Love Me or Hate Me

EPISODE 04

It’s just a few minutes past seven in the evening. Abala sa harap ng stove sina Harold at Tommy, samantalang sina Lino at Amanda naman ay naghahanda ng iba pa nilang mga lulutuin. Javi and Asa are currently in the latter’s bedroom with their baby. Dahil naging maayos naman ang pag-uusap ng dalawa, Asa’s crew invited Javi to stay with them until dinner.
 
“Despite the happy ending of this story, I would still like to thank Tommy for giving me a heart attack earlier. Bakit hindi ka man lang nagsabi na pabalik pala kayo? I swear I just lost a few years off of my life,” Amanda snapped at the lawyer.
 
“Don’t blame me. It was your fault for not telling me na nandito pala si Javi. Besides, ano pa ba ang pinoproblema mo? Sir Asa allowed Javi to stay. As long as naipanalo mo ang kaso, who the hell cares about what happened in the hearing?” sabad naman ni Tommy.
 
“Still, it’s surprising to see Sir Asa soften up on Javi. He was pretty set on not letting Javi see the baby,” Lino added. Kararating lang niya kanina dahil pinapunta siya ni Amanda para sa mini-celebration nila sa muling pagbabalik ni Javi sa buhay ng boss nila.
 
“Kung nakita mo lang ang reaksyon ni Asa noong sinabi niyang kailangan na nating iwan si Javi, hindi ka magugulat kung bakit tinanggap niya ulit ang tao,” sagot naman ng girlfriend niya. “He’s always had a soft spot for that dude. Well, who can blame him? Javi is such a sweetie.”
 
Isang carrot ang biglang lumipad papunta kay Amanda. “Kalma,” singhal ni Lino.
 
“Still, it’s really lovely to see that they’re finally back together,” Harold added. “I’m pretty sure Javi will go overboard again when taking care of the baby.”
 
“Well, Sir Asa is really lucky to have someone like him,” Tommy added with a meaningful grin.
 
Nasa loob nga ng kwarto ni Asa si Javi. Kasalukuyang nakahiga ang baby sa kama at nasa tabi naman nito ang tatay niya na kanina pa panay kakukuha ng mga litrato. His face brimmed with excitement as he held the baby’s hand.
 
“Seriously, kailan ka titigil sa kaka-picture diyan?” singhal sa kanya ni Asa na nakahilata sa isang couch. “You’re going to wake the baby up.”
 
“I’m sending photos to Jia. Ipapakita niya kay mama,” sagot nito. “Oh, by the way, may pangalan na ba ang baby natin?”
 
Asa flustered, but he immediately hid his face behind the book that he’s reading. “Asher. . .” he said in a low voice. “Asher Jamie. . . We call him AJ for short.”
 
Javi smiled faintly. “It has our initials. . .”
 
Asa rolled his eyes.
 
“Ikaw, kumusta ka na?” tanong naman ni Javi bago siya dahan-dahang umalis mula sa kama at naupo sa couch kung nasaan si Asa. “You lost weight. Are you eating properly? You should also take care of yourself.”
 
“I’m fine. I’m healthy,” Asa replied. “Mabilis naman akong naka-recover at nakalabas ng ospital. Hindi rin ako mag-isang nag-aalaga sa bata kaya nabibigyan ko naman ng atensyon ang sarili ko. Harold is always with me. Madalas ding nandito si Amanda. They’ve helped me a lot in the past three months.”
 
Javi smiled at him. “I’m glad you’re okay.”
 
“Yeah, thanks,” Asa said, raising the book even higher.
 
Asa really lost some weight in the past three months. Napansin din ‘yun ni Javi ngayong nakatitig na siya kay Asa. Well, considering na halos oras-oras kumakain si Asa noong nagbubuntis ito, talagang medyo tumaas ang timbang niya.
 
“Do you hate me?” Asa suddenly asked Javi, his face hidden behind the book he’s reading.
 
“Why would you think that?” replied Javi as he threw Asa a bewildered stare.
 
“You said it yourself. Ginawa mo ang lahat para sa ‘min, pero ako ‘tong umalis nang wala man lang pasabi sa ‘yo. Kung nagkapalit tayo ng posisyon, kasusuklaman kita. I will never forgive you,” Asa said.
 
“I never hated you, so please don’t think that way,” Javi replied with a sigh. “I was too concerned for your well-being to hate you. Now that you’re finally here, I’m just glad. After three months, makahihinga na rin ako nang maluwag. I’m just glad and relieved to see that you and the baby are safe.”
 
“And I would still like to apologize for what I did, especially sa mama mo. Hopefully makabisita siya agad sa ‘min para makita niya si AJ. Gusto ko rin siyang makausap para makahingi rin ako ng tawad sa kanya,” sagot ni Asa.
 
“Trust me, you don’t need to apologize to my mom. I’m sure she’ll forget about everything once she sees the baby. Kakausapin ko agad siya para makabisita na siya rito ASAP,” sabi naman ni Javi.
 
He looked around Asa’s room. Even though the place looked just as expensive and spacious as Asa’s old place, Javi couldn’t deny that Asa’s first condo was so much better. Well, the outdoor space of that place completely trumps the balcony of this one.
 
“Babalik na kami sa dati kong condo,” sabi ni Asa na tila nabasa ang nasa isip ni Javi. “It’s much more spacious and comfortable. Mas may tiwala rin ako sa security ng lugar na ‘yun. Besides, may sariling kwarto roon si AJ. I’ll just tell Harold to hire people to clean the place. By next week baka makabalik na kami roon.”
 
“That’s great news. Mas malapit ang dati mong condo doon sa restaurant kaya mas madali ko kayong mapupuntahan pagkatapos ng trabaho ko. I’ll help you move your things. Just text me,” replied Javi.
 
Asa finally put his book down. “You’re still working in that restaurant?” he asked, his eyebrows furrowed.
 
Javi smiled sheepishly. “Like I always say, it’s hard to get it out of my system now. However, balak ko sanang mag-take ng leave. At first, magbabakasyon sana kami ng pamilya ko, pero dahil nandito na kayo ni AJ, I guess I’ll just spend time with you.”
 
Asa immediately looked away to hide his face. “Yeah, great. . .”
 
He then gazed at Javi from the corner of his eye while pretending to return the book to its shelf. Nothing has changed much with him, Asa thought. He’s still the same old Javi, with the same old annoying smile and cheerful face.
 
“Ikaw, kumusta ka naman sa nakalipas na mga buwan? May ginawa ka man lang bang ibang makabuluhan na bagay kaysa sa paghahanap sa ‘min ni AJ?” tanong ni Asa.
 
Javi looked a little surprised with the question, so Asa immediately cut him off before he could say anything. “Don’t flatter yourself. Knowing you, malamang hindi ako mali sa iniisip kong ginawa mo habang wala ako. Baka kasi sa kahahanap mo sa ‘min ay napabayaan mo na ang pag-aaral at trabaho mo. Baka ako pa ang sisihin mo.”
 
Tumawa na lang nang marahan si Javi. “Well, I won’t deny that I spent much of the past three months looking for you. However, syempre alam ko naman kung kailan ko uunahin ang mga mas importanteng bagay. It was a little rough for me, but I still got decent grades,” he said.
 
“Good for you,” replied Asa.
 
Hindi nagtagal ay tinawag na sila ni Harold para kumain ng hapunan. It seems that Asa’s squad prepared a feast. They also invited Javi to drink with them, but he refused the offer. Matapos niyang makatulong sa paghuhugas at pagliligpit ng mga pinagkainan ay nagpaalam na siya sa kanila.
 
“I’ll bring Jia and my mom as soon as possible,” sabi ni Javi kay Asa habang nasa pintuan na sila. The latter was carrying their baby who was already asleep.
 
“Thanks for helping the others clean up,” replied Asa. “You didn’t have to do that. Sila naman ‘tong may ideya na magkalat.”
 
Javi gave AJ a gentle kiss on the forehead. He then turned around and was about to walk away, but he seemed hesitant and unsure of what to do. Sensing his unease, Asa just rolled his eyes before kicking Javi lightly in the knee.
 
“We’re not going to move away again, you idiot,” singhal sa kanya ni Asa. “Palagay mo ba lalayas pa kami sa ganitong oras? Don’t be such a paranoid. May contact ka na rin sa ‘ming lahat. Just leave. Gabi na masyado.”
 
Javi scratched his head. “Sorry. I’ll see you tomorrow, then. Good night.”
 
Asa gazed at Javi for several moments before looking away. “Take care. I’ll see you tomorrow, too. Now leave. I want to sleep already.”