They finally found a chance to get away at 6pm, after helping Angel with her homework and playing with her while all the others looked on and offered Maine basically everything there is to eat and drink in their kitchen.
RJ went downstairs once or twice "to get something" and not more than a few times did Riza catch him secretly watching their pretty guest from the landing of the stairs. He was looking for every excuse to see her which earned him a couple of smiles from her and a very romantic, "May muta ka pa dito" which makes him blush profusely and run upstairs. Riza giggles amusedly at her big brother who was acting like an infatuated five-year old.
"Homaygahd! Ate Meng, akala ko talaga hopia ang idi-dinner ko eh." Riza tells her while they ride out of their village in her van. "Hihilahin ka na naman ni Lola sa dining room eh buti na lang pinaalala ni Ate April yung promise mo at nagpabebe na si Kuya kaya na-busy na siya." She giggles.
Maine laughs with her. "That was quite a save. Although I'm sure na-miss naman niya talaga si Lola kay naglambing na tabihan siya sa pagkain at ipaghimay ng bangus."
"Orte-orte ni Kuya talaga." Riza comments.
"Baby damulag." She laughs. "Saan muna pala tayo?"
"Sa dami nang pinakain ni Lola, busog pa naman tayo, Ate. Gusto mo munang tignan yung pinapatayong McDo? Pero wala ka pa namang makikita talaga."
"Sige. Gusto ko lang makita kung saan banda. Ituro mo na lang sa driver."
"Sige." Riza beams.
So they drive back to Biñan while talking about everything and anything under the sun that they can think of. With Riza, like her brother, Maine doesn't seem to run out of things to talk about.
They arrive at the Faulkersons's McDonald's site less than an hour later, Riza happily shows Maine the area and tells her more about the place and her Kuya's plans for the business. Maine attentively listens to every word.
She fights back her tears as Riza's eyes brim when she sincerely tells her how happy she is for them and how proud she is of RJ. She says she's sure that Mommy Rio is watching them now from heaven with a smile on her face.
Riza wipes her tears away and hugs Maine tight. "Thank you, Ate. That means a lot. Ikaw talaga ang naging blessing sa buhay ni Kuya. Sa aming lahat." She says.
Maine hugs her back. "Ganoon din kayong lahat sa akin. Ganoon din si RJ." They hug for a few more minutes. "So? Any good restaurants around here?" Maine asks.
"Parang wala ata, Ate. Concha's na lang. Tagaytay!" Riza grins.
"Ang biased mo din eh." Maine chuckles. "Pero di kaya traffic ngayon?"
"Oo nga, Ate. Sobrang traffic. May work ka pa bukas. Hanap na lang tayo dito."
They check Zomato and decide on Ryouri Matsuri, a Japanese restaurant.
"Di ka naman kumakain ng sushi at sashimi, Ate. Di ka rin mahilig sa sea foods."
"Pero ikaw gusto mo yun." Maine smiles. "Marami pa namang ibang pwedeng kainin sa Japanese restaurant." She looks at the menu. "Ayun. They have ramen. Masaya na ako dun. Lam mo na. Ramen is life."
"Oo nga. Naaalala ko noon kahit madaling araw, hahanap ng ramen si Kuya at ihahatid sa'yo eh. Parang may asawang naglilihi." Riza giggles.
Maine blushes and smiles softly. Riza looks at her thoughtfully. "You know he'll do anything for you, Ate, right?"
"I know. Kaya lagi kong inaalala kung masaya pa siya noon. Alam kong pagod na pagod na siya sa trabaho. He also has to take care of you,his family, and a lot of other people. But he still finds a way to spend time with me kahit most of the time he sleeps lang dahil sa sobrang pagod, I was happy. Having a responsibility of being in a relationship with me was too much." She says. "He needs to get some break din naman. Kaya..." She sighs. "I just want him to be happy."
"Paano kung ikaw yung nagpapasaya sa kaniya?" Riza asks.
Maine sighs and looks out the window. "Paano kung I stress him out more that I make him happy?" She stares blankly ahead, thinking of all the fights they use to have.
Riza doesn't answer and that conversation is put aside for the time being. They enjoy a great meal together while talking endlessly about all things from shoes to hairstyles to Netflix shows to Kpop to the new song she needs to write for her album.
"Kaya mo yan, Ate. Ang galing mo kayang magsulat. I'm really a fan." She tells Maine over coffee.
"Halaaaah... Thank you, Riz. I don't know dahil siguro nasobrang busy kaya medyo hirap ako to put the words together. Alam mo yun? I know what the songs should be about pero I just couldn't find the right words to convey what I feel." She sighs.
"Darating din yung mga words na yun. Namasyal lang saglit." Riza giggles then on a more serious tone, she adds. "You've done it before. For sure, you'll do it again. Ilang minutes mo nga lang sinulat yung Imagine You and Me? Fifteen? Thirty? Tapos sobrang ganda ng lyrics." She smiles at Maine encouragingly.
"Hindi ko din nga alam how I came up with that. Inspired moment, I guess." She shrugs.
"Maybe you just need to find that inspiration again." Riza tells her as she sips her cup of flat white coffee, leaving Maine in deep thought.
At around 10pm, the ladies return to the Faulkersons home. Maine says her goodnight to Daddy and Lola who are waiting for them to arrive. She then thanks them for the day and for letting Riza go with her.
"You're welcome here anytime, anak. Masaya kami na nakadalaw ka dito at nakasama itong si Riza." DB tells her.
"Masaya din po ako." She smiles timidly then holds Lola Linda's hand. "Dadalaw din po ako ulit agad dito. Tayo naman po ang may date."
"May isa talaga kaming hinihintay i-date mo dito." Riza murmurs and snickers. DB chuckles softly while Maine pretends she didn't hear her.
"Sige ha. Tawag ka lang. Mag-ingat ka pauwi."
"Opo." Maine smiles.
With another round of hugs, Maine walks towards the direction of her van. Before she gets there though, she looks back to them and waves then looks up to the balcony where she knows is his favorite place to stay in the house. He isn't there. She looks at the three friendly faces by the front door and smiles at them before getting inside her van.
Just as she is sliding the door shut, it stops before the gears touch to close it. She stares dumbfounded as the door slides back open and a very flushed RJ looks at her in the eyes. He is catching his breath like he just ran as fast as he could from the second floor of the house to the driveway where her van is. As a matter of fact, he did just that.
"Maine..." He gasps her name out as he quickly draws another breath to fill his lungs.
"RJ..." Her mind goes blank for a few seconds, trying to understand what's going on. "May problema ba?"
He shakes his head. "Pwede ba tayong mag-usap?"
YES NO
***
Bandersnatch? Hahahahaha
Seriously though , please answer. 😁
Unbeta'ed and not proofread as always. I apologize for the errors you see. Pakibato na lang ako ng kiss when you find one. LOL
Thank you for reading. ❤️
