Chapter 33:

Ngayon ay pababa na kami papunta sa basement parking. She insisted on giving me a ride home since she was curious about our new place.

Her car was already in our line of sight when my eyes caught sight of someone familiar on the right.

Napatigil ako at napahawak pa sa braso ni Gail.

She stopped and looked at me. "What's with the halt?"

Nakatayo si Jian sa gilid ng isang puting sasakyan. He was holding the passenger door open as a morena, barbie-like girl leaned in and gave him a quick kiss on the lips before getting into the car.

Kahit na nakatagilid siya ay alam kong nakangiti siya hanggang sa kumaway siya sa papaalis na sasakyan. Then, just as he was about to turn around, I quickly pulled us both down behind a nearby vehicle.

"What are you doing?!" Gail whispered sharply.

"Shh!" I reprimanded with brows furrowed.

I peeked through the space between the cars. Sinundan ko siya ng tingin at pumasok na siya sa sasakyan niya na hindi pa rin inaalis ang ngisi sa labi.

Nang maka alis na ang sasakyan ay tsaka lang ako tumayo nang maayos at ganoon din siya.

"Who was that?" she asked.

"H-he is the person that I'm currently dating," I stuttered.

Is he...two-timing me? All this time I wasn't alone? O baka naman...dalawa na talaga kami simula palang noong una?

Who is that girl? Does she know about this? Does she know that he is dating me already?

I let out a shaky breath as my heart started to feel suffocated. Gail suddenly held my trembling hands before giving me an apologetic smile.

—

Gail did not stay long once we arrived at the house. I told her I would give her a quick tour before she left, but she had to cut it short when she received a call.

Dumiretso ako sa kusina at kumuha ng water bottle. A few of the house helpers watched from the corner, surprised that I was doing it myself instead of asking them.

With shoulders down, I quietly made my way upstairs to my bedroom. The image of that girl kissing him kept playing over and over in my head like a loop I could not turn off.

Naninikip pa rin ang dibdib ko at nangingilid na ang luha na kanina ko pa pinipigilang lumabas.

Why does it feel like I’m always unlucky when it comes to love? Did I do something wrong in a past life to deserve this kind of pain?

We were not together…yet he was already breaking my trust.

Does he just like me? For what? For convenience?

When I got to my room, I finally let the emotions out. I cried while trying to make sense of what happened.

Did I bore him that is why he needs another one?

Hanggang sa hindi ko na namalayan na nakatulog na ako sa sobrang pagod. When I woke up, my eyes were swollen and it was difficult to open them.

I reached for the wireless phone and asked for a cold compress and some warm tea because my throat was dry. Ilang minuto ang nakalipas at may kumatok na.

"Palagay nalang po sa lamesa!" I said, raising my voice a little.

Nanatili ako sa kama at nakatalukbong pa ng makapal na kumot imbes na pagbuksan ang nag aabot. I didn’t want the house helper to see how upset I looked, especially over someone who was not even officially my boyfriend.

Isa pa, baka masabi pa niya kay mommy na umiyak ako. I did not want her to worry over something that felt so trivial but still hurt so much.

By dinner time, a house helper knocked while I was sitting on the edge of my bed. Gamit ang kanang kamay ay hawak ko ang panibagong cold compress para idampi sa mata.

"Bababa nalang po ako!" I said.

The swelling had gone down slightly, but my face still showed signs that I had been crying. While pressing the cold compress, I was already thinking of what excuse to give Mommy in case she noticed.

'Uh, I just finished watching a sad movie po kasi'

'I overslept'

'I think I have an allergic reaction'

Just a few harmless lies to avoid explaining the real reason.

I picked up the mirror beside me to check if the swelling was still obvious. I blinked a few times and gently massaged the area around my eyes using my ring fingers to help reduce the puffiness.

Nang makababa at nasa loob na ng dining hall, talagang sinabi ko sa sarili ko na bawasan ang pagtingin sa kaniya. She asked her usual questions and I answered briefly, making sure to keep my gaze low and not make much eye contact.

It was a relief that she did not seem to notice anything. After dinner, I excused myself right away. I needed to wake up early the next day to pay for my tuition for the upcoming school year.

Our university’s registration portal would remain open until next week. Pero nang malaman ko agad na nagbukas ito ay nag register agad ako at baka makalimutan ko pa.

It is always better to be early than to regret missing the deadline.

—

"Gosh, what happened was still vivid in my mind. I cannot believe that he had the guts to do that to me after a few—"

Napatigil ako sa pagsasalita nang bumukas na ang elevator. We had arrived at the university and were heading downstairs to the treasury office.

Pumunta muna kami sa locker niya—ni Yus. He double checked his things before we waited by the elevator for nearly 3 minutes. Galing pa kasi sa itaas at ang bagal bumaba.

There was a fair-skinned guy with black-rimmed glasses standing near the elevator buttons. Sabay kaming pumasok dalawa ni Yus bago ako nagpatuloy sa sinasabi.

"We dated for so many months already and yet! Hindi ko alam na ganito lang pala ang mangyayari," I said with a deep sigh after.

I glanced at the floor buttons to check if we were getting off on the same floor as the other person inside. Apparently, he was headed to the same one.

"Did you at least clarify about it to him? Baka naman na misinterpret mo lang? What if she were just a close relative?"

With dagger eyes, I looked up at him with furrowed brows. "A close relative!? Hahalikan sa labi? I don't think so!"

I rolled my eyes as I crossed my arms against my chest. Tinignan ko ang repleksyon ko sa harap at inayos ang pagkakasuot ng puting headband.

Kaninang umaga ay tinadtad niya na naman ako ng mga mensahe. He updated me with pictures and where he went to, but never mentioned anything about going to Pasay.

That was all the confirmation I needed. He had lied. I had been wasting my time with someone who acted like he had not done anything wrong.

Pero kahit na parang kapani paniwala ang lahat nang mga pinagsasabi niya ay hindi na ako sumagot. I just left him on read.

I let out a quiet groan thinking about his friendly, cheerful face. He was a two-faced liar. “I really can’t stand womanizers,” I muttered.

"Pft," Yus stifled his laugh.

Ilang segundo pa ang nakalipas at huminto na sa tamang palapag ang elevator. All of us—including the nerd looking boy stepped outside.

Nang matapos na kami sa pakay namin ay napagdesisyunan muna naming dalawa na kumain. I was craving for a hot soup even though the weather was unbearably hot already.

We ended up going to a nearby that served ramen, while Yus opted for a corn dog instead. Pagkatapos kumain ay umuwi agad kami para makapagpahinga na.

Days passed, and now we were celebrating Yus’s birthday with a small dinner at their house. It was a simple gathering organized by his girlfriend and his mother.

I feasted my eyes on the delicious food before looking at Yus. Nasa harap ko siya at katabi ang girlfriend na nakikipag usap kay Auntie Dani habang tahimik lang ako na nanonood sa kanila. Rhiannon slightly covered her mouth when she chuckled at Auntie Dani's compliment to her thoughtfulness.

"It's all thanks to you...Prius actually likes a simple party like this," she said.

"Tinawagan niya ako...when I was thinking of having a reservation at Okada since I was planning an extravagant celebration," she said when she turned to her husband, who was beside her.

Our seating arrangement was as follows: Auntie Danie sat at the head of the table, with Uncle to her right, and I sat beside him. On her left side were Rhiannon and Yus, seated side by side.

The flow of their conversation went smoothly. Panay ang tanong ni Auntie sa relasyon nilang dalawa at ang iilang impormasyon ni Rhiannon ay hiningi niya rin.

And Rhiannon answered them with a proud smile. Auntie Dani seemed to adore her.

Bigla naman silang natahimik nang magsalita si Uncle—tinatanong si Yus tungkol sa hindi ko alam na bagay. They were being discreet with their use of words.

I noticed how Auntie Dani hesitated mid-sip of her red wine and shifted in her seat. Saglit siyang napatingin sa mag ama niya bago sumimsim muli sa iniinom.

Nagkatinginan naman kami ni Rhiannon at nag iwas tingin agad siya na may multo ng ngiti sa labi.

Yus cleared his throat upon waiting for his father to complete his statement. Ilang segundo siyang tahimik pagkatapos bago bumuntong hininga at ginalaw ang mga kamay para hiwain ang steak na nakahain.

Uncle, on the other hand, was clearly waiting for a reaction. Napansin ni Yus 'yon at nagkibit balikat nang walang sinasabi.

Was it just me, or did the atmosphere become tense the moment Uncle spoke?

The silence was deafening with Yus's cold response. Then Rhiannon broke that awkward silence by asking something related to Auntie Dani's bag collection.

Yus and I briefly made eye contact again. The right side of his lips curled into a tight, forced smirk. Nag gaganyan lang siya kapag may ayaw siyang marinig at nagkukunwari lang na interesado.

—

"Are you two mad at each other?" I asked, raising my left eyebrow in curiosity.

We were now outside in the front yard. I was preparing to leave, but did not want to go without understanding why his interaction with his father had been so strained.

Rhiannon was staying over tonight and seemed to be enjoying herself with Auntie Dani, who was enthusiastically showing her bag collection.

He chuckled. "Hm? Hindi naman,"

"Then bakit ganon kayo kanina kung makapag usap?" I asked again, trying to read his expression.

"Bakit? Paano ba kami mag usap?" He chuckled again.

I almost rolled my eyes. "Actually, si Tito lang ang nagsasalita. You were just brushing him off like you don't want to entertain his questions,"

"Ayoko nga," agap niya.

Then he exhaled sharply as he stared off into the distance. “You already know I’ve had long-standing issues with him since...”

"What?! Akala ko ba napag usapan n'yo na at ayos na kayo?" I asked, with brows furrowed.

"Akala ko rin.." he smiled at me faintly. "He was still the same person. I thought he at least changed a bit for his family,"

A deep sigh slipped through my mouth, completely sympathizing with him. I never thought that this would happen again because I really thought that they were already on good terms.

—

The next day, we were officially back to school. A new school year, and with that came new blockmates. I had enrolled in a different class intentionally, hoping to give myself a fresh start. I’d already decided I needed distance from Macy, Gracia, Gaia, and everyone else associated with them.

Ngayon ay kakatapos lang namin sa isang klase. The professor gave an overview of the syllabus, then went around asking for our names so she could address us properly in future sessions.

I met a lot of new people—each with their own personality—but most of them seemed friendly and approachable. Kaya paniguradong hindi mahihirapan sa groupings or by partner na gawain.

Dahil puro orientation lang naman ngayong araw ay maaga na ako umuwi. Brix invited me earlier to visit a certain orphanage.

Tanaw ko siya sa malayo palang at nagtama agad ang mata namin. He was speaking with a few people, and I noticed they were all wearing matching shirts.

As I approached, he briefly introduced me to two of them before guiding me inside. Once we stepped in, I was greeted by the sight of several children sitting quietly on a carpeted floor.