Obviously, This Is Not Love

12| Keep Him Busy

Nakasunod kaagad sa akin si Cather nang makita niya ako sa hallway. I can see how worried she was about her twin brother. I can't blame her though, kahit siya ngayon lang niya na nakita si Torres na ganun ka-apektado kahapon. 

"What really happened back there, Aris? Please, tell me." She said, begging me as if I know everything. Best friend ko si Cather and I shouldn't keep anything from her. But I made a promise and a promise is a promise.  Hindi ko posisyon ang magsabi kung ano ang meron kay Torres.

I shrugged my shoulders, "I'm telling you, I don't know. Basta na lang tumakbo papalabas si Torres ng ihawan tapos sumakay ng jeep. Hindi ko alam kung ano nangyari." I lied.

Cather was rather impatient, "Sinubukan ko na ding tawagan si Aera, pero hindi niya rin sinasagot tawag ko!"

"How is he?" Tanong ko kay Cather. Wala kasi si Torres ngayon, may meeting pa naman kanina yung ThomMed tapos wala siya. Nandun pa naman si kuya Kurt, yung One ng ThomMed.

"Nasa bahay lang siya, nakakulong sa kwarto." She breathe, "Grabe, Aris, hindi ko pa nakikita si Dylan nang ganun! Mom and I are really worried. Dylan suddenly became distant. Kahit kumain ayaw niya."

"I'm worried too," sabi ko sa kaniya. "But maybe he needs time for himself. Hayaan na lang muna natin siya mag-isa. Baka sooner or later, he'll come up and tell you eventually." I remembered Arki's words kaya inulit ko lang iyon kay Cather.

She nodded. "I hope so... I don't know, but maybe it's just our twin bond, kasi kahit ako ang bigat bigat din ng pakiramdam ko. Talagang nakaka-bother. Yung tipong hindi ka makatulog sa gabi kasi nakakaabala... Ganun yung nararamdaman ko... Ganun din siguro si Dylan ngayon."

Cather and I soon parted ways after lunch. May klase pa kasi siya habang ako naman mag-eedit na ng video sa office. Pagkapasok ko, andun si kuya Kurt, nirereview niya yata yung script.

"Kuya Kurt, kumusta OJT?" I asked, trying to appear giddy kahit na medyo may mabigat ding iniisip.

He smiled at me, "Masaya, though it was really challenging. Hindi ko kasi forte yung mga documentations - narrating a real life story. It's good to be back on fictions." Sabi niya habang natawa pa. He held out the script on his hands, "Ito na ba yung naipasang entry sa University Films?"

Tumango ako. "Oo. Si Jemima ang nagsulat, si Torres naman yung nag-direct."

He pursed his lips into a thin line, tapos matagal niyang tinitigan yung papel. "The flow is consistent pero feel ko madaming kulang sa story ni Arden at ni Will..." He criticized the story. Ang laki talaga nang pinagbago ni kuya Kurt ever since. He became so mature.

"Anong kulang?" Tanong ko naman. Umupo ako sa tabi niya para mabasa yung mga comments na nakasulat sa papel.

"You narrated Aris and Will's bond, nakita natin na they grew up together and eventually fell in love at each other. That's good. But what's lacking is the concept of pain of heart ache. Gets mo ba? Kulang sa kirot. It hurts to break up with someone you've been with for almost all your life, pero sa story ni Arden at ni Will... I don't know, parang hindi na-elaborate yung kirot na yun." Now, he's playing with his pen. Pinaikot-ikot niya iyon sa daliri niya.

"What can you suggest?" Tanong ko ulit, trying to keep up with his pace.

He leaned forward, "Gusto ko makita yung 'pag-iwan' at 'pag-limot' dun sa love na yun. I want to see them fell out of love."

Nalito ako, "Hindi ba yun yung naging idea namin? I mean, we want the mystery out of their story, hence, the title 'One question'. We want the viewers to ask what happened?"

Umiling siya. "Don't take it literally. I want the viewers to think na sa tagal ng pinagsamahan nila, what happened? Why, all these years, ngayon lang nanghina yung relasyon nila? I want them, in the end, to realize the reason why these two fell out of love is the same reason why they fell in love in the first place."