We returned to Makati on Sunday night, tired and slightly sour from all the physical exercise.
Daisy and I had a great time in Boracay, the beaches, the food, the weather and spending time together was special for me. I had not felt like this for a long time.
On returning to the apartment I found Miki and Dan watching TV in the living room, they were curious about our trip and proposed to have a quick beer in the bar downstairs. I agreed, I hadn't spoken to my room mates for a couple of days and decided it was a great idea to catch up.
Dan asked "And....did you fuck her?"
I replied "Dan, that's not how you talk about woman, and certainly not Daisy"
Miki and Dan looked at my face and knew enough. "So, what's next Stan? Are you a couple now?" asked Miki.
I couldn't confirm or deny. She was my type, a great bubbly personality combined with a great smile. Her body......where do I start, I could not have designed her body any better than that it is. Her curves, her smell, her taste...it would be enough to forever make love to her.
But the question that remained on my mind: "Do I know Daisy enough to love her?"
And also, if I openly admitted that I love Daisy that would directly imply I achieved my goal and that would terminate my rental agreement in the apartment. I needed to be sure!
Dan and Miki joked about my situation. They also told me that they sensed some jealousy from Jin and Jean on how fast Daisy moved in on me. This was never discussed though it was Dan's "male intuition" informing me.
Dan had been pushing hard to get Jean on a date but admitted that she was a difficult woman to get close to. I smiled, I knew that Dan with his arrogant flair and big mouth at times would be no match for Jean. Jean needed a punctual guy that can push her in the gym, eats healthy everyday and does good for the society as a whole. Dan is the opposite of Jean's dream man.
I responded "There are many girls Dan, maybe Jean is intimidated by your confidence"
Mike laughed and said "no, put off by your confidence Dan!"
Dan laughed before taking a phone call. He apologised and left the bar, a business call that forced him to return to the apartment.
Miki looked serious and said: "What are you doing on Tuesday night"
I responded, "Isn't that our dinner day with our roommates?"
"Yes, I wanted to make sure you are there. I have something I need to share with all of you.
I nodded.
The next morning, I returned to work, I yawned consistently the whole morning while responding to emails and reviewing business proposals. My work mate Jason had lunch at 12.30 in the noodle bar just adjacent to out office building. He was curious about my long weekend and inquire about my life in the apartment.
I mentioned that I spend a bit of time on Boracay with one of my room mates before asking about his weekend. "Ho, stop" Jason smiled "A female roommate"
Jason was on a quest to know all the details; I wasn't too keen to divulge on my time with Daisy and responded in a cool non expressive manner: "Yes Jason"
I struggled through work the next 2 days and hardly spoke to any room mate including Daisy until Tuesday night.
It was our joined dinner and Miki had prepared a feast with local dishes which I will not try to pronounce the name off. It was tasty and fulfilling, it was good to sit around the table with the 6 of us. We had bonded and although at times the girls seemed to quarrel, they were at peace and did appreciate each other company.
Miki suddenly raised his voice.
"Daisy, Jin, Stan, Dan and Jean"
We all looked to Miki in silence
"I have been in the Makati apartment for over 4 weeks and have gotten to know all of you. You all have very different personalities and trust me I have learned a lot from each and every one of you"
Miki continued "As you know we all signed a contract to live in this wonderful apartment and to participate in the Makati Transfer, you also know that the last question in the contract states that you need to leave the apartment if you achieved your goal"
I could feel that the atmosphere in the dining room was one of fear. Nobody knew where this speech of Miki was going.
Miki continued his speech: "As you know I have grown up in a small provincial town and come to Manila to study. There is a secret that I have not shared with anyone. A secret that I have known and carried with me for the last 6 years. I have not had the confidence that share my secret, not with my parents, not with my siblings, not even with my closest friends. My goal in the Makati Transfer was to gain confidence"
Miki's voice trembled with emotion.
"You all have given me confidence, 3 strong woman, 2 great guys who all gave me something that on this day and from this day going forward I can say with pride that I Miki De Guzman am gay......."
Miki fell silent for a second before continuing: "and in line with the contract I will be leaving this apartment tomorrow morning"
I saw the girls getting emotional, Dan looked stunned.
There was only one thing I could do. I stood up and started to clap my hands to applaud Miki with achieving his goal. All the room mates followed my example.
We realised that this was a special moment. It was an emotional night.
Miki achieved his goal
6 became 5.
