In Another Life

5: You can if you want to = I like you

Tyrese

I had been knocking on the door for how many hours now, but Eisley refused to open the door. Buong araw na siyang nagkukulong sa art room niya. Kailangan na namin planuhin yung Bachelor/Bachelorette party nila Bevs at Nyle. 

"Eisley!" I knocked for the nth time. "Open the door. We need to talk." 

As soon as Eisley pulled away from the kiss last night, he literally froze and stared blankly into space. I was going to laugh when Sile sat on the ground and started crying, then she began telling me how jealous she was of me and she wanted to get mad at me for stealing Eisley away from him when she had loved him since they were young. 

Okay, that information was too much for me to handle because it was very sudden. If she was indeed telling the truth, then I had no idea because it wasn't obvious at all. I dismissed her revelation anyway because she was probably just too drunk.

At last, he opened the door. "What do you want?" Gandang bungad, ha? May hawak pa siyang sketch pad at pencil. Ito ba? Ito ba yung lalaking may gusto sa'kin? Parang imposible.

"Why so cranky? Nahihiya ka ba?" diretsa kong tanong. 

He didn't deny it. He lowered his head, his cheeks and ears flushed. 

"Don't worry, I didn't believe her anyway." I tapped his shoulder. "It's all good. Now, we have more important things to discuss!" The Bachelor/Bachelorette party!

I acted like I was going into his room to tease him, so I ended up making him come out of his room. He shut the door behind him and blocked it so I wouldn't be able to enter. "Tyrese." 

"Ang sarap mo asarin." Hindi ako maiwasan hindi ngumisi. "Let's go!" 

-

Naglakad ako papuntang beach habang hawak niya yung pencil at sketch pad niya at hawak ko naman yung notebook ko at ballpen ko. He was just sketching while I was planning the whole thing. 

"Camping sounds good, right?" I asked. 

He nodded.

"Wala ka na bang ibang suggestions? Wala ka bang sasabihing iba? Are you serious?" I planned to rent a guesthouse or cabin and stay there for three days and two nights. We would go canyoneering and hiking on our first day. Pagdating namin sa guesthouse, we could just rest until the morning. 

In the afternoon, we would ask Sile and Evan to accompany Bev and Nyle somewhere so Eisley and I could put up the decorations for the actual party in the evening. Hindi mawawala yung games, prizes, food and drinks kahit may trauma na ata si Eisley sa inuman dahil noong na-mention ko yung 'drinks', napansin kong napaisip siya. 

He stopped sketching and looked at me. "Should we get them something for their wedding?" That was so random, but at least, he said something! We were still planning the pre-wedding party, yet he was already planning what to give them for their wedding. 

"Sure?" I responded. 

"You're good at painting, right?" he asked. 

I shrugged. "I'm not sure if I'm good at it, pero pwede na siguro? Depends on your preference." 

Nagulat ako sa susunod niyang sinabi, "Should we paint them? Do you want to paint with me?" 

"Really? Si Master Eisley Cosciquen, papayag na makipag-collab sa amateur na katulad ko?" 

He took a deep breath. "I'm serious." 

I laughed. "I'm joking. Of course, I'd love to!" I was actually excited. I would learn a lot from him. Bev and Nyle already had everything, so I was sure they'd appreciate our gift because their best friends made it for them. 

Bigla akong napangiti dahil kahit mukhang walang pake si Eisley, he actually cared. Balak ko ngang bumili ng appliance o lingerie kasi 'yun yung usual wedding gifts, but Eisley was thoughtful enough to make his friends a painting. I couldn't remember everything he and I talked about when we were in college, but this was definitely the same guy! Same feeling! He was that aloof person who was sick of the world, but he was so pure, as well. 

I gave him an appreciative smile followed by a mischievous one. "So, can I go to your art room now?" 

"No," sabay naming sinabi dahil alam ko na yung isasagot niya.

We both laughed. 

Wait. 

He laughed?

Eisley

I couldn't face Tyrese when Sile told her I liked her because it was truth. What was Sile thinking? Of course, she was drunk. This was exactly the reason why I was not a fan of alcohol. Fortunately, Tyrese didn't believe her. 

Now that she was staring at me in surprise because I laughed (I also didn't know why I laughed), it was making me want to confess to her. I had never confessed to anyone before.  

I didn't want anyone going to my art room because it was my personal space. I didn't want anyone invading that space, yet she was making me think twice. I also didn't like the thought of painting with someone because I was used to be alone, yet I felt like I would have fun painting with her. What was wrong with me? 

"Do you really wanna see my art room?" I asked.

She was even more surprised this time. She couldn't even say anything. Usually, she would talk non-stop like a talking machine. I knew she was just teasing me, but that room meant a lot to me. The room was me. 

I smiled. "You can if you want to."

Inviting her to my art room was equivalent to telling her I liked her. Would she get it?