ALIENS AND STARS, LIKE YOU AND ME (BOOK 2)

CHAPTER 32

While I was driving, I said to her, "I'm really sorry if we have to go to a place where there aren't many people just so we can talk." Sam replied, "Okay lang naman, pumayag naman sina Yuwan at Faye eh. Medyo nag-aalala lang sa kung ano ang kailangan mong sabihin sakin."

I said, "Don't worry, malalaman mo rin at ipapaliwanag ko sayo kung bakit kailangan kong sabihin yun." She nodded and said, "Okay."

Later, I asked her, "Did you eat already?" She responded, "Kaninang umaga, nag-breakfast ako." I looked at my watch and saw that it was lunchtime. I said to her, "I think we should eat lunch first so we won't be hungry later. Is that okay with you?"

She nodded and smiled, "Oo naman, okay lang sakin yun. Tama ka naman eh, mas maganda nga kung kakain muna tayo para hindi tayo magutom mamaya." 

Soon after we arrived at the restaurant, I immediately parked. Once parked, we quickly got out and walked inside. Upon entering, we were promptly shown to our seats.

When we sat down, we were handed menus. After looking at the menu, I asked Sam, "What's your order? What do you want to eat?" She replied with a thoughtful, "Hmm," then looked at the menu and said, "Siguro, itong Sinigang sa Baboy at isang kanin."

The waiter asked, "Anong klaseng Sinigang na Baboy po? Sinigang na Baboy sa Manggang hilaw or Sinigang na Baboy sa lemon grass po?" Sam responded, "Um, bago ko lang narinig yan ah." The waiter explained, "Ah yes, our chef wanted to add a twist, so that's the kind of Sinigang na Baboy we have." 

Sam said, "Ah ganun ba, siguro... Sinigang sa Lemon grass nalang ang order ko." The waiter noted, "Okay, one Sinigang na Baboy sa lemon grass and one rice. What about you, sir? What's your order?" I turned to Sam and asked, "Yun lang ang order mo? What about your drink?"

Sam said, "Hmm, ice tea nalang siguro." I faced the waiter and said, "Two ice teas for the both of us." The waiter wrote that down and said, "Okay." 

After that, I said, "My order... maybe this Adobo sa puti with coconut cream? Is this new?" He nodded and said, "Yes, just like I mentioned, our chef likes to add a twist, so we've changed some recipes." I said, "Oh, okay. I'll order that and also one rice."

The waiter wrote, "One order of Adobo sa puti with coconut cream and one rice." When he wrote that down, he said, "This is for solo, not for sharing. Tama po ba ako?" I nodded and said, "Ah, yes."

He then asked, "Okay, dessert po? Would you like to order something later for dessert para sa inyong dalawa ni ma'am?" I looked at Sam and asked her, "Do you want anything for dessert?" She slowly shook her head and said, "Wala eh, siguro mamaya nalang." 

I looked back at the waiter and said, "Maybe later, we can order dessert later." The waiter said, "Okay, if you want dessert po, we have a new one. We call it 'Sweetheart's Bliss Maja,' it's a Maja Blanca with strawberries and vanilla sauce, perfect dessert para sa mga couples tulad ninyong dalawa po."

Our eyes widened in shock when he said that. Sam shook her head and said, "Naku po, hindi po kami mag-couple." The waiter said, "Ay, sorry po, akala ko mag-boyfriend at mag-girlfriend po kayong dalawa."

Sam said, "Hindi po." Sam's refusal made me smile. The waiter said, "Okay, sorry po ulit. I'll just give your order to our chef."

After that, he took the menu, bowed, and left completely. When the waiter left, Sam also bowed. She said, "Medyo awkward noh? Kung alam lang ni kuya waiter kung mag ano talaga tayo." 

I just kept looking at her and thought to myself, "Oh, right, she doesn't know the truth yet." Sam looked at me, after she said that, I said, "Well, it's okay. You don't know yet." She frowned in wonder, "Huh?"