In The Arms Of An Angel (ON HOLD)

CHAPTER 70

"Bro, anong balak mo kay Anne?"

Kris asked him as they were changing to more casual attire for the afternoon. After the scene at the lounge earlier, they have decided to just finish their drinks and found an excuse to leave Anne when her friends arrived to fetch her. He looked at his friend with a frown.

"What do you mean anong balak ko kay Anne? Wala akong balak sa kanya. As far as I'm concerned tapos na kami five years ago." He answered dismissively while buttoning up his blue polo. He can see Kris regard him skeptically from his peripheral vision.

"Sure ka ba dyan? Parang last week lang ayaw mo pang binabanggit ang pangalan nya so I'm assuming affected ka pa rin sa nangyari sa inyo dati. What changed?" Kris persisted.

"I don't know...maybe I just realized when I saw her again today how shallow our relationship was five years ago. I was so concerned back then with making her happy that I overlooked a lot of her lies and manipulative ways. My feelings for Anne made me blind to all her faults. I have a tendency to ignore things when I love someone. My past mistake caused me even my relationship with my family that led to that fateful night. Habambuhay ko na sigurong sisisihin ang sarili ko sa nangyari. Ayoko nang mangyari uli yun ngayon. Maybe that's the reason why I may have overacted to what Dei told me." He confessed sadly.

"RJ, ilang beses ba naming sasabihin sa'yo na hindi mo kasalanan ang nangyari. It was an accident. Wag mong parusahan ang sarili mo dahil dun. Bigyan mo ng chance ang sarili mong magmahal at mahalin ng totoo." Kris argued. He just shook his head.

"Hindi ko pa rin alam kung paano patatawarin ang sarili ko sa nangyari. Ang dami kong natutulungang pasyente ko na makamove on sa mga masasamang nangyari sa buhay nila pero di ko matulungan ang sarili ko. I still experience nightmares at night as if everything happened recently instead of years ago. Medyo nabawasan lang sila nung makilala ko si Dei..." He candidly admitted to his best friend.

"I knew it! Sabi na iba ang dating sa iyo ni Dei, eh. Well that's a good sign, bro! I think you should really continue to pursue Dei. She seemed to have a very positive effect on you. I'm starting to see the old RJ back again after you met her." Kris encouraged him.

"I don't know, Kris. After nung mga masasakit na salitang nasabi ko sa kanya last night and the way she clung to Uno this morning nung makita natin sya kaninang tumatakbo at umiiyak...medyo pinanghinaan ako ng loob." He confessed in a low tone.

"Wow! Si Richard Faulkerson Jr. pinanghihinaan ng loob sa isang babae? I can't believe I'll ever hear you say that, bro!" Kris uttered with a surprised look on his face. RJ hit him on the head with a throw pillow.

"Hoyyy! Hindi ako babaerong katulad nyo nina Rod! Alam mo namang seryoso ako pagdating sa pakikipagrelasyon kaya hindi ako basta nanliligaw at naggigirlfriend kung hindi pa ako sure sa isang babae..." He emphatically said.

"And from how you are behaving now, am I to assume that you already found the girl na gusto mong seryosohin? Si Dei na ba talaga?" Kris asked directly that made him fall silent.

"For now I'm not 100% sure, Kris. Mahirap nang magsalita ng tapos then hindi ko na naman mapangatawanan. All I'm sure of is that I was really bothered when I saw her in the arms of another man. Gustong gusto kong sugurin si Uno at suntukin dahil nagawa nya yung gusto kong gawin for Dei. I wanted to comfort and protect her. Ako dapat yun, eh. Kaso posibleng ako din yung dahilan kung bakit sya umiyak kanina so it made it a lot more frustrating for me." He admitted in a clipped voice.

"Ang complicated naman ng love life mo, bro! Binata na talaga ang manok namin!" Kris said while pretending to wipe away tears from the side of his eyes. RJ hit him playfully in the arm in retaliation.

"Luh!Palibhasa happy ang love life mo. Siguraduhin mong hindi matatanggal ang helmet ni Joyce at baka mabagok yun at marealize na wala kang kwenta! " He hit back.

"Wag mong pagdiskitahan ang love life ko! Iyang sa iyo ang problemahin mo. Isipin mo kung paano mo susuyuin uli si Dei lalo na at may umaaligid na Unong masugid na naghihintay na pansinin ni Dei." Kris reminded him. He fell silent.

Dei told him that Uno is just a friend. But he is still a man. He can tell that Uno sees her as more than just a friend and is just waiting for Dei to realize it and accept his affection. Just thinking about the closeness between Uno and Dei is enough to put RJ in a very foul mood. He needs to act fast.

Then he thought of something. He smiled to himself. He immediately got his phone and looked up a number. He then turned towards the door of their hotel room and opened it determinedly.

"Oh, saan ka pupunta? Bigla ka na lang aalis. Akala ko ba tatambay muna tayo dito sa kwarto until dinner bago tayo magbabar hopping mamayang gabi sa labas ng hotel!" Kris asked him, looking confused.

"Di ba sabi mo asikasuhin ko ang love life ko? So lalabas ako ngayon para hanapin si Dei para magkausap kami. Marami akong kailangan ipaliwanag sa kanya." He answered without blinking.

"Yun, oh! Suportahan kita dyan, bro. Sige, humayo ka at hanapin ang prinsesa mo. Dito muna ako sa kwarto at tatawagan ko ang aking reyna at bigla kong namiss." Kris said with a laugh.

RJ laughed heartily at that and proceeded out of the room to start looking for Dei. He felt nervous but he is hopeful.

"I'm sorry, Dei. But I will not let this weekend pass na hindi tayo nagkakaayos."