Kabanata 14
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Hindi ko pinansin si Anton kahit nag iinit na ang pisngi ko. I glanced at him once and saw that he's still looking at me while there was still a smile on his face. I glared at him but he only chuckled. I looked away.
The party started. Kyle went out to greet the guests. Pero sa kanya ang maraming bumati. The party is not that formal even though their whole family is here. Their family even enjoys it.
"Hi, Anton!" Si Jaz na may kasamang babae.
"Hi," doon palang naalis ang tingin sa akin ni Anton.
Jaz is already dressed. She's wearing a red dress, exposing a bit of her body. I know she always wears that but she's so beautiful now. She's also with a messy ponytail and she became even more beautiful.
"Let me introduce Kyle's little sister," hinila nya ang babaeng mukhang nahihiya. "This is Keyllie."
The girl looks so young but tall. She looks shy. Her cheeks are getting red. She's wearing a pink dress with her sneakers. She looks cute. Siguro nasa sixteen na sya? I don't know. But she looks young. Kamukha nya si Kyle ng kaunti. She smiled shyly to greet us.
"Good evening..." even her voice is soft.
"Hello," I smiled a bit.
"Pasensya na kayo. Mahiyain, eh!" Jaz chuckled. "Wag ka nang mahiya! Mga kaibigan ko sila!"
Keyllie smiled. Pero kahit ganon, halatang nahihiya pa rin sya kaya tumawa ulit si Jaz.
"This is Victoria and Anton. They are your Kuya's friend too."
Keyllie nodded slowly and smiled again. Natawa ulit si Jaz at nagpaalam na. Mukhang ipapakilala nya sa lahat si Keyllie. Mahiyain nga naman at siguro gusto nyang magkaroon ng kaibigan kahit papaano. Sabi ni Jaz galing pang ibang bansa, eh.
"You're not hungry?" Tanong ni Anton.
I looked away from Jaz and looked at him. I shook my head and drank the wine I'm holding. I didn't answer. I already answered that earlier so I will not answer. Lalo na at nakakaramdam pa rin ako ng hiya.
"I'm not with anyone. I don't know those girls in our table," he explained.
Mas lalong uminit ang pisngi ko. "Hindi ko naman tinatanong."
He chuckled. Wala na yata akong mas ihihiya pa. Kaya tinignan ko nalang ng masama si Anton bilang panlaban manlang sa kanya. Kaya lang hindi sya natinag. Nagtaas lang sya ng isang kilay at ngumisi. Nag iwas nalang ulit ako ng tingin. Medyo iritado sa kanya.
Marami pa rin ang bumabati sa akin. At kapag nakikita nila si Anton na kasama ko, magbubulungan. I just don't pay attention because I'm used to it. Anton is known at school so it's just normal to talk about him when he's with a girl. Marami pang nagkakagusto. Tss.
Nagtagal ang party ng halos dalawang oras. Anton didn't leave my side. Sometimes Jaz comes to us to talk but also leaves immediately because her relatives was calling her. Hindi na rin kami nagkaroon ng pagkakataong makapag usap ni Kyle. Binati sya ni Anton kanina at umalis na sya dahil busy sa mga bisita. Hindi na ulit nakabalik.
I also got hungry later. I regret drinking because now my stomach hurts a little. I wasn't really hungry earlier but I haven't eaten yet. Kaya nang kakain na ako, si Anton na ang kumuha ng pagkain ko. Hindi nya yon kailangang gawin pero makulit sya. Sya nalang daw. Nakangisi pa sa akin kaya naiirita ako. Hindi nya yata makalimutan yung kanina. My embarrassment keeps coming back.
I can still see Mayumi at Anton's friends table. They are still there and laughing. The others are drunk. I always see Mayumi looking at our way so my irritation always cominv back. Mayumi frowned as she stared at me and I'm sure she was wondering now who she was seeing. If it was Elise or... her twin who threatened her.
I wanted to smirked but I'm too irritated to do that. Especially when I also see her stare at Anton. She watches his every move. Hindi ko alam kung bakit ako naiirita pero nag iiwas nalang ako ng tingin.
"You know her?" Hindi ko na napigilan.
Hindi pa yata matatapos ang party. Kanina pa kami rito. Pwede na akong umuwi ngayon pero hindi ko pa mahanap si Jaz. At ayoko pang umuwi dahil...
"Mmm? Who?" Tanong ni Anton.
"Her," tingin ko sa table nila kaya napatingin rin sya roon. "Mayumi."
"Oh? You know her?" Inosente nyang tanong.
"You know her?" Ulit ko, naiirita dahil hindi nya sinasagot agad ang tanong ko.
Tinitigan nya ako. Hindi pa nakakatulong ang umaangat nyang labi para sa ngiti. I don't know what kind of funny face I have and why he is smiling. I'm already irritated here. Kunot noo ko syang tinignan.
"Yeah. Sinama lang sya ng pinsan nya rito na kaibigan ko," si Anton.
"Matagal mo nang kilala?" Usisa ko.
"Nope. Ngayon lang," he smirked. "Why?"
Inirapan ko sya. Sa ngisi nya kasi, siguradong may iba na syang iniisip. He chuckled.
"Why are you in so much bad mood today?" He chuckled again.
"I know her..." binalik ko ang iritadong tingin sa table nila.
I saw Mayumi still staring. She quickly averted her eyes and swallowed hard when she saw me looking at her. Umirap ako dahil mukhang natatanto na nya kung sino ako sa sama ng tingin ko.
"Oh? A friend?" Anton asked.
I chuckled without humor. "As if..."
"Then what? You looked angry at her," ngayon kunot na ang noo nya sa pagtataka.
"She bullied my sister, Elise. I saw in a video what she did. Sinampal, sinipa habang nasa dilim. I'm sure she did a lot more but I didn't watch the whole video because I was so angry," parang bumalik ang galit ko.
Anton was silent for a moment and looked at their table. He frowned and looked at me. He's serious now habang ako kunot na kunot ang noong nakatingin sa kawalan.
"Did you do something?" He asked.
"Kaya ako umuwi rito dahil sa kanya. Dahil napanood ko ang video. Pinuntahan ko sa school at... pinagbantaan lang ng kaunti. Ang yabang yabang sa video pero duwag naman pala sa personal..." umirap ako.
"Pinuntahan mo sa school?"
"Yes. Pinagtanggol ko ang kapatid ko," tumingin ako sa kanya.
"What did you do?" Kunot noo nyang tanong, halatang hindi nagustuhan ang mga sinabi ko.
Kumunot ang noo ko. "Bakit? Did you know that girl? You're a friend with her? Or... your girlfriend?" Hindi ko alam kung bakit nakaramdam ako ng kakaiba ng banggitin ko yon.
"I said I just meet her now. I don't know her. I'm just asking what did you do because what if something might have happened to you?" Seryoso na talaga sya ngayon.
Napakurap kurap ako roon. Bahagyang natigilan dahil sa kaseryosohan nya at halos galit na sa akin. Gusto kong ngumuso pero pinigilan ko.
"Pumunta lang ako roon at pinagbantaan sya," sabi ko.
"Sabi mo may napanood kang video. What if she did the same to you?"
I chuckled. As if that would happen to me. That will never happen to me. Kaya kong ipagtanggol ang sarili ko at hindi ako basta basta nasasaktan ng kahit sino.
"Kaya ko ang sarili ko," tanging sinabi ko.
"Tss..."
Tumingin ako sa kanya. Kunot pa rin ang noo nya habang nakatingin sa akin. Ako naman ngayon ang ngumisi. Tinitigan ko sya ng mabuti at tinagilid ang ulo sa kabila. Pinanood nya ang mga ginagawa ko. Mas lalo akong ngumisi.
"Why? Are you worried?" I teased.
"Obviously, Victoria. I'm worried. Kung ganon pala ang mga ginagawa nya, bakit ka pa pumunta roon? What if she did the same to you?"
Napakurap kurap ako roon. Sa huli pilit akong tumawa pata itago ang gulat na nararamdaman. He's so straightforward, huh? But then maybe he's just worried because I'm his friend.
"No one can hurt me. Kaya ko ang sarili ko and see? I'm fine now. Walang nangyari sa akin na masama. She can't even fight back at me because she's a coward. Walang binatbat," I rolled my eyes.
He sighed. Masama pa rin ang tingin nya sa akin. I chuckled at him. Ngayon hindi na pilit yon. Hindi ko alam kung bakit natutuwa ako ngayong problemado ang mukha nya at nag aalala. I smiled at him while he's staring at me as if I comitted a very bad thing.
"I'm alright now, Anton," sabi ko.
"Tss..." halos irapan nya ako.
I chuckled again. He stared at me as I did that. Eventually he walked closer. I slowly lost my smile. He walked towards me and lifted up his hands. I was stunned when he fixed my hair on my forehead. He put the others behind my ears. When he put them on, his hands continued to go down to my cheeks. Bahagyang umawang ang labi ko.
"Don't do that again," he said.
"Tss. Para namang napaka delikado. Babae lang yon," sabi ko kahit naiilang na sa sobrang lapit nya.
"Kahit na," matalim ulit nya akong tinignan. "Don't do that again, Victoria."
"Fine," tss. Oa naman nito.
He stared at me for a long time. Seryoso ang mga mata nya at bahagyang namumungay. I quickly averted my eyes and pretended to be busy again with the water I'm holding. Bahagyang naalis ang kamay nya sa pisngi ko dahil sa pag iwas. I heard him sighed and stood properly. Nakahinga na ako ng maluwag dahil medyo malayo na sya ngayon.
The party ended happily. I enjoy it somehow. Sometimes Anton's friends calls him and even when I say he should go to them, he just stayed by my side. Hinayaan ko nalang at binabati ang mga bumabati sa akin.
Anton waited for our driver to pick me up. Nakapag paalam na ako kay Jaz at Kyle. Ganon na rin kay Keyllie na nahihiya pa rin. Binati ko lang ulit ng happy birthday at umuwi na. Doon palang rin umuwi si Anton nang makasakay na ako sa SUV namin.
Napag usapan namin ni Jaz kagabi na lalabas kami kasama si Elise. It's Sunday so Elise definitely has nothing to do. Jaz was so happy when I told her that Elise had nothing to do and she was free today. Lalabas kami at magkikita na sila ni Jaz.
"Matagal nya na akong gustong makilala?" Nakangiting tanong ni Elise.
"Yup," I smiled. "She said she wants to have a friend with a twin so..."
She smiled. She's also excited to meet Jaz. Alam nya kasing hindi ako palakaibigan kaya nagulat sya nang malaman na may kaibigan ako. Tinawanan ko dahil ganon pala nakakagulat yon. Wala nga naman akong kaibigan since then. Sila lang ni Irene.
Speaking of Irene. Tinignan ko si Elise. We're here in the car and on our way to the mall where we will meet Jaz. Sabi ni Jaz gusto nya roon para makapag bonding.
"Invite mo rin si Irene. Matagal ko na syang hindi nakakasama," sabi ko.
"Oh! Yes! Wait. I'll text her," si Elise at kinuha ang phone.
"I hope she's free..."
"Free yon! Wala nang gagawin ngayon, eh. Unless kung hindi pa nila natatapos ang group work nila. Kami kasi tapos na kagabi, eh."
Tumango ako. Kalaunan, pumayag nga si Irene. Elise was very happy. I smiled and was happy too. Kaya lang mas masaya akong masaya si Elise. It's nice watching her smile and be happy. We haven't been together for a long time and I'm so happy to be with her now. I missed her so much. I was never separated from her when we were kids so I was very sad when we separated. But I'm happy now that I'm now with her. I love her so much.
Jaz's eyes widened when she saw Elise and me. I want to laugh at her reaction. Sometimes she was so overreacting but now I can say that she's really very surprised and amazed.
"OMG! Hi!" Mabilis syang nakipag kamay kay Elise.
"Hello," Elise smiled.
"My gosh! Matagal na kitang gustong makilala! Magkamukhang magkamukha kayo ni Victoria! Ang gaganda nyo!"
I chuckled. Ngumiti si Elise at nagpasalamat. Jaz is wearing a white dress and her skirt is too short. That's her style so I just shrugged. Elise is wearing a denim skirt, red off shoulder and sneakers. And me, I'm wearing a white t-shirt, maong jacket, sky blue jeans and white sneakers. I just let my hair down.
Kung ano ano pa ang pinag usapan nina Elise at Jaz hanggang sa dumating na rin si Irene. Hindi alam ni Jaz na may makakasama pa kami. Hindi na rin namin nasabi dahil sa kadaldalan nya. Alam ko namang magugustuhan nyang may isa pa kaming kasama. Interesadong interesado yan sa buhay ko na kahit mga kaibigan ko gustong makilala.
"Victoria! I missed you!" Sinalubong ako ng yakap ni Irene.
"I missed you too. How are you?"
"Fine! Grabe! Ang tagal nating hindi nag-meet. Ang laki na ng pinagbago mo!"
I smiled. Kaunting kamustahan at pagpapakilala lang ang naganap at tumulak na kami sa mga pupuntahan. Jaz also plans to go shopping so Irene also went shopping. The three immediately became close. I just smiled watching them while talking.
Anton:
Good morning!
Anton:
You have plans for today?
Anton:
Still sleeping?
Anton:
Sleepyhead.
Anton:
Text me when you read my messages, okay? I'll just eat breakfast.
Iyon ang mga text ni Anton na hindi ko pala nabasa dahil sa sobrang paghahanda ngayong araw. Kanina pang umaga yon. Ngayon magtatanghali na.
Victoria:
Sorry. Hindi ko agad nakita. I'm just going to the mall with Jaz, Elise and Irene, my friend.
Mabilis na naman ang reply nya.
Anton:
Oh. Okay. You're also with Jaz's cousin?
Nanliit ang mga mata ko roon. Hindi ko alam kung bakit umangat ang gilid ng labi ko sa text nyang iyon.
Victoria:
Nope. Kyle is with her sister. Touring her around in Manila.
Anton:
Tss. Why did you know his plans?
Victoria:
Hindi ko alam. Sinabi lang ni Jaz.
Anton:
Oh! How are you there, by the way? Are you having fun?
Victoria:
Fine. Of course I'm having fun.
"Huy! Anong nginingiti ngiti mo dyan?" Si Jaz na nilapitan ako.
Mabilis kong tinago ko ang phone ko sa bulsa. Jaz's eyes narrowed at me. We are here at a shoe shop. Irene went shopping. Magkasama sila ni Elise. Akala ko kasama nila si Jaz pero nakabalik na pala rito si Jaz. Inirapan ko sya.
"Tapos ka na?" Pag iiba ko ng usapan na hindi yata tatalab sa kanya.
"Tapos na ako kaya nandito na ako. Tinatanong kita kung bakit ka nakangiti dyan. Sino yan? Boyfriend mo?" Usisa nya.
"Tss. Hindi, Jaz. Wala akong boyfriend."
Her eyes narrowed and she gave me a teasing look. Binunggo bunggo nya pa ako kaya iritado ko syang tinignan. She chuckled. Hindi naman na nagtanong kaya nakahinga ako ng maluwag. Kaya lang nandoon pa rin ang nanunuksong tingin.
Naglakad ulit kami papunta sa isang restaurant. Lunch na kaya kakain na kami. Pinili pa nila yung sa pinaka mahal na restaurant.
Anton:
That's good. I'm studying now.
Tinignan ko si Jaz at nakitang busy sya sa pakikipag tawanan kina Irene at Elise kaya nagtipa ako ng reply.
Victoria:
Then focus on your notes. Don't text me.
Anton:
Tss. Dapat pala hindi ko na sinabi.
Anton:
Just kidding. Haha.
Bahagya akong natawa roon. Umiling ako.
Victoria:
Focus.
Anton:
Yes, Ma'am. Eto na.
I couldn't help but smile. I put down my phone and shook my head. I crossed my arms and saw Irene's eyes. Mabilis kong winala ang ngiti at pilit na kinunot ang noo para maging seryoso. Tumikhim ako nang makitang pasimpleng lumalapit si Irene sa akin. Nauuna kasi silang maglakad.
"Why are you smiling?" Usisa nya
"I just saw a funny picture."
Sige... Lusot, Victoria.
"Oh? Hindi ka naman natatawa sa mga funny pictures, ah? Nakakapanibago ka naman..."
I glared at her. "May nakita lang akong nakakatawa, Irene. Iyon lang."
She chuckled. "Alright! You're so sungit! Hindi ka pa pala nagbabago!"
We had lunch. Marami kaming pinag uusapan habang kumakain. Kapag hindi ako nasasali sa usapan, tinitignan ko ang phone ko.
Anton:
I stopped studying for a moment because I will have my lunch. I can text you now, right?
Kahit pigilan ko, umaangat ang gilid ng labi ko. Gusto kong mairita sa nararamdaman pero mas nangingibabaw ang kung anong saya sa puso ko. Hindi ko maintindihan. At ayos lang kung... hindi ko na tuluyang maintindihan.
Victoria:
Tss. What your up to?
Anton:
Nothing. I just want to text you. Bawal ba? We're friends naman, right?
Victoria:
Geh.
Anton:
Kumakain na rin kayo?
Victoria:
Yup. You're also eating, right?
Anton:
Yes. Why?
Victoria:
Then you should focus on your food. Don't text me.
Anton:
Tsk.
I chuckled. Napatingin sa akin si Irene, Elise at Jaz dahil roon. Natigilan sila. Sa kauna unahang pagkakataon, ngayon palang nila ako nakitang tumawa ng ganon. Tumikhim ako.
"I saw a funny picture again..." palusot ko.