'Nak, pa-check mo na rin kaya ang ulo mo baka may kuto ka na. Hahaha. Pang-aasar ng daddy nya.
Daddy naman, eh. Noon yun nung bata pa ako no. Sa shiny ba naman ng hair ko ngayon, di kaya sila madudulas dito. Hmpf. Ganti naman nya. She loved being teased by her dad. He had opted to stay with her for one week during his two-week conference in Manila to bond with her, instead of using his hotel accommodation.
They were having breakfast bago ulit ito umalis to attend the conference.
Hahaha. But are you really always under the sun doon sa volunteer site? Umitim ka talaga eh. Dagdag nito.
Si Daddy lahat na lang napapansin. She feigned irritation. Excuse me po, ito ang kulay na 'in' ngayon. Morena. Besides, di mo ba napapansin, na mas gumanda ang dalaga mo ngayon? Pabiro nyang dagdag. She was all too glad and thankful that he's here with her. Miss na rin kasi nyang makipagkwentuhan at makipag-asaran sa daddy nya.
Ngumiti ito at pansamantalang huminto sa pagkain at pagkatapos ay binigyan sya ng makahulugang ngiti.
Now that you mentioned it, oo, ang ganda mo nga, 'nak. I mean, biases aside dahil daddy mo naman ako. Hehehe. Pero nagtataka lang ako. Where have all the cowboys gone, Jules? Bakit loveless ka pa rin? Pabirong tanong nito although she couldn't help but notice the hint of seriousness in it. She knew that her dad was fishing for information about her lovelife.
Bigla syang nakadama ng lungkot. Since her dad arrived, hindi na sila nagkita ni Elmo dahil bigla itong nag-request ng leave of absence sa volunteer work nila. Ni hindi nga sya nagkaroon ng panahon na makausap ito dahil nga sa biglaan nitong pag-alis. She had also been trying to call him but everytime she does, it's either that he wouldn't answer her call or wala itong signal. He'd occasionally send him some apologetic messages pero tuwing tinatawagan nya ito, hindi naman sumasagot but instead send her short messages that he's busy with business.
She didn't like the bad feeling that had been nagging her for the past days. She had always believed in the so-called 'woman's instinct' and deep inside, she knew that something's not right. She had tried her best to hide her anxiety from her dad. Alam nya kasing malakas ang pang-amoy nito lalo na if she's in some sort of trouble. She had spent sleepless nights just thinking about what have gone wrong, or what she could have done wrong para iwasan sya ni Elmo.
Ayaw man syang isipin na iniiwasan sya nito, nananaig pa rin ang kaba na baka yun nga ang ginagawa nito. She had prided herself of her optimism but couldn't help feeling down about him giving her the cold shoulder.
She mustered the courage to go to his house to check on him but he wasn't there. She consoled herself by thinking that it might not be the perfect time to see him.
Jules?
It was her dad's voice that woke her up from stupor.
Uhm...yes, dad. Matamlay nyang tugon.
Binigyan sya nito ng isang makahulugang tingin at pagkatapos ay kumawala ng hingang-malalim.
You know that you can share your secrets to me, right? He said rather too softly. She knew that he was trying to comfort her.
She looked at her dad, and tried to gulp down the lump that was slowly forming in her throat. She knew she was on the verge of crying pero pilit pa rin nyang pinigilan ang pag-iyak. She misses Elmo so much and it hurt that she doesn't even know what she had done wrong to be ignored this way.
Dad...She hoped that he didn't catch the quiver in her voice.
Her dad gave her a sad, knowing look...a look that told her that he understood. He stood up para lumapit sa kanya.
