Yo te Cielo

Capítulo 18

Ano nga ba ang ibig sabihin ng more than friends? Bestfriends? Lovers? Or was it was just one of Pat's epic jokes?

Miho wanted to ask him to elaborate but no words came out of her mouth. Instead, she half-consciously led out a nervous laugh, a result of confusion and disbelief after she heard her friend squealed in reaction to his words.

"What's funny?" He asked in a serious tone.

"W-wala."

Yung joke mo ang funny, she thought to herself.

She avoided looking at him, but in her peripheral view she saw him staring at her. Napatingin na lang tuloy siya sa post-it notes sa freedom wall ng cafe.

She hoped that Paulo would open up a new topic, kaso wala itong ginawa kung hindi tuksuhin siya ng "Yiee, kaya pala nagpasalamat kasi may something na!". Gusto na lang tuloy niya lalong maglaho sa eksena na parang bula.

Bakit hindi sinabi ni Pat kay Paulo na joke lang ang sinabi nito? Paniwalang-paniwala tuloy ang kaibigan niya. Eh bakit siya, hindi rin niya pinagsigawan na wala silang "something"? Hindi lang pala si Pat ang malabo, pati siya din.

Good thing, Lawrence entered the scene and broke the awkward air. Napayakap siya dito sa tuwa dahil tama ang timing nito at natabunan ang nangyari kanina. Pinakilala agad ito ni Miho kay Pat. Lawrence also voiced out how he was so amazed at his resemblance with Goyong. Bumalik nga lang din ito agad sa pagttrabaho nang bigla nitong napansin na dumami na ang mga customers.

Paulo mentioned that his dad visited the cafe earlier; nag-crave daw kasi ito ng kape at cake. Napakwento na rin si Miho na naabutan nga nila ang ama nito sa labas. Pat said he just pretended to know everything that he was talking about. Alam kasi niya na mas marami pang eksplenasyon na dapat gawin si Miho kapag sinabi niyang hindi siya si Greg Sempio na nakilala nito dati. In the middle of their talk, Paulo reminded them to order whatever they like to eat. Ililibre daw kasi sila nito.

"Any recommendation?" Tanong ni Pat sa kanila habang nakatingin ito sa menu.

"Try mo 'yung Patbingsu namin na may mango and coconut milk!" Paulo suggested as he pointed out the picture in the menu. "'Yan yung isa sa mga pinropose ni Miho dati. Isa sa mga best-sellers! Naging aim kasi namin ang ma-incorporate ang local taste sa mga international desserts. Meron din kaming affogato, tapos Bukidnon coffee beans ang gamit namin."

Pat chose the Mango Patbingsu. Dahil good for two, he suggested that they just share. Wala naman problema kay Miho, she also wanted to have it for dessert. Sa loob nga lang niya, ramdam pa rin niya ang pagkailang sa nangyari kanina pero hindi na lang niya ito pinahalata.

Their order came after a few minutes. It was a huge bowl of milky shaved ice with a generous serving of mangoes, sprinkled with green tea powder on top. Imbis na mochi ang sinama, bilo-bilo ang isa rin sa mga toppings nito.

While eating, Paulo interviewed Pat. The topics were his days in Spain and his life as a language instructor and artist. Nakinig lang si Miho sa usapan ng dalawa. At dahil magaling naman sa pakikipag-socialize ang kaibigan niya, hindi na siya nagulat na base sa mga narinig ay nakasundo nito agad si Pat.

Bago sila umalis pinakilala ni Paulo ang bago nilang empleyado. Maliban pa kay Blue ay meron pa raw isa, ngunit naka-leave daw ngayon. They thanked Paulo for the free dessert and promised to come back next time.