The Great Pretender

Chapter 10: Wildy Unattractive My Åss

Vaughn Miguel

I seriously have no idea what the heck came into me last night. On my drive to the house, paulit-ulit kong sinasambit sa sarili ko na bubuksan ko lang ang pintuan, iiwan ko ang pagkain, tapos aalis na agad ako.

No looking. No talking. Just drop off the food and I will leave.

That was the plan.

Subalit hindi iyon nangyari dahil hindi nakipag-cooperate ang mga mata ko. My eyes landed on her....she was there, looking at me....and then I saw her hand resting on the back of the couch.

There were dark bruises and somehow, it pissed me off knowing that she was hurt.

I hate her and yet I still care as a human being. So, I did what I had to do, I took an ice pack and gave it to her.

And then, she decided to snap my patience. The words just came out of my mouth. Some of the fantasies that I have made their way past my mouth, shocking her and leaving her flushed.

I had to leave right away before my self-control vanished. I can't touch her or have anything to do with her. She's the enemy and she can throw my life down the drain, in a snap.

Bumuntong hininga ako bago ako kumagat sa toast na hawak ko. Alas sais pa lamang ng umaga ay narito na ako sa kusina. I am fully dressed in my work clothes and I am currently sitting here around the island counter, eating toasted bread for breakfast.

Nasa harapan ko ang mga cabinet na nakapakat sa dingding, habang nasa ilalim noon ang gas stoves at ang pahabang kitchen counter. Nasa kaliwa ko naman ang fridge at ang sink. I chewed the rest of the bread in my mouth bago ko isinubo ang natitirang tinapay na hawak ko.

Ever since I sat down, I have been thinking of ways to deal with Kamila. Obviously, hindi ko siya pwedeng hulihin at i-turn in sa W-1716, given the reasons. I just need to get away from her and just ignore her for the next eight days.

Because in eight days, she'll contact her associate to extract her. I won't let that happen, of course. I am not just gonna watch a criminal escape right out of my hands. Kapag dumating ang associate niya ay huhulihin ko sila pareho, and I'll turn them both into the organization.

That's my plan and she can't do anything about it anymore, dahil sigurado ako na pareho lang 'yung associate na pinagsabihan niya ng impormasyon na alam niya tungkol sa W-1716 at 'yung kukuha sa kanya dito. I can tell that she barely trusts anyone.

So, for the next eight days, no more dropping food. I will have to let her cook her own food and buy her other supplies. I will have to trust her not to burn down the house, for the sake of my sanity.

Matapos kong ubusin ang natitirang toast sa platito ko ay tumayo na ako at naglakad patungo sa fridge. I started searching for orange juice since I am now thirsty. Hindi nagtagal ay narinig ko ang pagbukas ng main door. I am pretty sure si Ate Carmel iyon, she hasn't been home since yesterday since she was on-call in the hospital.

"Can we not do this here, Peyton?" I heard her say after I heard the door close and footsteps approaching inside.

Oh, she's not alone. I thought as I silently got a bottle of orange juice. I closed the fridge silently and twisted the cap open. I tip it over my mouth and started drinking.

"Oh, we are certainly gonna do this here. Ilang beses na akong dumadaan sa ospital, everytime ay tinatago ka ng mga residents mo. Kung hindi pa kita inabangan sa parking lot ay hindi kita maaabutan."

"Hindi nila ako tinata—"

"Oh, really? When I asked that doctor with short hair, she said you're in your call room, tapos nagtanong ako ulit doon sa isang nakasalubong ko sa hallway, he said you're in a surgery. What are you now? A magician, two places at one time?" Ate Peyton's tone seemed agitated. "They can't look me in the eye, and please, I am a lawyer, I know when bullshît is bullshît."