Have I Told You (PUBLISHED)

Chapter Twenty Six

Chapter Twenty Six

Apparently, Eisley does not remember what happened that night. Hindi pa namin napag-uusapan dahil sobrang busy kami these past few weeks. Ayoko rin ma-awkward siya.

Grabe kaya yung hirap ko sa kanila nun. Kahit naman marunong na ako mag drive, hindi pa naman ako professional. 10x kasi na mas maingay si Bev pag lasing. Can you imagine that?! Si Eisley naman, ilang beses sumuka sa kotse. Ang hirap tuloy mag concentrate sa pagda-drive.

Buti na lang, medyo matino pa si Nyle kaya tinulungan niya ako sa dalawa. Hindi ata 'yun tinatablan ng alak. Nag-offer pa nga siya na siya na ang magda-drive, pero hindi ako pumayag dahil ang dami niyang na-inom.

Una kong hinatid si Bev at sumunod naman si Eisley para makapagpahinga na. Nag sorry ako kay Mommy Sexy noong gabing 'yun dahil bukod sa inuwi ko yung anak niya na sobrang late, he was also drunk.

Kabang-kaba ako kaya nagulat talaga ako noong tumawa siya at sinabing, "Okay lang naman mag-enjoy pa-minsan-minsan atsaka may tiwala naman ako sa'yo. Kailangan niya rin maging bata kahit minsan. Thanks for bringing out the youth in him, 'nak. H'wag lang sobra.

Si Nyle ang huli kong hinatid sa bahay nila. Hindi ako pumayag na ibalik siya sa studio ni Aunt Teri at mag drive dahil pag may nangyari sa kanyang masama, hindi kakayanin ng konsensya ko. Hindi naman ako informed na malayo ang bahay ni kuya.

"Malayo pa ba?" I asked impatiently. Gustung-gusto ko na umuwi para makapagpahinga at isipin kung anong nangyari sa Cubao Expo. Hindi kinaya ng puso ko yung kilig, pero at the same time, naiinis ako dahil lasing si Eisley. I was scared he would forget what happened.

"Ginusto mo 'to, eh." He grinned. "Sabi naman sa'yo, ibaba mo na ako sa studio. Kaya ko naman."

"No way." Hindi naman ako takot mag drive sa madilim na lugar. Mas takot pa nga ako dahil naka-ilang tawag na sa'kin parents ko pati si ahia. Madaling-araw na kasi. Lagpas na lagpas na ako sa curfew ko!

We remained silent for a moment, then out of the blue, he told me, "That guy's lucky to have you."

"Right?!" I agreed. Ma-swerte rin naman ako kay Eisley. "By the way, what do you do aside from painting?"

"I'm still a student."

"What? Di nga?!" my brows creased. "But you look older than me."

"Law student."

"Oh. And you still have time to paint?" I was amazed. "You must be really, really smart."

"Siguro." He shrugged. Hindi pa siya sure ng lagay na 'yan? "Have you ever had your heart broken?"

"Why? Is that why you paint?"

"In my case, it's the other way around. I painted first before I got my heart broken." He had this sad expression on his face and I couldn't help, but feel sorry for him. May mga tao kasing mukhang walang problema. "Didn't you know? Artists do not only have twisted minds, but some of them also have broken hearts. Or so I thought."

"Broken hearts turn into arts. I kind of agree. Well, a lot of artworks are inspired by heartbreaks, bad experiences, and such, pero hindi naman lahat. Marami sa kanila, passion lang talaga ang arts. Hobby, ganun. Profession."

"You think being an artist is a profession, huh?"

"Doctors treat their patients, professors teach their students, lawyers defend their clients, and artists create arts. Of course, being an artist is a passion and profession. A lot of them don't earn much... They don't get what they deserve lalo na dito sa Pilipinas."

"Real talk." He smirked.

"Galleries, art works, books, indie films and music... A lot of them are underrated, and under-appreciated, yet artists continue to experiment and work their asses off. Nakakapagod, pero ganun talaga, eh. For the love. Yung iba siguro, outlet nila ang arts."