Love Lingers: Down the Line

Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Coffee and Apologies

Yuchi couldn't believe what she was reading. Paulit-ulit niyang binasa 'yong last message ni Dr. Montellano hanggang sa tumama ang pag-register n'on sa utak niya.

Can I apologize over coffee? she read for the last time.

He said he'd apologize. Over coffee. Mag-so-sorry lang kaya siya inaayang lumabas. For coffee. Sorry na may kasamang kape.

For apology lang. Daw.

Bakit, Yuchi? Ano bang gusto mo? Marty whispered inside her brain so she shook her head again.

She doesn't even know why she keeps on hearing her cousin at the back of her mind. She might be losing it. Hindi naman siya usually fragmented at cluttered brained.

But right now, her indecisions were making her uneasy. Naguguluhan na rin siya sa kabubulong ni Marty sa isipan niya.

Yuchi stared at her phone again to carefully read each word from his last reply. Her eyes runs through the gray bubble once to fully seep it in then for the second one to confirm and for double checking.

Inaaya nga siyang lumabas para sa kape na may kasamang sorry.

Tama naman siguro ang pagkakaintindi niya doon? For god's sake, hindi naman siya pinadalhan ng enzymatic pathway para mahirapan siyang intindihin 'yon at paulit-ulit niyang pasadahan. It's not that complex and not that deep.

He's not asking her out on a date. It's just coffee and apologies.

Coffee and apologies. Coffee and apologies. Coffee and apologies.

Yuchi sighed, taking a beat. Tinago niya muna ang cellphone sa bulsa ng suot na pink shorts habang naglalakad papasok ng bahay.

She went to the living room to scour for her Tita Letitia's old records.

Yuchi needs to relax. Her mind needs to empty out all the clutters so she could think straight.

She smiled when she saw the familiar vinyl records still in good condition. Some of them were older than her, but her Tita Letitia likes collecting and listening to jazz music. And before, when she was at Haley's age, she would always catch her listening to some relaxing jazz by the fireplace, sipping some rosé. 

Letitia does that every night and five-year-old Yuchi would often wonder why. Pupunta lang din siya noon sa may fireplace dala-dala ang coloring book niya at tahimik siyang tatabi sa tita niya para mag-color.

Her tita doesn't mind. Ngingiti pa sa kanya at hahayaan lang din siyang tumabi sa may carpet.

"Tita?" She calls for her, looking at her pretty looking glass with intricate designs. Her nails were always kept—clean and short and painted in soft champagne.

"Yes, darling?" Letitia answers.

"Can you color this flower for me?" Turo niya sa coloring book.

"Sure."

Letitia said they were peonies, and one of her favorite flowers. She told her—while coloring and in between the sound of crackling fire—how she's glad that Yuchi would always sit by her side on the carpeted floor, how they would quietly enjoy that time being together listening to jazz while drinking rosé and hot chocolate because (and she doesn't know why her tita was telling it to her at that moment) she felt incredibly lonely.

"How about Wowo Save?" Yuchi asked.

Letitia managed to give her a smile, and even if she tried to make it look happy, it still fell short that at five years old, Yuchi already understood that a smile could also mean sad and lonely.