Hey, It's Me, Karma (Manileño Series #1)

Chapter 29

Hey, It's Me, Karma

Pretend

My tongue had lost its taste. Ni hindi ko magawang mag-enjoy sa pagkaing kaharap. Sa tuwing may okasyong ganito ay tanging ang pagkain sa mesa ang pinagkakaabalahan ko. Their conversations don't hit me with interest. I was just there most of the time because of my parents, I don't have to listen to their long discourse. Ngunit ngayon ay kahit ang pagkain ay matabang para sa akin.

Noong dumating ang dessert na coffee jelly ay doon lamang medyo gumaan ang pakiramdam ko. It was not chocolate but it will do. Chocolate was number one on my list of favorites but coffee jelly comes next. At that moment, anything would really do as long as the sour expression on my face would left my face.

Tumayo sa kinauupuan si Javaughn. He excused himself before leaving. Sumunod ang paningin ko kung saan siya tumungo, subo-subo ko pa ang oval spoon. Lumapit siya sa malayong puno at sumandal doon.

I thought he would engage with our parents' conversation since my mother was telling them tales of their missions. It seems like he's not in the mood to be congenial. Tahimik lamang siya at mukhang hindi pa nakikinig dahil malalim ang nilalakbay ng isipan.

We were both surprised when we realized who each other were. Saglit na nagbago ang ekspresyon ko sa tumamang gulat ngunit kaagad ding nakabawi. Samantalang si Javaughn ay nanatiling gulat. Nakaawang ang kaniyang labi at para bang pilit niyang kinukumbinsi ang sariling mali ang rumirehistro sa mga mata. Too bad it's me and he knows who am I. Alam niya ang koneksyon ko sa isang tao.

"Oh, honey, do you know each other?" tanong ni Mama sa akin nang mapansin ang gulat ng isa. Pabalik-balik ang titig niya sa amin ni Javaughn. Tumingin na rin sa amin ang ina ni Javaughn nang may pagtatanong sa mga mata.

I smiled sweetly at them.

"Of course, ma. We're in the same school after all. Javaughn here is very popular. Maraming admirers..." I meaningfully said. It was for him to recognize the place he's standing.

Mangha pa sila sa sinabi ko ngunit kagustuhan ko na siyang irapan nang sumagi sa isipan ko ang mukha ni Magentta.

Your son, Tita, also loves giving false hopes to hopeful girls...

Tinapos ko ang coffee jelly para sa binalak na gawin. I wanted to talk to him about my friend. Puwede namang iwanan ko na lang nang hindi nauubos ang pagkain ko ngunit saying iyon. Hindi worth it pag-aksayahan para sa lalaking nanggagago ng kaibigan. If only I don't have anything I wanted so bad to talk about then I wouldn't even try to converse with him.

I don't really know if it was right to get angry of him but I don't want the look on Magentta's face. I don't know if that was valid reason to get angry. Ang alam ko lang ay umasa ang kaibigan ko. He might not be at fault that she had her hopes up but he also did not clearly draw the line between them. Sa huli ay baka mas lalong masaktan ang kaibigan ko sa kaisipang kahit isang pagkakataon ay nagustuhan din siya ni Javaughn kahit hindi siya naging girlfriend.

I was probably also getting swayed by the surge of new emotion I don't usually get to have.

Hindi niya pa namamalayan ang presensya ko nang tinungo ko ang kinaroroonan niya. He was silently staring at the lanterns caught by the branches of the trees. Noong nasa gilid na ako tumayo ay doon lamang siya napalingon sa akin.

"H-Hey..." hindi siguradong bati niya sa akin. Ngumiti pa siya ngunit binigyan ko lang sya ng blankong mukha.

Lumapit ako sa kaniya at sumandal sa parehong puno katabi lamang niya. He was taken aback by my boldness. Napaatras siya dahil doon at binigyan ng espasyo ang pagitan naming dalawa. Tahimik lamang akong pinagmamasdan siyang mailang. He cleared his throat to break the agonizing silence between us.