My Boyfriend is a Freak (Published under Pop Fiction)

10: Vren

"Sir Vren, naikwento sa amin ni Mira na may ate ka pala," Mavi said in between spoonfuls of her chocolate ice cream. "Ano nga ba ang pangalan niya?"

"Her name is Vira," sagot ko naman sa kaibigan ng girlfriend ko. "Vira Amanda Montevilla... well, Ramirez now, actually."

"How come we never see her in Medialink?" pag-uusisa naman ni Hannah.

"She's in Spain. She lives there with her husband and two kids."

"Vira Amanda Montevilla... parang pamilyar nga ang pangalan ng ate mo. Is she a celebrity or something?" muling tanong ni Hannah.

"A model," I clarified. "She quit a couple of years ago, though. My brother-in-law doesn't really approve of her job."

"I think it's stupid," Mira declared, setting down her now-empty cup of strawberry gelato. "Bakit kailangan naming mga babae na mag-adjust lagi para sa inyong mga lalaki?"

"Before you get all worked up, Ms. Custodio, know that Vira was also growing tired of her modeling career at the time. And knowing that her husband-to-be isn't a fan of it either... well, it's the perfect excuse to leave her glamorous job for good." I smirked. "Now, where are we again?"

Mira looked miffed, probably because she was denied of the opportunity to launch into a lengthy speech discussing the need for equal rights between men and women. I chuckled.

"Let's talk about something else," Hannah suggested, finishing her banana split ice cream sundae. "Anyone got a topic? May ten minutes pa tayo bago matapos ang break."

"Oh, I have one. And it's actually about you, Ms. Marvilla," I said with a mischievous grin.

"Ha? Bakit naman ako?" naaalarmang tanong naman ni Hannah. Mira and Mavi, meanwhile, exchanged intrigued glances.

"Well, let's just say that I'm curious about you and my brother. What's going on between the two of you, right before that Samantha Love entered the picture?"

Hannah's face quickly flooded with color. "W-wala! Ang random naman ng tanong mo, Sir Vren!"

"Hoy, Chinita..." Pabirong hinampas siya ni Mira habang tatawa-tawa. "Sabi na nga ba! May itinatago ka sa amin, 'no?"

"You and Doc Vince?" sabi naman ni Mavi. "Oh my God, Hannah!"

"Vren, what do you know?" my girlfriend demanded. "Spill!"

Tumawa ako. Clearly, I was enjoying seeing Hannah Marvilla's tortured expression.

"I saw your friend at Vince's place this one time. I wanted to pay my dear older brother a visit, but seeing how he and Hannah looked pretty wasted as they were entering Vince's condo unit..." I chuckled yet again, as my companions' expressions turned even more bewildered. "Umalis na lang ako. Ayoko kasing makaistorbo."

That was a Tuesday night, and I just had a call from Dad several hours before. Let's just say that the fatherly lecture I received was centered on how Vince and I ought to bury the hatchet once and for all, and that made me decide to talk to Vince personally. Napag-isip-isip ko rin kasi na tama nga naman si Dad – hindi maganda na puro na lang sapakan at bangayan ang ginagawa naming magkapatid.

Kaya lang, pagbukas ng elevator na nagdala sa akin sa tenth floor ng condominium building na tinitirhan ni Vince, saktong nakita ko ang kapatid ko na akmang bubuksan ang pinto ng kanyang unit. Halatang may tama ng alak si Vince, na noo'y inaalalayan ng isang babaeng matangkad, maputi, at mahaba ang buhok. Normally, seeing my brother with a woman won't come as a surprise to me. But apparently, the rule doesn't apply when the woman turns out to be Hannah Marvilla, Medialink's very own head of marketing.

"Hoy, excuse me!" Sa gulat ko ay bigla akong hinampas ni Hannah sa braso. Good thing I was wearing a long-sleeved polo, dahil kung hindi ay baka nasugatan na ako ng mahahabang kuko ni Ms. Marvilla. "First of all, I want to make it clear na hindi ako wasted nang mga panahong 'yon. Kapatid mo lang ang malakas ang tama! And second, that was the first and only time I've been to Doc Vince's place."

"But ­why were you there in the first place, Han?" nakakunot ang noo na tanong ni Mavi.

"Exactly. I didn't even know that you and Vince are friendly," I remarked, saying the last word in a way that implied I meant something other than its usual meaning.

"Of course, we are! Hello, ex-suitor lang naman ng girlfriend mo ang kuya mo. Baka lang nakakalimutan mo, sir." Umirap si Hannah. "And as for why I was with him that night..."

I started cracking up again, dahil hindi ko talaga mapigilang mag-isip ng hindi maganda sa tuwing maaalala ko ang itsura ni Hannah at ng aking palikerong kapatid. To my surprise, it was Mira who hit me on the arm this time.

"Hey, what was that for?" I protested. "Nakakarami na kayong magkakaibigan sa akin, ha?"

"Tumahimik ka naman muna riyan, Vren Andrei!" Pinandilatan ako ng girlfriend ko. "Hindi makabuwelo ng kwento ang tao, e!"

"Fine. You could've told me that without hitting me on the arm," I mumbled. And so, I willed myself to stop chuckling as Hannah started to relay her story. Slash that – her and Vince's story.

****

"Sus, 'yon lang naman pala, e. Nagkita sina Vince at Hannah sa isang bar, nagpakalasing ang kapatid mo, at inalalayan siya ni Hannah para maayos siyang makauwi. Bakit naman kung makapagkwento ka, Vren Andrei, parang may iba pang nangyari?" iiling-iling na tanong sa akin ni Mira nang matapos nang magkwento ang kanyang kaibigan.

"Oo nga, sir. Medyo masagwa ang dating noong ikaw ang nagkwento," dagdag naman ni Mavi.

"Hey, I just told it the way I saw it," I said with a snigger. "At least, now we know nothing happened between my brother and your friend here."

"Malisyoso ka lang kasi talaga," Hannah muttered before rolling her eyes. "Kung hindi lang kita boss..."

Sasagot pa sana ako kay Ms. Marvilla nang mapansin kong papalapit sa amin ang sekretarya ko.

"Hey, Lally," I greeted my secretary instead. "How did you know I'm here?"

"May nakapagsabi po sa akin na taga-Accounting," paliwanag ni Lally. "May nagpapaabot nga po pala nito sa inyo."

She handed me a cream-colored envelope, which I received with a confused expression. "And who is this from?"

"Galing po kay Ms. Isa –"

"Got it," I quickly said to cut her off. "Thanks, Lally."

"Balik na po ako sa office, sir."

"Okay. Susunod na rin kami mamaya-maya."

As Lally turned her back on us, I let my gaze fall on the sweet-smelling stationery. Trying to act casual since my girlfriend was curiously watching me, I opened the envelope and read the note it came with.

Dearest Andrei,

How are you? I got wind of the news that you'll be attending the homecoming. Hindi na sana ako pupunta pero noong nalaman kong dadalo ka, naisip kong mas mabuti na dumalo na rin ako. I really need to talk to you. There are some things I want you to know.

Looking forward to meeting you again,

Bella

"Vren?" pagkuha ni Mira sa atensyon ko. "Kanino raw 'yan galing? And what does it say?"

"Just an old friend. Nothing of importance." I managed a smile. "Hey, are you ladies ready to go back to the office?"

Pretending to not notice Mira's still-intrigued expression, I slid the note back to the envelope, as Mavi and Hannah thankfully agreed that we should return to work.

As the four of us made our way out of the ice cream parlor, my mind was whirring with desperate excuses, hoping that one of them could convince my girlfriend that we really didn't need to attend Hollier's upcoming event on Sunday.

Anything to avoid seeing Isabella Lira dela Merced... because there's no way I'm talking again to that heartbreaker.