In The Arms Of An Angel (ON HOLD)

CHAPTER 35

"Dei, good morning! Gising na! May byahe pa tayo later..."

Val's muffled voice and the firm knocks on her door woke her from her troubled slumber. Dei slowly opened one eye and saw that its already morning. She sighed.

She barely slept last night rewinding over and over in her head everything that happened at the corporate party she and Valerie attended. She really felt bad. Now, she would just like just stay in bed to wallow in self deprecation.

"Dei, confirmed! Isa ka talagang walking disaster! Minsan ka lang magtry magpainpress by dressing up a bit tapos you ended up embarrassing yourself  yet AGAIN sa harap pa nya! Nakakahiya ka na talaga gurl!" She groaned as she stared up at the ceiling of her bedroom.

Her wandering thoughts were pulled back to the present though when her door suddenly burst open and Valerie strode in carrying a duffel bag and wearing gym clothes.

"Dei! Gising ka na pala dyan di ka man lang sumasagot! Bumangon ka na, girl! Magbreakfast ka na. Nasa dining table na yung niluto ko. After kumain maligo ka na rin para di tayo tanghaliin. Inaabot ka pa naman ng two hours sa pagbibihis! Maggigym muna ako sandali sa baba then when I come back magready na tayo ng gamit bago tayo bumiyahe for the Millennial photoshoot sa Laguna." Val said while trying to pull the blanket from Dei who attempted to cover herself with it from head to toe. Dei whined like a baby.

"Ihhh, Val! Inaantok pa ko! 5 more minutes pleaseeee..." Dei bargained. She is really not in the mood to face the world yet after her traumatic episode at the party last night. Val stared at her critically.

"Is this still about last night?" Val asked with her hands on her hips.

Val really knew her well. Dei heaved a deep sigh before sitting up gingerly from the bed. Her friend put down her bag on the floor near the foot of the bed and sat beside her.

"Bes, saan ka ba talaga mas affected? Dun sa lasing na si Mr. GQ o kay Mr. Man in your Dreams na knight in shining armor mo na rin? Yung tataa?" Val asked with a naughty glint in her eyes. Dei looked at her friend, eyes wide with indignation, but Val just raised her eyebrows at her as if challenging her to negate anything. After a few seconds, Dei lost the staring match and just decided to share her thoughts with her friend.

"Bes! Bakit ba lagi na lang epic fail ang mga pagkikita namin? Dati naman sa dreams ko ang perfect ng mga moments namin..." She answered with a pout not anymore able to hide her true feelings.

"Sabi na nga ba, eh! Dei, sa dreams nga lang yun! Everything is possible sa dream. Iba ang reality, gurl!  And besides you don't have to worry too much about it. Mukha namang di talaga epic fail ang nangyari. Di ba nga nakipagkilala pa sya sa'yo formally bago kayo naghiwalay kagabi?" Val said consolingly.

"Pero, Val! Anong klaseng impression naman ang iniwan ko sa kanya after ng mga nangyari? Stalker ako nung una tapos malandi naman nung pangalawa? Sirang sira ang reputasyon ko, bes!" She lamented. Valerie patted her hand to console her again.

"Gusto mo bang gumawa ulit ako ng paraan para magkita kayo again? Malay mo third's the charm?Pwede kong kontakin si Joyce or si Doc Kris para..." Valerie offered but Dei cut her off.

"Val, wag!" She exclaimed. "Hindi ko naman siguro dapat careerin masyado ang role na stalker. Wag masyadong isabuhay, besh! Sakit din sa ego na ako ang naghahabol eh wala namang hahabulin kasi nga ni di nya ako kilala..." She answered glumly.

"Oh, yun naman pala, eh! Then ienjoy na lang natin ang weekend na to, besh! Let go muna ng negative vibes! Sige na, move!" Valerie cajoled her into action. But instead of leaving the bed she fell back onto the bed and stared at the ceiling again.

"Oy! Ano yan matutulog ka na naman?! Bangon na sabi at baka abutin pa tayo ng hapon bago makarating sa Laguna pag di ka pa kumilos. May meeting pa tayo with the editor in chief of the magazine and the resort owner bago magstart ang briefing sa mga models." Val reminded her as she try to tug at the blanket again.

"Oo na! Di na ko matutulog uli. Just give me a few minutes para gisingin din ang katawang lupa ko then magbibihis na ako. Maggym ka na. Bumalik ka agad,ha! Baka ako na naman ang mag-ayos lahat ng dadalhin natin kasi nadelay ka ng uwi coz nakipagcoffee ka pa sa nameet mo sa gym!" She retorted.

"Tse! Inggit ka lang kasi ako may nakakadate ikaw wala! Sige na alis na ko. Wag ka na matulog uli, ah!" Val said as she picked up her bag from the floor and walked towards the door of her room.

"Oo na nga po, boss! Umalis ka na! Ang kulit!" She answered exasperatedly as she threw a pillow at Val who was able to dodge it by pulling the door close. The pillow hit the closed door and fell on the floor. Dei sighed loudly.

She was about to pull back the bedcover to leave her bed when her cellphone rang. She reached out for it from her bedside table and saw Uno's name on the screen. She reluctantly answered the call.

"Hello, Uno? Napatawag ka?" She asked half-heartedly.

"Hi, Dei! Good morning! Sorry. Did I wake you up?" Dei can hear background noises from his side.

"No, you didn't. It's okay. I'm about to start preparing for our shoot already...Nasa daan ka ba? Parang ang ingay dyan?" She asked.

"Oh, okay. Yes, well I'm out of town at the moment for a short meeting with a client. Tumawag ako para sana yayain ka for dinner tonight kasi babalik din naman ako agad ng Manila later today. Sayang may work pala kayo. Saan nga pala ang shoot nyo at until when?" Uno asked.

"Sa Sta. Rosa, Laguna. Sa isang private resort. Until Sunday kami dun at malamang gabi na kami makabalik ng Manila after." She answered.

"Really! Wow, what a coincidence! I'm on my way to Nuvali now. Dito kami magmemeet ng client ko over lunch. Maaga lang ako ng dating kasi may dadaanan muna ako malapit dito bago ako pumunta sa meeting place. You know what, text me the name of the resort and I will follow you there. I don't have anything planned for the rest of the weekend so kung okay lang sa iyo I can join you guys there..." Uno said. Excitement can be clearly heard from his voice.

"I-I don't know, Uno...you know naman that this is work so..." She said slowly.

"I know! Don't worry hindi ako mang-iistorbo sa work mo. I can even join your team and assist you guys during the shoot. I just want to spend time with you. Miss na kita. Sobrang busy natin pareho." Uno said softly. Dei felt uneasy with his declaration.

"Uno, you don't have to do this. I know you are a busy man so hindi mo kailangang magchange ng plans mo para lang sa akin..." She heard his sigh.

"Dei, I want to do this because I'm happy to spend more time with you and as I said I have no appointments this weekend so I'm free to go where I want to go. And right now I want to go where you are. If that's okay with you?" Uno asked, sounding quite hopeful.

"Okay. Bahala ka na nga. I will just text you the name of the resort later. I have to go now. Bye." Then she immediately disconnected the call.

She felt disappointed after the call. And if she is to be completely honest with herself she knew exactly why.

Because she was hoping deep inside that someone else would say those words that Uno said to her.