Perfect Timing

[5] Birthday

"Hello?"

"Sam, conference room, 2 minutes! Daliiiii!" I hissed into the phone. Without waiting for her response, I put the phone back into the cradle and went to the conference room to wait.

All our birthday plans for Rich were going perfectly until he dropped that bomb on me this morning.

"Dinner pala tayo mamaya. After office hours, sabay-sabay na lang tayo papunta sa Dad's Buffet sa SM City."

Now we have to regroup and determine the best course of action.

The conference room opened and with a cheery voice, Sam greeted me. "Hey Dei! Uy, that rhymed!" Slumping down on one of the chairs, she asked, "So what's got your panties in a twist so early this morning?"

Trust Sam to always be ready with these conversation starters. "My panties are in a perfect condition, thank you very much. Our birthday surprise plan on the other hand needs to be adjusted. Si Rich biglang nag-decide na manlibre. So paano na yung party tonight? Saka yung mga pagkain?"

"Chill, Dei, chill! Grabe ka naman maka-react! Akala ko kung ano nang emergency kaya mo ako pinatawag. You're even more stressed out than I am considering I prepped all the food last night," Sam said with a laugh.

"Hindi ka ba concerned? Sayang yung effort mo?! Tapos yung mga na-invite na natin na pupunta sa house mamaya? What if they already cancelled other plans kasi they wanted to celebrate with us? Hindi ba nakakahiya?"

"Ok lang yan. Mabuti na lang nakinig ako kay Ben to only serve grilled meat saka spaghetti na lang instead of lasagna."

Did I hear it correctly? She and Ben agreed on something? Wow, miracles do happen after all. Then Sam probably realized her faux pas and said, "But don't tell Ben na tama sya! Masyado nang bilib sa sarili nya yun; nakatsamba lang yun for sure."

I laughed out loud as she backpedaled. "Sige, this will be our little secret. Natatawa talaga ako sa inyo ni Ben, para kayong aso't pusa! Ingat lang ha, baka kayo din magkatuluyan sa huli! Aso't pusa kunwari may something na pala," I teased her while raising an eyebrow.

To my surprise, Sam blushed! Hmm, there may be something there that wasn't there before. "Psssh, something ka dyan! For your information, Ben is not my type. Unlike someone here na I know worried sa birthday surprise kasi crush nya yung may birthday!"

"Typical Sam na ang defense mechanism e ipasa sa iba ang topic pag naiipit na sya. Okay fine, pagbibigyan kita sa diversion tactic mo - this time lang. And yes, I am worried sa birthday surprise. Not because I have a crush on him kasi wala naman talaga!" I crossed my fingers behind my back as I said this.

"It's just that it's my first time na tumulong mag-organize ng party and naiinip na akong makita yung effect ng surprise natin."

"Girl, don't worry. We'll just move the party this Friday. I-chat mo na lang sa mga in-invite natin yung message na change date na yung party."

"Okay, will do. Yung gift nya daanan ko na lang siguro sa bahay before tayo mag-dinner."

Sam stood up, preparing to go out of the conference room. "That's fine. Pwede din naman na pagdating na lang sa bahay ibigay yung gift nya. Chill lang, girl. Everything will fall into place at the right time. Trust me," Sam said with a wink then left the room.

The day passed by in a whirl with a busy work day plus sending our guests the information that the party is moved to Friday. Most of them were actually relieved that the party was moved to the weekend - meaning they can stay out late instead of worrying about work the following day.

"See? I told you if it's meant to be, it will be. Kaya cool lang, alright? We're going to have fun tonight and this Friday!"

At the end of the busy day, a hand squeezed my shoulder. As I looked up to see who the hand belonged to, it was Rich! He smiled at me and asked, "Uwian na! Alis na tayo? Mag-commute pa tayo papuntang SM."

"Ah, sa lobby ko na lang kayo imi-meet. Mag-shutdown lang ako ng Mac ko, okay?"

"Sige, dun ka na namin hintayin." With another squeeze to my shoulder, he left and hurried to the lobby.

Papisil-pisil pa, ano akala nya sakin, karne? I thought even as my face broke into a smile.

Quickly shutting down my computer, I went to the restroom, combed my hair and put on a spritz of cologne. Going into the lobby, Samantha glared at me and said, "Finally! Akala ko na-flush mo na sarili mo. Let's go! We have to walk to the terminal and line up pa."

As we were walking to the terminal, Sam sniffed the air and whispered to me, "Hmm, di mo talaga crush ha? E bakit may papabango-pabango ka pa?"

"Ikaw, imbento ka ha! Ganito naman lagi ginagawa ko bago umuwi kung may lakad tayo!" I whispered back.

"Hmm, if you say so. Pero pag ikaw umamin din sakin na crush mo yan, I'll laugh out loud and say 'I told you so!'"

While waiting for our turn, we excitedly talked about our dinner tonight. The discussion intensified even more as we teased Rich when he said he has a surprise for us this evening.

"Mamaya na lang. Kaya nga surprise di ba? Hintayin nyo na lang sya."

"Basta siguraduhin mong maganda yang surprise mo ha? Kundi sasakalin ka namin lahat," Sam said in her typical sarcastic tone.

Once it was our turn, the little minx arranged things such that I was sandwiched between her and Rich in the van. Everytime there was a turn, she makes sure to lean hard on me so I have to lean on Rich as well.

I was giving her the death stare the whole time but all she did was smirk and continue with what she's doing. Thank goodness Rich was busy on his phone so he didn't notice what was happening around him.

Upon reaching SM, Rich said he has to get something so we can all go ahead to the restaurant. Reaching the restaurant, there were six places set on the table. We didn't really mind since the table was good for six people after all and Ben and Sam were, as usual, at each other's throats, entertaining Ryan and I.

After a few minutes, Rich appeared, holding the hand of a pretty woman who was all smiles at us.

"Guys, eto na yung surprise ko! Kasama natin ngayon si Tina, ang girlfriend ko. Mag-stay sya dito sa Cebu for a few days. Tina, meet my housemates!"