In The Arms Of An Angel (ON HOLD)

CHAPTER 16

"Dei..."

Richard could sense Dei's heart skip a beat then accelerates when she heard his voice. He waited.

She gingerly turned towards him. Her clumsy movements conveying her disbelief. They both froze in place the exact moment their eyes made contact.

It's been almost a week now since they last interacted and the sensations he experience every time he is in her presence are stronger than ever. He tried to gauge what she was thinking as they continued to stare at each other wordlessly.

Then he watched her close the door slowly before walking towards the living room where he stood adjacent to the door leading to the balcony.

"P-paano? Sigurado akong nadouble lock ko ang pinto..."She stammered. She walked straight to the French doors, stepped out to the balcony and looked down towards the street sixteen floors below.

"Paano ka nakapasok dito sa unit namin?" She asked as she turned and walked back into the unit and stopped in front of him.

"Hanggang ngayon ba ay di ka pa rin naniniwala sa mga sinabi ko sa iyo?"  He asked her softly. He remained where he is, observing her.

"Mahirap naman kasi talaga paniwalaan ang mga sinabi mo, hello! Kahit sino naman sigurong normal na taong sabihan mo nun pero kausap mo at nahahawakan hindi rin maniniwala, di ba?" She folded her arms in front of her as she said this. Her words full of indignation.

"Kailangan mo ba ng patunay? Anong kailangan kong gawin?" Richard asked her calmly.

"Why don't we start with how you were able to get inside our unit? Di ka naman siguro akyat bahay..." She responded calmly as well but Richard can still clearly hear the erratic beating of her heart.

"Okay, sigurado ka ba? Ipapakita ko sa iyo paano pero mangako ka na hindi ka mabibigla o sisigaw.." He said carefully. She nodded slowly, unblinking.

"N-nandito na rin lang tayo di lubusin na natin...sinabi mo na ngang di ka tao, di ba? G-game!" She squared her shoulders awkwardly then looked at him expectantly.

Richard stared at her face intently as he willed himself to fade from her view.

To her credit, Dei did not scream nor uttered a single word as he completely disappeared from her sight.

She fainted instead.

Richard reappeared beside her then and swiftly caught her before her limp body hit the tiled floor. He called her name and when she did not respond carried her towards the sofa where he carefully laid her down.

A few moments later, Richard knelt beside the sofa to check on her condition. He lightly caressed her right cheek as he stared at her face.

"Ano bang meron ka at bakit ako nagkakaganito? Ano ang gagawin ko syo, Dei?" He asked himself silently.

His thoughts then wandered back to the past few days after his last encounter with this beautiful woman.

Richard never thought he would eventually end up stalking a woman. And that was exactly what he was doing these past days since their midnight conversation in the mountain.

After seeing Dei's reaction that night, Richard decided to not show himself to her to give her time to come to terms with the truth. But he stayed near, watching over her. He watched over her at times at work, while eating her meals and sometimes even as she slept at night. He thought he has already given her enough time to ponder on things.

He wanted to speak with her again while he still had time before he makes the decision that will change everything. So he waited for her tonight at her home to do just that. And now she lay unconscious in front of him. It appears like it's still too much, too soon for her.

Dei slowly came through a few minutes later. Richard moved his fingers away from her face as she slowly opened her eyes which suddenly grew wide when she saw him kneeling beside her. She abruptly sat up which caused a wave of dizziness to wash over her. It also caused him to move back a little in alarm. He tried to hold her close again to assist her but she discreetly moved away so he put his hand back down on the armrest.

"Totoo ba talaga yung nakita ko kanina? Nawala ka ba talaga na parang bula or pinaglaruan lang ako ng  imagination ko?" She asked incredulously as she tried valiantly to regain her composure.

Richard gave out a deep sigh before he slowly tried to place his hand on top of hers which were resting on her lap. He felt relieved when she didn't take it back but he can still sense the tension in her.

"Dei, kagaya ng inamin ko sa iyo dati sa bundok hindi ako ordinaryong tao. Totoo ang nakita mo kanina. Isa iyon sa mga kakayahan ko bilang isang tagabantay."  He felt her shiver a bit through her hands but she remained quietly regarding him which he think is a good sign. The truth is finally starting to sink in to her consciousness. He again waited.

"A-ano pa ang ibang kakaibang bagay na kaya mo gawin? Paano ka naging ganyan?" She quietly asked.

"Medyo mahabang salaysayin..." He started to explain but Dei cut him off.

"Gusto kong malaman. Para alam ko kung ano ang pinapasok ko. Para maintindihan kita..." She said quietly. This surprised him a bit for it was not the reaction he was expecting. But he can't deny that her words brought him hope. So he gave her a glimpse of his past.

After almost half an hour of storytelling, Richard was again surprised to realize that she's calmly contemplating on everything he is telling her. After she got over her initial shock, she even managed to ask him clarificatory questions about himself and his organization like they are having a normal conversation. He starts worrying again that she is not taking his words seriously.

"Dei, uulitin ko. Totoo ang mga sinabi ko. Hindi ako ordinaryong tao at ang mga naikwento ko syo ngayon ay bahagi ng nakaraan ko na nagdala sa akin sa pagiging tagabantay..."

"Alam ko ang iniisip mo. Gets ko ang mga sinabi mo noh! Ewan ko ba! Pagkatapos kong makitang magdisappear ka sa harap ko parang naging mas madali na sa aking tanggapin ang lahat ng sumunod mong sinabi...pero wag mo muna uulitin ung pagdisappear at di pa ko masydo nakaget over, ah..." She quipped as they sat side by side on the sofa with a safe distance between them.

He chuckled lightly. When he turned towards her, he found her openmouthedly gaping at his face. She straightened up abruptly when she realized that he caught her staring.

"A-ah...ano ang cute lang ng tawa mo...ay hindi pala ng mata mo..teka ano ba pinagsasasabi ko...forget I said anything..." She avoided his eyes in embarassment which just made him laugh some more.

"Eiiihh, inaano ka ba?? Magkwento ka na nga lang uli.." She candidly requested as she tucked the stray hair on her face behind her ear.

Now it was Richard's turn to gape at her blushing face. He continued to do so until she hit his biceps self-consciously to break his stares.

"So you mean to say, bagong recruit ka lang din as a tagabantay? Parang internship, ganoin??!" She asked him the second time that night just to distract him from staring.

"Oo, hindi pa ako ganap na tagabantay dahil hindi pa ako sumasailalim sa pagtatalaga. Iyon ang ritwal na magbibigay sa akin ng karapatang maging ganap na tagabantay..."  He patiently explained again as she seemed to contemplate her next question. She looked at his face intently.

"Kung magiging ganap na tagabantay ka, maari pa rin ba tayong magkita tulad nito?"

That question threw him off a little making him pause for a moment to find the right words to say.

He was about to answer her when they suddenly heard the sound of the key being inserted into the door lock. Dei turned towards the door in panic as the locks clicked, doornknob turns and Valerie's loud voice echoed through the sudden silence inside the unit.

"Hi, beshie! I'm home!"