Wedding, Interrupted (Published under Pop Fiction)

7: Sigourney

"Okay, Sig, let me get this straight – 'yong pinsan ni Jaron mismo ang nagsabi sa'yo na 'wag mo siyang pakasalan?" Minnie's gobsmacked expression after I told her about my encounter with Sebastian was worth a candid photo. "Bakit daw?"

"'Yan ang hindi ko alam, Min." I tucked a loose lock of hair behind my ear, still feeling flustered. The image of Sebastian's penetrating gaze just won't leave my mind. "Ayaw niya namang sabihin sa akin. Which makes me think na nanggugulo lang siya."

"Teka, ano naman ang mapapala niya sa panggugulo?" Minnie crossed her arms. "Best man kamo siya ni Jaron, 'di ba? Meaning, they're really close. So, bakit naman niya gagawin 'yon sa pinsan niya?"

I shrugged helplessly. "I don't know, Min. Ang alam ko lang, bwisit na bwisit ako sa Sebastian Silvera na 'yon. Imagine telling me that days before my wedding?"

"'Yon na nga, e. It makes me think he wouldn't do that unless it's really necessary. Here's my theory – alam ni Sebastian ang mga tinatagong kalokohan ng fiancé mo, kaya ka niya winarningan. Ayaw niya lang na ilaglag nang tuluyan si Jaron dahil kahit paano naman ay may pinagsamahan sila ng pinsan niya." Minnie's eyes flashed dangerously. "'Yan na nga ba ang sinasabi ko sa'yo, Sig. Talagang may nase-sense akong hindi tama riyan kay Jaron. Why else would his own cousin caution you about marrying him?"

I shook my head. "Tinatagong kalokohan? Min, never pa namang gumawa ng kahit ano si Jaron na dahilan para pagdudahan ko siya. And sorry, but I think you're just saying that dahil ayaw mo na talaga sa kanya noon pa man. Nakakita ka lang ng kakampi kay Sebastian."

Min rolled her eyes. "Ewan ko sa'yo, Sigourney Lascano. Patay na patay ka talaga kay Jaron. Ikaw talaga ang nagpapatunay na bulag ang pagmamahal. Tusukin ko 'yang mga mata mo, e."

I frowned at her. "Brutal ka talaga."

"Ano ba kasi ang itsura ng Sebastian na 'yan? May picture ka ba? Tingnan ko nga kung mapapagkatiwalaan ang mukha niyan."

As a matter of fact, I did have a picture of Sebastian – Jaron insisted on taking a group photo with his cousins earlier at the restaurant, at cellphone ko ang ginamit sa pagkuha ng aming litrato. I opened my camera roll and showed the same photo to my best friend, pointing out Sebastian to her.

Halos lumuwa naman ang mga mata ni Minnie dahil sa nakita niya. "Ang gwapo naman niyan! Walang-wala ang fiancé mo, Sig!" Taking a closer look at the rest of the Silvera cousins, she then exclaimed, "Ha! Sa kanilang lima, si Jaron ang pinaka-waley."

"Akala ko ba, ija-judge mo kung mukhang mapapagkatiwalaan si Sebastian? Hindi mo naman sinabing ira-rank mo ang magpipinsan." It was my turn to roll my eyes in exasperation. "Akin na nga 'yang phone ko!"

Yasmin, her daughter who was until then sleeping peacefully in her crib, chose that moment to wake up crying. Minnie lifted her baby and rocked her gently back to sleep.

"So, anong balak mo ngayon, Sig?" tanong niya sa akin habang pinapanood ko ang paghele niya sa kanyang anak. "Itutuloy mo pa rin ba ang pagpapakasal kay Jaron? Won't you at least try to find out if he's doing anything behind your back – alam mo na, dahilan para paalalahanan ka ng pinsan niya?"

I hid my face in my hands in utter confusion. Bwisit ka, Sebastian Silvera! Bakit ba kailangan mong guluhin ang isip ko?

Huminga ako nang malalim para subuking pakalmahin ang sarili ko. But even after taking several deep breaths, my mind was still in a jumble, so I did what I almost always do in times like this – let my heart win over my head. A stupid choice, really, but losing Jaron at this point was something I couldn't afford to let happen.

"Mahal ko si Jaron, Min," I told my best friend, finally looking at her again. "And I'm choosing to trust him wholeheartedly."

Minnie looked unsurprised at my decision and just resorted to letting out a weary sigh. "Bahala ka sa buhay mo. 'Wag ka lang iiyak-iyak sa akin kapag may natuklasan kang hindi maganda tungkol diyan sa fiancé mo. Hahanapin ko pa si Sebastian at sabay ka naming sasabihan ng 'We told you so'."

****

Three days before the wedding, I received a Facebook friend request from Sebastian.

"Leave me alone, ugh!" parang timang na sabi ko sabay delete sa friend request niya. Wala naman akong planong i-tag siya sa wedding photos namin ni Jaron.

Then, as if my fingers had a life of their own, I found myself typing his name on the social media site's search bar, just a few moments after declining his friend request. Sebastian Onyx Silvera. The search returned his profile, and I clicked on it, feeling guilty without even knowing why.

His profile picture was an aesthetic shot of him grinning at the camera, his eyes twinkling mischievously. Tama nga si Minnie – he was one good-looking man, especially when he smiles. It's a pity he rarely does so.

Okay, Sig. Where did that come from? Bwisit ka sa lalaking 'yan, remember!

Forcing myself to tear my eyes away from his profile picture, I then scanned his personal info. I learned that he was three years older than me – which means he and Jaron were of the same age. And I was surprised to know that he and I actually shared the same profession of being a Certified Public Accountant, something that Jaron failed to mention. It never occurred to me that Sebastian and I would be having a common denominator.

However, he chose to be part of the academe, as opposed to my choice of private practice. His job was listed as "Professor at Catalona University". Siguradong maraming babaeng estudyante ang nagde-daydream tungkol sa kumag na 'to sa halip na makinig sa lectures niya.

And before I knew it, I was on a full-on sleuth mode, trying to learn more about Jaron's enigmatic cousin.

I scanned his photos, noting that there's none of him with a woman who could be his girlfriend. Mukhang single pa si Sebastian Silvera. Bakit kaya? Siguro, kahit gwapo siya ay maraming natu-turn off sa pagiging sobrang seryoso niya.

I was now looking at a particular profile picture of him from a few months ago – taken at a beach, him wearing sunglasses and nothing but swimming trunks. Holy guacamole. Look at his toned abs!

Titingnan ko na sana kung gaano karaming thirst comments meron ang profile picture niyang iyon nang aksidente ko itong ma-like.

"Ay, anak ng pating!" natatarantang sigaw ko sabay unlike muli ng picture.

I was about to exhale in relief when a Messenger chat head popped out on my screen. Sebastian's name was on top of it.

Are you stalking me, Sigourney?

I let out a shriek, feeling my face burning with embarrassment.

'Wag kang feeling, I typed back when I finally gathered enough courage to reply. Ikaw nga itong nag-friend request sa akin! Are YOU stalking me?

Sebastian only sent a smirking emoji in response.

I closed the chat and buried my face in my hands. Stupid, stupid Sig! Ano na lang ang iisipin ngayon ng mokong na 'yon?

My phone let out a ping, indicating that I had another chat message, which I opened apprehensively. Gaya ng inaasahan, mula na naman ito kay Sebastian. However, I was wrong to expect that his next response would be a gloat about my accidental liking of his photo.

Hey, I need to talk to you, his message read.

Mukhang alam ko na kung saan papunta ito, ah. Sorry ka na lang, Sebastian Silvera – I won't give you another chance to mess with my mind.

Look, if this is about your foolish advice that I shouldn't marry your cousin, forget it, sagot ko sa kanya. Mahal ko ang pinsan mo, at hindi ako uurong sa kasal namin. I don't even know what you're playing at, Sebastian.

It took a while for him to respond. Don't you at least think you deserve to know why I advised you against marrying him?

Forget it. I'm not jilting Jaron, I typed back furiously. Then, without waiting for his reply, I hit "Block" – wishing I had done so right after his first chat.