Chapter 5
“Aica hija, nandito na si Deriel!” sigaw ni Nanay Rona mula sa kusina.
Why is he here? Is he here for me? Or for Nanay and Tatay? He's confusing me.
Minadali ko ang pagsusuklay ng aking buhok. Sa hindi ko alam na rason ay bigla akong naging conscious sa aking tindig. I don't mind what I look before.
I'm wearing a plain pastel yellow shirt tucked into a white shorts. Black sandals is what I'm wearing to match my bag. I applied a small amount of lipstick to my lips.
Hindi ako kailanman nagsusuot ng ganito when I head my way to my workplace. Just now.
Tumingin ako ng panghuling beses sa salamin tsaka lumabas sa aking kwarto. I saw him sitting at the couch and looking at me. He gave me a head to toe scan and his eyes went straight to mine.
Nakita ko siyang ngumiti ng bahagya at tumayo sa pagkakaupo niya. I'm tensed with the reason that's not clear. I walked nearer to him and so is he. Our paths met and I gave him a wide smile.
“Saan ka pupunta?” he asked no'ng naka-upo na kami sa harap ng hapag kainan.
“Sa mansyon, bakit?”
Nag-angat ako ng tingin sa kanya pagkatapos kong lagyan ng pagkain ang aking pinggan. He's not eating so I guess he will just watch me eat. This'll be a hard challenge.
“Hindi pa kita kailanman nakita na nagsusuot ng ganyan patungong mansyon. You usually wear jeans and back pack. What's with the shorts and sling bag?”
Did he really observe me that much?
“Hindi ko pa kasi nasusuot ang mga ito. Sayang naman dahil binili pa ito nila ni Nanay at Tatay.” I answered.
Biglang nagpasyang tumingin sa hapag si Nanay mula sa paghuhugas niya ng mga pinggan. She gave me a teasing look and I just shrugged.
They knew everything. Everything was inside their minds. The buying of drinks scene, the staying at the garden. Everything.
By the moment na dumating si Taylie at Harvi, they teased me. They were tasked to buy some drinks para maiwan kami ni Deriel at nagpapanggap sila ni Nanay na may pag-uusapan sila na para sa mga matatanda lamang.
The drinks were just inside the car! They just drove for like kilometers away from the house and waited for the "go signal" to come back.
They thought that we were together but, I cleared things up by saying that he's just courting me.
They were also celebrating for Deriel dahil daw napa-oo niya ako na ligawan. If only they knew that I was left with no choice.
“No need to worry. I like your outfit.”
Tumango ako sa kanya and I started eating double time. Not so fast but, not so slow.
Uminom ako ng tubig dahil parang na-dehydrate ako sa mga tingin niya. It feels like he's absorbing everything. Everything that is within me.
Unti-unti akong nawawalan ng lakas ng loob sa tuwing kasama ko siya. He told me that I'm a strong woman pero ang hindi niya alam ay kung ano ang nararamdaman ko sa tuwing magkalapit kaming dalawa.
Natapos na akong kumain at agad na nag-sipilyo. Natanggalan ng kaunti ang lipstick pero may natitira pa rin sa aking labi. Akmang yayayain ko na sana si Deriel na aalis na kami dahil tapos na ako sa kailangan kong gawin pero bigla niya akong sinenyasan na umupo sa tabi niya sa sopa.
I slowly sat down making sure that the distance will not lead me to suffer from breathing. I lost my sanity by the moment he went nearer to me. I inhaled and exhaled before I faced him.
