Back To The Night We Met

Chapter 12 : Precious beneath the Mystery

Auria

It's Friday, finally! Only have one class left, so to spend the remaining time we have, we stayed at the cafeteria for some afternoon snack.

I was in the mood for something savory and junky so I ordered a cheeseburger with a side of fries and rootbeer.

There were only a few students around, so walang masyadong noise pollution unlike tuwing designated breaks. The ambience is much more laid back.

We were too befuddled due to our previous class so we definitely needed this snack break to somehow relieve our stress and confusion from the lecture.

"May pinapasabi nga pala si Mama," Rafael spoke in the midst of the silence on our table.

Amelie and I lifted our heads up in sync, curious with Rafael's previous words.

"This Sunday daw, if available kayo, magluluto raw siya ng lunch and she wants both of my friends to come," he invited.

I got extremely excited at the idea! I don't think I've ever been to another friend's house for a lunch invitation except for Amelie's. Love na love ako ng Mama niyan eh.

"I'm available! Wala naman akong ginagawa kapag Sunday," I enthusiastically responded to show my interest.

Amelie was in the middle of a burger bite so we waited for her to finish chewing. "Teka, tignan ko pa. Si Papa kasi, minsan biglang nag-aaya kung saan saan kapag Linggo. Bigay mo na lang sa'kin ang address para if pwede ako, pupunta na lang ako."

Rafael gladly smiled, his eyes gleaming with contentment from our responses. "Okay, I'll be waiting for you both."

He then switched his gaze to me, his eyes twinkling as if there were stars hidden inside of it. Ang satisfying niyang ngumiti. Ramdam mo talaga na masaya siya kapag ngumingiti siya eh.

He was staring so I got a bit concious.

"What?" I giggled.

"Your clips look nice, matches your skirt," he complimented, making me a bit giddy.

Sa totoo lang, kinikilig ako when someone notices literally anything about my style. Of course, I put in effort into my outfit, pinag-iisipan ko kung paano mag-terno at maghanap ng babagay na damit sa'kin, and if someone makes the kind gesture of complimenting it, it makes me overjoyed.

"You noticed! Thank you!"

He smiled, then he leaned closer, reaching for my hair. "Wait, medyo magulo sa taas," he said so I let him fix it.

"Sweet..." Amelie teased so I lightly kicked her feet from under the table.

Rafael chuckled as I glared at Amelie. Of course, she knows na may gusto si Rafael sa'kin. Naikwento ko na eh.

"Haaa?! Walastik na 'yan! Kaya pala gustong gusto ka kasama?"

I just told Amelie about Rafael's confession, and we literally have the same reaction, only mine's in my head.

"Nahuli ko siya. I kinda guessed naman na na may something, ayoko lang mag-assume, kaso ayun nga, nagconfess rin," I explained to her.

She's standing up, her hand covering her mouth as if she heard the most shocking news ever.

"Paano 'yan? Papayagan mo manligaw? Akala ko ba, ayaw mo sa gano'n?"

Ayun na nga. I was just getting there. Hindi naman lingid sa kaalaman ng kaibigan ko na I have lots of personal reasons as to why ayaw kong magpaligaw.

Pero ewan ko ba, hindi ko alam kung bakit kinikilig ako dito kay Rafael! He's so nice, he's different from the other boys, and I'm hoping na he stays that way.

Ay nako! Ayaw ko pong mahulog kung maling tao rin ito, parang awa niyo na.

"Ano? Natulala ka na dyan?" tanong ni Amelie.

"Basta! Hayaan na lang natin!" katwiran ko saka ako tumalikod para itago ang ngiting gustong sumilay sa mga labi ko.

So now, the three of us know what's going on.

***

Rafael

We moved to a different spot in the campus, here at the benches because we still got a lot of time to kill.

"Inaantok ako," sabi ni Auria habang inaayos ang bag sa lap niya.

"Tulog ka muna, matagal pa naman," I advised.

She laid her head sideways on her bag, but it felt a bit uncomfortable, even just by looking at her.

From that position, she looked up to me, letting out a few giggles.

"Hindi ka komportable?" tanong ko.

"Masakit sa likod," sagot niya.

Eh paanong hindi masakit sa likod? Sobrang tuping tupi siya sa posisyon niya.

Nilagay ko ang bag ko sa kandungan ko saka ko iyon tinapik. "Dito mo ihiga 'yung ulo mo para hindi masyadong masakit sa likod."

Umiling siya at ngumiti. "I'm fine," she resisted.

"Dali na. Baka ma-damage pa ang spine mo kapag tinuloy mo 'yan. Isang oras ka pang matutulog oh," saway ko sa kaniya.

She rolled her eyes as she accepted defeat. Bumangon rin siya at sa lap ko inihiga ang ulo.

"Better?" I asked her once she was in a comfortable position.

She nodded.

I noticed that her skirt is a bit revealing now that she's seated so I took off my jacket and I draped it over her thigh part like a blanket, just to cover it a bit.

She stirred, twisting her head to face me. "Wake me up 10 minutes before ha, para ready ang utak ko," she reminded me.

"Yes, I will. Sige na, mag-nap ka lang dyan."

A few minutes after she fell asleep, Amelie came back with a cone of ice cream in her hand. She looked surprised to see her friend dozing off on my lap.

"Oh? Inantok?" nakatawa niyang tanong.

"Yeah. Inaantok raw siya eh, kawawa naman," sagot ko habang hinahaplos haplos ang malambot na buhok ni Auria.

Binigyan niya ako ng makahulugang tingin hanggang sa makaupo siya sa kabilang bahagi ko.

Lumapit siya ng kaunti sa gilid ko at bumulong. "Ikaw ha, ang swerte mo. Sa ating dalawa lang 'to, pero hindi 'yan ganyan ka-komportable sa ibang tao. Kahit nga sa'kin, hindi sumasandal 'yan eh," sabi niya.

Napatingin tuloy ako kay Auria na mahimbing na natutulog sa kandungan ko.

"Baka lumaki ulo mo ha," pabiro niyang kantyaw kaya natawa ako ng bahagya.

Looking at Auria, I realized how much of a wonder she is. You don't really know what's running inside that pretty head of hers. You won't know if you're even relevant to her, but at the same time, she can make you feel as if you're the most important person in her life.

She's got that sense of mystery wrapped around that confident and mindful demeanor of hers, and it makes me love her more.

I don't regret confessing to her na may gusto ako sa kaniya. At first, I was scared at the thought that she might drift away when she learns that I'm feeling more than friendship towards her.

Now that I'm experiencing the aftermath of my confession, I'm just glad I did it. Seeing her comfortable around me and my presence comforts me more than she knows.

It felt like a whirlwind for me-- the way that she was able to captivate me so swiftly in a way that nobody else has done before.

*

End of Chapter 12

*