Chapter 29
Dinner came and we all went to the dining area for us to eat together. Nailapag na lahat ng pagkain at mga utensils pero nagsasalin pa sila ng tubig at juice sa mga baso.
"It really makes me happy whenever you are all here. And we have another one added to the family." Abuela said.
"Not yet, mamá. He will never be." Salungat ni daddy. They chuckled at that. When I turned my gaze to the man beside me, he swallowed hard but I gave him a smile to calm him down. Daddy just likes to fool around.
"Stop it, Manuel. Jairus is a good man and you know that." Mommy softly said. Daddy scoffed and drank his water.
Nagsimula na kaming kumain nang umalis na mula sa dining area ang mga kasambahay. Nilagyan ni Jairus ng mga pagkain ang pinggan ko at minsan ay tumututol ako dahil ang dami niya nang nilalagay.
Nang magsimula akong kumain, nakita kong napasulyap si daddy sa kamay ko. He gave it a second look until he quickly stood up with lips parted and wide eyes.
"Manuel, what's wrong with you?" Mommy asked and motioned dad to sit down. Napangiti lang ako kay daddy pero siya ay titig na titig pa rin sa singsing sa kamay ko.
"What's that thing on your finger?" Daddy asked as if he doesn't know what does this mean. What if I say it's a necklace? Would he believe me?
"It's a ring, dad. Obviously." Sabi ko at nginitian na naman siya nang malapad.
Napabaling silang lahat sa kamay ko at narinig kong tumikhim si Jairus sa tabi ko. Ready yourself for an interrogation.
"Oh my God." Mommy shrieked and went to my side to look at the ring closely. She hugged me and kissed me on the cheeks.
"I'm so happy for you." Mommy said and giggled.
My grandparents are already smiling at us but my dad is still looking at us with wide eyes. Is he mad?
"That's it, son. He's going to be part of our family." Abuela said and laughed.
"When are you planning to say it?" Daddy asked.
"After dinner. But you already noticed it so here we go. I'm engaged." I cooly said. Daddy gasped and sat on his chair again.
"I am not really ready for this." Bulong niya na narinig naman naming lahat. Mommy chuckled and went to his side again to kiss him on his cheeks.
"You should be. Our daughter is an adult now. This is inevitable, Manuel." She said.
Daddy sighed and looked at our direction again. "Jairus, how dare you take my daughter away from me?" He said. I glanced at Jairus and saw him swallowing hard again, probably nervous of dad's tone.
Sinaway si daddy nina abuelo at abuela kaya kumalma naman siya.
"I'm sorry, tito. She's the one that I want to be with for the rest of my life. If you're not okay with this, I'm still marrying her."
Halos matawa ako sa sinabi ni Jairus pero napigilan ko naman. Akala ko hindi namin ipagpapatuloy ang kasal kapag tumutol si daddy. Hindi naman pala siya mapipigilan eh.
Mommy giggled again and whispered on daddy's ears now, while he's trying to calm himself. Sumubo na lang ako ng pagkain kaya sinundan niya ulit ng tingin ang aking kamay na may singsing.
"Fine. I'm giving you me blessings. But once you hurt her, I'll pull off some strings to annul your marriage immediately." Sabi ni daddy.
I gave out a bark of laughter because of that. My grandparents are also laughing with me and my mom is shaking her head like she can't take daddy anymore. Jairus let out a breath of relief and held my hand.
