One Day He Wrote My Story (Completed)

2. Meeting Mr. Writer

Sasha

Hindi ko inaasahang mabilis magre-reply sa email namin si J.B. Tomlinson. Siguro mga limang minuto pa lang ang nakalilipas pero mayroon na agad siyang reply. Hindi naman siya busy, 'no?

***
Dear Sasha,

Thank you for your interest in my books. Like you, The Author will always be my favorite. It changed my life forever.

It will be hard for me to fully explain here how I ended up with that kind of story. But believe it or not, it's from a recurring dream. Or shall I say, a nightmare that bothered me for months. I realized I should be writing about it and that's when my new book came into the picture. After writing Evaporatus, I stopped seeing that nightmare and like magic everything felt just better. Cool, right? I'm afraid I may not be able to explain to you that exact feeling right now on this email. Perhaps, we should meet. Well, if you want to.... I love talking to aspiring writers like you, Sasha. Thanks for your email. Made my day. 😊

Cheers,
J.B. Tomlinson

P.S. Sorry for being a bit cheeky here. But please keep on writing. The right time will come for you.

***

Natigilan muna kami sa nabasa naming sagot from J.B. Tomlinson. I could see my girl friends grinning at me.

"OMG. He's sweet naman pala," reaksyon ni Tara.

"What the hell, he's like inviting you to meet him instantly. I can't believe it's happening," ani Lucy.

"Tumigil nga kayo. I hate him pa rin. Pa-dream dream pa siyang nalalaman. I'm not buying it," angal ko. Pero deep inside natuwa lang din ako lalo kay J.B. Tomlinson. Naisip ko tuloy na hindi siya mayabang tulad ng sinasabi ng iba. The fan girl inside me began to even like him more.

"Asus! Date na 'yan," tudyo ni Tara. Doon na lang umikot ang usapan namin that night. Hanggang sa naalala ko na lang ulit ang story ko. Hindi puwedeng kalimutan ko na lang 'yon. #JusticeForMyStory

Pinag-iisipan ko tuloy kung magre-reply pa ba ako sa email niya. Gusto ko rin naman siya makita in person. Kung guwapo nga ba siya talaga? Kung totoong wala siyang pores sa mukha. Kung totoong malamig at mapanghibok nga ba talaga ang boses niya 'pag nagsasalita. Seryoso kaya siya sa email niya? Pero sabi naman niya gusto niya lang daw talaga makipag-usap sa mga aspiring writers na tulad ko. Siya na ba ang hinahanap kong koneksyon? Baka matulungan niya akong ma-publish ang story ko.

Pero imposible nga pala kasi na-publish na niya ang story ko. Gusto kong hindi maniwala sa sinabi niya sa email tungkol sa dream niya na 'yon, pero alam ko sa sarili kong posible 'yung mangyari. Pero hindi sa kanya. Hindi ang istorya ko.

At 2am, tulog na sina Tara at Lucy after naming matapos ang Season 2 ng Girls. Binuksan ko ang lappy ni Tara para i-google si Mr. Tomlinson. Aha, J.B. stands for James Bryan pala—ayon sa research ko. Iniisip ko tuloy kung anong nickname niya sa bahay nila. James kaya, or Bryan or J.B. na talaga? Teka, bakit ba pinoproblema ko 'to? Binuksan ko ulit ang email niya sa akin.

J.B. Tomlinson

Agad kong narinig ang notification tone ng phone ko. Mayroon daw akong one new email from Sasha Suarez. Hindi ko alam pero nae-excite akong basahin ang reply niya.

💻💻💻 From Sasha Suarez / 2:15 AM
Hello, Mr. Writer. Yeah, I think we should meet. Pero saan po? I'm here in QC and I don't know where you from. So it's up to you where and when we should meet. Please reply ☺️

📲📲📲 From JB Tomlinson / 2:18 AM
Hey Sasha. Good evening! Good thing I also live in QC. Puwede ka ba bukas? 10am at Starbucks Eastwood? Please reply kung OK sa'yo or perhaps suggest a time and place na convenient sa'yo 😊