Bad Times at Sunrise (La Fortuna Series #3)

Kabanata 38

Lumabas ako ng Nissan sa gitna ng race track at saka hinubad ang aking helmet. Ico's BMW also stopped a few meters from me. Tanggap ko nang siya ang nanalo kahit hindi siya nakatawid ng finish line. Damn. He's going to make such a big deal out of this!

Suddenly, he went out of his car, removed his helmet, and walked toward me. Literal na napanganga ako habang tinitignan ang guwapo niyang mukha. Ito ata ang unang pagkakataong nakita ko siyang medyo magulo at bad boy tignan. All-black pa naman iyong firesuit kaya para siyang kasapi ng Men in Black.

Our eyes met, and I immediately wanted to erase the smirk on his face. Yabang mo naman, Doc!

"'Wag kang umiyak," tuya niya nang makalapit.

Humalukipkip ako. Nasa tapat na kami ngayon ng Nissan. Mabuti na lang talaga at tumigil ako. The car kind of cooled down now. Wala na rin iyong usok.

"Ang yabang mo!" sabi ko kahit medyo napapangisi na rin. 

That was such a fun experience!

"So how was my performance?" he asked.

"You're better than I thought."

His eyes lingered a little longer on me. "Better than Nico?"

Kumunot ang noo ko. "Nico? Paano nadamay sa usapan natin si Nico?" Pinanliitan ko siya ng mga mata nang may matanto. "Are you bothered by him?"

"You seem to like him so much..."

I sighed and looked at him like he was some kind of puzzle. Okay. Maganda ang araw na ito dahil sa kaniya. Na-enjoy ko iyong race kanina at ang dami niya ring pinamili para sa akin. He really tried to make me happy today. And it worked! I appreciated that.

I figured it would only be right to give back something in return. Ayoko naman kasing ako lang 'yong tanggap nang tanggap. Napansin ko ring medyo naninimbang pa rin siya sa akin. It's like he's always looking for any sign of approval from me. I wished I could do more, but I didn't think I was ready to lay all my cards on the table.

"Nico is just someone I idolize. Oo, gusto ko siya, pero hindi tulad ng iniisip mo. I'm just a fan girl, Ico," I explained.

Humakbang siya palapit sa akin. Gusto ko sanang umatras pero nakasandal na ako sa hood ng kotse. I bit my lower lip when he spanned my waist and made me sit on the Nissan's hood. Kahit sa ganoong puwesto ay mas mataas pa rin siya sa akin. He leaned his hands on the hood to cage me. He crouched and looked at me with his soulful eyes.

"Go on," he probed gently.

"U-uhm, hindi ko rin sinasadyang bitawan ang kamay mo kanina. Marami kasing tao kaya bigla na lang 'yong nangyari. Gusto sana kitang hanapin pero nasa harap na ako ni Nico at m-mahirap nang sumiksik ulit sa mga tao roon."

Hindi siya nagsalita. His eyes remained focused on me. Umiwas ako ng tingin ngunit iginiya niya lang pabalik ang aking mukha paharap sa kaniya. My heart skipped a beat.

"Ano pa b-ba?" Nag-isip ako kung ano pa ang puwedeng idagdag sa paliwanag ko. "Ah, 'yong akbay niya? Wala namang malisya 'yon sa 'kin. Oo, kinilig ako. Siyempre, kasi fan niya nga ako 'di ba? Pero wala 'yon! 'Di ko naman siya gusto romantically."

"What about your little conversation? Did he invite you to his home?"

Umiling ako. "Hindi naman. May party daw sila kaya nilagay niya 'yong contact number niya sa phone ko. Tawagan ko raw siya kung gusto kong pumunta."

"That's tonight right?" his voice was hoarse and breathy. 

The tension between us was palpable. I could feel his breathing slow down a bit. Parang nahihirapan siyang huminga. His eyes went down to my lips once before looking straight into my eyes again.