CHAPTER 2

When Ali found out about the incident that happened at the bar, she immediately went to me, nonstop as always, half worried and half teasing, clearly trying to confirm if I was really okay.

“Girl, seriously? Bakit ngayon mo lang sinabi?” she kept asking, her voice full of disbelief habang sunod siya nang sunod sa akin na parang hindi ako pwedeng makaiwas sa mga tanong niya.

I could only sigh, shaking my head a little as I continued what I was doing. “I’m fine, Ali. It already happened.”

A week had already passed since that night. And thankfully, nothing like it happened again.

Thank God, the man who harassed me never came back to the bar. “Sabi ng mga coworkers ko ay ipina-banned na raw yon sa bar.” I said. The management didn’t take it lighty, mabuti naman. And somehow, hearing that gave me a small sense of relief.

“Good. Dapat lang sa kanya,” Ali said firmly, crossing her arms like she personally made the decision herself.

“But still, sana sinabi mo agad ng mas maaga sa akin. I would’ve gone there myself,” she added, half serious, half dramatic, like she was actually ready to start something if needed.

I let out a small laugh, shaking my head. “And do what exactly? Start a war?”

Ali smirked immediately, without hesitation. “Maybe.”

“Edi mas lalong nag alangan trabaho ko?” Dagdag ko pa.

That made me laugh a little more, real this time.

“Alam mo ba, while I was calming myself… I met this guy na ewan ko ba bigla nalang ata sumunod sa akin after nung nangyari.” Kwento ko kay Ali, habang bahagyang umiiling pa rin na parang hindi ko pa rin ma-process hanggang ngayon.

Ali immediately reacted, her eyes widening a little.

Ayan nanaman siya sa pagiging OA niya.

“Huh? Sumunod? Like, as in sinundan ka talaga?” she asked, leaning closer, halatang invested na agad sa kwento ko.

I nodded slowly. “Yeah. Hindi ko rin alam bakit. Pero he was there. Parang… he just appeared at the right time, I guess.”

“Pogi rin siya.” Tumatawa kong sambit.

Ali raised a brow, crossing her arms. “Okay, that sounds suspicious already.”

I let out a small laugh, shaking my head. “Hindi naman siya scary. More like… I don’t know. Calm? Pero weirdly firm. Parang may authority aura niya, pero hindi naman bossy.”

Ali squinted at me like she was trying to analyze every word I said. “And? Anong ginawa niya?”

I looked down for a second, inaalala kung paano niya ako kinakausap, how he looked at me like he wasn’t just hearing words but actually reading what I felt.

“He told me not to go back sa work na gano’n yung state ko,” I admitted softly. “Parang he noticed na I wasn’t okay even if I was acting fine.”

“Oh e ano ginawa mo? Sinunod mo siya?” Tanong ni Ali.

“Hinila ako e, nag road trip kami.” Kibit balikat kong sambit.

“Himala nga hindi pa rin ako natanggal sa trabaho e.” Biro ko pa kay Ali na agad naman akong sinamaan ng tingin.

“Oooh,” she muttered. “So concerned guy?”

I immediately shook my head, quick. “No, no, hindi gano’n. It wasn’t like that. More like… I don’t know. Parang he’s just didn’t like what he was seeing. Depensa ko.

“Naitanong mo ba ang pangalan ni Mr. Mysterious guy?” Taas kilay niyang tanong.

“Syempre hindi.” Tumatawang sambit ko.

“Ano ba yan?!” Reklamo ni Ali na medyo naiinis pa.

I sighed, pushing her lightly on the shoulder. “Ali, wala. I just met him. Don’t make it weird.

But even as I said it, I couldn’t fully ignore the fact that I kept remembering his voice.

“Diyan ka na nga at may trabaho pa ako.” Paalam ko kay Ali habang tinatapos ko na ang usapan namin, ramdam ko na rin yung pagod na bumabalik sa katawan ko.

Hindi na niya ako hinabol ng tanong, pero alam kong may ngiti pa rin siya sa likod ng tingin niya, parang hindi pa tapos sa mga iniisip niya tungkol sa kwento ko.

I turned away and walked toward my room.

“Nandon kaya siya mamaya? After nung incident hindi ko na siya nakita ulit.” Napapailing kong bulong sa aking sarili.

I walked toward my clothes, slowly getting ready for work again. Habang nagbibihis, hindi ko maiwasang maulit sa isip ko yung mga nangyari nitong mga nakaraang araw.

That guy I met… the one who somehow made me stop for a moment even when I was already trying to move on.

“Ang gulo,” I whispered to myself, shaking my head slightly habang inaayos ko yung sarili ko sa harap ng salamin.

“Ang gulo ng nararamdaman ko.” Nakanguso kong sambit sa harap ng salamin.

When I arrived at the bar, I barely even had time to settle in before my manager called me over.

“By any chance, marunong ka ba mag-timpla ng mga alak? Like bartending?” She asked, her tone is direct but not unkind, habang sinusukat ako ng tingin niya na parang may kino-consider siyang mas malalim kaysa sa simpleng tanong lang.

I think nakita niya na may experience ako sa pag ba-bartending, and absent ngayon yung isa kong kakilala na nasa counter kaya mukhang ipapasok ako ron.

I blinked at her, slightly caught off guard.

The bar around us was already slowly coming alive. The lights were dimming into that familiar night setting, music building up little by little, and the whole place starting to shift into its usual chaos. Ang mga staff ay mabilis ang galaw, chinecheck ang mga baso at shot glass, mga bote ng alak, and stations, like everything needed to be perfect before the rush started. It was that kind of energy na alam mong hindi na titigil hanggang madaling araw.

I hesitated for a moment, thinking.

“We’re a bit short-staffed tonight. And the guests are more demanding than usual.” Malambing niyang sambit kaya wala na rin akong nagaw akung hindi ang um-oo.

Habang busy ako sa pagtitimpla ng mga alak na orders, mabilis ang galaw ng mga kamay ko at naka focus lang sa ginagawa. Hanggang sa may isang pamilyar na boses akong narinig sa gitna ng ingay ng bar.

It made me pause for a split second.

It was him.