Edward could hardly take his mind off the matter the whole day. In whatever he does, he just keeps on thinking about it.
So when Marco sent him an invite to attend a photo exhibit in Makati, he did not think twice. It would be a good way to divert his troubled mind.
Marco said he'd be late, so he started looking around without him. One that really gets his attention is the photo of a young girl in the midst of a golden field. She was not facing the camera. She looks like she's wandering. She was taking a step when the photo was taken.
And he realized the reason he was drawn to the photo was that it gave him the peace and serenity the same way the painting on his bedroom wall did.
Then he noticed he wasn't the only one drawn in that photo.
Beside him, just a few paces away, was the woman he saw that day.
He blinked his eyes and shook his head. No, the woman did not vanished. He smiled inwardly. His head was so full of her that he thought he was only imagining things. But she's real.
It's the same girl. Only she was wearing a dress. Very feminine. She kept her long straight hair on loose. She looks at the photo the same way he did, fully immersed. He just remained there still looking at the woman almost perfectly content.
He took a step closer. He forgets the coffee shop. The painting. He just felt drawn to this woman, in a way he could not explain.
"Ehem.. So.. Beautiful, don't you think? "
The woman turned her head to look at the intruder, and her surprise did not escape his eyes. Like she's seen a ghost. Or maybe because he interrupted her silence.
"Oh, I'm sorry i startled you."
It took seconds for her to answer.
"O-Okay lang, " she looks back at the photo. She looks disconcerted. "May naalala lang ako sa photo na iyan."
Edward smiled at the sound of her voice.
"Same with me. It reminds me of a painting. They're not exactly the same though, this one and the painting i have at home. But the feeling i get when i look at this photo, it's the same. Like it's taking me to another place. Somewhere peaceful. And happy."
He sensed she's not feeling comfortable around him. He noticed she is wringing her hands together.
"Then that must be a beautiful painting." She said. Almost inaudible.
"Yes, it sure is-. "
"Edward, you're here!" It was Marco.
Marco approached them, and Edward saw the woman take a step behind Marco. And did he just saw relief on her face? She looks at Marco like a girl looking at his protector. Her one hand reaches for Marco's arm and it stayed there. He felt his heart skipped a beat.
He switches his eyes between the two.
"You know each other?" Edward asked. His eyes fell again on that slender hand that rested comfortably on Marco's arm.
"Ah yes. We're friends."
"Friends." He nods while saying that. Did he just felt relief?
"Maymay, this is Edward Barber, my bestfriend. And Edward, this is Marydale Entrata, Maymay for short." Edward offered his hand, and Maymay timidly raised hers to meet his. They shook hands. Her hand was warm. And Edward was holding her hand longer than necessary.
So could that be the reason why he felt like he knew this girl when he saw her at the coffee shop? Because she is Marco's friend?
Could it be that they simply have already met before and nothing special? Well, Marco has a large group of friends. He is more gregarious than Edward ever is. So it plausible that he already met Maymay in the past, maybe in one occassion or two that they happen to attend together. It could be.
What he couldn't explain was that he felt really uncomfortable seeing her hand in his arm. To the point he wanted to punch Marco in the face.
So it turned out no good for Edward. They checked on the photos together, and he felt like a thirdwheel. Maymay sometimes drop her hand from holding Marco's arm. But whenever he comes near, she would hold Marco again.
He would have stayed until he finished seeing everything if he could. But the ambiance shifted and it no longer amused him. He separated himself from the two, and leave the exhibit first.
He couldn't wait to get out of the vicinity.
And so it confused him so bad that while lying in his bed, his mind drifted back uncontrollably to the exhibit, replaying his conversation with Maymay, and he could think of nothing else but Maymay's downcast eyes.
And her slender hand resting on Marco's arm.
Her slender hand resting on Marco's arm.
Whhhyyy? He throw a pillow on the wall.
He got up and opened a canned beer to calm his nerves. He turned the tv on and slumped at the sofa. Like it was any more helpful. In fact, what he was seeing on the tv screen was Maymay's hand, on Marco's arm.
"My goodness!" He turned the tv off and threw the remote control away from his sight.
He couldn't grasp what is happening with him. He needs to see a psychiatrist.
The hands of the clock keeps turning. And One two three. He keeps on drinking. Soon there were seven empty cans on the floor.
And Edward, finally, fell asleep in the sofa.
His heart aching. Longing.
Something glistening appeared in the corners of his eyes. He cried in his sleep.
BINABASA MO ANG
Whisper of the Heart (COMPLETED)
Romance(A Mayward inspired story) Edward Barber wakes up one day feeling like he had lost something. His precious memory gone with the wind. Would he ever complete the missing pieces of his lost memory? Or in finding what had been lost, would he ever forgi...
