Mariposa de Barrio

Chapter 5: The Unexpected Announcement

Celestine Agoncillo arrived with her entourage the following day. Bright and early naman ito, umagang-umaga. Madaling-araw itong nagbyahe para makaiwas sa traffic. While Margarette was hip and a bit snotty, si Celestine naman ay polite at refined. She was wearing a branded tweed coord and a pair of nude open back half shoes. Nakalugay din ang mahaba nitong buhok na medyo kulot sa dulo. Wala itong gaanong kolorete sa mukha pero lutang na lutang ang ganda nito.

Carlota was awestruck.

Mukha rin itong mabait dahil hindi ito madamot ngumiti. Celestine insisted on carrying some of her own bags while the others helped with the bigger luggages. She didn't bring any uniformed help. What she had instead was a tall man in a black suit that Carlota didn't notice right away. He just appeared out of nowhere.

Pero nang makita naman niya ito, hindi na naalis ang tingin niya rito. Halos kasingtangkad ito ni Bobet. Prominente ang panga. Makapal ang kilay na kanina pa nakakunot. His lips were a bit full but were pressed into a thin line. Naka-sunglasses ito at naka-style ang buhok para hindi magalaw ng hangin.

When he got closer, that was when Carlota noticed that he was actually wearing a navy blue suit. He looked... intimidating... and hot.

Walang sabi-sabi nitong kinuha ang dala ni Celestine bago siya nito nilampasan. Nauna ito sa pag-akyat sa grand staircase and she couldn't help but stare at his back. Para siyang sinampal sa lakas ng dating nito. Carlota didn't even realize her mouth was still open until Celestine poked her.

"Hi!" bati nito. "What's your name?"

"C-Carlota ho," sagot niya nang mahimasmasan.

"I'm Celestine." She held out her hand. "Nice to meet you."

Nginitian din niya ito. Celestine seemed genuinely nice. "Kayo rin po."

"Pagpasensyahan mo na si Isidro, ha. Suplado talaga sya minsan." Sabay silang umakyat sa hagdan patungo sa entrada ng mansyon. Bobet and Isidro were already walking inside the house.

"Where's her room?" tanong ni Isidro sa kanya pagkapasok nila ni Celestine sa loob.

"A-Ah... dito po, sir." She gestured to the staircase that leads to the second floor. Umuna na naman ito sa pag-akyat kahit hindi naman nito alam kung saan pupunta. Carlota and Celestine silently followed him.

Tumigil lang ito nang nasa tapat na sila ng hallway na puro kwarto ng mga bisita. Carlota walked past him and went to the room at the end of the corridor. Binuksan niya ang pintuan at saka siya gumilid para makapasok ang dalawa.

Isa iyong kwarto sa tatlong pinahanda ni Senyor para sa mga espesyal nitong bisita. Margarette has already settled in one of the rooms like that one. Malaki ang espasyo sa loob. May queen-size bed, malalaking tokador para sa gamit ng mga dalaga, malaking TV na nakasabit sa pader... may mahabang sofa rin sa isang sulok at maliit na coffee table para makapag-entertain ng ibang tao.

The room also had its own shower, something Carlota couldn't imagine having because she shares a room with 5 other maids. Communal bathroom din ang sa kanilang mga katulong. Even inside the house, the difference in their social status was painfully obvious. But it was not something that bothered Carlota that much. Alagang-alaga kasi siya ng mga tao sa mansyon at wala naman siyang ibang ambisyon sa buhay.

"Who decorated this room?" kunot-noong tanong ni Isidro. He removed his sunglasses and walked around to inspect each and every item inside. Carlota bit her lip, afraid that he wouldn't like what she did in the room. Bobet told her to give her inputs to the decorators. Kasi halos kaedaran niya ang mga darating na bisita. She was supposed to have a sense of what they like. Hindi naman din inisip ni Bobet na sa TV lang siya nakakakuha ng ideya kung anong klase ng pamumuhay mayroon ang mga taga-syudad.