I know I should be home by now given that it's almost 9 PM since I left but I didn't want to be home. I wanted to be somewhere. May naisip agad akong lugar kung saan ako makakatambay at agad minaneho ang bike patungo roon.
I parked the bike near the building my parents bought for me when I turned nineteen. Thankfully, I always brought the keys with me. I opened the two-way door and closed it when I got inside. Nilagay ko ang helmet sa may kitchen counter at inayos ang buhok kong medyo basa dahil biglang umulan nang mahina habang nasa kalsada ako. I rested my body on the sofa when I heard my phone beep.
From: Mama
Where are you? It's already nine.
I typed in my reply.
"Ilang taon ka sa States, Lilianna?" tanong ni Joie sa akin. Nasa balcony kami ng kwarto ni Sawyer, nakamasid sa mga taong unti-unting nagsisialisan sa swimming pool na pinapalibutan ng tatlong building. It was getting dark.Napaisip ako. "Almost six years na rin. Doon na rin ako nagtapos ng college at nagtrabaho sa kompanya ng childhood friend ko.""Wow, may childhood friend kang 'Kano?"Tumawa ako at umiling. "Ruairi is a Filipino, don't worry."Natahimik kami pagkatapos roon. Mayamaya ay dumating si Isla at sinabing kakainin na namin ang ginawa nilang dessert. It was a banana split."Let's eat," Isla said in a sophisticated manner. She's really... perfect.
Ruairi provided a car for us to ride when we arrive at the airport. It was enough for us and our luggage to fit."Oasis Funds Co., right?" Miss Lea asked as she was feeding her daughter some formulated milk. Nasa backseat kaming dalawa habang nasa passenger seat si Kairos.Tumango ako at inalis ang itim na face mask sa mukha ko. "Yes. Oasis is an investment company.""So is Ruairi de Asis that bored that led him to make another business? I won't say that he's broke because just by hearing his company's name, I know that he's rich."I laughed at her comment. "He's actually a dancer... like you. We were friends since we're children... along with, um, Kairos. We met at a dance school in Cebu."
"I really thought she's your mistress. Now that I thought about it, you wouldn't marry some girl who looked like that."I glanced at my clothes after Mrs. Ferrolino said that statement. I was wearing a red oversized hoodie and black pants with sandals on my feet. I felt insulted that she labeled me as "some girl" and even irritated that she's really sure her son won't marry some girl who looked like this!Moreover, I shouldn't be feeling irritated in the first place at all! Ano ba iyan, Lilianna?"Mom!" Kairos exclaimed."Iwanan ko po muna kayo," mahina kong wika at dali-daling umalis sa harapan nila. Nahinto lamang ako nang nagsalita ulit si Mrs. Ferrolino."A
"Why did you enroll your daughter to a dance school, Julius? She should be in her room, studying. Not dancing!"I heard my father sigh as he tucked me to bed. "But she wants to dance, my love. Hayaan mo na lang ang anak natin. Minsan lang maging bata si Lilianna, ipagkakait mo pa ba?""I promise you, Julius. That will do no good for her."I woke up when I felt Kairos' hand on mine and slightly tightened his hold on it. Minulat ko ang mga mata ko at nakitang nginitian ako ni Kairos. Inalis ko naman ang kamay ko sa kaniya kaya naiwan ang kamay niya sa hita ko. Agad niya iyong inalis.He cleared his throat. "We're here."Nangun
MARA SATUITAThe First Love"Mara? Papalakas na ang ulan, hija. Kailan ka ba uuwi?"Umirap ako habang hindi pa rin tumitigil sa pagtipa. Kailangan kong tapusin ang sales report ngayong araw kung ayaw kong masisante ako. Sinikap kong huwag mahulog ang keypad phone sa gitna ng ulo at balikat ko."Mamang, baka mamaya pa ako makakauwi. Kailangan ko lang talagang tapusin ang report ko ngayon dahil baka bukas wala na akong trabaho kung uuwi ako ngayon."Narinig ko ang pagbuntong-hininga ni Mamang. "Siguraduhin mo lang na makakauwi ka bandang alas dose, anak, okay? Delikado pa naman sa mga oras na 'yan."Tumango ako. "Sisikapin ko, Maman
"A year after that, I met your father at the police station because I illegally parked my newly bought car—which I worked hard for, by the way—on the street, fell in love and got married to him and then we had you," Mama said. A smile crept through her lips when Papa kissed her on the cheek."And we named you after Mara's late best friend, Lilia Perez."Tumango si Mama. "That's right."He yawned after kissing Mama. "Grabe, ang haba ng sinabi mo tungkol sa love story niyo ni Leonardo tapos sa akin isang long sentence lang?!" pagmamaktol niya na siyang ikinatawa ko. I was wiping the tears that fell earlier. I didn't know their love story is that... dramatic and unreal. Akala ko'y sa mga teleserye ko lang iyon mapapanood at mapapakinggan.
God, I'm so tired.Pabagsak akong umupo sa long sofa ko at nagdesisyong doon muna magpahinga. My feet are too tired to even walk a couple of steps towards the bedroom.I had a long day. Hindi ako makapaniwalang bubungad sa akin ang sandamakmak na trabaho pagbalik ko rito sa Arkansas. I couldn't believe Ruairi left the company lots of workloads! At dahil hanggang ngayon ay hindi pa rin siya naghanap ng secretary, isa ako sa mga empleyado niyang sobrang daming gawain.I know that it's still daytime there in the Philippines so I called Ruairi. He accepted the call before two rings."Lilianna! You called?""You motherfucker! Ang dami kong gagawin dahil sa'yo!"
Chapter 36It would take an hour or two before we arrive at Minglanilla so I decided to rest my eyes. Pero agad ko rin iyong pinagsisihan dahil tuluyan na akong nakatulog! Nagising lamang ako sa marahang pagyugyog sa akin ni Kairos.Paglingon ko sa bandang kanan ko ay nasa harapan na kami ng main gate ng Midori Plains. Nang naalala ko si Isla ay agad ko namang binaling ang backseat. She was nowhere to be found.Narinig ko ang pagtikhim ni Kairos. "I dropped her at the city."Tumango na lang ako.I unbuckled my seat belt and went out of the car. Sumunod naman siya at binuksan ang likuran ng sasakyan. Sumalubong sa akin ang tumitiriki na araw kaya napasuot ulit a
What It Takes To Be A FamilyI never thought that being a parent couldn't get much more tiresome but fulfilling at the same time. Sometimes, I would wake up seeing Lilianna swaying one of the twins in her arms as she hummed a song, her eyes closed because of sleep deprivation.I would automatically get up and say, "Lili, give me Leone. You should rest."Lilianna would open her eyes halfway and smile. "It's okay, brute. You should rest, may trabaho ka pa mamayang umaga.""No, give me Leone, Lilianna. Ako na ang magpapatulog ng bata. Where is her milk?"Bumuntong-hininga si Lilianna at dahan-dahang binigay sa akin si Leone Kennedy, ang babae naming anak.
Misterand Missus"How could you wed my daughter in a civil wedding, Kairos?!" nagagalit na tanong ni Papa."Papa..." pagpigil ko sa kaniya sabay hawak sa braso niya. Nagulat naman ako nang hinablot jiya mula sa hawa ko ang braso niya. Wow! He was really mad. I thought he was just acting!Nakita naman iyon ni Kairos. Lalapit na sana siya sa akin pero inilingan ko siya para pigilan siya.Napatingin kaming lahat kay Papa nang tumayo siya mula sa pagkakaupo rito sa sofa. "Mara, where did you put my shotgun?"Napasinghap si Tita Esmeralda.
Epilogo: Eternal LoveI was enjoying the breeze of Toronto when my cousin, Isaiah, called me and disturbed me from relaxing my ass off."What?" I asked, annoyed.I heard a chuckle coming from him. "Come on, bro! Get your ass back here. You're not fit for Canada!""I'm having my vacation, Isaiah. I'm not staying here for good. 'Wag kang mag-alala, uuwi rin ako next month.""School is coming back next month too, you should be here by the last week of May or the first week of June. Third year is a crucial year for college students, Kai. We should not take it lightly."Napailing ako. Isaiah and his obsession w
Epilogo: First Love "My god, Kairos! Ang bagal-bagal mo talaga! Male-late na ako sa appointment ko at male-late ka na rin sa dance school mo na iyan!" Napailing ako sa pagsigaw ni Kieru sa kabilang parte ng pintuan. Nasa labas siya ngayon ng kwarto ko at naghihintay na lumabas ako. I woke up late this morning, and I immediately played video games on my personal computer. That's also the reason why I'm now almost late to dance class. Kinurot ni Kieru ang tainga ko nang nakalabas ako sa kwarto ko. Humiyaw naman ako sa sakit. "Aray ko, Kieru!" She gasped. "You have no respect to your older sister, Kairos!" "Calling you ‘ate’ gives me chills," I said with a disgusted look. Tinanggal ko ang pagkahawak niya sa tainga ko at nauna nang lumabas sa bahay at pumasok sa family car. The whole ride, Kieru insisted that I should—no, “must” call her ‘ate’ or else she'll wreck my desktop computer in my bedroom. I just sighed and decided
Chapter 40Pero hindi ko kaya.Hindi ko na kayang mawalay pa sa kaniyang ng kahit isa pang araw.Kaya ginawa ko ang gusto kong gawin.Embarrassing as it sounds, but I turned around and shouted Kairos' name with my longing heart. Agad naman siyang lumingon sa akin, naguguluhan.At first, I was walking slowly as I stared at his mysteriously dark eyes. But when I got impatient, I jogged my way towards him... until it turned to a run. I left my luggage alone and spread my arms as I hugged him.He carried me by the butt and I immediately wrapped my legs around his waist.
Mariin akong pumikit nang naramdaman kong gumalaw ang kama. Mahigpit ang hawak ko sa kumot nang naramdaman ko ang braso ni Kairos na tumanday sa baywang ko sa ilalim ng kumot.Kalaunan ay narinig ko ang tawa niya. "I know you're awake, Lilianna. Your body is tensed."Doon pa ako kumawala nang malalim na hininga bago minulat ang mata at hinarap siya. Agad naman akong nagsisi nang nakitang halos magdikit na ang mga ilong namin. Sobrang lapit niya!I hissed when my sister down there ached because of the pain I got from last night's... physical activity. Pumikit na naman ako nang nakaramdam ako ng hiya. Gusto ko na lang lamunin ng lupa nang inalala ko ang ginawa namin kagabi.I couldn't believe that really happened. It
The celebration eventually ended. Nagsiuwian na ang ibang guests samantala ang iba naman ay napagdesisyonang dito na lang sa hotel matulog. The Ferrolinos booked a couple of hotel rooms for the guests to stay in for the night."I booked a room for you, Lian," sabi ni Sawyer nang pumasok kami sa elevator. Sinabay niya ako sa kotse nilang dalawa ng asawa niya. Nahiya tuloy ako dahil baka naistorbo ko sila. "You should stay for the night. Neco couldn't drive you home because he's dead drunk."Tumawa ako at tumango. "Okay. I will stay."Niyakap niya ako patagilid. "Thank you for coming to the best day of my life, best friend. Nawala na ang six years kong tampo sa'yo."We laughed together as we talked about random things
Dumating na nga ang araw ng kasal ni Sawyer. Narito kami ngayon sa isang five star hotel ng ciudad. May nakalaang mga suite ang entourage—magkahiwalay ang mga babae sa mga lalaki. Ang groom naman at ang bride ay may tig-iisa ring room na nakalaan para sa kanila.May mga professional makeup artists at hairdressers din na binayaran ng pamilya Ferrolino para sa amin kaya naging mabilis ang paghahanda para sa kasal. We only got to sit in front of a vanity mirror, and watched our faces get beautified by their artsy hands. The makeup artists decided to match our eyeshadows with the wedding motif.Akala ko ay magmumukha kaming clown sa lavender eyeshadows pero kabaliktaran ang nakita ko nang natapos akong ayusan ng isa sa mga makeup artists. I commend them for making it perfect. It was simple and minimal but it complenemented
Chapter 36It would take an hour or two before we arrive at Minglanilla so I decided to rest my eyes. Pero agad ko rin iyong pinagsisihan dahil tuluyan na akong nakatulog! Nagising lamang ako sa marahang pagyugyog sa akin ni Kairos.Paglingon ko sa bandang kanan ko ay nasa harapan na kami ng main gate ng Midori Plains. Nang naalala ko si Isla ay agad ko namang binaling ang backseat. She was nowhere to be found.Narinig ko ang pagtikhim ni Kairos. "I dropped her at the city."Tumango na lang ako.I unbuckled my seat belt and went out of the car. Sumunod naman siya at binuksan ang likuran ng sasakyan. Sumalubong sa akin ang tumitiriki na araw kaya napasuot ulit a