster. Member lang ako ng band dati," he replied. I nodded and processed everything inside my head. Member din siya ng banda pero hindi ko talaga siya napapansin noong nasa Foster pa ako.
"Bas, tumugtog ka kaya sa live band. I heard na pwede kang mag-register para makasali sa mini concert," I suggested. Alam ko namang hi-hindi siya pero at least sinubukan ko. Kinuha ko ang ukulele niyang nakasabit sa pader. I saw him rolled his eyes dahil hindi naman ako ako nagpaalam. I started to strum pero mukhang wala na sa tono.
"Stop," he said. Pumunta siya sa likod ko at tinuruan ako kung paano ang tamang hawak. Akala ko magagalit na naman siya kasi pinakilaman ko ang gamit niya.
"Sorry," I stated. Ibabalik ko na sana ang ukulele pero tiningnan niya lang ako nang masama.
"You can touch my belongings," he replied and that made my heart doubled in beat for no apparent reason. I could feel his breathe on my neck and it gave me shivers down into my spine. Para tuloy naka-back hug si Basti sa akin dahil ang kaliwang kamay niya ay malapit sa bewang ko habang ang kanan ay nakahawak sa kamay ko para ituro ang tamang chords. I just felt something in my stomach, parang hindi ako mapakali.
"Try strumming," he said and looked at me. Hinawakan niya ang kamay ko para makuha ang tamang diin. Then he found out that I'm playing one of the songs of my favorite band.
"You know e-heads?" he asked and smiled. I nodded my head and agreed with him. Why do I find that his smile is just so attractive?
"Yeah. Magaling kasi mag-gitara si Daddy. May sariling studio nga 'yon sa bahay, e. Kaya if may free time sila ni Mommy, 'yon ang bonding namin. But that was all a decade ago. Since they sent my brother to study abroad, parang nakalimutan na rin nila na nandito pa ako," I said and tried to force a smile.
"And that band, that's my favorite. Favorite band din kasi ni mommy 'yon," I added.
"Hey, Kry. I'm really sorry about yesterday," he said. "Maybe I'm just drunk and annoyed kaya nasabi ko 'yon."
"Forget about that. I'm now okay. Past na rin naman," I replied. Tumango siya sa akin at umiwas ng tingin. "Pero hindi pa rin kita napapatawad, ah!" dagdag ko.
"You're really weird," Basti scoffed and rolled his eyes as usual.
"Tugtog ka muna sa live band! Promise, bati na tayo," sabi ko habang inaalog siya. "Hindi ako aalis hanggang hindi ka pumapayag!"
"Then sleep here. That's okay with me," he said and grinned.
"Bastos!" sabi ko at pinalo siya sa braso. "Sige na kasi! Ikaw na nga 'tong may kasalanan!" sambit ko.
BINABASA MO ANG
Love, D #4: If Love is Mischief
RomanceSet at a luxy private university in Manila. Lizete Kryzion Flores is a popular student and a volleyball varsity player. Her family is well-known, rich and she gets everything she wanted. Not until, her father found out what she was doing at school...
