Heart Rallies

Quinze: Nacreous

"What did she tell you?"

Bea hasn't completely locked the door yet when Seff started interrogating her. Bea just looked at him and put down her items. She took a seat beside him and remained silent.

"C'mon, spill it out! What did she tell you?"

"She's okay. She listened to me," she answered.

He sighed a sigh of relief as soon as he heard it. "So does it mean we're okay now?"

"No."

"What?!" he gave the same reaction as she did.

Bea explained to him what Bianca wanted to happen. She did not give any explanation and outright told him of what she exactly wanted.

"She said that?"

"Yes. Why will I invent something that she did not say? I don't have a passion for building other people's characters. That's what she said, that's how she said it, and that's what she wanted," Bea answered. "My suggestion? Find someone else."

"Why will I find someone else? Kaya nga pinakausap ko sayo para maging ayos kami. Kung hindi din naman pala, sana hindi na lang di ba?" he said. "So what should I do?"

"What should you do? Maghain. Nagugutom na ako," she said and stood up to go to the bedroom and change her clothes.

"Bea!" he suddenly called her name when an idea came up. He still followed her when she got inside the room. "I got an idea."

"Idea for what?" she asked him, not totally interested, taking a shirt out of the dresser.

"She wants me to do something for her. What I'll do is I'll try to be extra sweet to her. Like I can prepare her food and maybe work on the kitchen with her," he said. He suddenly became excited with the idea of doing things together and a lot of ideas were coming on his head.

Bea just stared at him and shrugged. "Okay, if that's what you want, go ahead," she said and was on the act of removing her blouse when he spoke.

"Wait Bea," he said seriously. "Would you mind doing that once I'm out of the room?"

Bea laughed and shook her head. Instead of telling him to go, she faced his way and took her top off. She threw her blouse on the clothes bin and wore the shirt she took from the cabinet. "You're fine. So what were you saying?"

"I'll m-make you as a dummy so I c-can practice," he said, feeling embarassed and sort of excited.

She took a few steps back with what he said. Her mood suddenly changed. "Excuse me? Did you just say something I didn't like?"

"Yeah. You'll be leaving in five days right?" he asked her.

"Yes," she nodded. Bea already found a place nearby where she can live alone. She already made her payment and would be moving her things out one by one in the next few days. "So what's the sense?"

"While you are still here, we can practice," he said as if he just had the brightest idea.

"We can practice? No. YOU can practice. I practice Law, not love affairs," she said and went to their dining area. Seff took the plates and started preparing the table for her.

"I'll do this for you regularly while you're here. You can tell me what I should do, what I might miss to do so when I am around her, I'll know how to act," he said.

Bea laughed at him. "Ano bang plano mo? Mag-apply ng katulong? Ang gusto nyang baliw mong girlfriend, regaluhan mo sya ng mga bagay na gusto nya. Isurprise mo. Yung mga tipong pagbukas nya ng sasakyan mo, may malaking monster na nag-aabang sa kanya o di kaya pagpasok nya ng kwarto nya, may mga sapot ng gagamba tapos ibubuhol sya hanggang sa maging mummy na lang sya," she said and accepted the spoon and fork he was handing her.