In Chasing and Crashing

Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Grow Up

Gulat na gulat ako sa naging reaksyon ni ma'am Cerise. By the looks of it, hindi siya masaya. And I think it's because of my presence. Am I really needed here or did Sheba do this to help me find a place to stay for the night?

Mabilis kong tinakpan ang mukha ko at saka tumalikod.

"I did not see anything!" Agad kong sigaw.

Apparently, they didn't finish whatever they did. Tumigil sila kaya bigla nalang tumahimik ang kwarto. I bit my lip in terror. She doesn't like me. For Pete's sake, maybe she hates me to the guts!

Nakipag-usap siya sa kasama niyang lalaki. "Thank you, Christian. Looking forward to our next encounter. Au revoir." Sabi niya.

"Merci beaucoup. Je t'adore. Au revoir, Chantelle." Rinig kong sabi ng lalaki. Bigtime! French!

I can't help but admit that Cerise is one smoking hot woman but she incorporates elegance in whatever she does. She keeps style in what's classic and she doesn't even look old. What I know is that she's in her mid-20's but she still doesn't have a boyfriend.

Look, she has a house. A collection of cars. Her law office. A soon-to-be-published book that will be distributed worldwide. She has flings, that's for sure. But she doesn't want to settle down.

Narinig ko ang pagsarado ng pinto. Then, I heard the sounds of heels walking towards me. For a girl, she is intimidating. Naramdaman kong nasa tabi ko na siya kaya napaatras ako ng konti.

"Look who's here." Pumikit ako para maiwasang magtagpo ang mga tingin namin.

"What's your name, darling?" Malamig niyang tanong sa akin.

"Xiara po. Xiara Nyte Alonzo."

"That's a pretty name." Tumango ako ng mahina at saka nagpasalamat sa kanya. "I'm Cerise Chantelle Menezes." Sabi niya sabay lahad sa kanyang kamay sa akin.

Inabot ko iyon. "A pleasure to meet you," sabi niya.

Tumango ulit ako. Is anybody safe to be with in this family? Mukhang silang lahat ay nakakatakot. Yeah, they've been blessed with good genes but they're not comfortable to be with.

"It seems that you saw everything." Iniwasan ko ang kanyang tingin. Is this a form of controlling one's mind? She's good at it. Really.

"Hindi naman po lahat. Konti lang." Mahina kong sabi. Ngumisi siya at tinitigan ako. Grabe, nakakailang.

"I'm sorry if you saw it. You see, boys dig me." Teka lang, conceited rin 'to. Tumango ako bilang sagot.

"Where's Zachary?" Tanong niya.

Napataas ang mga kilay ko. Nakuha niya naman iyon kaya sinabi niyang, "My brother."

Brother? Sinong brother? Si Crash ba?

"Come on, Xiara. Zachary. Crash Zachary. Where is he?" Doon ko lang naintindihan 'yung sinabi niya.

So, Crash has a second name. And it's Zachary.

"Parang andun po sa kwarto niya," sabi ko.

She raised her brow. "Which one?"

Wala akong masabi. Grabe, ilang kwarto ba ang pinagaarian niya? Kung maka-which one naman 'to. This is her house. Ba't andami niyang pinagawang kwarto kung hindi niya naman gustong magpakasal?

"Hindi ko po kasi alam."

She sighed. "Next time, I want everything organized. I want all of my questions answered. And I want you to manage whatever devilish acts Zachary does."