More weeks passed. Being with each other has been a routine for both of them. They spend time as often as they can. Not an hour in a day passes that they don’t send messages or call each other. He is still the same romantic suitor that he has always been – never stopped wooing her, while she tries to open up herself to doing more intimate things with him. There have been a few times when they almost got carried away, again, but have managed to stop in time. They are both still waiting – him waiting for her and her waiting for herself to get ready to fully give herself to him. But in all, everything is going so well in their relationship.
One Friday afternoon, Gerald went to her office to surprise her. He planned to wait for her until she is able to leave the office and then they will have dinner together at his house.
He pressed the up button of the elevator and got it when the doors opened. He pressed the floor number and waited for the elevator to close. But just before it closes, a hand stopped it and a man carrying a bouquet of flowers came in. The elevator went up and stopped on Sarah’s floor. Both men stepped forward at the same time but Gerald stopped and told the other to go ahead. As soon as the elevator door closed, his phone started ringing. He stopped walking and answered the call and watched the man with the buoquet go inside the office.
When he was done with the call he stepped inside and signaled at the receptionist that he will go straight to Sarah’s cubicle. Since he was a regular visitor there, everybody knew him.
A few feet away from Sarah’s cubicle, he could already hear her voice. He hesitated but went ahead and peeked in. She was so surprised to see him that she jumped out from her chair.
“Babe! Anong ginagawa mo dito?”
“I’m sorry to disturb you…” he wasn’t able to finish his sentence because he himself was surprised. The bouquet of flowers was on her table and the man holding it was her visitor. He gave Sarah a questioning look.
“Ah Gerald I want you to meet James. James this Gerald, my boyfriend,” she introduced.
Both men shook hands.
“James, excuse us for a while,” Sarah said then pulled Gerald outside of her cubicle. “Babe, s’ya ‘yung ex ko,” she said in a whisper.
“So what is he doing here now?”
“I don’t know. Sabi n’ya he just arrived from Korea. Hindi pa naman kami talaga nakakapag-usap pero he invited me to have dinner with him. Do you have plans for tonight?”
“Never mind. Just have dinner with him. Siguraduhin mong makakauwi ka ng maayos ha. Don’t stay out late. Just text me if you feel like it. Aalis na ako,” he said then turned away.
“Babe,” she said but he kept walking.
The following morning Sarah woke up early and got dressed. She told Mommy Divine that she was going to see Gerald then headed out. She hopped into a cab and gave the driver the directions to his house. During the whole ride she was praying that he was home. She didn’t send send him a message that she was coming. This was a surprise of some sort because she wanted to make up to him for what happened the night before.
She pressed the doorbell when she got to his house. She waited until one of the helpers opened the gate for her.
“Ah Manang, nand’yan po ba si Gerald?”
“Opo Ma’am Sarah. Nandun po s’ya sa pool nagsi-swimming. Puntahan n’yo na lang po doon.”
“Salamat po ha.”
When she got there she saw him doing laps. She knows he hasn’t noticed her so she put down her bag on one of the lounge chairs, took off her flipflops, pulled up her Capri pants upto above her knees and dangled her feet in the water. She watched and waited for him to finish.
