Euphoria: Dosage of Rhapsodies

Chapter 31

"Bro, na-miss ka namin!"

Parang bata na tumakbo si Dylan palapit kay Israel tiyaka ito niyakap. Gano'n din naman ang ginawa ni Warren, parang hindi aware ang dalawa na hindi na sila naaalala ni Israel.

"Kaya pala familiar 'yong dance move kahit nasa likod lang ng kurtina, ikaw pala 'yon!" Warren guffawed as he slapped Israel on the back.

"It's nice to see you-"

"Warren," tinawag ni Eli ang atensyon nito.

And when Warren and Dylan glanced at Eli, that's the time they notice what they have done.

"Oh, na-carried away lang kami. Pasensya na. Naalala lang namin 'yong kaibigan namin sa iyo."

"Warren's right, sorry talaga," Dylan apologized.

At bumalik na sina Dylan at Warren sa pwesto nila... they looked embarrassed. Naiintindihan ko naman kung bakit nila nagawa 'yon. That's how they missed Israel. If I were in their shoes, I'd definitely do the same thing.

"We're very sorry for the inconvenience, Israel. They must be carried away, as Warren said, for seeing you here. But we appreciate your talent in dancing... and you passed the audition. Congratulations."

"My pleasure." He then smiled at us before leaving the room.

Agad akong tumayo para sana sundan si Israel when suddenly, Eli held my hand. I looked at him and he's staring at me seriously. "Susundan mo siya?"

"I need to talk to him-"

"About what, Corrine?"

Mukhang sa away ito mapupunta kung kaya't huminga muna ako nang malalim para subukang pakalmahin ang sarili ko. At times like this, I should be careful of the words I will be throwing at him.

"I just want to know the reason why he's doing this, Eli. There's nothing more, okay? I will be quick." Nginitian ko na lamang siya bago inalis ang kamay niyang nakahawak sa wrist ko.

Nagmamadali akong tumakbo upang hanapin si Israel, and I found him at the lobby.

"Wait!" Nang tawagin ko ang atensyon niya, he stopped from walking. "Can we talk?"

He turned around to face me. "About what?"

"About you... auditioning. What's your purpose for doing that, Israel? May pinaplano kang hindi maganda, tama ba ako?"

Ikinagulat ko nang tawanan niya ako. "Ang lawak naman ng imagination mo, Corrine. Hindi naman sobrang kapal ng mukha ko para pagplanuhan ng masama si Eli. After all, ipinagkatiwala ka niya sa akin para magtrabaho, ngayon mo pa ba ako pagdududahan? Do you think I'm that kind of person?"

"You must be kidding me."

"Our business faces a huge problem even before you arrive. Pero naka-survive ang business sa panganib na baka magsara kami because of your boyfriend. His manager, Arvin, is the one I talked to because of an urgent appointment saying that Eli wanted to save our business from precariousness. In exchange, I will accept you as a trainee for about a month. Kaya ka namin kasama sa Wedding Team ngayon, Corrine," he continued.

And then he stepped closer to me. "Now tell me, paano ko magagawang pagplanuhan ng masama 'yong taong nag-save sa business namin? Tell me how?"

Hindi na ako nito hinayaan pang makapagsalita dahil matapos din niyang ipamukha sa akin na nagkakamali ako ng hinala sa kanya ay agad rin siyang lumayo sa akin at naglakad paalis.

Okay, I admitted that I was wrong to accuse him of planning something execrable.

Ewan ko rin ba kung bakit ko biglang inisip na suspicious 'yong biglang pagsali ni Israel sa audition, or it just that I still can't accept the fact that he was the one who passed the audition. Everything is still improbable. I ain't gonna trust that guy.