Shelter in a Storm (Elyu Series #2)

Chapter 39

Umagang-umaga ay nagkakagulo na sa boarding house dahil sa post ni Ivo. Gustong alugin ni Celeste si Lulu dahil siya ang kasama ni Ivo sa pagbili ng engagement ring para kay Raya.

"Umamin ka na kasi! May alam ka 'no?!"

"Wala! Gosh, I didn't know that he was going to propose and marry her right away!"

"Anong ginamit nilang singsing, eh mukhang on the spot wedding ata 'to?" Tanong ni Yari habang sina-swipe ang pictures na naka-post.

I looked down at my own phone and smiled at the sight of them. Parang film camera pa ata ang ginamit sa pagkuha, o filter lang 'to?

Raya is just wearing a simple summer dress with a white veil while Ivo is standing next to her in front of an old chapel. It seemed legit. Mukhang kinasal nga talaga.

"Ikaw! Karlo! Baka may nalalaman ka?!" Panghahamon naman ni Celeste sa kaibigan.

"Hoy, wala din akong alam! Alam kong magpo-propose pero hindi ko din in-expect na ngayon!" Depensa naman ni Karlo.

Enrique was already up and running. Nang makabalik ito mula sa pagja-jogging, pawis na pawis at nagtataka ang mukha nang makita kung gaano kami kagulo dito sa loob.

"May nangyari ba?" Bulong niya sa akin.

"Kinasal na ang mga best friend ko," I pouted, feeling a little upset that they didn't really tell anyone. Baka hindi na 'to magpakasal sa simbahan, eh!

He chuckled and nodded. "I'll prepare some coffee."

Pumasok si Enrique sa kusina para ihanda ang kape samantalang kami naman, panay ang flood kina Ivo at Raya. Kukutusan ko talaga ang dalawang 'to kapag nagkita kami ulit! Magpakasal ba naman bigla-bigla?!

After that chaotic morning, we rested for a bit and one by one, they all went home. Nabanggit ko kay Lulu na pupuntahan ko siya sa Maynila bukas para mamili ng susuotin kong gown para sa retirement ceremony ni Major General. Mabilis naman itong pumayag.

I called in sick and spent the rest of the day in the boarding house, trying to catch some sleep while Enrique went back to work in construction. Hindi ko na alintana ang ingay dahil sa pagod ko at nakatulog nalang magdamag.

"What do you have in mind?" Lulu asked as we walked around the department store, aimlessly looking for a night gown I could wear for the retirement ceremony this week.

I shrugged. "Nothing vulgar, I guess? Just a modest gown that wouldn't make me stand out too much."

She pouted. "That's boring. And with you..." she glanced across my body and smirked. "It's impossible not to stand out."

Inirapan ko lang ang kaibigan. Enrique has to report to his base and I had to do a little shopping so we both traveled to Manila.

"I can't believe you guys are back together..." she gushed excitedly while checking out the silk long dresses in a designer rack. "Imagine going away in the military for how many years and then you come back to find out that your first love was waiting for you? That's so romantic!"

"I wasn't waiting, Lulu. I dated a lot of men, remember?"

"Yeah," she snorted. "But you won't even let them touch you until Enrique came back. Don't get smart with me, Dr. Perez, wasn't that waiting?"

Hindi ako nakasagot sa babae. Tama naman siya. Madalas na rason ng hiwalayan namin ng mga naging ka-relasyon ko ay dahil hindi ako nagpapagalaw sa kanila. I don't even know the reason why I got into a relationship with them in the first place. Para makalimot? Para ma-distract ang sarili? O para masabing may ginagawa ako para makamove-on sa lalaki?