Chapter 11
Yup. I was pretty sure that I looked constipated sa mga litrato na magkakasama kaming apat. I tried my hardest, though, to look as normal as possible, but I was very much aware of Pablo touching my waist. Hindi ko alam kung bakit halos hindi ako makahinga kahit iyon lang naman ang ginawa niya.
Oh, right.
Love.
He did call me love.
Why was that making me feel things? It shouldn't make me feel things. This was just pretend. Hindi ko talaga siya boyfriend. Tomorrow, everything will go back to normal. I love my normal. I love my life in the metro. I love my job. I love my life.
He's just so fucking good at playing boyfriend. That's it. I made the right choice by choosing him. Hindi ko talaga dapat bigyan ng kulay iyong mga ginagawa niya. Instead, I should be a good girlfriend, too. After all, once umalis kami sa kasal na 'to, tapos na iyong role playing naming dalawa.
"Hi," bati ni Pablo kay Leo nang sa wakas ay matapos na iyong photoshoot namin. He was smiling—contrary sa reaksyon niya kanina na ni ayaw niyang banggitin iyong pangalan ni Leo. "We haven't been formally introduced."
Tumingin si Leo kay Pablo tapos ay sa akin. Tapos ay bumalik kay Leo iyong mga mata niya.
"Sorry," I said. "Pablo, this is Leo, the groom, obviously."
Tipid na ngumiti si Leo. I knew that this was awkward for him, too. Naging close naman kasi talaga kami na magkaibigan. I knew he was genuine sa friendship naming dalawa. It's just that he fell in love with my sister. Sinabi niya naman sa akin nung nalaman ko na. We had a serious talk about that. He said that he really loves my sister. Siguro kaya rin madali sa akin na pumunta sa Manila kasi... kasi ano ba iyong laban mo 'don 'di ba? Ano ang laban mo sa true love ng lalaking mahal mo?
Iyong tipong hindi pa nagsisimula iyong laban pero talo ka na agad.
"Si Kuya Pablo iyong boyfriend ni Ate," biglang singit ni Therese.
"Hi. Nice to meet you," sabi ni Leo habang naghandshake silang dalawa ni Pablo.
At that moment, all I could think about was... I wanted to leave. This was beyond awkward. Nandito kami sa may altar at naguusap apat habang sigurado ako na pinapanood kami ng lahat—heck, kung ako rin ang nasa audience, I was pretty sure that I wouldn't be able to take my eyes off this colossal mess.
"Pupunta kayo sa reception, 'di ba, Kuya?" tanong ni Therese kay Pablo imbes sa akin na kapatid niya.
Pablo smiled. "We'll go, right?" tanong naman ni Pablo na sa akin tumingin. I looked at him and gave him a nod. When he got the confirmation from me, tumingin siya kay Therese at tumango. "We'll be there."
Bahagyang tumawa si Therese. Ganyan iyong tawa niya dati nung sumasama siya sa amin ni Leo kapag gumagawa kami ng assignment.
"Si Ate ba ang boss?"
Bahagya ring tumawa si Pablo. He gently shook his head and let out a crisp laugh. "No, but we decide together," sabi ni Pablo tapos ay tumingin sa akin. He was looking at me in such a way that Therese was probably thinking that he couldn't take his eyes off of me. "Won't ever force her to do something that she doesn't like."
My line of vision was in front of Therese kaya naman nakita ko iyong bahagyang pagbabago ng ekspresyon sa mukha niya. But she literally just got married. I was probably imagining things.
"Congrats sa inyo," sabi ko to cut this awkward encounter short. "Diretso na kami sa reception."
Tumango si Leo na mukhang hindi rin nag-eenjoy sa paguusap na 'to.
BINABASA MO ANG
All For Show (COMPLETED)
ChickLit(Trope Series # 1) Cerise's younger sister is getting married and she's expected to attend. The logical thing to do was to attend (duh, it's her sister's wedding! It would be weird if she's not there) but how could she attend when her sister's gett...
