Anna
"It's unfair!" Marco yelled into the phone so loud that I had to move my head back a bit.
"I know it is, but why are you more affected about this than I am?"
He called as soon as he saw comments from former colleagues of mine on the photo I posted. Most were congratulating me, or expressing surprise because no one knew I was dating - but there were a couple from former officemates that said,
"Buti nakahabol ka pa!"
"Good for you, he married you!"
It wasn't completely insulting, but was most definitely off.
"You're not mad at that?!" He asked.
"Partner, look. I get this all the time. Questions like, wala ba akong balak mag-asawa. Mahirap mag-isa sa buhay. Wag akong maging matandang dalaga kasi hindi maganda. Or get strange looks when I said I don't want to marry."
"It's not right."
"I know. And thank you for thinking of me, but I'm really fine."
"I replied though."
"What?!" I checked and sure enough, he commented.
On the first one who said "nakahabol pa", he said, "Wala naman po siyang hinahabol. Buti nalang naabutan ko pa."
And on the second, he said, "No po. I'm he lucky one that she chose me."
"Marco. Totoo naman their comments. I WAS the one who chased you."
"Totoo naman din yung sinabi ko - you CHOSE me. And I'm lucky. Don't delete that."
I had to admit, it felt good. I had no issues with being single and as the years went by, I had learned to not let those comments affect me. But having Marco defend me now felt nice. It was almost as if he truly cared.
"I'm home in a few days. Did the box of my stuff arrive?" He asked.
"Yes, I've placed the clothes in your closet but I didn't open the other smaller boxes inside."
"Okay. Ako nalang when I get there."
"Uh, hey, I need to ask you something." This had been bugging me for a few days now.
When the box arrived, I thought I had to be the dutiful wife so I opened it and started putting his stuff in order. What really stopped me, was a copy of a science book that I had been interested in reading, so I opened it to browse.
A photo fell. It was Marco and a beautiful woman who would pass of as a model, with her striking eastern European features. There was also a note, greeting him on their second anniversary together, closing it with "Looking forward to forever. xo, Natalia."
That made me stop and realize that in all this, I never asked if he had someone. I just assumed he didn't when he said yes.
I took a deep breath and told him what I found. "Is she... did I cause a breakup?"
He chuckled quietly. There was no obvious sign of surprise but his voice had changed its tone. "No, no. We, uh, ended things last year. If you don't mind, I'd like to keep that. Itatago ko nalang so it doesn't bother you."
"She's important to you?"
"Yes."
The tone of his voice told me he didn't want to discuss it further. "Okay. I, uh, have to go." I said, suddenly rubbing my chest. "I have a dinner meeting with some people."
"Okay. Call me when you get in."
"No, I'm okay. Okay lang. Might be late -"
"Anna, are you okay?"
"Yes, yes. I'm fine. I should go." I ended the call before he could say anything further.
I gathered my stuff at work and prepared to leave, when I noticed that Marco had sent a message.
Let's talk about her when I get home, but please don't stress. There's nothing to worry about. Enjoy your dinner, Partner. Will be waiting for your message when you get home.
*
Marco's flight was delayed so he didn't make it home that weekend and arrived when I was already at work on Monday. He texted, "Landed in Manila. I'll just have lunch with someone special to me before I head home."
I was incensed. I replied, "Someone special?! Akala ko ba loyalty is a must in this?! What the hell, Marco Torres?!?!?!"
I was still peeved when I got back from a meeting. My secretary told me I had a lunch appointment at a nearby restaurant and handed me the materials I needed. When I arrived at the restaurant where I was meeting with the consultant, I checked my phone and saw that Marco had not yet replied.
I was seething. I was typing in a reply when his message came in. "Ang ganda mo naman today."
I looked up and there he was grinning at me from a few meters away.
I tried hide my smile as he approached. Galit ako, galit ako. Galit nga kasi ako.
He kissed me on the nose. "Hi Partner."
"Partner your face."
He chuckled. "Di ba ang sweet ko? I booked pa this surprise lunch for us."
"Sabi mo someone special!"
"Selosa ka pala. Still, how could you not see I was pertaining to you?"
I kept pouting and crossed my arms.
"If I were going to meet another girl, why would I tell you?!"
Oo nga naman, I thought.
"You're my special someone according to Facebook and these legal papers I brought all the way from Brussels." As he handed me the papers, he called for the waiter, who arrived with a beautiful bouquet of roses. "We got married a month ago today."
I was stunned. "Ha?"
"Happy one-month, Partner."
I cringed. "Shit, Marco... kasi..."
"You forgot." He looked at me with an unreadable expression. "Grabe ka sa akin!!!! I'm a neglected husband."
"Huy, hindi naman kasi. I didn't know that we'd be celebrating these things!"
"Haaaaay," he sighed. Fiddling with his fork, "Kiss nalang kapalit."
"Ha?"
"Kiss, tapos okay na." He puckered his lips and closed his eyes.
Drat. Cute. "Marco naman..."
His eyes popped open. "Joke lang. But, did you like my surprise?"
"Yes, thank you," I said sincerely. "Next time, pwedeng walang fake out na may iba kang date? I don't like it."
"Okay, sorry sorry. I thought you would've picked up on me surprising you. Sorry, I didn't want you to get mad."
"Sige, peace na."
We had a surprisingly engaging catch up over lunch and I was quite sad when I had to go back to the office already. He dropped me off until my office before bidding me goodbye.
"I'll see you later."
"Hindi ka na magpapasundo?" He asked.
"No, I'm good. Rest na. Thank you for lunch!"
He kissed me on the cheek and turned to leave.
"Marco?"
"Hmm?"
"Happy one-month. Welcome home."
Then, I leaned in to kiss him on the lips.
