He Used to be Mine

Chapter 1:Seven Years After

It's not simple to say

That most days I don't recognize me

"Win, dalawang lasagna pa ulit," Win heard one of the waiters say. He works in the kitchen, attending to orders of pasta and other food on their menu.

Win works for "Rado's," a restaurant popular to business people around the town. Pitong buwan na rin siyang dito nagtatrabaho. The pay is good. It sustains, he figures, but the work is just absolutely tiring. Since the restaurant is located at the heart of the city, it is almost impossible to have zero guests on a weekday. Kapag weekend naman ay hindi bababa sa one-fourth lang ng customer ang nababawas.

Be that as it may, Win cannot complain dahil kailangan niyang kumayod, not only for himself but for his one and only, Nyle: his seven-year old son, ang kanyang pinakamamahal.

"Mga fifteen minutes, Kuya Bogs," Win informed the waiter. Then, he started placing the pan in the oven and continued working on the other orders. When the oven pinged, Win immediately took the pan out and served this on the counter. Hindi na bago ang lahat ng ito sa kanya. Having been able to cook for customers for seven months is an extraordinary feat, considering how fast-paced everything is at Rado's. Pero he managed to do the job well, lalo na matapos ang isa't kalahating buwan ng pag-aaral ng buong proseso.

"Win, may gustong kumausap sayo," sabi ni Khao, Win's friend and a waiter sa restaurant.

"Bakit? Anong problema?" tanong ni Win pabalik.

"Well, nag-iinarte dun sa lasagna niya," sagot naman ni Khao, sinamahan pa ng mabilis na pag rolyo ng mga mata, halatang naiinis.

"Anong inirereklamo? E, pare-pareho naman ang luto ng mga iyan." sagot din ni Win, bahagyang naiinis. He removed his apron and walked through the kitchen door going to the main dining hall.

As Win walks through the dining tables, he sees a woman dressed up in a red sheath dress with its fit just exactly the same as her form. She's sitting down but Win can tell that the dress is nipped in the waistline, giving her that sexier look. Mukhang mayaman mula pagkabata. Win immediately thought.

"Were you the one who prepared this?" The woman condescendingly says. Napansin agad ni Win ang pagtaas ng kilay nito ng tingnan siya. Mapangmata pinadaan pa nito ang tingin mula ulo hanggang paa ni Win.

"Yes, Ma'm. May I ask what's wrong with your order?" Win politely answered back. An increasing feeling of irritation is rising within him. He tries to control himself from being rude because he knows how the restaurant operates. Most of its staff are polite and respectful because they owe it to their boss. Abot hanggang langit ang kabaitan ni Sir Tay sa kanilang lahat na mga empleyado. Kaya ang tanging maisusukli nila ay ang pag-igihin ang kanilang mga trabaho.

"I didn't know that you actually serve lasagna with raw meat! You could've told us so we didn't actually bother to eat here." The woman is now using sarcasm in her tone. She's mocking Win with her piercing glare. Hindi rin naman maintindihan ni Win kung anong sinasabi ng babae. All of their menus are standard. Prepared na lahat ng pagkain, gagawin na lamang ang mga ito according to the instructions na bigay sa kanila ng chef.

"Ma'm, may I be allowed to taste it, please?" Win then motions to take a spoon from the counter and heads back to take a bite from the lasagna that the woman was complaining about. He tasted it as part of their standard operating procedure that when a customer complains, they must taste the food and replace it afterwards once they figure out what's wrong.