I Would Hate To Be You

Chapter 30 [genius japheth]

Chapter 30

"Atom . . ."

Nagkumos ako ng mata nang makarinig ako ng malamig na boses na tumatawag sa'kin.

My eyes still feel heavy when I slowly opened them. My gaze wandered around the expanse of the room and when I saw the lights fully turned on, I flinched out of embarrassment.

Panic started to creep in when I realized what had just happened.

Oh, my goodness. Did I just sleep? Did I seriously fall asleep here?

Jusko. The horror . . . what if tumulo ang laway ko?! Tumalikod ako sa kaniya at kinapa ko ang bibig ko dahil baka nakapag-drawing na ako ng mapa ng Pilipinas.

Nakahinga ako nang maluwag nang maramdaman kong wala naman. Pero napapikit pa rin ako sa sobrang hiya. Ang kapal ng face ng pagod ko, ha. Bakit nakipagpaligsahan siya sa lungkot ni Japheth?

"Atom, are you okay?" Japh asked. I could sense the worriedness in his voice.

I slowly and awkwardly faced him. "I'm sorry I fell asleep," nahihiyang sabi ko sa kaniya. Biting my lip, I asked him, "Did . . . I snore?" Napangiwi ako. I had to ask because I'm afraid I did. It's because when my body gets really, really tired, I snore. Just like what happened last time when I went to Tarak. Hindi naman ako natutulog sa biyahe pero ang OA ng pagod ko nung araw na 'yun kaya wala akong choice kung hindi makaidlip sa biyahe pabalik ng Cubao. Ang ganda ko na sana sa bus pero narinig ko ang sarili ko na humihilik kaya wala akong choice kung hindi idilat ang mga mata ko para hindi ako mag-concert. Ugh.

And today, I'm also freaking tired so . . .

Japheth let out a shy chuckle. "Uh . . ." he trailed.

Before he could even finish his sentence, I already gasped in embarrassment. "Mahabaging langit," halos maiyak na usal ko. Napapikit pa ako sa sobrang hiya. Seriously, my subconscious body and thoughts also don't know the word finesse.

"It was in low register, don't worry," he clarified—perhaps to make me feel better.

Mas lalo akong nahiya. Jusme. Buti na lang at walang nakaupo sa mga rows dito sa taas. That would have been the death of me.

"Let's go?" he asked.

Pagtingin ko sa paligid namin, halos wala ng tao. And by the looks of the credits rolling on the screen, it seems like it ended a few minutes ago.

But wait . . . this movie was almost three hours, right? So, does that mean . . .

I gasped and looked at Japh in horror. My mouth was gaping while my eyes are locked with his.

"It's okay," he said, half-smiling.

Nang makita ko ang ngiti niya, pakiramdam ko nawala lahat ng pagod at kahihiyan ko. Kahit na sobrang tipid lang ng ngiti niya . . . it's still a smile. And I'd take that.

I slowly relaxed my face and closed my mouth. I decided to let go of those petty worries and focused being mentally present for Japheth. I came here for him, anyway.

I nodded and started moving around.

When we got outside, I excused myself and went to the ladies' room. And wow, my face looks freaking puffy. Using my hands, I lightly slapped my face so I can wake up. I also brushed my hair using my hands to tame them. I opened my bag and grabbed a few mints before going out.

I saw him standing there—his back is against the wall. His eyes are fixed somewhere obscure. I slowly walked towards his direction but it seemed like he didn't notice me nearing him.