This I Promise You

18

Protect

"Magandang gabi, Princess Reve." Bati sa akin ni Ezekiel nang lapitan ko na sila ni Evan sa grill pagkatapos kong makipagkuwentuhan saglit sa mga nakatatanda.

"Magandang gabi." I simply greeted him back.

"I really like her Filipino accent, Kuya." Ezekiel commented, and he chuckled.

Ezekiel's happiness got cut off when Evan shoved a piece of barbecue in his mouth. Sa plato niya iyon kinuha kaya alam kong hindi na iyon mainit. Natawa nalang din tuloy ako.

I watched Evander as he grilled the meats and checked if they were cooked or not. He will transfer the cooked ones to the plate and then put another raw meat on the grill.

"Beer, your highness?" Alok ni Ezekiel at ipinakita sa akin ang hawak niyang bote ng Falcon, a famous beer here in Sweden.

"No thanks..." Iling ko. "I don't like the taste of alcohol."

"You've tasted one before?" Si Evan naman ang nagtanong.

I nodded. "I tried it on a classmate's birthday. Just out of curiosity, but I don't like it, even the smell."

"How about wine or champagne, your highness? Nakita kitang may hawak na champagne nung party mo." Ezekiel again.

"It's actually Rosè, and it's non-alcoholic."

Tumango si Ezekiel bago sumimsim muli sa kanyang beer.

"Are you drinking too?" Tanong ko kay Evan nang makita ang isa pang bote ng beer sa gilid.

Sinulyapan niya rin iyon bago ako sinagot. "Just one bottle. I like wine more."

Sabay naman kaming napabaling kay Ezekiel nang bigla siyang masamid. Evan helped his brother by tapping his back.

"Dahan-dahan kasi." Aniya dito.

"You're such a liar, Kuya." Untas ng natatawa at the same time nasamid paring si Ezekiel.

"Do you want another meat?"

Evan took another piece of cooked meat from the grill and was about to shove it again onto his brother, pero nakaiwas agad si Ezekiel.

"Gago ka, Kuya! You're going to burn my tongue."

Evan and I chuckled, then he put the meat on the plate and continued grilling the barbecue.

"Kan jag göra det (Can I do it)?"

I looked at Evan after looking at the barbecue. He also looked at me but didn't answer me yet. Nagdadalawang-isip pa siguro sa gusto ko.

"Säker (Sure). But just be careful. It's hot."

"Jag ska vara försiktig (I'll be careful)."

Tumango siya at inabot na sa akin ang tong. Pagkatapos maluto ng barbecue, dinala na namin ito sa table kung na saan ang aming magulang para makakakain na kami.

"Did you two talk about what you're going to wear tonight?" Pappa asked.

Alam kong kami ni Evan ang kinakausap niya.

"It looks like it." Pagsang-ayon ni General.

"We didn't, Pappa...Det är en slump (It's a coincidence)." Sambit ko sabay sulyap kay Evan.

Nahuli ko siyang tinitignan din ang suot ko habang nakangiti. His smile slightly faded and he looked a bit surprised when our eyes met, hindi niya siguro expected na nahuli ko siya. But I'm the first one to turn away because I know I was blushing too much.