Barcelona Escapade

Chapter Forty-Two: Bet

Chapter Forty Two
Bet

Hindi inalis ni Eros ang pagkakayakap. I felt his arm tighter around my back. It sent me shuddering in vulnerability, but I didn't care. I was too stunned to even speak.

Let me love you again.

Is he for real?

How can he easily tell us that? We broke up because we can't be together. And now he's asking me to get back and let him love me again? Am I stupid enough to say 'sure'?

If I'm being honest with myself, there's no denying that I have feelings for him but this... gambling it again like I'm not scared it'll harm him. God, I must be so crazy.

Ramdam kong lumuwang ang pagkakayap niya kasabay ng paglayo sa'kin. I returned my attention to him, locking up my gaze with his. Narinig ko ang malalim niyang paghinga habang humahawak sa batok.

"You don't have to answer," he added even before my mouth tried to talk. Hinanap ng tingin niya ang steering wheel ng sasakyan ko. "Can I drive? Gabi na. Ihahatid kita."

Doon lang ako nagkaroon ng pwesto para huminga at kumalma. Umayos ako ng upo at sinandal ang likod sa upuan ko.

"I... I can drive, just so you know," I defended.

Tumaas muli ang tingin niya sa'kin. I caught him smiling a bit before he nodded.

"I know. Just let me," he said back.

Napalunok ako at agad inilihis ang tingin palayo. Our place felt even hotter, or it was my cheeks burning in embarrassment and confusion. Pero hindi na rin ako nakipagtalo.

The night's nearing and I still don't have the guts to drive when it's dark, especially if my destination is from Laguna to Manila. Lumabas siya para lumipat sa kabila at buksan ang pinto sa gilid ko. He even extended his hand to help me but I shook my head, because I knew the moment his hand held mine again, I would lose my sense of calm. He felt warm close to me earlier. I won't even back out if he didn't let go himself.

The drive back to Manila is quiet. Hindi ako sa tapat ng bahay nagpahatid. I can't risk being seen with him. He's not my driver anymore so no lies can feed whoever sees us together. Malamang, hindi ko rin sasabihing hinanap ko siya matapos ang pag-uusap nila ni Andromeda Vastia.

"I can go home from here. Where are you staying?" I asked. He stopped in the nearest commercial building from the mansion. I wondered if it was a good decision to make him drive for me. Hindi ko alam kung saan siya rito.

"My house," he then answered, as if he read my mind.

"You really do have a house here..."

He nodded. "I bought one a year ago." Tahimik din akong tumango. I thought that was all to it. That once he sees me nodding, he'll head out of the car and leave me alone. But for a while, he didn't. Not after he said, "Can you text me when you get home?"

Of course, my stupid heart pulsated like a teenager. I don't even know what we are. I don't even know what to reply to what he just said. But I want to mask any form of overflowing emotions. Gusto ko munang mag-isip. What he told me is too surprising for me to absorb, but my answer is too obvious, too wrong.

I only raised a brow at him. "I'm just a few streets away from home, Eros."

But the thought of texting him seems to flutter my stomach. It's been quite a long while since I felt flushed at the idea of someone caring and wanting to know I'm home and safe. Madalas din namang ginagawa ni Jayren 'yon but when it comes to Eros, everything just feels different. Everything is different with him.