Here, inumin mo 'to. Sambit nya sabay abot ng gamot kay Elmo. May lagnat ito at halos kalahati ng araw ang naubos nito sa pagtulog. Hindi nito tinanggap ang inabot nyang gamot at sumimangot pa.
No, I don't wanna drink that. Sagot nito na ngayon ay nakanguso dahilan para matawa sya.
Elmo, don't be stubborn. Paano ka gagaling nyan? Ang taas kaya ng lagnat mo. She gently chided him sabay tingin sa thermometer. Di nya mapigilang mag-alala dito. She had tried to convince him to go to the doctor pero matigas talaga ang ulo nito.
Ayoko kasi ang lasa ng gamot. Yung aftertaste, ayoko. He answered rather in a child-like manner dahilan para lalo pa syang matawa.
Ah, ganun. Alam mo para ka ring ako. She answered as she pulled a chair and sat opposite where he was lying.
See. Pareho pala tayo eh. So don't force me to drink that pill. Ayoko talaga.
Tseh. Pareho tayo nung five years old ako, Elmo. Hahaha. Ayoko ko ring uminom ng gamot. Pero matanda ka na kaya wag kang pasaway.
Bumangon ito at umupo paharap sa kanya. At pagkatapos ay binigyan sya ng makahulugang ngiti.
Are you gonna punish me if I don't drink that? Tanong nito sabay taas-baba ng kilay.
Oo.
Lalong lumapad ang ngiti nito.
Like how? He answered, closed his eyes, pouted and pointed a finger on his lips, motioning for her to kiss him.
Haha. Kapal mo, Elmo. Agad-agad nyang sagot dito sabay talikod. Naririnig pa rin nya ang tawa nito hanggang pagdating nya sa kusina. This wasn't her first time to hang out at Elmo's house. Their first date was followed by another and another and another and the more she spent time with him, the more her feelings for him deepened.
Their dates were usually done out on a whim. They would talk and in the middle of the conversation, they'd think of a random things to do together like a barbecue at Julie's house, or an afternoon snack at Kuya Ben's coffeeshop, book hunting in not-so-famous bookshops and watching movies at Elmo's house which was what they were supposed to do at the moment kung di nga lang ito nagkasakit.
Dahil sa madalas nilang pagsasama, she discovered that she and Elmo have a lot in common. She was pleased to find out that he had read some of the books that she also reads tulad na lang ng 'The Catcher in the Rye' ni J.D. Salinger and 'Metamorphosis' ni Franz Kafka. They had spent hours talking about the books, sharing stories. Minsan naging dahilan pa ito ng mga arguments nila na nauuwi rin sa biruan at tawanan. Tuwang-tuwa din syang malaman na halos magkapareho din ang paborito nilang pelikula when she saw his DVD collection, karamihan dito ay mga cult classics din tulad na lang ng 'Pulp Fiction', 'Casa Blanca', 'Cinema Paradiso', and even some erotic and controversial movies like 'Y Tu Mama Tambien' and other foreign independent films. Their similarities were a pleasant surprise to her dahilan para lalo syang nakadama ng kilig.
Since they started dating, she would often remind herself to be cautious dahil hindi naman kasi nya alam kung ano talaga ang status nila. They were both affectionate towards each other but they've never even kissed. Hindi rin nila napag-uusapan ang tungkol sa kung anong meron sa kanila.
She's happy- being with him, laughing with him and even arguing with him. But somehow, the uncertainty of what Elmo feels towards her tainted the pretty picture of happiness that she had painted in her mind.
This wasn't the first time that she thought over the matter. Halos araw-araw nyang inisip ang tungkol sa kanila ni Elmo but she would often end up cheering herself up that everything will be alright in the end.
Haaaaay. Relax ka lang, Julie. Wag kang praning.
She was snapped out of her daze when she felt a hand lightly touch her back at nang humarap ay nagulat nang makita si Elmo.
Ay kalabaw. Elmo, nakakainis ka. Nanggugulat ka na naman eh.
He was quiet as he stared at her, amused with the surprised look on her face. Sa dalas ng pagsasama nila, napapansin nyang madalas itong nag-iisip ng malalim and he'd always sneak up to her everytime she does para gulatin ito.
His gaze shifted down to her lips. He had noticed it quite a long time ago, how full and sensuous they are and how soft and tempting they looked, as though they were waiting to be kissed. He looked up again and saw that she was gazing back at him.
Habang nakatingin sa mga mata nito, it occurred to him how much her eyes and her lips contradict each other. Her eyes were wide with innocence and he could almost sense hesitation and fear in them...While her lips were a pink piece of temptation...of seduction...looking as though they were begging to be devoured. It was that lethal, magnetic combination that draw him closer to her...a moment when he felt that he was controlled by some unknown external force as he pulled her close rather quite suddenly and claimed her lips hungrily.
It was certainly not a gentle kiss and quite a languorous, harsh one for a first. She whimpered beneath him in protest, pushing him on the chest as he deepened and deepened the kiss. But he was stronger and hungry and thirsty....and yearning for her and the more she protested the more he wanted her. He needed to be quenched, satiated. He pulled her even closer to him, placing both of his hands around the beautiful curve of her back, pressing her to him in a suffocating embrace and as his passion rose to a new height, he realized that he had wanted her all along, that he had been waiting for this moment...to have her...to own her...to possess her. He felt her relax and answer his kisses with her own innocent fervor but he stopped when he felt a certain warmth on his chin and when he opened his eyes, he saw that she was crying. The warmth he had felt had been the tears that were running down her cheeks.
She opened her tear-glazed eyes and met his gaze with the same wide-eyed innocence. He saw part longing and part fear in them which sent him a flurry of emotions-yearning, guilt, excitement, giddiness and most of all surrender, for he knew that what he thought was 'his' game wasn't his anymore. He cupped her face with both hands and stooped down to give her another kiss, a gentle one this time.
Go home, Julie. I think I'm well now.
