The Wrath Ablaze (Buenavista Series #2)

Chapter 26

Chapter 26
Desperation

"What made you choose our foundation, Thalia?" I abruptly asked after what felt to me like hours of agony and silence.

Thalia wiped the edge of her mouth with a napkin, then cleared her throat. She chuckled amusingly, almost startled by the casual way I opened the conversation. Inangatan niya ako ng tingin pero nalipat kaagad iyon sa asawa niya. Hinawakan niya ang kamay ni Noah sa ibabaw ng lamesa.

"Well, Noah here is actually the one who encouraged me to submit a pitch to your foundation. It was a moonshot, so I said to him, it will be impossible for our project to be noticed. And that it would only be a waste of time-"

"The desalination plant is such an innovative project, which is why I noticed it among all the other pitches." I smiled at her.

"I knew my project had a chance if you would personally hear our pitch!" Thalia paused, like she was reminiscing about the past and how it had happened. "And I would like to thank you for accommodating me despite my project being rejected at first."

Yumuko siya bahagya na para bang may naalala siyang malungkot na pangyayari. Nang ibalik niya sa akin ang atensyon, umaliwalas ulit ang mukha niya.

"When your legal counsel called and said we weren't chosen, I was determined to get your opinion first before giving up. And thank goodness, my persistence definitely worked!" She giggled.

Nakuwento nga ni Charlotte sa akin kung paano siya hindi tinigilan ni Thalia hanggang sa aksidente ko na nga'ng nakita ang pitch nila. Kung tutuusin, kung sa ibang pagkakataon lang sana, si Thalia pa ang dapat kong pasalamatan sa pagbigay niya ng pagkakataong makabalik ulit ako sa Pilipinas. But I can't tell her that right now. Not with Mave sitting beside me.

"Anyway, I wanted to ask more personal questions, if you don't mind," aniya at sabay na inayos ang kurbyetos sa gitna ng pinggan.

Sumimsim ako sa aking Sancerre bago siya binalingan. Pasimple ko munang ginamay ang sitwasyon namin. By the looks of it, walang pakialam sina Noah at Mave sa pinag-uusapan naming dalawa lalo't may sarili rin silang usapan patungkol sa trabaho.

Fine, why not? I have nothing to lose if I agree with her.

I nodded. "Sure! Fire away."

"What do you think of the Philippines so far? It's your first time here, am I right?" panimula niya.

I wasn't expecting her question to be that simple. Hindi agad ako nakasagot nang dahil doon. I let out an atrocious chuckle, which was honestly uncalled for.

"Indeed." I cleared my throat. "Hopefully, this is not my last visit. I learned that I will have to plan out my itinerary well since I want to visit as many islands as I can to fully experience the Philippines."

Thalia pouted for a while before speaking. "Together with your boyfriend already? Or will he be joining you later in your trip after the project finishes?"

Pinasadahan ko nang tingin ang dalawa naming kasama. Her question definitely caught their attention. Binaling ko ang tingin pabalik kay Thalia at nakitang mahinahon siyang nag-aantay ng isasagot ko. Ramdam ko ang pagkunot ng noo ko sa tanong niya. I was confused about the question, and maybe it showed in my face because she further backed up her initial question.

"Is Idris Bolkiah joining you later in your trip?" Thalia reiterated the question just to be clear about it.

I blinked twice, uncomfortable with the amount of attention I was getting in this crowd. Still, I remained confident enough to carry on with the conversation. I shouldn't waver, even a bit.