Danger, Danger, Mr. Stranger

#DDMS31

#DDMS31

❦
XANTIEL

DEJA VU.

That's the strong feeling I'm getting as I observed the scared little girl in front of me. Small hands over her big suitcase. Apparently, Fifteen took her out shopping so they could buy her tons of new clothes.

Nakatingin lang ako sa kaniya, ngunit 'di ko mapigilang mapangiti't mapakagat ng labi, just 'cause Feuille—or Folie, as she prefers to be called—is acting a little cute. She's squirming in shyness at the far corner of my house, back against the main door and not moving an inch further inside her new home. Like a lost little kitten.

Oh, if only you knew. This isn't a new home, little lady. It's your home.

We've made love countless of times in this house, including that exact place where you're standing right now. I have vivid memories of you scratching that door as I take you lovingly from behind.

Nagpamulsa ako sa pantalon at naglakad papunta sa kaniya. She still hasn't looked at me in the eye. I stopped half a meter in front of her and whispered, almost requesting, "Hey, look at me."

Her eyes quickly jerked up to meet mine for a short split-second before settling on the floor again. Literal na wala pang isang segundo nang tingnan niya 'ko. She couldn't look at me. The corner of my lips arched into an amused smirk.

Nahihiya siya sa 'kin.

Ah, so fucking cute.

Gusto ko tuloy siyang asarin lalo.

"You've been serving me coffee while I was resting." I slouched forward and tilted my head sideways, trying to catch her eyes, which she averted quickly. "Can I ask why? Were you concerned for me?" Sinubukan ko ulit hulihin ang mga mata niya, pero mabilis niya itong nililipat sa ibang direksyon. We're like playing a little game of tag, and it secretly amuses me.

"But seriously, though . . ." Nilapat ko ang aking palad sa ibabaw ng kaniyang ulo. My smile curved down into a sad expression. Seriously though, what happened to you when you were at the Guivellnovas?

I ruffled her soft hair and smiled just a little. "Make yourself at home. Bukas na bukas, lilipad tayo sa probinsya mo."

***

Habang nag-iimpake si Folie sa kaniyang kuwarto ay binuksan ko ang laptop para maghanap ng impormasyon tungkol sa kaniyang dating buhay. I was lying on my bed, my upper body propped up by a vertical pillow, laptop on my abs.

Images of a girl who looked a little like the Folie with me now surfaced online, but one would notice the slight differences in their nose and eye shape. My stomach whirled at the thought of Zilvane altering her face without her consent.

Totoo nga ang sinabi ni Xildius, isa siyang gitarista ng isang maliit na banda sa kanilang probinsya. I noticed a few posts on her profile that offered condolences dating five years ago. Looks like her friends and bandmates assumed that she was dead.

I stared at each of her uploaded photo, taking them in one by one. Her selfies, her performances, her group pics . . . and I caught my lips slipping in a little smile. Even though her eye shape and nose are different, this is the Feuille that I knew indeed. She has the same mannerism when she smiles, scrunching her nose just a bit so that a cute wrinkle appears above the bridge.

Binalikan ko ang Folie na kasama ko ngayon sa bahay. Perhaps, if I could make her smile, then that's a way to find out if she is my Feuille. The image of her shying away earlier flashed in my mind. I smirked at the thought. I guess I have to earn it first.