SA PAG-UGNAY (Soul Ties 2)

Chapter 7

CHAPTER 7

Sabay-sabay kaming apat na kumain ng hapunan sa isang resto malapit kung saan ang venue ng show. 

Nang matapos ay nag-book ako ng dalawang room sa isang hotel kung saan din nakabook si Taliya at doon kami tutuloy para sa gabing 'to.

Pero hindi pa nag-stay ang dalawang bata sa hotel dahil sinulit nila ang view ngayong gabi rito sa Subic at naglibot-libot pa.

Bumalik din sa dressing room ng venue si Taliya dahil naiwan pa doon ang mga gamit niya, kaya naman agad ko siyang sinundan para tulungan magbitbit ng gamit pagkatapos kong payagan ang dalawang mahiwalay sa'kin.

Kumatok muna ako sa pinto ng dressing room bago pumasok. Three set of huge mirror were surrounded with yellow bulbs so the whole room was kind of cozy because of that.

Nadatnan ko siyang nakahiga sa chair massage habang nakapikit.

"Hey, you're here..." inaantok niyang saad habang nakapikit pa rin.

"Yeah," 

Tahimik akong umupo sa malayong distansya mula sa kaniya at pinagmasdan siya.

"May kumausap ba sa'yo after ng show?" I asked.

"Marami sila. Bakit?"

"Nung bumalik ka rito, may kumausap pa rin sa'yo?"

"Syempre,"

"Lalake?"

"May babae rin,"

Ngumiwi ako.

"Want me to teach you how to knock someone out?"

Bigla siyang natawa. It's a sweet melody kind of laugh.

"Ang ramdom, Kolas Morella. Bakit mo naman ako bigla tuturuan manuntok?"

"So when you feel uncomfortable in a certain situation, you know what you'll do. Knock them out."

Nilingon niya ako habang nagtatakang nakatingin sa akin. Lalo akong nainis.

"You!" bulyaw ko. "Be reactive! Kapag hindi ka komportable, inform them!"

"Oh, about earlier?" she smirked. 

"You did not see I stepped on his foot with my sharpest high heels? I did it so casually that he was not even able to react because he knew what he had done wrong. I stepped on his other foot again with a smile for the sake of the camera, and he almost cried. I guess I did it so professionally that you did not even notice."

She sounds so proud of herself.

"If you have fists, I have heels, Morella." ngisi niya.

I chuckled, a bit awed. 

Pero gusto ko pa rin pagsasapakin ang mukha nila. If she had her heels in service, I should also use my fist to satisfy my anger.

"Hester was about to break their arms, though. But I told her to do it lowkey. I'm a role model, ate. Am I?" she grinned.

Umupo ako sa tabi ng pinto habang nakatingin sa side profile niya.

She looked so exhausted from all the walks, and her energy was for sure drained from maintaining posture on stage.

Mukhang masakit rin ang kaniyang binti at muscles. I don't know what she did here, ilang linggo na siyang nandito.

If all she did was to shoot and model here and there for a week straight... she must really be exhausted.

Tapos babastusin pa siya ng mga putangina.

I heavily sighed.

"You did great today, Taliya." I whispered.

She dramatically pouted. 

"That's a relief. Thank you for saying that..." mahaba niyang sabi.

"Would you like to get some hot bath? I could ask the hotel staff to fill your bathroom's tub a warm water..." malumanay kong saad.

Kinuha niya ang remote control ng chair massage at itinigil yon. Tumingin siya sa repleksyon ko sa salamin at ngumiti bago umiling.

"Thank you. I did not expect you to come here and help me." her voice is kind of hoarse, probably because she's already tired and sleepy.

Nagkatinginan lamang kami sa repleksyon namin sa isa't isa sa malaking salamin na nasa harapan namin. Ang kaniyang likod lang kasi ang nakikita ko mula sa pwesto ko.

"The girls are the ones who helped you, I did nothing except bringing them here to help."

She clicked her tongue. Sumandal muli siya sa chair massage at humalukipkip.

"Ito," she pointed. "Ito yung dahilan kaya nagustuhan kita noon."

Tumaas ang dalawa kong kilay at nagkatitigan kaming dalawa sa gitna ng katahimikan ng kwarto dahil bigla niya 'yong sinabi.

"When students in MLA high school started to call me the daughter of an insane woman, so I must be crazy too, you were one of the people who defended me. Bukod kina Venus at Artemis, ikaw lang 'yung trumato sa akin nang normal. You were such a breath of fresh air kaya baliw na baliw ako sa'yo dati. Para ka kasing tanga, masyado kang friendly."

Tinaasan niya ako ng isang kilay at agad na nanliit ang mga mata nang makita ang ekspresyon ng mukha ko.

"Noong high school mo pa alam na gusto kita?"

Matunog akong nagpakawala ng ngisi at tumango.

"It's not like you kept it a secret."

Her face relaxed. "Is it that obvious?"

I nodded and smirked as I looked at her reflection in the mirror.

"Yes..."

"But you were never shaken by that obvious, unspoken confession because you like someone else." nakangisi niyang saad habang nakapikit.

Natigilan ako at natahimik. Mabagal akong napayuko at bumagsak ang tingin sa aking sapatos.

"And I get used to it... and accepted it... na kaya kong sabihin sa'yo nang paulit-ulit na gusto kita kahit alam kong ipagkikibit balikat mo lang din 'yon tuwing naririnig mo 'yon sa akin," she whispered.

"Because those words have no value to you. Those are just... letters combined together that came up as a set of non-meaningful words... even after I poured my heart out."

I almost heard my teeth gritting a bit in the midst of the silence in the room. I feel like thorns are slowly growing in my heart, and... it hurts.

It felt like I'm hearing myself to her. It felt like she knew me because she knew what I had been through that I had never even told her.

We both loved someone for years and will never stop loving them, even if it means breaking our hearts a million times.

Because that is what love meant for us... to be able to give love, to bleed and break our hearts, and to still give love, scar after scar, because that is how we love and that is how we live.

I slowly lifted my chin to look at her reflection in the mirror, and our eyes met. That moment, I felt like I was seeing myself.

She sweetly smiled at me as if I had never hurt her.

"Nevertheless, I still like you after all those years," she said and chuckled. "Thank you for letting me say these words countless of times, Kolas..."

Nah.

She's wrong.

Because I am starting to get shaken.

And her words... are slowly getting a hold of me.