"WHAT is he doing here?" Johanna asked while looking at Mae.
"Uh, ano kasi, Johanna. Siya iyung . . . " napatingin ako kay Mae, nag-iwas kaagad siya ng tingin saakin. Animo'y takot ito na ikinataas ng aking kilay. Then, she suddenly whispered, " . . . kasintahan ni Ma'am Gwen."
I stared back at Johanna, only to see her being as surprised as me when I found out she's Gwen's sister. Hindi kaagad siya nagsalita, ngunit ilang saglit pa ay tumaas ang kamay niya sabay turo saakin habang nakatingin parin kay Mae.
"S-siya? Kasintahan ng kapatid ko?" Halos nautal pa ito sa una, na para bang nakakagulat ang mga pangyayari ngayon. Well, I'm also surprised right here! Can't she see?
"Oo," sagot ni Mae. Kapagkuwan ay nagsalita ito sa mahinang boses na para bang ayaw nitong marinig ko ang sasabihin niya, "hindi ba binigyan na kita ng litrato? Akala ko ba kilala mo na?"
My eyebrows furrowed. What? She gave her a picture of me? What picture?
Napatingin ako kay Johanna. Sa gulat niya ngayon, bakit parang hindi niya naman ako kilala? We even met earlier and she didn't recognize me.
"Pero akala ko siya iyung nakapula!" sagot bigla ni Johanna, halatang mas nagulat ito.
Naka-pula? Who is that?
"H-hindi! Katrabaho niya siguro ang nakita mo," napangiwi si Mae rito.
Napataas naman ang kilay ko. Si Emman ba ang tinutukoy nila? Don't tell me litrato kasama ng katrabaho ko ang ibinigay ni Mae?
Mahina akong natawa dahil sa naisip. Sabay namang napalingon ang dalawa saakin.
"What are you laughing at?" Johanna asked.
I shake my head, while smiling in amusement. "Nothing. Bakit kasi hindi kayo naghanap ng solo na litrato?"
Nagkatinginan kaagad ang dalawa. Mae smiled apologetically at Johanna as she whispered, "sorry."
"Nakakahiya," balik-bulong ni Johanna dito na rinig na rinig ko naman.
Napailing-iling ako. I can't help but to chuckle while looking at them. Kahit na nakakatawa ito, pansin na pansin ko parin ang pagiging malapit nila sa isa't-isa.
"Ahem," Johanna suddenly cleared her throat. Tumingin kaagad siya saakin na para bang wala siyang ginawang kung ano, "so? You really are my sister's boyfriend?"
Napatitig ako sa kaniya. As an answer, I shrugged, "isn't it obvious?"
"Tss," aniya. "Siguraduhin mo lang na maayos ka. Patay ka talaga saakin kapag sinaktan mo ang kapatid ko."
Napakunot-noo si Mae habang nakatingin saamin, "kilala niyo na ang isa't-isa?"
We both nodded, at the same time. Pero si Johanna ang nagsalita pagkatapos, "I caught him doing a crime."
Matapos iyung marinig, kaagad na napataas ang kilay ko. Looks like she's not going to let go of that, huh? Okay, hindi ko rin naman din iyun makakalimutan. That memory was probably pinned in my mind already.
Because I want to take that picture back. Kahit na ilegal.
"Krimen?!" Gulat na tanong ni Mae. Tumango naman kaagad si Johanna na ikinaawang ng labi ko.
What the heck? Sinisira niya ang pangalan ko, ah!
No. I'll definitely stop this.
Kaagad kong ini-ekis ang dalawang braso sa harapan ng dibdib. "Talking about crimes, huh?" sambit ko, napangisi kaagad ako kay Johanna. "May ginawa ka rin namang mali. Bakit ako lang ang masama rito?"
Her eyebrows furrowed as she point at herself. "Ako?" She laughed in disbelief, "excuse me, Mister. Malinis ako, 'no."
I smirked, "really?"
Tumango kaagad siya, buong confidence pa ata isinugal niya doon. Ngunit imbes na hayaan ito, hindi ako nagpatinag. I know I need to stop. She'll get mad at me even more. But seriously. This woman entertains me in a reason I don't even know. Hindi ko talaga mapigilan ang sarili dahil doon.
"Let's talk about stalking someone else's picture," lumapit ako sa kaniya ng ilang hakbang habang diretso ang tingin sa mga mata nito. "Stalking is a crime, too. Ngayon, ako lang ba ang may mali dito?"
"Y-you don't even have an evidence!" asik niya kaagad.
Napangisi ako sabay tingin kay Mae, "I have her. Siya ang nagsabi tungkol doon."
Tinaasan niya kaagad ako ng kilay, "huwag mo nga siyang idamay dito. Ako ang nag-utos, kaya bakit ka nandadamay ha?"
Hindi ako nagsalita. I stayed looking at her, directly in her eyes. Pansin ko ang paghila niya kay Johanna papunta sa likod niya na para bang pinoprotektahan niya ito. I can clearly see that she's worried.
I gritted my teeth to suppress a smile. I'm just actually teasing her. Wala talaga akong planong seryosohin ang bagay na ito. Yet, she's genuinely worried.
And damn, why do I find it adorable?
"Babe?" In the middle of all that thoughts, narinig ko ang boses ni Gwen. Like a sleeping man who suddenly heard the alarm clock, I woke up from observing everything about Johanna. Napakurap-kurap kaagad ako. Ilang saglit pa ay nilingon ko si Gwen, ganoon rin ang dalawang nasa harapan ko ngayon.
Gwen is behind us, kunot-noo itong nakatitig sa amin. Nang makita ko iyun, naglakad kaagad ako papalapit sa kaniya.
I totally forgot why I left the dining room.
Bago pa ako makapagsalita, nagtanong na kaagad si Gwen. "Why are you here?"
"Ah, sinundan kita ng umalis ka." Sagot ko rito sabay tingin kay Johanna, "I just happen to meet your sister in the middle of finding you."
Gwen didn't answer, instead she turned her head on Johanna. Itinuon ko ang tingin kay Johanna. She's looking at her sister, too. Obviously longing for her.
I can't help but to smile at the thought. I'm sure Gwen would like that, right?
"Welcome back," Gwen's cold voice suddenly made me stilled. Ilang saglit pa ay napalingon ako rito.
"Yeah," Johanna answered in a small voice. Hindi man ako nakatingin dito, bakas parin ang ngiti sa labi niya. "You too, Gwenneth."
Gwen rolled her eyes and turn her back on her, "tara na, babe. Ihahatid kita sa kwarto mo."
Hindi kaagad ako nakasagot. I can't get my eyes off of Gwen. Seeing that look on Johanna's eyes, that longing for her sister, can't Gwen recognize any of that? Kahit na ako na nakatingin lang, kitang-kita iyun. Kulang na nga lang yakapin ni Johanna si Gwen.
Pero . . . wala akong ibang makita kay Gwen kundi ang pagkairita sa kapatid. And with all of that, Johanna did nothing but to smile at her.
"Babe?" Gwen turned her head on me. Doon ko lang naalalang tinatawag niya pala ako.
"Ah, yeah." I snapped out of it immediately. "Sige. Tara na," sagot ko kaagad at sumunod sa kaniya.
We walked in the staircase silently. Walang nagsasalita. Both of us seemed to have our own thoughts. Hindi ko alam kung anong iniisip ni Gwen. But mine, I seriously want to know what's going on with her and Johanna. It's just that . . . it bothers me.
Natigilan ako sa pag-iisip nang makarating kami sa harapan ng kwarto. Matapos kaming makapasok doon, that's where Gwen smiled as if there's nothing going on, "here's your room. Pasensya ka na at malayo sa kwarto ko. The room beside mine is occupied at the moment kasi eh."
She's looking around the room, as if she's observing if there's something wrong in here. Inilibot ko rin naman ang tingin ko. I think it's just fine.
"Ugh. The maids here aren't really good. Kung sana lang nilinisan nila ang katabi ng kwarto ko." She, then turned at me, "you should've be staying in a room more comfortable than this."
Huminga ako ng malalim. Ilang saglit pa ay niyakap ko siya ng mahigpit.
"That's fine," mahina kong sambit rito. Niyakap niya ako pabalik. It's so tight that I can sense something's really wrong.
"Your things are already here," sambit niya. "Pinaakyat ko na kanina."
"Thanks," sagot ko rito sabay sulyap sa kama. Doon ko lang napansin na gaya nga ng sinabi niya, nasa kama na ang mga gamit ko.
Huminga ako ng malalim. She's still hugging me tight. Damn it. Why can't you open up to me, Gwen?
"Babe?" Mahina kong sambit.
"Hmm?"
"You know that . . . you can count on me, right?" I told her, trying to make her open up to me.
"I know," she said as she hugged me tightly. "That's why I love you."
Ngumiti ako nang marinig iyun, "yeah. I love you, too."
Silence crept between us both. I don't know what's inside her mind right now. In times like this, even if I do want to know, I need to wait a bit. Sigurado akong mabigat ang nararamdaman niya ngayon. So let's wait. Just a little bit. I know she'll tell me eventually.
Ilang saglit pa ay kumawala siya sa pagkakayakap saakin. "I need to go now. Kakausapin pa ako ni Eric."
Tumango ako. Eric is her gay manager. I'm sure they're going to talk about her project in Canada.
"Sige," naglakad kami papunta sa pintuan at binuksan iyun. "Goodnight, babe."
We're facing each other as we bid our goodbyes. Normally, I'll be the one who would kiss her goodnight. Ngunit nang makita ko si Johanna kasama si Mae na kakaakyat lang ng hagdanan at papunta na sa direksyon namin, hindi kaagad ako nakakilos.
I stayed, looking at her. Dahil sa nakatuon ang atensyon ko kay Johanna, hindi man lang ako nakagalaw nang si Gwen mismo ang humalik saakin.
She closed her eyes and kissed my lips goodnight. It's just a peck yet it made me stilled. Ilang segundo akong napatingin kay Gwen habang nakalapat ang labi namin. Ngunit matapos ang segundong iyun, tumuon ulit ang tingin ko sa taong nakatitig saamin.
As Gwen kissed me for seconds, my eyes locked on Johanna. It lasted for seconds but she looked away after I caught her staring.
But it seriously made my heart skipped a beat. And it confuses me to think whether it's because of Gwen or . . . her sister.