Lena was expecting to wake up alone the next morning. She was even expecting to be left there at the resort, habang nagsiuwi na ang buong pamilya ni Cyrus. She was expecting a lot of bad things to happen because of what she did last night, but she certainly wasn't expecting to find him there, still holding her, still sleeping.
Last night, she did something regrettable, but she knew it was the right thing to do. She cannot promise Cyrus something that she knew she still couldn't do. Hindi pa niya kayang totohanin kung anuman ang meron sa kanila. She's afraid to commit yet. Committing to someone means that you'll invest your heart into the relationship. Her heart wasn't ready for that.
She wondered how he could ask such a thing. Nagugustuhan na ba siya nito? The thought made her blush. It made her confused as well, and utterly guilty. Kung mahal na siya nito, hindi pa niya kayang ibalik ang pagmamahal na 'yon.
She held her breath when he moved. Humigpit ang yakap nito sa kanya. She could feel his soft breaths in her hair and his lips on her forehead. Ipinikit niya ang mga mata para matulog muli, pero saka naman ito gumising.
Bumangon siya nang bumangon ito. He rubbed his eyes with his left hand, the other quickly reached to hold hers.
"Morning," he greeted with a smile.
She wondered how he can look so good in the morning. Kahit magulo ang buhok nito at papikit-pikit pa ang mata, he's still a breathtaking sight. She wished that she could say the same thing about herself, but she knew that she's a morning mess.
But he didn't say anything about it, if he did see her as a mess.
--
Lumabas sila ng bahay at tinungo ang mga kamag-anak nito na nagkakape.
"Good morning!" Julie greeted. "Kain na kayo!"
She looked at the table filled with food. May isang tray na puro hotdog, bacon at itlog. Sa tabi noon ay may isang tupperware na puro tinapay. May mga 3 in 1 coffee at chocolate drink sachets din. Tapos ay may mga tira pang pagkain mula kagabi. But what made her stomach grumble was the tray of freshly-cooked sinangag. Umuusok pa iyon. Amoy na amoy niya ang bawang. The smell, mixed with the smell of coffee, was heaven.
Cadence gave her a plate, which Cyrus filled with sinangag, bacon and eggs. Tapos ay nagtimpla ito ng dalawang kape.
"How's your sleep?" Clem asked her.
"Shut up," Cyrus told his sister.
His mom threw them a probing look, but didn't ask for details.
"What time will we go home?" asked Cyrus to no one in particular.
"Hanggang 6PM pa ang rent natin dito," sagot ng mommy nito. "Hindi naman kayo nagmamadaling umalis, di ba?"
Cyrus shook his head and turned to her. "You?"
"No." Pero habang nandoon siya kasama ang pamilya nito ay parang lalo siyang nakukonsensya.
His family made her feel like she's already a part of it. And that's saying a lot, considering that she just met most of them last night.
They stayed until 4PM. Nagkwentuhan lang sila maghapon. She busied herself with taking pictures and listening to the stories of the old folks. They had some pretty interesting stories. She especially liked the one where it involved the 5 friends. Looking at them now, hindi mo aakalaing may ganoon silang pinagdaanan dati.
When it was time to leave, Cyrus's mom pulled her aside and gave her a hug. Tapos ay hinawakan nito ang pulso niya. The contact made her skin crawl, like she wasn't supposed to hold her there. Para siyang kriminal na nahuli. And because Ahn's a lot like her mom, pakiramdam niya'y nalaman din bigla ng mommy niya ang pinaggagagawa niya dati.
