RJ felt like everything stop right at that moment. He stood there frozen and incapable of saying any word. He just stared at Maine while his heart pounded his chest.
"I ... uh ... Me? What I mean is I like you as a maid ... I like how you do things ... I like how you clean the house ... do extra chores ... take care of Kirby ... things like that. You know you shouldn't eavesdrop on people, and please don't assume things right away." He managed to reply after a few minutes of nothing but awkward silence. Maine just nodded, apologized for overhearing what they were talking about, and walked towards Kirby. RJ felt stupid after saying those words, it was his chance to say his feelings for her but he screwed it up big time.
"What was that? Kelan ka pa naging torpe?" Lala questioned him as soon as she made sure Maine won't hear them.
"That's what I'm saying, Lala. She has this effect on me that I can't explain."
"Well you better think of a solution right away. From what I can see, nasaktan siya sa sinabi mo." Lala answered. RJ looked and saw Maine busy tying Kirby's shoes. RJ gulped and looked down at the floor.
"RJ, I need you to promise me something."
"What is it?" he asked, facing his grandmother once more.
"That if you really care about Maine, you will make things right ..."
"I will."
--
"Yes, nag-match naman ... buti nga eh." Maine told Ivan through the phone a few minutes after she and her bosses got home from the clinic. She opened the door to the maid quarters and threw herself on top of the bed. Maine tried to forget about the words she heard RJ say but she couldn't. And though he already made it clear that she misunderstood the whole thing, Maine was certain that what she heard was right.
"Maine? I'm going to visit you tomorrow. Will that be okay?" Ivan asked her.
"What?" she asked back, distracted by her own thoughts.
"I said I'm going to visit you tomorrow. Okay lang ba yun?"
"Yeah, pag-paalam mo na lang kay Sir."
"I will ... I have to go now, Ingat ka ah?"
"Ikaw din." Maine told Ivan with a smile on her face.
"Okay ... bye."
"Bye."
Maine let out a long sigh after ending the call. She then placed her phone on top of the drawer and changed into more comfortable clothes. A few minutes later, she stepped out of the quarters once more and saw Lala walking towards her.
"Ah Iha, nandyan ka lang pala. Follow me." She said. Maine nodded and walked with Lala towards the garden. The two ladies then sat on the bench and faced each other.
"How are you?" Lala asked Maine.
"Okay lang naman po."
"I heard nanliligaw daw si Ivan sa'yo."
"Sino pong nagsabi?" Maine asked right away, shocked that Lala would know such thing.
"Well, Si RJ .... sino pa ba? Nga pala, I need you to do something for me."
"Ano po yun?"
"Monitor RJ more closely ... may inaayos kasi ako na mga papers ngayon kaya hindi ako masyadong makakatawag sa'yo in the coming days. Parating din yung Daddy niya eh kaso hindi sila magkasundo, baka mamaya kung ano pa mangyari. Pakibantayan mo lang siya ng mas-maigi. Okay?"
"Oh sige po." Maine responded. She then nodded and smiled at Lala.
"Blooming ka rin ngayon, Iha. Dahil ba yan kay Ivan o kay RJ?"
"Ay Lala naman ... hindi po ba pwedeng natural na maganda lang?" Maine asked in a joking manner.
"Hindi."
"Ay grabe siya ... ewan ko po Lala eh, baka po dun sa sabon na ginagamit ko. Gusto niyo po bang malaman yung brand?"
Lala was about to say something when they heard footsteps coming towards them. Maine looked on and saw RJ.
"Maine, paki-luto na yung hotdog ko"
"Yung hotdog mo, RJ?" Lala asked and he immediately blushed.
"Sorry ... wrong choice of words. What I mean is yung hotdog na pinatabi ko sa'yo. Gutom daw si Kirby eh." RJ answered and quickly walked away from them.
"Oh sige na Maine, iluto mo na yung hotdog niya. Siguraduhin mong may hiwa ah." Lala said, teasing her.
"Lala naman eh. Nga po pala ... may tanong po ako sa inyo. Tama naman po yung narining ko kanina di ba? Yung sinabi ni Sir sa clinic?"
"Ay hindi ko rin alam eh, pasensiya ka na."
--
RJ spent the whole day having one mental debate after the other. And after hours of thinking how he would tell Maine his true feelings, he finally came up with one. RJ waited until 11:00 pm before he knocked on the door of the maid's quarters. A few moments later, and a sleepy-looking Maine showed up on the other side.
"Were you sleeping? Nagising ba kita?" he asked right away.
"Hindi naman po Sir ... medyo pagod lang po ako. Bakit po ba?"
"Um ... I have a confession to make. Can you come out for a second, please?"
Maine went out of the room and stared at him. RJ walked away a bit, took a deep breath, and faced her again.
"What you heard back in the clinic was right. I like you ... not as a maid but as a person. I really like you Maine, a lot. I don't know how it started ... I mean, I used to hate you but things changed. There's something about you that is so mysterious and interesting that it converted my feelings for you right away. Maine, gusto kita at kung pahihintulutan mo ako, ipapakita ko sa'yo kung gaano ka ka-importante sa akin." He said, finally laying it all out on the line. Maine's mouth fell open and her eyes went wide as ever.
"Oh .... My ... God ..." Maine said before she passed out.
--
It was already morning when Maine opened her eyes again. She sat up and immediately realized that she was already in the bed. The events that took place the previous day felt like a dream, but Maine knew it was real.
"May gusto din sa akin si Sir ... OMG." She whispered before leaving the bed. Maine then heard a familiar voice coming from right outside the quarters. She took a peek through the window and saw Ivan carrying a bouquet of flowers. Maine backed off quickly and checked herself in the mirror. After tying her hair into a ponytail and putting some powder on her face, Maine stepped out of the room. But much to her surprise, Ivan wasn't the only guy holding flowers for her.
"Anong meron?" Maine asked, still couldn't process the fact that two attractive guys were giving her flowers
"RJ told me that he finally admitted his feelings for you," Ivan said.
"Yes, I did. Maine, I wanna court you as well."
--
may the best man win na ba niyan? stay tuned.
