Freedom and the Beast

Fourteen

Chapter 14

HE WAS SO fucking good.

Domino's palms were as heavy as Liko's, but he pressed my muscles better than my private massage therapist. If I knew that he's great at finding the pressure points in my body, I would definitely be hiring him instead.

"God," I grunted when he started massaging my shoulders. "You're good at this."

"Thank you." There was a hint of amusement in his voice.

Hindi ko namalayan na nakaidlip ako habang minamasahe ni Domino ang likod ko. I was lying on my stomach on the sofa, and he was kneeling on my side. Nagising lang ako nang maramdamang wala ng kamay ang humahaplos sa likuran ko.

I stood up and locked the strap of my brassiere. Luminga ako sa paligid at nahanap ko si Domino sa may terrace. He was leaning over the railings and watching the dark sky set above us. Tumayo  ako at lumapit sa kanya.

"Hey," I said.

Nilingon niya ako at tipid na ngumisi. "Hey."

I stood beside him and leaned over the railings. Pareho naming pinagmamasdan ang madilim na kalangitan.

"Do you think it will rain tonight?" I asked him. Wala akong makitang bituin. Mukhang uulan nga yata.

"I hope not. We're going to visit the site tomorrow," he replied.

I looked at him. Domino's eyes mirrored the empty and dark sky above us. His lips were pursed as if he was blocking some words that wanted to go out of his mouth. My eyes squinted when I noticed something black behind his ear. I stilled when it became clearer from my vision.

It was a fairy wing inked at the back of his ear. It was a bit hard to look at since his hair was hiding the tattoo, but since it was windy here outside, I've got a glimpse of it from where I was standing.

I fought the urge to ask him why did he had the tattoo. I knew Domino have some several minimalist tattoo designs around his body, and some were familiar to me. But that fairy wing wasn't there when we were still together.

Napatingala ako sa kalangitan nang may maramdamang mahinang pagpatak ng ulan sa noo ko. I heard Domino cursed when he also felt the rain started pouring.

"Let's get inside," he said and I agreed.

Pumasok kami sa loob. Ponyo was on the couch and silently watching us with a patient gaze. I closed the sliding door behind me and locked it. May tendency kasi na lumabas doon si Ponyo habang natutulog ako.

"It's raining hard," I said as I watched the glass door getting wet with rain.

"The site will definitely be muddy tomorrow." He clicked his tongue, getting a little annoyed.

"Hindi ka ba sanay na maputik ang site na pinupuntahan mo?" tanong ko.

"I don't know," he replied, already dropping the topic.

I pursed my lips and looked at him over my shoulder. I see. So he's still not open enough to talk about his engineer side. Was it still awkward for him to talk about his chosen career? O ayaw lang niyang pag-usapan namin iyon, dahil alam niyang marami akong alam na hindi niya sinasabi sa ibang tao.

Was he still caged by the power of the name that he was carrying? Just like me... Was he still afraid to face everything that was trying to put chains in his hands and feet?

I stared at him, studying his handsome face. Who would have thought that the person who was considered one of the most successful engineers in the current generation didn't actually like where he was and what he had?