The Virgin Lies (Published under LIB)

Chapter 51

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My body felt heavy when I woke up. I groaned and reached for my aching temple while my other hand unconsciously touched my stomach. Everything felt better when I felt the bump. Marahan kong idilniliat ang aking mga mata nang may marinig na ingay.

I recognized it as Dylan's voice. Nang makita siya ng paningin ko ay palapit ito sa'kin. Agad niyang hinawakan ang aking mga kamay. Bakas na bakas ang pag-aalala sa kanyang mukha.

"How are you feeling?"

Matapos kong marinig 'yon ay bumalik sa'kin ang lahat. Bumuhos ang takot at pag-aalala. I sat up and grabbed onto his arms.

"Si baby..."

"Our baby's fine." His gentle voice gave me the relief I needed. Sinapo niya ang magkabila kong pisngi at binigyan ng halik ang aking noo.

Tuluyang bumuhos ang aking mga luha. Mahigpit ko siyang niyakap. His embrace was warm but it failed to give me comfort.

Hindi ko na kayang magpakatatag. Bumalik sa isipan ko ang napanood na kahit ilang beses kong isipin na hindi 'yon nangyari, hindi no'n mababago ang aking napanood.

"Don't cry, baby, please..."

I cried and cried. He continued saying words that failed to sooth me while moving his hand up and down my back.

Nang sabihin niyang baka makasama sa bata ay do'n ko na lamang pinilit ang sarili kong 'wag umiyak. Ang iyak ko ay naging mga hikbi habang mahigpit na nakayakap sa kanya.

He shifted my position so I was sitting sideways on his lap while he sat on the bed.

"May n-napanood ako..." I sobbed.

"Shhh... don't think about it. I'm fixing it." He said in a tender voice and kissed my head.

Humiwalay ako sa yakap at tumingin sa kanya. He took the initiative to wiped my tears with his fingers, giving me a small smile.

"Kelan pa 'yon?"

"Iara, baby... I'm taking care of it. Trust me, okay? I won't let you stress yourself over this."

Umiling ako. "Please, Dylan. I need to know. Ako 'yon eh! Tayo! Tayo ung nasa balita. Napanood ko... Isang dating sikat na NBA-PBA player na may nobyang dating pörn star! Hindi man nila binanggit ang pangalan mo, alam ng lahat na ikaw 'yon. Tapos ako? Yung picture ko... it was the same back from college..."

"They blurred—"

"Bullshït!" Tumaas ang boses ko. "Blurred bang matatawag do'n kung nakikilala parin ang mukha ko."

Hindi ko mapigilan. Nagsimula na namang tumulo ang aking mga luha. Halu halo ang emosyon sa'kin. I knew that I should calm down but I couldn't. Yung takot, kaba, galit at pagkalito ang nagtutulak sa'king maging aligaga at mag-panic.

Nakiusap muli ako sa kanyang sabihin ang totoo. Ang lahat lahat. Iniisip ko palang na baka pinagpapantsayahan o pinag-uusapan ang aking latawan ay talagang mababaliw na 'ko.

People were too shallow. They would feed on all the news they heard. Basta nakakakuha ng atensyon, pagkakaguluhan. Dagdagan pa mga media'ng mahilig bumaluktot ng mga pangyayari.

Combined with the false information from the media, they wouldn't mind to know the truth. Wala silang pakialam sa mga taong apektado.

Sa'kin, kay Dylan o sa baby namin.

They laugh and talk while not giving care of my thoughts and feelings. Now that I think about it, yung mga tingin ng tingin do'n sa restaurant ilang araw nang nakakaraan. They're not weirded by my clothing; they had those disgusted looks that already judged me on the spot.