“Ang gwapo naman ng Uncle Dada ko! Anong meron?” ang panunukso ni Gaile nang makita n’ya ang kanyang tiyuhin na paalis na.
“Briefing for the retreat.”
“Ah ‘yung date n’yo ni Miss Sarah.”
“It’s two friends having coffee and dessert but not a date.”
“Whatever you say Uncle Dada.”
“Hindi ako ang nagsabi nun, s’ya. She even said it’s not the right time for her to being going out. Has she told you anything? Did she just come from a bad break up or something?”
“Aaaah… so now you’re asking me. Sorry I don’t meddle into other people’s lives. I don’t know anything.”
“Most likely wala ka rin namang alam eh. Bakit ba kita tinatanong?”
“Au contraire my dear uncle, I know a lot of things. Things that might be of interest to you.”
“Like?”
“Di ba you’re not letting me meddle so wala akong alam. Figure it out for yourself.”
“Hindi mo sasabihin sa akin kahit na ang kapalit ay pwede kang magpabili ng bagong gadget sa akin?”
“Ay hindi pa rin Uncle Dada. Hindi mo po ako madadaan sa suhol mo.”
“Okay. I’m planning to get you pa naman that new phone that you’ve been looking at.”
Natigilan si Gaile sa narinig na s’ya naman dahilan ng pag ngiti ni Gerald. “Ay Uncle Dada, hinding-hindi ko sasabihin sa ‘yo na the reason why she transferred to our school is because she’s trying to move on from something painful that happened when she was in her previous job. Sige, Uncle Dada akyat na ako sa kwarto ko. Alis ka na rin at baka ma-late ka sa meeting mo. Ingat po. I love you. Enjoy your coffee,” sabi ng pamangkin sabay alis.
Before he could even react, he saw Gaile run up the stairs. The last thing she said puzzled him. “Ano kaya ang nangyari sa kanya? Bakit kailangan lumipat pa s’ya ng trabaho para lang makaiwas? I should be careful pala. I should take it easy. So okay lang pala na mabagal ako,” he said to himself. Pero natawa s’ya sa sarili sa huling sinabi n’ya dahil ito ay pag-amin na rin na tama ang sinasabi ng kanyang pamangkin.
