"Oh, wow. So, what you're trying to say is that you cheated on me because you just saw me yesterday talking to him?" She let out a short, sharp breath and jerked her head back slightly.
My eyes went to Yus, who was just calmly sitting on his chair and I did not even know that he was already looking at me too. He shook his head before sighing, looking so tired from hearing all this drama.
I shrugged my shoulders. Napapagod na rin ako makinig. Then I looked at the couple again, who were still arguing across my seat. I saw how Macy ran her fingers through her hair with so much frustration while her boyfriend was just standing in front of her, looking furious.
"Ayan ka na naman sa conclusions mo, Macy! Puro nalang cheating. How many times do I have to tell you that she is my brother's girlfriend?" Dexter defended himself from her, trying to prove a point.
Hindi ko alam na kahit panoorin ko lang sila ay nakakapagod na at feeling ko ay ako ang nasasaktan sa mga sumbatan nila.
Macy concluded that her boyfriend–Dexter, was cheating on her with his brother's girlfriend. Meanwhile, Dexter said that his friend– Markus was completely hitting on her, but she was oblivious to Markus's advances.
"At ayan ka rin sa conclusions mo! Nag uusap lang kami pero iba ang iniisip mo! Lagi nalang may malisya ang mga ginagawa ko kapag wala ka! You're a hypocrite!"
"Azalea,"
Agad akong tumingin kay Yus nang tinawag niya ako. Tumingin siya sa pinto bago binalik muli ang tingin saakin. I immediately understood what he was trying to say without even verbalizing it.
So I stood up, making them look at me. Macy's mascara smudged and now she looked like a mess with black ink dripping under her eyes so I handed her a tissue.
"Aalis na kayo?" She asked before sniffing on the tissue.
I nodded twice. "Yes,"
"Ayusin n'yo 'yan, dude" Yus tapped Dexter's shoulder before touching my back to walk with him.
Nang makalabas sa unit ni Macy ay nagpakawala ako ng maingay na buntong hininga. Pakiramdam ko ay pinagkaitan ako ng hangin sa loob kanina. Naiirita ko namang kinuha ang cellphone na kanina ko pa nararamdam ang pag vibrate.
"I cannot with those two. They are both toxic. Nagkakasakitan na pero ayaw pa rin maghiwalay," I said.
"Because they love each other," He calmly said.
My face scrunched when I looked up to him. "To the point ayos lang na magsabi sila ng masasakit na salita sa isa't-isa? Pathetic,"
He looked down at me with a smirk plastered on his lips. Nagtaas ako ng isang kilay para hamunin siya at hinintay ang sasabihin niya pero wala syang sinabi.
"Saan tayo pupunta? Uuwi na?" Tanong nya nang makababa na kami sa parking area.
Hawak hawak niya na ang susi at pinaglalaruan ito habang hinihintay ang sagot ko. Tinignan ko ang hawak kong cellphone at puro missed calls mula sa isang manliligaw.
Sasabihin ko na sana na gusto ko nang umuwi pero hindi natuloy dahil sa pagtunog ng cellphone niya dahil may tumatawag sa kanya. I already knew who was calling him, so I pressed my lips together as I typed a response to my suitor.
"Hmm?" He greeted.
To: Unknown
I'm sorry, I can't. I'm busy.
Natawa ako nang nakatanggap agad ako ng reply. I bit my lower lip while looking at my keyboard, thinking of a reply.
From: Unknown
With your other suitor?
What?
I was about to reply 'Huh? Which suitor are you talking about?' but I changed my mind. In-off ko nalang ang cellphone at binalik sa baguette bag bago tinignan si Yus na kausap pa rin ang kanyang girlfriend.
"Oh, okay. You don't want me to fetch you?... yes, I'm with her.."
Sinulyapan pa ako ni Yus pero binalik rin agad ang tingin sa harap. I rolled my eyes because my name was involved again in their conversation. His girlfriend was unnecessarily overprotective of him as if I would take Yus away from her.
Humalukipkip ako at matiyagang naghintay para lang matapos ang usapan nila. As soon as he put down his phone, I let out a relieved breath and quickly dropped my crossed arms.
"What, may date kayo ng girlfriend mo?" I asked.
"Meron pero iuuwi muna kita. Baka kung saan saan ka na naman pumunta imbes na dumiretso sa bahay," he rolled his eyes.
I let out a scoff. "Wow! Daddy?"
Bumaba na siya sa inaapakan na gutter bago pinindot ang car keys para patunugin ang sasakyan at dumiretso naman agad ako sa backseat habang sya ay umikot pa para sa driver's seat.
"Hey, Yus.." I called him in the middle of driving.
He looked at me through the rear mirror. "Ano?"
"What do you think of Kaleb?" I asked.
"He's dumb and a f**k boy," he said before chuckling.
I glared at him."Wala ka bang masabing matino?"
He let out a chuckle again. "Ano, sinagot ko lang naman tanong mo ah.."
"Kaleb is so persuasive and I don't know if I should let him court me or not," then I sighed.
"Bakit? Paano ba siya manligaw at parang gulong gulo ka?" He asked curiously.
I let out a chuckle while looking down at my manicured nails before shrugging my shoulders. I actually don’t know…
"I mean...he's not that bad but sometimes he is too clingy and always asking where am at and who I am with,"
"And that makes you irritated, hmm?" He asked.
I nodded.
"Then drop him immediately. Wala pa ngang kayo pero umaakto agad na pagmamay ari ka nya?" then clicked his tongue.
"Okay," I said.
After dropping me off at my house, I immediately went inside. Parang namanhid yata ang pang upo ko dahil sa ilang oras kong nakaupo habang nanonood ng mala telenovelang relasyon ng kakilala namin.
As I was taking off my clothes, I glanced at the door upon hearing a knock. I quickly grabbed my white robe, put it on, and opened the door.
Tinanggap ko ang pagkain na mula pa kay Yus at ngiti lang ang ginawad ko sa nag abot bago ko sinarado ang pinto. Tumalikod ako at naglakad papunta sa maliit na lamesa para ipatong ang tray.
I was a bit sweaty and I felt like my face was so dirty because of the pollution and humidity of this country.
After taking a quick shower, I washed my face properly and did my night skincare routine before eating my dinner.
–
"What?" He asked with wide eyes.
We were both looking at each other while sitting down. He was across my seat so I could talk to him properly.
"You are too clingy, Kaleb" I said clearly.
His brows furrowed. "What? What do you mean I'm clingy? What did I do?"
I raised a brow at him. Seriously? Hindi niya alam na clingy siya?
"You're suffocating me with your clingy attitude. We're not yet together but you're...like trying to dominate me immediately.." then blinked twice.
He let out a scoff. "What? Tinatanong ko lang naman kung okay kalang at kung nasaan ka, clingy na agad pala 'yon?"
"Anong masama doon?" He added.
My brows slightly furrowed. I suddenly remember what Yus said to me yesterday. He had a point actually. If a boy could not make me comfortable with him, then...he was not for me.
"You hate people who are very controlling, Azalea, stop lowering yourself just for a boy" I heard it in my mind.
"You don't get it, do you?" I asked.
My mother once told me that getting to know each other phase should have limits and boundaries. Don't cross the line. Never ever do girlfriend things if a man is still pursuing you. And that was applied to all genders.
He clicked his tongue, looking hurt and irritated at the same time.
"So the rumors are true, huh? No man can pursue you when that man is around," then shook his head twice.
My eyes widened a bit. "Hey! That's not true. Labas si Yus sa mga ganitong sitwasyon,"
What the heck? Yus was just there to help me decide, but I was the one who carried it out after thinking it through!
He let out a bitter chuckle. "Everyone knows it, Azalea. Kahit nga mga dating sumubok manligaw sa'yo ay ganoon rin ang mga sinabi,"
"...ano mo ba talaga siya?" he then smirked with bloodshot eyes.
"Do I really have to repeat myself, huh?" I asked with brows furrowed. Gosh, I really thought that this would end well.
"Because at first, I didn't believe them, Azalea! But now...maybe they were telling the truth," he said before swallowing painfully.
I let out a short, dry breath and shook my head. "Yus was with me when you asked me if you could court me, remember?"
He was around when this boy asked me last month! At walang lumabas sa bibig ni Yus na pagtutol o ano, so why is this guy saying this to me?
In the end, he just gave me a headache. He even asked for a second chance, but I didn’t give it to him. Just as I was about to walk away, he pulled an embarrassing stunt.
"Everybody in the school doubts that, Azalea!" He said, raising his voice.
Everyone in the coffee shop looked at us and started to whisper. Some of them were familiar to me and some don't, but still...we piqued their interest and now they were judging us by the way they looked at us.
Bago ko pa tuluyang maitulak ang glass door ay napailing iling ako hanggang sa nakalabas na ako at nagpasundo sa family driver.
"Saan po tayo uuwi, Ma'am? Sa condo o sa bahay?" He asked when he glanced at me through the rear-view mirror before starting the engine.
Nilakasan ko ang aircon dahil ilang minuto rin akong naghintay kay Manong kaya medyo pinagpapawisan ako.
I let out a sigh before flipping my hair a bit that was resting on my chest. "Sa bahay po,"
He nodded with pressed lips before driving. Napatingin naman ulit ako sa cellphone ko dahil sa message notification mula kay Yus. I just told him what had happened earlier.
From: Yus
Man can't even accept a rejection lmao!
I rolled my eyes at his message. Ang hilig talaga nitong ipamukha sa ibang tao ang ugali nila.
To: Yus
I feel guilty tho. Parang mali na nireject ko siya. Dapat ba ay hindi ko nalang kinausap?
From: Yus
Huh?
My left brow raised a bit, confused by his reply, and I was about to type a response but he called me so I answered it without hesitation.
"What?" I greeted.
"Ghoster ka ba?" He asked, chuckling.
What? Anong ghoster?
"Anong ghoster? I am not a ghost," I said.
He let out a laugh. Um-echo pa nga ang halakhak niya at mukhang nasa unit siya niya ngayon para bumisita.
"Stupid. Diba sabi mo ay dapat 'di mo nalang siya kinausap? Gusto mo bang iwan sa ere at walang alam kung anong nangyari sa'yo 'yung tao?"
I nodded even though he could not see it. "Mhm-hmm. That's even a good idea, right? Kesa naman sa mambasted,"
Not talking to a boy because I don't want to reject him is better than telling him directly. Sino bang gustong makarinig ng rejection hindi ba? It's valid because I was just being considerate.
He laughed even more. I pursed my lips, confused and a bit concerned about what was happening to him right now.
"Ang sakit mo naman pala ligawan," he chuckled.
"Kapag pala nagsawa kana saakin hindi kana lang pala magpaparamdam. Ghoster ka nga," he added.
My eyes widened and got nervous suddenly. "Hey! I will never do that to you! Stop talking like that," I scolded him.
He let out a chuckle before explaining what he meant by 'ghoster'. Though I couldn't relate, I just nodded along to make him stop talking until I finally ended the call.
I let out a sigh before looking outside the window of the car. When we got home, I went straight to my room to take my daily nap after changing into new clothes.
–
I just finished a quick swim in our pool. As I dried my hair with a white towel, I grabbed my phone from the table and checked my social media accounts.
My skin shivered as the cold wind blew, so I tightened the robe around my waist.
"You're trending in our group chat. What really happened between you two?" I read the first message.
My brows slightly furrowed while processing Macy's text message. Both confused and surprised, I still replied.
To: Macy
What do you mean?
From: Macy
You and Kaleb are the talk of the day!
"Ah, 'yan lang pala" then I sighed in relief.
I thought it was something serious, but it turned out to be just about me and Kaleb. I had already expected that what happened between us would spread to all of them. It just took a bit longer to reach them, and for a while, I even thought they wouldn’t care.
Waiting for the first comment……
Please log in to leave a comment.