Dalumat

XIII. The Favorite

The rain had long left the evening, but the dampness in the air lingered. A good chunk of the crowd had begun to leave, and from where they'd vacated, Leni could see the puddles on the ground. The band had been playing music for over two hours now, playing tunes that the people readily sang and danced to. It was another successful rally and a day well-spent.

They had taken their dinner in one of the tents at the back. It wasn't a private affair; there were supporters, celebrities, other colleagues, and close friends who ate with them, too.

Risa was chatting with Teddy, who was seated beside her, hands gesturing animatedly in the air. Leni sat at the same table with them. Kit and Chel, who were sitting on either side of her, were having a conversation that she was once a part of but had tuned out since a few seconds ago.

Leni looked down at her watch. It was already a quarter past eleven. It wouldn't take an hour to reach the hotel they'd booked for the day. She hadn't been there yet, but her things were already there in her room waiting for her, as well as a soft, comfortable bed. It'd been a long day.

One of the people at their table stood up, announcing that he was going to leave first. Some of the people around them were slowly retiring for the day, too, politely greeting her goodbye before going out of the tent. Leni took it as an opening to excuse herself from the conversation and got up from her seat. She walked around the table, behind talking heads and empty plates, to Risa's chair. Risa was still busy talking to Teddy when Leni placed her hands on Risa's shoulders.

Risa, in surprise, stopped mid-speech. She looked up to see who it was, and when she saw that it was Leni, she reached up to touch one hand on her shoulder.

Leni looked down at Risa, and, remembering that Teddy was there, smiled at him, too.

"You want to go na?" Risa asked first, which surprised Leni a little.

"Mauna na 'ko. Pagod na." She laughed lightly. "Mahina ang kalaban."

"I'll go with you. Okay lang?"

Leni squeezed Risa's shoulders. "Okay lang."

Risa got up from her chair then, bidding Teddy goodbye. Her standing up caught the attention of the other people at the table. The loud music almost drowned out the unanimous "Alis na kayo?"

"Mauna na kami," Leni said to them. "Maaga pa bukas."

The two of them gave the people at the table one last goodbye before leaving the tent together. Leni's security detail followed behind them; she had already told her staff to go first or whenever they wanted.

They walked to the parking lot through the back, avoiding puddles on the way. Some supporters greeted them, but they were kind enough to keep a distance. Leni and Risa walked side by side.

"Ando'n na ba ang driver mo?" Leni asked Risa.

"Ha?" Risa stopped walking. "What do you mean? Akala ko sabay tayo."

Leni stopped beside her. "Ihahatid sana kita sa sasakyan mo...?"

The two of them looked at each other, confused. Risa blinked blankly for a beat, then chuckled and pointed to something behind Leni.

"With that?"

Leni looked back to see her guards watching them. Sometimes, she forgot that they were even there. When she looked back at Risa again, Risa quickly slipped an arm around Leni's own before she could even say anything, or breathe.

"I want to ride with you," Risa said, pushing the inside of their arms together. "Nasa loob pa 'yung mga kasabay ko sana. Nauna na 'yung aides ko. I don't know where the driver is."