Tease Me, Bella Beatrice

36:

"Sleep tight, baby." I kissed Gigi's head gently as I tuck her in bed.

Tulog na sila parehas ni Shea. Of course, sila ang magkatabi and hindi talaga nagbibiro si Shea na nakayakap ito kay Gigi. The bed is not that comfortable. Unang-una ay hindi ito pamilyar at ikalawa ay nasa kubo lamang kami.

Sandali ko pa silang pinagmasdan. Siyempre wala pa kaming matinong usapan or reconciliation na nangyayari tungkol sa away namin kanina. Gigi's creative mind can't be bothered right now especially that the shoot already started. What's best that I can do right now is to not add fuel to the fire. Nagsuot lang ako ng komportableng jacket at pajama since masyadong malamok dito bago ako pumuwesto sa upuan sa labas. Malamig din ang simoy ng hangin. Masarap matulog kaya nga lang ay hindi pa ako dinadalaw ng antok. Ang tanging option ko na lamang ngayon ay tumipa sa aking laptop at ipagpatuloy ang pagsusulat.

Time passed by. I looked around to see darkness and a little glimpse on the sea. Kahit na sobra ang dilim ay hindi man lang ako nakaramdam ng kahit anong weirdong pakiramdam. The sea is so gentle. The waves are hugging the calmness as well. Ang halos paubos nang apoy mula sa bonfire ang siyang nakikita kong namumula-mula sa lokasyon kung saan kami naghapunan. I heaved a deep sigh as I look at my laptop. Nakailang pahina na naman pala ako nang hindi ko namamalayan. I overdid myself again that's surely why my eyes are hurting like hell.

Sandali ko lamang sinigurado na nakasave ang file bago ko napagpasyahang tama na ang pagsusulat. It's also past midnight and that means it's a good time to sleep. After making sure I have put my things on where they should be, I started getting inside to sleep. Everything is fine until I felt the goosebumps on me. Sa hindi kalayuan ay sigurado ako sa nakikita ko. A silhouette of a woman in a white dress walking barefooted on the seashore. I don't exactly know what to feel because I don't think I am seeing right. Hindi ako naniniwala sa multo nang ganoon katindi. Baka pinaglalaruan lang ako ng isip ko. As I enter the hut, I made sure na sumilip sa gilid. Sa siwang ng pader upang muling i-check ang nakikita ko. I almost got nervous when I saw that it is still there. Slowly walking and looks like it's a sad ghost. I took my time to reassess my thinking and observe. Medyo maliwanag naman ang buwan at nakatulong iyon sa pag-oobserba ko.

"Wait a damn minute," I hissed slowly and very confused. "That's not a fucking ghost."

Mabilis ngunit maingat at tahimik akong lumabas ng kubo. I made sure Gigi and Shea are still sleeping before walking my way out to confront it.

"Fuck!" Napapitlag si Bella. She wasn't expecting a hand tapping her shoulders slightly. "What is fucking wrong with you?" Halos pasigaw niyang sambit.

Hindi naman ako sumagot. I just let her calm herself down for a minute. Yes, she is the one looking like a damn ghost from a far. Mahaba kasi ang suot niyang white dress na mukhang pantulog niya tapos nakapaa lamang ito habang naglalakad. The only thing na hindi ko nabigyang pansin e ang bote ng alak sa kanang kamay niya saka na rin ang vape sa kaliwa. She's still on her bad habits. Not shocking to be honest. Ano pa nga ba ang aasahan ko sa kaniya?

"You cannot just scare people like that, Pierce." She hissed madly but is making sure her voice is just not that loud. "Kung may sakit ako sa puso baka namatay na ako. Binibigyan mo ako ng major trauma, e."

"Wow. Coming from you."

Sandali siyang nanahimik nang dahil sa sinabi ko. I know she knows what I mean. Despite the darkness, we can all agree that I am giving her the sarcastic tone and she is giving me the most unexpected reaction.