The dinner went smoothly. We didn't talk much. Just the usual question asking how our days went.
Sabay kaming umakyat sa taas matapos iwan ang pinagkainan. Itatawag niya raw bukas 'yon sa baba para pick up-in.
"You'll go to my office tomorrow." Bahagya niya akong tinulak sa pinto ng banyo. "Do your night routine. I'll do mine once you're done."
Diretso ang naging pasok ko sa banyo at ginamit ang sipilyong hindi pa gamit. I wonder how many women she took here. Or her daughter's father... maybe.
Nag hilamos ako at nang lumabas, nakita ko siya na may kausap. I watched every move that she made.
I saw her puff a cigarette on her left hand as her right hand holds the phone on her ear.
She stood on the balcony of her penthouse, city lights spilling across her surrounding. The wind tugged gently at her hair as she leaned against the railing, a cigarette balanced between her fingers, glowing faintly in the dark. She was on the phone with someone, unsure with who it could be, her voice was low, steady, almost too intimate for me to be standing there, witnessing it.
The way she took slow drags without thinking, pausing mid-sentence to let the smoke curl lazily into the night, like she had all the time in the world. I remained standing from where I was, barely breathing, wondering how someone could make silence feel like gravity.
Who is she talking to? Nag angat ako ng tingin sa kanya nang mapansing muli siyang hihithit. marahan akong tumagilid at hinayaan siya.
Napalunok ako ng laway nang makita ang pag galaw ng labi niya. Pinatay niya ang sigarilyo sa ashtray at itinali ang buhok nang muling makapasok sa kwarto.
"Maligo ka. Ayaw ko sa amoy ng sigarilyo." Wika ko nang palapit na siya sa akin.
Napahinto siya at may nanliliit na matang tumitig sa akin. "Okay," she said as if she's left with no choice.
"Good." I said, totally impressed. I thought she'll throw attitude on me.
Unlike me, ang suot niya kanina'y sando.
Nakita ko ang kapareha ng mga silk shorts na nasa ibabaw na drawer. I took a pair for her.
Lumabas siya nang may tuwalya sa ulo. "My hair smells like cigarette smoke so I washed it too. I'll blow dry it for a while." Aniya bago kunin ang underwear sa kama.
"Okay," sagot ko lang.
"Put that brassiere back. I don't wear a bra when I sleep," marahan niyang sambit at mukhang nag iingat upang hindi mag tunog bossy.
I appreciate her efforts, tho. When I met her more than two weeks ago, Tiffany told me how bitchy Janine is to other people.
Nag panggap ako na wala lang ang nakikita nang lumabas siya sa banyo na walang pang itaas at underwear lang sa ibaba ang suot.
Hindi man ako sigurado kung gaano kapula ang mukha ko, ramdam ko ang init sa aking katawan. Binigla niya ako!
Pinilit kong paniwalain ang sarili na mas magandang panoorin ang nasa tv kahit pa may diyosang nag susuot ng shorts sa gilid niya. Ang kawawang remote na hawak ko ay binitawan ko para kuhain ang cellphone.
"Do you have any social media account?" Tanong ko nang sumampa na siya sa kama.
She tucked herself in between the sheets and bed. "Yup," hinatak niya ang cellphone ko para hanapin ang sarili niya sa social media accounts ko.
Katahimikan ang namayani sa amin. Siguro ngayo'y napaisip na rin siya kung gaano kamali ang ginawa niyang pag bitbit sa akin dito.
Ginawa pa akong kabit. Hmp!
BINABASA MO ANG
CAPTIVATED
General FictionEMPIRE SERIES #1 How do two hearts that once beat the same find their way back after everything broke? And if you're already okay now, living fully without them, is going back still worth it? This is a story of what stays, what fades, and what love...
