Freedom and the Beast

Twenty Four

Chapter 24

I DID NOT know what happened or if my words contained magical spells of some sort, but after the heavy night with Domino inside my unit, he agreed to attend the photo exhibit with me.

His team went back to the site and stayed there for a week before they came back for their report. After a short meeting with the board and La Grande's representatives, the team of Domino's construction firm went back to their company for their own meeting. Sumama rin si Iren para mag-report.

"Kupid's?" I heard Channing's voice, followed by Triton's snort and Nemmie's laugh.

"Kababalik lang natin, alak na naman ang nasa utak mo," sabi ni Triton sa kanya.

I lifted my head to look at them. We were currently staying in the company's lounge—me and Aniel with a cup of coffee, and Nemmie and Channing with a slice of strawberry shortcake.

Chan glared at him and then proceeded to convince us of his nighttime plan. "Ang dami nating ginawa ngayong linggo. Hindi ba kayo napagod?" When no one answered, he continued saying, "We all deserve to rest."

"By rest, you mean drinking rather than sleeping," Aniel said blankly.

Channing looked at his best friend with a mocking smile. "Resting doesn't always equate to sleeping, Aniel."

But Aniel only took a sip of his coffee. Base sa blangko niyang mukha, nakapagdesisyon na siyang hindi pagbigyan ang gusto ng kaibigan niya. And of course, Nemmie would be on his side. There was no question about that.

"Pass ako," sabi ni Triton nang lingunin siya ni Channing. "May pupuntahan pa ako mamayang gabi.

Chan sighed, then settled on looking at me. Waiting for my response. I saw Nemmie's curious eyes on me. Aniel whispered something to her, and she slowly nodded. Ibinalik ko ang atensyon kay Channing at saka sumagot.

"I'll try."

He grinned, and Nemmie frowned.

"That makes the two of us," Chan said happily. He whipped his head toward Nemmie, who was still frowning at us. At me. "Hindi ka talaga sasama?"

"Kung hindi pupunta si Aniel, hindi rin ako pupunta," she answered.

Channing gave her a disapproving look. "Come on, Nems. Bihira na nga lang tayong lumabas. Hindi mo ba na-mi-miss 'yong mga moments nating tatlo sa loob ng bar?" His eyes twinkled, as if memories came crashing down his mind at the moment. "Don't you miss watching Free flirt the Bartender—"

"Don't expect to witness that tonight, Chan," I said, my voice sharp. I only agreed to his plan because I kind of missed drinking with them. It had been months since we went out for a party. Ang dami nang nagyari. Hindi ko na rin alam kung ano ang ganap sa buhay ni Channing, kung sila pa ba ng foreigner niyang boyfriend.

He laughed, and Triton shook his head beside him. "I know, girl! We're only going to get wasted. I promise. No guys involved."

"Speaking of guys." Nemmie leaned over and narrowed her eyes at me. "Sa tingin mo ba papayagan ka ni Kuya Dom na lumabas ngayong gabi?"

I raised my brow. "Bakit naman hindi?"

Her gaze hardened, and I instantly caught her message. My cheeks heated as I peeled my eyes off of her. She didn't have to know my answer. Stupid Nemmie!

"We're still going. Bahala ka kung sasama ka o hindi," Channing said to Nemmie, who only rolled her eyes at him.

***

Nemmie clung to my arm while we made our way toward the center of the bar. The heavy pour of people from the entrance only made it easy for us to reach the bar counter, where we planned to stay for an hour or two. It wasn't long, and the night was still young. But I promised Domino to go home before midnight.