Love Persist

Kabanata 18 - Ye Olde Paradise: And when the plot ends, the story must be kept.

I was completely oblivious to how quickly the days had flown by. Ang hirap paniwalaan na mag-iisang linggo na kami dito sa villa; it felt like time had slipped through my fingers, at ngayong araw ang last day namin dito. Sa loob ng anim na araw ng stay ko rito ay naging malapit na ako sa mga kasama ko. Ikaw ba naman araw-araw kami nagbobonding. Kahit si Theia na noong una ay mailap sa akin, ngayon ay nag-uusap na kami casually.

Masaya rin ako dahil araw-araw ay nakikita kong masaya 'lagi si Cerise sa mga ginagawa namin. Paano ba namang hindi, e, napapalibutan siya ng mga loving and caring people. Nagtataka nga ako kung bakit hindi siya lumaking spoiled brat, her Titas and Tito were rich at palagi siyang binababy. It was Theia who told me that Ate Samira was a pharmacist, si Ate Gay ay nurse, si Kuya Paco ay negosyante (pero ayon sa side comment ni Moli naging successfully lang si Kuya Paco dahil scammer daw), si Ate Jaede ay model at may sariling agency, at si Ate Maude naman ay engineer. Isama niyo pa si Professor Gil na isang attorney at professor. Ang susunod na nasa line-up ay si Theia na graduating sa kurso na fine arts at saka si Moli na future tambay with degree, courtesy to her.

"Have you ensured that all of your belongings are packed?"

I was taken aback when I heard Professor Gil's voice echoing from the bathroom. After a while, her head popped out of the bathroom and cast a glance at me from the door.

"I'm all done," I said as I lazily rested my back on the soft mattress.

"Yeah? Just double-checking, you're not forgetting anything, right?"

"Yeah," I replied confidently.

"Mhm-kay. I'm just asking because I found a bra in the bathroom, and I don't think it's mine."

Sa sinabi niyang iyon, I bolted out of bed and raced like lightning to get to the bathroom. Hindi ko siya pinansin kahit nasa likod siya ng pinto kasi ang misyon ko ngayon ay kunin 'yong bra kong naiwan ko sa towel rail. Tatalikod na sana ako para bumalik sa kuwarto kaso hindi ko natuloy dahil may nagsalita sa likuran ko.

"Don't look back."

"Why?" I immediately found the answer to my question when I caught sight of her bathrobe draped across the adjacent railing.

Jesus Christ.

To sum up my wild bathroom escape without being visually assaulted by her state of nature, I ninja-ed out of there like a blindfolded pigeon on steroids, at muntik na akong masupalpal sa pinto dahil sa pagmamadali ko. And to add insult to the situation, Professor Gil couldn't contain her amusement and burst into uncontrollable laughter at my misfortune.

What a menace.

Pasado 8 na at kanina pa ako inaantok. Gusto ko nang matulog ngunit hindi pa bumabalik si Professor Gil sa kuwarto. Nagpaalam lang siya sa akin na ichecheck niya si Cerise sa room nila Ate Jaede dahil doon matutulog si Cerise tonight, pero until now hindi pa rin siya bumabalik.

Hindi ko na namalayan ang oras, basta ang pagkakaalala ko before pa man sumurrender ang katawan ko against sandman, the time was 9:45 and Professor Gil hadn't return yet.

Naalimpungan ako at hindi ko alam ang dahilan. Upon opening my eyes, I found myself in a dimly lit room. I remembered na hindi ko napatay ang ilaw when I dozed off. Napansin ko rin kaagad na empty pa rin 'yong bed ni Professor Gil. I was even more shocked when I glanced at the balcony door and noticed that the curtain was slightly pulled aside, revealing a small gap in the door.

Umahon ako sa kama para isara ang door ngunit napahinto ako nang mapansin ko ang shadow ng isang tao. Hindi ako puwedeng magkamali, at this point kahit shadow niya lang ay kilala ko na 'agad.