1971 {Rodrigo Duterte x Leni Robredo}

17 Know

"Nagising ba kita ma'am?" Digong spoke. He turned away from Leni and quickly brushed his tears with the back of his hand, trying to hide from her that he had been crying.

"Medyo," she smiled at the man in front of her. She finally saw him. She finally saw the man she had been waiting for. "Umiiyak ka ba, sir?"

"Sorry, na-ano lang kasi yung mata ko," Digong began making up an excuse.

"Na-ano sir?" She asked for clarification.

"Nasilaw sa kagandahan mo, ma'am," he smirked and glanced at her as he watched her face break into a sweet smile and then a lighthearted giggle.

God, he thought as he looked at the miracle before his very eyes, he missed seeing that smile on her face. He missed hearing her angelic laughter. He missed her so much it hurt.

"Ikaw talaga, sir. You never change," she told him. It felt refreshing to laugh after everything that she's been through. He always made her feel at ease when they were together. "Totoo ba?" She asked him.

"Na-ano?" He asked.

"Na nagagandahan ka sa 'kin ngayon?" She grinned sheepishly. "Isang buwan rin kasi akong nakahiga lang dito. Haggard siguro ng mukha ko." She covered her face with both hands.

It was his turn to laugh. He took her hands away from her face and held both of them in his. "Lagi ka naman maganda sa akin, ma'am."

She shook her head smiling in disbelief. "Sus! Ikaw kahit kelan talaga." He just knew what words to say to make her feel better.

She looked at her hands which were enclosed in his. She felt grateful and happy to finally see him after what felt like years. But then she remembered what she had been wanting to ask him. She almost forgot everything that happened now that she was back. But she did not want to forget, she wanted to know the truth. She wanted to know if all this time she had just been delusional, if all the things she experienced was just a fragment of her imagination.  If everything that happened was just a dream. She wanted to know if what happened between the two of them in the past was real.

She looked at him and gazed at his eyes once more. His smile slowly faded as he noticed the look on her face. "Digong..." she begins but he cuts her off before she could even begin.

Not now, he thought.

"Mag-usap tayo bukas ma'am. Mas mabuti matulog ka muna. Magpagaling ka muna," he closed the topic before she could even mention it.

"Pero sir..." she argued.

"Bukas Leni...bukas. Pero ngayon pahinga ka muna. Kailangan mo muna magpagaling. Gabing-gabi na rin kasi," he let go of her hands, taking back the warmth they emanated.

He was right of course. They had a lot of time to talk about this in the future. To him, her health was more important. She pouted at him and he almost melted, but he kept his guard up.

"Bukas..." he reiterated as he stood up from his seat.

She sighed. "Sige pero 'wag ka muna umalis hanggang hindi pa ko nakakatulog."

His was taken aback by the request since he was already preparing to leave. He had been here for quite some time now.

"Paalisin na ako ng doctor," he told her.

"Please," she took his hand in hers, pleading for him to stay.

"Leni..."

"So mas takot ka pa sa doctor kesa sa 'kin?" She quipped.

He couldn't help but smile at her accusation. Maybe he could give in to this particular request. What was the harm anyway? He just had to wait until she fell asleep. That was all.