Still You

Chapter Twenty-Two: Pictures

Two days before Christmas, I decided to shop at Paragon Mall, since malapit lang ito sa hotel na tinutuluyan namin. Dalawang araw na kami sa Singapore, this day I have nothing else to do, balak kong bilhan na lang ng mga regalo sina mommy.

I think this is also a great time to enjoy a day by myself. I've done shopping by myself in States before and even though it's quite a bit lonely dahil wala kang kausap, it still feels freeing.

Umiikot-ikot ako sa loob ng mall. Everything in here is almost between high-end and mid-range brands. Luxurious stores and the likes. I went in a well-known high-end brand to find a dress for myself and for Mommy.

I found a simple beige bodycon dress for myself that is suitable for semi-formal events or parties. Hindi ko alam kung kailan ko ito pwedeng maisuot but I just can't take my eyes off it so I felt the need to buy it.

Umikot pa ako para sana makahanap ng para kay Mommy pero wala akong makita na maaaring magustuhan niya.

Kaya pagkatapos kong magbayad ay lumipat ako sa isang store at doon ulit nagikot-ikot. I found a maroon elegant  knee-length with balloon sleeves dress na satingin ko ay magugustuhan ni Mommy. Kumuha ako ng isa na may tamang sukat bago nagikot-ikot muli para maghanap ng iba pa at nang may mapagpilian.

I found another one and it's a plain white knee-length sleeveless dress this time. I can almost imagine my mom wearing this in a meeting or something.  Kaso walang nakalabas na size para sa kaniya that I needed to call for a sales lady.

"Aren't there any other sizes for this dress?"

Ngumiti siya sa akin at nagtanong ng kung anong size. Sinabi ko sa kaniya ang size na hanap ko at sinabihan naman niya akong maghintay at titingin muna siya sa stock room.

Kung may size para roon ay kukunin ko na ang dalawa. Habang hawak-hawak ang maroon na dress kanina ay umikot pa ako sa ibang aisle at tumingin-tingin sa mga damit.

"I need a formal dress that will look good on me. What do you think should I get, miss? This one or this?"

Napalingon ako sa isang babaeng sa tingin ko ay nasa early or mid-forties. Her hair is on a clean bun and she is wearing a simple black short-sleeved dress. She looks quite stern with her red lipstick on, making her look very regal. Tumitingkad din ang kaniyang maputing balat dahil sa itim na dress na kaniyang suot.

"Ma'am, I think both of those dresses would look good on you. We have a fitting room here, you can try them on." ani ng isang sales lady.

The woman laughed gracefully and shook her head. "Oh why did I have to ask, of course you'd say that these two would look good on me, miss. But I think I only need one."

Mukhang pumipili siya sa dalawang damit na nasa kaniyang kamay. Medyo napakunot ang noo ko dahil parehong itim na damit lang naman ang pinagpipilian niya. Is black her favorite color?

The sales lady awkwardly chuckled. "I think this one will look better on you, Ma'am." turo sa isang damit.

"Oh! The more expensive one, huh."

My eyebrow raised. Both looks great but the other one definitely looked better! Feeling ko ay sinabi lang 'yon ng babae dahil mas mahal ang isang damit na 'yon.

Napatingin ako sa damit na hawak ko. I think this dress would look the best on her. Without ado, I walked towards them.

I cleared my throat and they both slowly looked at me. "Excuse me, Madame." pilit akong ngumiti.

"I'm sorry for listening to your conversation... But as much as I don't want to meddle with your business... I think, a bit of a color won't hurt that much and it would look good on you. Like this one." I said as I showed her the dress I'm holding.