Separated

Chapter 2

Alden and Maine met up at the doctor's office on a Thursday. Alden insisted that since they had not celebrated their weeksaries since they separated, they could at least still spend the day together.

Maine agreed.

"Good afternoon, Mr. and Mrs. Faulkerson. I'm Dra. Santos. Are you ready to begin your session?" They nodded. "We're all here because of your separation, but before we discuss that, maybe we should start from how you two met?"

"Split screen, 2015, at Eat Bulaga." Maine replied the same time Alden said, "2010 Candy Fair."

"Wala naman nangyari after Candy Fair. Dapat yung sa EB nalang." Maine protested.

"Hindi ah, significant pa din yung 2010. Kung wala yun, mababawasan kahit pano yung magic nung 2015."

Once that was settled, the doctor asked, "Maine, how did you feel when you first saw him?"

They both smiled. "Parang twice kasi yung 'first time' – yung sa screen and the other one in person. Sa screen, of course, nakakakilig kasi I didn't expect him to be watching that time. Tapos he was laughing at my antics. Ang saya lang."

"And the first time in person?"

"Nervous! Sobra. I wasn't sure if he would like me pa if he saw me na in real life or if our dynamic would still be the same. Kasi baka magkita kami tapos, wala hindi pala kami click."

"Pero nagclick naman." Alden commented. The doctor then asked Alden. "Sa screen, sobrang entertained sa kanya. She's super funny. It wasn't everyday that I would watch a pretty girl make crazy faces like that and make people laugh. I admired her then. Nung in person na, same with her. I wasn't sure how that would work out so I was nervous, at the same time very conscious that we were on TV so medyo careful din ako sa kilos ko."

Dra. Santos said, "Your situation is very uncommon. Did you get together soon after you met face-to-face?"

"No, marami akong doubts with him. Obvious naman po kasi that he was just acting before and it was difficult to get past that. I distanced myself from him kasi nadadala na ako nung kilig." Maine explained.

When it was Alden's turn, he said, "Gusto ko na siya even before we met. Those rumors na I tweeted that I was falling for her, true. I quickly deleted it. Then, I distanced myself. I was falling too fast and I needed to use my head on this one. It was irrational to love someone that early on. I convinced myself na nadadala lang ako that everyone was teasing you."

"Tell me about your first date?"

Alden remembers vividly how nervous he was. He asked Maine's parents for permission at one of their offices, which he visited with his father. That early, he had been asked by Tatay Teddy about his intentions for Maine. "Hijo, kung ginagawa mo ito para lang bumenta lalo yang love team niyo, hindi na kailangan. Kinausap ko na si Menggay at ni-remind na wag basta basta magpadala sa situation niyo."

"Yun din po yung reason bakit po ako nandito. Gusto ko po kasi maniwala si Meng sa akin. Ilang beses na po siya nag-decline sa invitation ko kasi po akala niya hindi ako seryoso."

Finally they agreed and Maine did too.

"San tayo pupunta?"

He brought her to Pares.

"Nagulat ako!" Maine chuckled. "Akala ko some fancy restaurant yung plan niya. Pero sobrang saya namin there."

"Why was it happy for you?" The doctor asked.

"Kasi he told me about his life, his struggles and he also asked me about my childhood... It was the first time I felt like he was really letting me in."

All this time, Alden just stared at her. He missed seeing her smile. He missed having her look directly into his eyes.

"Bakit nga ba dun mo ako dinala?" Maine asked.

"You mentioned kasi na you missed eating sa ganun... And I missed our reservation when the shoot ended late." Alden replied, sheepishly.

Maine smiled, but with a hint of sadness. "Yes. Work." She turned to the doctor, "Tapos na yata yung one hour namin?"

"Almost. How did you feel about this session?"

"It was nice." Maine said. Alden replied, "It's a good start, I think."

As they bid each other farewell, Alden's stomach grumbled as they were headed out of the room. "Gutom?" Maine teased. "You haven't eaten 'no?"

He shook his head. "Hindi pa eh. I didn't want to miss our schedule so I went here after my shoot."

She fished something out of her purse. "Sabi ko na nga ba eh. Here, cookies. Pero half lang, leftover from my snack kanina. It will tide you over until you get something proper for dinner."

The doctor observed them and noted: Mrs. Faulkerson hands him the cookies and comments on how her husband has lost weight. She reprimands that he doesn't take care of himself enough. Mr. Faulkerson explains that he has had a lot of work lately but he tries to keep healthy and not miss meals. He plays with her hair while they discuss this. Small, quick touches that they seem to long for but are not indulging.

"I'll see you next week, okay?" Alden says to Maine.

She nods and walks away. "See you."

There is hope.