Freedom and the Beast

Eleven

Chapter 11

IT WAS STILL dark outside when I woke up from my rest. I noticed that I was still in the living room of Domino's condo unit, but I was already wrapped with a thick, black comforter. I rubbed my eyelids using my knuckles before sitting. I grabbed the comforter to cover my nakedness.

"You're awake," Domino's rough voice echoed inside the dark living room. I find him sitting on the edge of the long sofa. He's already wearing a plain white sando and black sweatpants. May kalong siyang laptop kaya nasisinagan ng ilaw nito ang kanyang gwapong mukha.

I stared at him a little longer. His black hair was a mess. Parang galing din siya sa pagkakahiga dahil medyo mapungay ang kanyang mga mata. He stifled a yawn before he get close to me and brushed off the hair blocking my face. My heart skipped a beat at his sudden action.

"W-What time is it?" I asked and tried to look away to hide the blush forming on my cheeks.

"Three in the morning. Go back to sleep. Bukas ka na bumalik sa unit mo."

I bit my lower lip. Hindi ko naman balak bumalik sa unit ko nang ganitong oras, kahit pa sabihin nating nasa kabilang pinto lang iyon. It's kind of scandalous of me to go out from a man's unit at this current hour.

"What are you doing?" I asked when I noticed that he's really busy with his laptop.

"Checking Daniela's mail from last night. Naipadala na niya 'yong mga pictures mo. She wants me to check those that she took."

I felt a sudden bloom of excitement upon hearing about my pictures. Hindi ko pa iyon nakikita lahat. And the only picture that I saw was Domino's personal photo of mine that he took... And the main reason why I was sitting here on his sofa, naked.

"Pwedeng patingin?" tanong ko sa kanya.

Domino's eyes glistened before nodding. "Come here."

Grabbing the comforter, I scooted near Domino's warm body. Sumilip ako sa screen ng kanyang laptop at agad na napaawang ang mga labi ko nang makita ko ang mukha ko roon. Domino scrolled each pictures slowly, letting me view each one of them for a few seconds. My heart was thumping wildly while watching each pictures. The shots were perfect, I could say that without blinking. I looked beautiful in all angles and every shots. Hindi ko alam kung dahil ba sa talagang natural lang ako sa camera gaya ng sinasabi sa akin ng Mama ko, o magaling na photographer si Daniela.

"What do you think?" he asked, eyes glued on the screen.

"I love it," I answered honestly.

"Do you want to see the pictures that I took?" he asked. I looked at him. "Daniela sent me a separate file for them."

"I-If you insist."

Domino nodded his head and proceeded to look for the file. After few clicks, I find myself falling in love with my pictures that were taken by him.

It was the same pictures with the same background from Daniela's shots. But there was something unutterably different in Domino's shots. He managed to make it more personal, more intimate. More beautiful. More... I don't know! I just knew something is missing in Daniela's shots that were present in Domino's. But then, they were all the same! How could it look different—

The glow in my eyes were more visible in his shots than in Daniela's. That is what differs from the two sets of pictures.

I lick my lower lip and snatched a glance at Domino. He was seriously scanning the pictures in his laptop. Nakikita rin kaya niya ang nakikita ko? Was he also aware of that small difference?

"If you want the copies, I can send them to you through e-mail," he said and looked at me.

Mabilis akong nag-iwas ng tingin at ibinalik ang mga mata sa screen. Tumikhim ako at saka tumango.