"That was one good wave! Did you see me?" tanong ni P nang makalapit sa kaniya. Akala niya ay hindi na ito lulubayan ng mga nakikipagkilala. Kaunti na lang talaga at mauubos na ang pasensiya niya kanina. He was about to walk towards her and picked her up. Isasampay na sana niya ito sa balikat na parang sako. Mainit na nga ang panahon, mainit pa ang bumbunan niya. "It was a good wave and you did really well," puri niya sa babae. Saglit itong natigilan at parang na-shock. "What?" Damn! Did he say the wrong thing again? "Did you just give me a compliment?" Kumunot ang noo ni Ale. "You did, didn't you?" Tumawa si Pietra at saka naghalungkat sa bag. Napangiwi ito nang hindi makita ang hinahanap pero kaagad din nagliwanag ang mukha nang mapatingin sa hawak niya. "Uy! Akin na lang 'yan!" Kinuha ni P ang kamay niyang may kapit na flat tops. Isinubo nito 'yon at bahagya pang dumampi ang gilid ng labi nito sa kaniyang daliri. Shit. What she did was enough to set him on fire. Kakaiba talaga
Nang sumunod na gabi ay bihis na bihis si Pietra. She was wearing a turquoise maxi dress at nakalugay ang buhok nito. P had waves on her hair and aside from a little blush and lipstick, wala na siyang ibang kolorete sa mukha. “Where are you going?” Ale just went out for a walk. Nakatanggap siya ng tawag mula kay Estefan kanina at kinukumusta siya. Pauwi ito ng Pilipinas ng isang linggo at gustong makipagkita kung libre siya. “On a date.” P was putting on some bangles at saka isinunod ang manipis na hoop earrings. She looked absolutely stunning. “What? With whom?” Ale does not like this at all. Lumabas lang siya saglit, pagbalik ay may date na ito. “Emilio. He’s on vacation too. He saw me surfing yesterday then we bump into each other at the lobby earlier.”Lalong nagsalubong ang kilay ni Ale. Emilio is a man! Natural! May Emilio bang babae?“When?” Yamot siyang kumuha ng long sleeves at isinuot. It matched his black shorts perfectly. Hinarap siya ni P. “May date ka rin?” Hindi ni
Hindi siya pinansin ni P hanggang makapagbihis ito sa banyo at mahiga sa kama. Hindi naman niya ito ginambala sa date katulad ng sabi nito. What did he do wrong now? “Are you going to sleep mad?”“Hindi ako galit,” angil nito sa kaniya. Ale mouthed the word ‘wow’ silently. Hindi raw galit pero halatang halata sa tinig. Hindi na niya ito kinulit at nagpalipas na lang ng oras sa pagbabasa. Mabuti na lang at may WiFi. He’s reading something about poisonous spiders at the moment. Pagkaraan ng isang oras ay nakaramdam siya ng antok. P is already asleep. Nakaharap na ito sa kaniya ngayon at pikit. Kanina ay nakakumot ito pero nasipa na at ngayon ay nakabaluktot. Ale got up and fixed it. Nagtalo ang isip niya kung gagawaran ito ng goodnight kiss o hindi. In the end, he chose not to. Ayaw niya ng complication sa buhay niya and P is already getting him rattled with so many things. ***Nang matapos ang bakasyon ni P sa Siargao ay hindi ito tumuloy sa sunod na destination. Nag-aya itong umuwi
Ngumiti siya kay P. She was clearly challenging him at hindi siya bale para pumatol. By now, nakukuha na rin niya ang ugali nito. Mamaya ay baka masampal pa s’ya ng wala sa oras. Tumuwid ng tayo si Ale. “Do you want to go out for a stroll later? Ililibre kita ng ice cream.”P’s face fell. May nasabi ba siyang masama? He’s totally acting like a gentleman here. “If you don’t want ice cream, we can do halo-halo or mais con yelo. I want something cold.”Hindi siya sinagot ni P at sa halip, niligpit nito ang gamit. She stood up and walked away from him. Ano’ng nangyari roon? Napailing na lang s’ya sa babae. Baka nga darating na ang period nito kaya moody. ***Kung ayaw nitong sumama ay okay lang. Taylor is busy with business kaya hindi niya inabala ito. Nang sumapit ang alas dos y media ng hapon ay lumabas s’ya. His car is an attraction to this town at nang umibis s’ya ng sasakyan ay nabaling naman ang pansin ng mga tao sa kaniya. Isang maliit na canteen ang napili niya at saka naupo. L
Ale told P what happened at the canteen minus a few details. He made it sound like he was interested with Maui kahit hindi naman niya ito type. "You know what, you don't make sense. If you really like this girl, get to know her. Bring her flowers or chocolates or bilhan mo ng isang dosenang halo-halo. I don't get this fake girlfriend thing. Mga paandar na ganito ang kinayayamutan ko." P complained while he listened. Lulan sila ng kotse at nagmamaneho s'ya papunta sa canteen. Inaya nila si Taylor pero busy daw ito kaya hindi sasama. The weather in Sta. Monica today was a little hot for their liking at tamang tama ang halo-halo para lumamig ang mga ulo nila. In his case, pati 'yong nasa baba ay damay dahil dalawang gabi na s'yang hindi makatulog ng maayos. Nagigising s'yang pawis na pawis at laman ng panaginip niya si P. The woman is driving him nuts with those erotic dreams he's been having. "Then why did you come? Pwede ka naman tumanggi?" "And miss out on a good halo-halo? Beside
P was all smiles even after they left the canteen. Nakahahawa ang ngiti nito kaya imbes na dumiretso ng uwi, nag-stroll sila. They don’t know where they are, but as long as they have gas, they will keep exploring.They found a lookout and Ale parked the car. Excited na parang bata si P na lumabas ng kotse at tinanaw ang bayan ng Sta. Monica. “The view from the top is great.”Tumabi s’ya kay P at sumandal sa hood ng sasakyan. Tumingin s’ya sa babae. “Yes, it is.”Lumingon ito sa kaniya at ngumiti. “Thanks for the treat earlier. Okay naman ang acting ko?” Ale smiled a little and nodded. Acting or not, he thought she was a good kisser. "Have you been to West Palm Beach?" "Florida?" P nodded. "Yes, when I was younger. I went there with a few friends after high school graduation. I actually celebrated my birthday as well while we were there. I went back to New York after that trip then left for Australia the next day to attend university. That's how I met Tay." "W-Were you dating anyon
Napaamang si P at hindi 'yon inasahan ni Ale. Bakit parang nagulat ito? If she knew all along who he was, then she shouldn't look like this. "Remember in Florida? I was your first kiss." Hindi pa rin siya sumuko. Malakas ang kutob niyang ito ang batang babae noon. Kung bakit ayaw aminin ay hindi niya maintindihan. She smirked. "I don't know what you're talking about, but you can't be my first kiss. I had a boyfriend and his name is Romeo. We went to school together." Bigla siyang nakaramdam ng selos. "Romeo? If you're going to lie, pick some name that are not from a famous book or movie, Pietra." Tumawa ito at umiling. "Why would I lie? Ano naman ang mapapala ko kung magsinungaling ako sa 'yo?" And now, he is beginning to think he made a mistake. "Kung sino man 'yong Gambina mo, hindi ako 'yon kaya relax ka lang. Kung kayo talaga, magtatagpo kayo ulit." The woman even tapped his arm lightly a few times. "Tila na ang ulan. Umuwi na tayo at baka hinahanap na tayo ni Taylor." It's be
VANCOUVER, BC"What time should we meet?" She was on the phone with Cas. Hindi niya alam na pupunta rin ito sa Vancouver para bisitahin ang mga pinsan. If she knew, nagsabay na lang sana sila. "Well, what time do you finish your workshop?" "Uhm, four in the afternoon. I am staying in the same hotel where the conference is so I have time to get ready.""That's convenient. What do you feel like having? Steak? Seafood? Chicken? I would cook for you if I had my own place here, but I don't so I'm going to take you out." Alam niya ang sinasabi nito. The Carnegie family is close knit. Palibhasa ay napakatipid gumawa ng bata ng mga ito kaya kapag may pagkakataon ay palaging nagkikita-kita. It was a surprise for her dahil usually, most British family are reserved and see each other during the holidays. Hindi ka basta pwedeng bumisita with short notice. "I will eat anything. I am not picky." She was in the washroom at may kinse minutos silang break from the workshop. Nagreretouch s'ya ng ma