Reaching Your Hands

06.

I saw how Moraiah froze from Ares' question.

Pikit matang kumunot ang noo ko sa narinig. Rai never told me anything about her relationship with Ares. Nawala ang atensyon ko sa kanila ng tawagin ako ni Trase. "Let's go home." He sat beside me, inalalayan niya akong umupo ng maayos.

"Lasing ka ba o antok na antok?" Nagtatakang tanong niya nang makita ang kalagayan ko. Carmela answered before I could even talk, "Naubos niya dalawang bote kanina nung umalis kayo," He looked at me before chuckling, "Akala ko ba dalawang baso lang, Mille?" Saad niya.

"Ngayon lang naman," Sabat ko bago sumandal muli sa sofa. Ares stood up and woke us all, "Pack up na mga baliw, uuwi na tayo." Before getting up, I made a mental note to ask Moraiah about the conversation I overheard earlier. I planned to approach her tomorrow, making sure she was comfortable sharing any information with me.

Kinabukasan ay bumungad agad sa akin ang mga boses nila, sabay-sabay gumising ang mga hayop! 'Di man lang nagsabing gigising pala ng maaga. Nakita ko agad sa kusina na nagluluto sina April, Carmela, at Ari para sa tanghalian. I glanced at the wall clock and saw that it was nearly 11 AM. They were still assisting each other with the cooking.

"Nasaan ang iba?" Tanong ko sakanila, "Nasa palengke sina Cheanne, Ares, Shai, at Freya para sa mga lulutuin mamaya," Carmela answered. I suddenly heard the familiar ringtone of my phone, signaling a new message notification.

sonny angels (mga tiyanak)

cheannelucas: hoy @raeavalencia, tinatanong ni ares kung masakit pa raw ba ulo mo?

As I turned to look at Rai, I noticed she focused on massaging her temples, clearly deep in thought, before responding.

raeavalencia: oo malamang

cheannelucas: aga-aga kay sungit ng typings

I noticed the slight crease forming between Rai's eyebrows as she focused intently on typing a message on her phone.

raeavalencia: oo malamang HHAJWHJAHJHAHJAHJAH LAUGHTRIP AMPOTA

Tinawanan ko nalang ang mga ito at umupo sa tabi ni Trase. "I'll go home by tomorrow, stay pa ba kayo hanggang bukas dito?" Tanong ko sa kanya. Whenever he looks at me, my heart skips a beat. Tangina, sobrang gwapo ba naman. 

My attention came back to reality when Carmela cleared her throat before throwing me her teasing glance. Ang mga mata niya ay pabalik-balik mula sa akin at kay Trase.

"Ay, ha?"

Trase chuckled. "Ang sabi ko, uuwi na rin ako bukas." Tumango na lamang ako at hindi na sumagot. After a half hour of waiting, they finally arrived back at our location carrying the fresh food they had just purchased.