My Boyfriend is a Freak (Published under Pop Fiction)

1: Mira

"Hello, Vren?"

"Thank goodness. What took you so long to answer my call? You worried me, Mira."

"Uy, concerned boyfriend!"

"Stop the teasing, Ms. Custodio."

"Eto naman, masyadong seryoso. Masama bang biruin ka ng girlfriend mo?"

"I didn't say anything of that sort."

"Che. Dinadaan mo lang ako sa pa-English-English mo. Bakit ka ba kasi napatawag, ha?"

"I just called to check if you got home safely, dahil hindi kita naihatid pauwi. Now look where it got me. Galit ka na naman sa akin. Is it bad to be worried about my girlfriend?"

"Hindi ako galit! Tsaka ikaw naman ang unang nagsuplado, ah."

"Fine, I'm the one to blame again. Next time, I won't check on you, no matter how worried I get. Bye."

"Hoy, teka lang! Hindi naman kita sinisisi, ah. Hello, Vren? Vren!"

Tingnan mo nga naman ang loko. Babaan ba naman ako ng tawag? Ano kaya ang problema no'n at masyadong sensitive ngayong araw?

Pero bakit pa nga ba ako nanibago kay Vren Andrei Montevilla? May mga araw talagang malala pa sa babaeng pini-PMS ang mood swings ng boyfriend ko.

Hay, sige na nga. Ako na ang manunuyo.

I composed a text message to Vren, not wanting to prolong our silly little fight.

Pssst! Ito naman, tampo na agad! Tawag ka na ulit. I love you! ❤️

When I heard my phone's message alert tone, dali-dali kong tiningnan ang bagong dating na text, with a hundred percent conviction na makakabasa ako ng isang "I love you too. Sige, bati na tayo," or another sentence with the same thought, galing sa nag-iinarte kong boyfriend. But Vren's reply was far from what I anticipated.

Is that supposed to win me over?

Muntik ko nang maibato ang cellphone ko dahil sa pagkairita. Mabuti na lang, naalala ko kaagad na wala pang isang taon ito sa akin, kaya napigilan ko pa ang sarili ko.

Napakaarte mo talaga, Vren Andrei Montevilla! Nakakainis!

****

"Do I have to be subjected to an agonizing one-hour wait every day, before you finally get ready for work?" Vren was smirking and leaning crossed-arm against the side of his car, watching me approach. As per usual, he's here to pick me up dahil sabay kaming pumapasok sa trabaho araw-araw.

"Good morning to you too, Mr. Montevilla. Ang aga-aga pero ang init na agad ng ulo mo." I shook my head, smiling slightly, before tiptoeing to kiss him on the cheek. "Sabi ko naman kasi sayo, hindi mo na ako kailangang ihatid tuwing umaga. Magkikita naman tayo sa opisina, e."

"And what's next, everybody will think that I'm a lame boyfriend?" His smirk became even more pronounced as he opened the door of his car's passenger side for me. Mabuti naman at kahit nagsusuplado ay hindi pa rin nalilimutan ni Freak na magpaka-gentleman.

"At kailan ka pa naging concerned sa sasabihin ng iba, ha, Vren Andrei? The last time I checked, one of your core principles in life is 'Screw what other people think'. Saan naman napunta 'yon, ha?" nakataas ang kilay na tanong ko sa kanya nang makasampa na rin siya sa driver's seat ng kanyang kotse.

"You really have no idea, Mira. Everything is different when it comes to you," he answered. Then, seeing my befuddled look, he chuckled and gave me a quick kiss on the lips. Tapos ay tuluyan na niyang pinaandar ang kotse niya.

****

Traffic, as usual, was horrible. Inabot kami ng halos isang oras sa daan bago kami tuluyang nakarating sa Medialink Marketing, Inc. — ang kompanyang pagmamay-ari lang naman ng lalaking araw-araw naghahatid-sundo sa akin.

Oh, yes. Vren Andrei Montevilla, my moody boyfriend, happened to be my boss as well.

"Finally. That was a long ride." Vren turned off the engine of his car, then faced me with a sigh. "Hey, I'm sorry about last night. I overreacted."

Parang bata ang itsura ni Mr. Montevilla habang naghihintay kung tatanggapin ko ba ang sorry niya.

Sus, matitiis ko ba ang pagmumukhang 'yan? sa isip-isip ko. E halos mamatay-matay ako sa lungkot nang biglang lumayas ang mokong na 'to, over a year ago, papunta sa Canada na wala man lang paalam.

"Che! Buti at na-realize mo ang pag-iinarte mo." Umismid ako. "Pero sorry rin, ha? Pareho lang siguro tayong pagod kagabi, kaya bad vibes tayo." I chuckled.

Ngumiti naman ang mokong. Hay, ang gwapo talaga!

"You're right. Yesterday was really stressful. But that wasn't an excuse for me to lash out on you. Let me make it up to you, okay? We'll have a great time this coming Friday."

"Bakit, anong meron?" nagpipigil ng ngiti na tanong ko sa kanya.

"Nothing. I just want to have a dinner date with you, that's all."

Jusko Lord, kung ano man po ang inalmusal ng boyfriend ko ngayong umaga, pwede po bang 'yon na lang lagi ang ipakain Niyo sa kanya? Para ganito lagi siya ka-sweet!

"Ah, okay." Kunwari ay wala lang sa akin ang announcement niya na magde-date kami sa darating na Biyernes, pero deep inside ay parang gusto ko nang lumipad pa-Cloud 9 dahil sa kilig.

My boyfriend, of course, knew me well enough to see through my nonchalance. His eyes twinkled, obviously pleased with himself.

"So, be sure not to get dragged along with Alexia's TGIF gimmicks," natatawa niyang bilin sa akin.

Siyempre, natawa rin ako dahil hindi ko akalaing napapansin pala ni Vren ang mga kabaliwan ng isa sa mga best friend ko sa office. Alessandro Pinpin — or, as we call him, Alexia — is easily the craziest Medialink employee, which means I get along with him well, seeing that I'm sort of a crazyhead myself.

"Don't worry. Magpa-pass muna ako kapag nagyaya si Baklita ngayong Friday," I assured Vren, still giggling.

"Good. Ready for another long day of work, Ms. AD Head?"

"Of course, Mr. CEO."

My boyfriend and I shared a laugh before getting out of the car. And hand-in-hand, we made our way to Medialink's entrance.