Trapped in a Candy

Chapter 46: Lose Control

Hinatid at sinamahan ako ni Jump papunta sa school gamit ang motor niya.

"You seem a little quiet, Softycakes."

Huh? Ano raw? Nag-graduate na ba ako from Softy to Softycakes?

"I'm... still a little worried about Charm," sagot ko sa kaniya na may halong lungkot.

"Why do you still care so much about her, even after finding out that she was a traitor all along?"

"Because everything we did together, every moment that I spent with her—it all felt genuine and true. It doesn't feel fake at all," paliwanag ko sa kaniya, "She was a true friend to me. Kaya kahit nasa Crossed Bones na siya, I still care for her a lot."

Jump cleared his throat before asking me, "S-So, gano'n ka rin ba sa akin no'ng nasa Crossed Bones ako?"

"Huh?"

"D-Did you also care for me like this?" Masungit 'yong pagkakatanong niya, pero naramdaman kong he was actually blushing.

"Why do you want to know?" I smirked.

Jump was acting kind of cute today, so I thought maybe I can tease him a little hehe.

"I'm just... investigating. Jeez!"

Grabe naman 'yong mood swing ng taong 'to.

"Shit!" Bigla siyang humiyaw.

"A-Ano'ng problema?" Nagulat ako sa kaniya.

Bigla-biglang huminto 'yong motor at nauntog tuloy ako sa helmet ni Jump. Bumaba muna kami sa motor at tiningnan niya ang condition nito.

"Wait for a bit."

"O-Okay. Sure."

"Fuck!"

"Is there something wrong?"

"Mukhang magko-commute tayo ngayon, Softy."

"Alright, no problem!"

Naglakad na siya paalis at humabol ako sa kaniya.

"Wait, Jump! How about your motorcycle? Iiwan mo lang ba basta roon?"

"Yup. It was not mine, anyway."

"What? Don't tell me ninakaw mo lang 'yon?"

"Don't worry, I stole it from some corrupt politician."

"Uhm. Nasaan 'yong motor na ginagamit mo palagi dati?"

"It was confiscated from me when I left WSC. Tutal property naman talaga 'yon ng WSC."

"They haven't issued you a new one yet?" I asked him.

Bigla niyang kinatok 'yong noo ko.

"Aw! What's that for?"

"Have you forgotten? I'm not officially back yet. We need to be successful with this mission first."

"Oh, right..."

Werode the LRT. The train gates opened and we entered the middle cabin. Medyomaraming tao kaya naman natulak kami bigla sa gilid.

"Tsk. I'm sorry," inis niyang sabi.

"Why? Ok lang naman ako."

"Because you're with me, you had to ride the men's section. I'm sorry."

Napalingon ako sa mga kasama namin sa train. Puro lalaki nga. "It's okay! I don't mind. Dito rin ako sumasakay kapag ito 'yong naabutan kong bukas at late na ako haha."

He pulled and leaned me against the window, then he placed his arms at each of my side, holding onto the handrails and caging me inside.

Ay! Medyo nakakailang 'yong pwesto namin. I know he's just protecting me, but...

I took a look at his arms. Whoa. His arms are so bumpy! Ang daming humps, at sobrang hot ng mga bumabakat na ugat sa braso niya.

Dumami ang mga tao pagdating sa kasunod na istasyon kaya medyo magkadikit na ang mga katawan naming dalawa.

"Tsk. Sorry Softy," he grunts.

"I-It's okay!"

"There! A vacant seat!" Biglang turo ni Jump. He wrapped his arms around me, escorting me as we pushed our way through the crowd. Umupo na ako roon sa nabakanteng upuan.

Main station 'yong kasunod kaya maraming mga naglabasan. Naging maluwag na sa wakas ang train at nakaupo na rin si Jump sa tabi ko.

"Finally! That was bad," buntong-hininga ni Jump.

"Huh? Ayos lang naman sa akin. Hindi naman ako na-hassle," aniko.

"Ikaw 'yon. Ako sobrang na-hassle." Nagbuntong-hininga na naman siya.

"Hahaha. Hindi ka ba sanay mag-commute? Nilalakad ko nga lang papasok sa school dati, eh. Kahit medyo malayo, para makatipid at maka-shopping haha."

"What do you take me for?" Tumingin siya sa'kin, "It's not about the commute. In case you didn't know, I was trained under the harshest conditions, Softy. I wasn't referring to the commute," he squinted his eyes.

"Eh ano?"

"I'm trained for a lot of things... but not this." He looked away.

"What do you mean by 'this?'" Hindi ko siya maintindihan.

"Tsk! Your body was way too close and it's right there in front of me! You had no idea how hard that was for me." He gave out another deep sigh.

Namula tuloy ako dahil sa sinabi niya.

"I have self-control when it comes to a lot of things, but you're making me lose my control." His gaze went back to my face.

"A-Ano'ng gusto mong gawin ko?"

"Nothing. Just behave."

Ako ba talaga 'yong dapat mag-behave? Or 'yong manly desires mo? Sigh.

Does this mean that Jump somehow likes me? I mean we did kiss, but he hasn't told me anything yet. Pinaglalaruan ko 'yong dulo ng palda ko dahil parehas kaming awkward ngayon.

Although, deep inside ay medyo napapangiti ako. Kasi para kaming mag-boyfriend at girlfriend na sabay pumapasok sa school hehe.

"Let's go, Softy!"

Binanggit na 'yong station namin at bumaba na kami.

***

Pagdating ng school, pinauna na akong pumasok ni Jump.

"You go ahead. I'll figure out how to go in, wala na kasi akong mga WSC perks unlike before. Basta I'll just message you for updates."

I attended my classes. Tama nga si Jump, hindi pumasok si Charm ngayon. Hindi rin kaya siya papasok bukas?

I remember... she really takes her studies seriously even though she was just an undercover agent. Bigla tuloy akong nalungkot, hindi tuloy siya nakakapag-aral ngayon dahil sa sitwasyon. Hindi tuloy siya nakakasama sa mga bonding at katuwaan namin nila Trisha at Rona. Nami-miss ko 'yong malakas niyang pagtawa. 'Yong mga nakakatuwang hirit niya sa'min. I know Charm. I know that there's a kind heart inside of her. I can feel it.

Bigla akong nakakuha ng text at tiningnan ko naman agad kung kanino galing. Nag-text si Jump ng, "Come here quick. Pretend you'll just go to the CR. Nasa school records room ako."

Huh? I wonder why he's asking me so suddenly.

"E-Excuse me, ma'am! May I go to the CR?" I asked the teacher.

"Alright, Miss Fernandez."

Pagkalabas ng classroom, tumakbo agad ako papunta sa files room. I saw Jump inside, holding an open folder and reading it.

"What did you find out?" I asked him.

"Something very interesting."