Dapit-Hapon

Epilogue

Lagi mong tatandaan na kahit saan ka man mapadpad ay papanoorin ko ang dapit-hapon bilang tanda na mahal kita. At mamahalin pa kita hanggang sa huling beses na lulubog ang araw.

Nixon's POV

"That is not my order!" singhal ng isang customer sa restaurant na pinasukan namin.

"Ma'am, iyan po ang order niyo. Tinanong ko pa nga po ulit kayo kung iyan nga ba ang gusto niyo at ang sabi niyo ho ay oo," the waiter said.

I smirked. What a cute waiter. He isn't that tall and he isn't that short. His hair looks so fluffy, out of nowhere I smiled.

Binuhusan bigla ng customer ng iced tea ang cute na waiter, nagkalat ang yelo at iced tea sa sahig. The customer too dropped her meal off her plate to the ground dahilan para mapatayo ako at mangialam. Seems weird because I don't care about these things a lot but this dude who I just saw made me move my limbs as if I care about him.

Walang naging tugon ang waiter, he just took a deep breath and wiped his apron and cleaned the mess. "I'm sorry if the order is wrong. Uulitin ko na lang ho."

"Dapat lang," asik ng customer.

Tinulungan ko ang binata. He was silent and didn't talk to me even though I helped him. After helping him clean the mess on the floor hindi man lang siya nag thank you sa akin. Snob.

The waiter left and did not say anything. I turned my gaze to the lady and spoke. "You shouldn't have done that, Miss. He was polite yet you were so rude. You're disgusting."

I left her table and went back to mine. When he came out of the kitchen I called him to ask his name.

"Sir!" I raised my hand. Unluckily iba ang pumunta sa akin.

"Yes po? May I take your order?" tanong niya sa akin.

"Uh can I call the other waiter?" tanong ko.

"Ahh si Asher po ba?"

Asher... so that's his name.

"Hindi niyo ho iyon makakausap nang ayos ngayon. Mukhang nainis kanina roon sa customer eh."

Asher's POV

"Nixon saan mo ba ako dadalhin?" tanong ko kay Nixon. I'm blindfolded and it has been three months since we got together.

"Basta huwag kang tanong nang tanong, Baby. Hindi naman kita ipapahamak ah?" Mahina siyang natawa.

"Aba! Malay ko ba sino kaya sa atin ang naka blindfold 'di ba?" Parehas kaming natawa sa aking sinabi.

"Malayo pa ba tayo?" tanong ko.

"Malapit na tayo!" Maligayang sabi ng binata.

Ilang minuto pa ay tumigil ang sasakyan at ibinaba ako ni Nixon. Wala pa rin akong makita pero may naririnig ako. I can hear the splashes of the waves and feel the heat of the sun.

Hindi ko pa kita ay napangiti na kaagad ako. Nang tanggalin ni Nixon ang blindfold laking-gulat ko nang nasa beach nga kami! Sobrang ganda ng lugar!

Hinarap ko si Nixon at kaagad siyang niyakap nang mahigpit. "Baby!" Tumalon-talon pa akong parang bata nang mayakap ko siya.

"Baby! Baby! Kalma! Iyan ka na naman para ka na namang baliw e." He combed my hair.

"Eh kasi! Hindi ko naman expect na dito mo ako dadalhin. I love you so much, Baby!" Ginawaran ko siya ng halik sa kaniyang labi.

Mahigpit niya akong niyakap. Ginulo-gulo nito ang aking buhok dahilan para kumunot ang aking noo. Ever since we got together it has been his hobby to mess up my hair. Not only that but he has always teased me and I hate how I easily get pissed at him.

"Cute naman ng baby pikunin ko." He rubbed our noses together.

"Pangit ka!" singhal ko.

"Aww Baby, we both know you don't mean that. Pogi ko kaya. Kaya nga mahilig kang lum—" Hindi ko siya pinatapos sa kaniyang sasabihin bagkus ay piningot ko ang kaniyang tainga dahilan para mapatahimik siya.

"Nasa labas tayo, Baby! Epal ka talaga kahit kailan." Pinagkrus ko ang aking braso.

"Okay okay titigil na ho, Boss. Tara na nga may ipapakita pa ako sa iyo eh." Hinawakan niya ang aking kamay at nagtungo kaming dalawa sa dagat. Hawak-hawak niya ang aking kamay, hindi ko alam saan na kami papunta lakad lang kami nang lakad hanggang sa kalayuan natanaw ko sina Jerie, Lance, Klea, Abigail, Augustine, at Troy. Nandoon silang lahat.

Napatigil ako sa paglalakad. Lumingon sa akin si Nixon. "Baby, tara na they're waiting."

"Since when did you plan this, Baby?" tanong ko sa kaniya habang may ngiti sa aking labi.

"Matagal-tagal na rin, Baby. I know we didn't have the perfect beach time of our life because of what happened few months ago kaya gusto kong bawiin iyon so here it is." He hugged me and kissed my forehead.

Niyakap ko siya pabalik at ipinahinga ang ulo ko sa kaniyang dibdib. "I'm so lucky I have you, Baby."

"We both are lucky, Baby. Parehas lang tayong swerte that we found each other." He kissed my temple.

"I'm home. Thank you, Baby." I hugged him even tighter.

That day was the best day ever. And I say it got better when night came. Dumating sina Apollo, Sherwin, Michelle, Papa, Tita Cora, at Lola Nora. We all shared the day together and the day after, all of them left. Nagpaiwan kaming dalawa ni Nixon to share a few more days together nang magkasama.

Nasa higaan kaming dalawa ngayon at yakap-yakap ko siya. He was combing my hair with his hands and he said, "I love how soft your hair is, Baby."

I stared at him and he smiled at me before granting a kiss to my lips. He cupped my cheeks and continued kissing me. He pulled me close in bed as his kiss deepened.

He then pulled back from the kiss and held the hand where the promise ring was placed. Hinalikan ni Nixon ang singsing at muling hinalikan ang aking labi.

"Thank you for coming into my life, Baby. I love you so much, Asher." He kissed my lips then kissed my forehead.

Niyakap ko siya nang mahigpit at bumulong. "Thank you for being the light of my life, Baby. I love you so much, Nixon."

Pagkatapos ng lahat ng masasama at magandang pinagdaanan ko, I never expected I'd be this happy with someone. I never expected that I will find this kind of love. People think sun set is a form of goodbye but to Nixon and I, it is only the beginning of something bright.

That night, he fell asleep on my arms. I combed his hair and kissed his forehead. Nang tamaan ako ng antok ay napangiti ako. Muli ko siyang hinalikan bago matulog at sinabing...

"I'm home. I'm safe. I love you, Rainier Nixon."