" RAIN! Wala ka na bang ibabagal pa? Take your time ha." ranted Desiree.
She said that with full sarcasm.
" Oo na! Ito na nga oh! Ba't kailangang nakasigaw? Ang aga-aga, ang init ng ulo mo."
"Rain, we cannot afford to be late." She lead her way to the living room. 15 minutes after, nakaalis na rin kami, sa wakas. We booked a ride on the way to the university.
"Thank goodness Vanessa. Alam mo ikaw simula't sapul ang kupad mo kumilos noh? Napakatagal mo. Buhok lang naman inaayos mo." tuloy-tuloy lang siya sa panenermon sa akin. If only she knows na buhok na lang kasi ang kaya kong ayusin sa ngayon. Life's quite a mess.
"Tigilan mo ko Desiree, huwag ka ngang OA. Kung tutuusin nga dapat natutulog pa ako ngayon eh." she ignored me and I don't think she's paying attention to what I'm saying since she is busy texting Cedric.
7:15 AM. We already got inside the campus. Desiree went straight ahead, walked with magnificent speed. Nakalimutan niya yatang may kasama siya. We are on our way to the benches.
Papalapit kami nang papalapit, pabilis rin nang pabilis ang lakad ng malanding 'to. At sa hindi kalayuan, natanaw na nga namin si Cedric, walking towards us, to Desiree, in particular, para sumalubong.
Hindi kasi sila nakapagkita this vacation kasi umalis ng bansa si Cedric. Family matters so ganito nila ka-miss ang isa't isa. Kahit araw-araw naman silang magkausap via video call at nagtatawagan. Hindi ba sila nagkakasawaan?
Walang sali-salita, they finally had their moment. Nagyakapan.
"Nice seeing you again, Rain!" tapos ako naman ang niyakap ni Cedric. Hindi na rin naman ako papalag. Cedric na 'to oh, aarte pa ba ako?
Kung hindi ko lang kaibigan si Desiree, pinatulan ko 'tong lalaking ito eh. I'm not over exaggerating but Cedric is really a catch. Aside from being a good-looking creation of God, he is a very ideal partner. Daig pa ni Desiree ang nanalo sa lotto.
"Rain!" I turned my head as I heard my name and it was brother, together with the guys.
"Hi sis! I miss you!" Kuya hugged me. Hindi kami magkasama nitong vacation break kasi nga I stayed at Desiree's place.
So from this day forward, babalik ako sa bahay namin wherein kaming dalawa lang ni kuya ang naglalagi. Our parents are in Canada for good, to manage our business. They always call and assure na nasa mabuti kaming kondisyon. Umuuwi naman sila rito as soon as possible at kapag maluwag ang schedule nila.
And we're twins. Basically, nauna siyang lumabas kaysa sa akin kaya tinatawag ko siyang Kuya.
"Long time no see, Rain." Rommie grabbed and kissed my hand. Another man with oozing and pleasing personality.
"Eh ako Rain? Hindi mo ko na-miss?"
"Puwede ba Eric? Tigilan mo ko ah. Hindi tayo close kaya wala kang karapatan tawagin ako sa second name ko at isa pa, alisin mo 'yang pagka-akbay mo sa'kin or else..."
"Or else what?" he attempted to move his face closer to mine, obviously, para asarin ako lalo.
I stepped onto his foot and gave his arm a slight twist. Ayan, deserve.
"What's that for?! Salbahe ka talagang babae ka kahit kailan!" As by the looks of it, mukhang nasaktan siya. Justice served.
"Ayan Eric, nagsisimula ka na naman kasing magpapansin kay Rain eh. Magpa-goodshot ka kaya? Mas mawawalan ka ng pag-asa dyan." Cedric said. Pag-asang ano?
"Do you wanna die Cedric?" Eric ranted. Mukha pa rin siyang nasaktan sa ginawa ko sa kanya.
"Sige nga, patayin mo ko. Ni hindi ka nga maka-revive sa sakit dyan eh. Talo ka pala kay Vanessa eh. Hahaha." At this point of time, hindi ko alam kung kakampi ko ba si Cedric sa pang-aasar kay Eric o ewan... You know, boys will be boys.
"Tumigil na nga kayo. Nako Vanessa, pasalamat ka at kayang tiisin ni Eric lahat ng sakit na 'yan para sa'yo. Alam mo bang—-" Eric stopped Rommie, who is just beside him, from talking.
I know that they are just teasing me. As usual. Kilalang-kilala ko na sila, mula bumbunan hanggang talampakan. They love pissing me off. They are my friends and I love them, but I hate them, so much. You know what I'm saying?
It is an hour already before the classes start, we decided to have breakfast together at the coffee shop nearby.
I sat by the chair beside the glass wall. To my right is my brother, and then Rommie. Katapat ko si Eric, tapos katabi niya yung mag-partner.
Should I exchange seats now? Alam mo kasi yung tipo ni Eric, siya yung magandang lalaking ayaw mong titigan kasi nakkairita. The view is already ruined just by his shadow.
We ordered some pancakes and coffee. Frappe for me. Inaantok pa rin ako sa totoo lang. Kung bakit naman kasi kailangan kong sumabay nang ganito kaaga kay Desiree just to see her boyfriend. Tch.
Ang ingay-ingay nila, nagkukuwentuhan. Nakikitawa lang ako pero hindi ako dumadaldal. Hindi ko lang talaga ramdam ang atmosphere ngayon. Kasi inaantok ako nang malala.
We're halfway done with our meal. Actually, ubos ko na yung akin at tinatapos ko na lang yung frappe ko.
"Excuse me. Sa labas lang ako. I need some air." I excused myself. Mas nakakaantok atmosphere dito eh. Ang lamig tapos classic instrumental pa tumutugtog. Considering na nagkape pa ako ah. I should be awake. But no.
"Just admit that you can't resist being in front of me, Vanessa. Isang Eric dela Cruz ba naman ang umupo sa harapan mo eh kung hindi ka mawalan ng hangin at mag-faint. Just admit it. It's alright. Don't be shy." conceited Eric. He smirked after that.
"Ang sabi ko, kailangan ko ng hangin. Hindi ko sinabing kailangan ko ng mahangin." The whole troupe goes 'woah' . I know. I always win over this kumag.
"Trust me Vanessa. You'll miss this one you call 'mahangin'. " Eric added. Ayoko nang palalain yung pagkainis ko kaya lumabas na ako at umupo sa bench na nasa tapat ng cafe. Though tanaw ko pa rin sila gawa ng nasa tabi lang sila ng glass wall. I put my earphones on.
30 minutes before class. Tch. Kung bakit naman kasi sila pa rin ang kasama ko hanggang college. Burong-buro na ko. Lalo na kay Eric.
I tried to roam my eyes over the surroundings. Ang dami kong nakikita.
At sa kasamaang palad, sa dami ng makikita ko, bakit siya pa. Bakit sila pa.
I saw them walking along. Hands intertwined. Smiles while eyes sparkling for the fact that they are staring at each other's faces.
I shouldn't have gone out.
I'm not going to cry. No. No way.
Tumayo agad ako ng bench, nagmamadaling naglakad pabalik sa cafe. Sa pagmamadali, natapilok pa ko. But I manage to get myself together, bago pa nila ako maabutan dito.
I stood up with a tear fell out of my eye. I wiped that tear away and managed myself na huwag nang lumingon pa. Dumiretso ako sa table namin. Goodness gracious.
"O, ang bilis mo naman magpahangin? Sabi ko na nga ba eh. You can't resist me." comeback pang-aasar ni Eric. Isa pa 'to. Wala nang ibang ginawa kundi asarin ako.
"Tumayo na kayo diyan. Classes will start in minutes. O Desiree? Pinagmamadali mo ko kanina dahil baka ma-late tayo sa klase 'diba? O ano'ng ginagawa niyo? Kilos!"
"What's with you? Ngarag na ngarag ka naman masyado." Desiree answered. Times like this, I get so emotional. Ang hirap magpigil ng luha. Lahat mahirap.
"Nothing Desiree. Let's go." I managed to smile at her. Pinangunahan ko na sila. Naramdaman ko naman na sumunod sila sa akin.
Fine morning, it is!
