Bittersweet Hearts

25~ the power of two

I reached the restroom, thank god it was available. I stared at my face on the mirror. Mukha akong shunga. I wiped my tears nonetheless. Breathe in, breathe out. I shouldn't cry or else I have to explain why. Hindi ko keri yun. Hay. I wonder kung natitrigger si Julien when he sees me with my mom. Is he used to this? Maybe his situation is way different. But I miss my dad so much. I haven't talked to him in months because Mama forbade it. I know he's not totally gone from my life but this sucks. Then I realized the best way to reach out to him or ask about him was through Stephen. Buti nalang pala I brought my phone. I dialed Stephen.

"Hello? Aya? You okay?" He asked when he picked up.

"Yup. I am. It's just...I suddenly miss my dad. And we kinda forgot to talk about them." I said softly.

"I know... I wish I was there to comfort you. But I can assure you Tito is doing good. I got to see him before we left. I can tell you about the details when we see each other." Sabi niya.

"I'm not sure if I'm ready but I can take it. Sige, Steph, let's talk tomorrow? My class ends at 4pm. I can go there–"

"No, sunduin nalang kita sa school mo." He insisted.

"Okay, sige." I agreed.

"Alright. Don't worry, Aya. Tito misses you too. So, so, much." Sabi ni Steph.

"Thanks, Steph. Kumalma na ako ng konti."

"Anytime. Let's talk more tomorrow."

"Yeah. I have to go. Bye, Steph."

"Okay. I love you! Bye!"

And we hung up. I'm so grateful for Steph right now. Umurong na yung luha ko. Kumalma na rin ako. I guess I'll know more about Dad tomorrow. For now, balik happy Andy muna. I don't want Mama to know about me trying to reach out to Dad. And also communicating with Stephen.

I got back to our table and Julien was eyeing me. Hindi nga lang kami makagalaw like we're used to but I can sense he knows something's up. I just smiled at him.

"I see you two are finally getting along." Tito Javi said. Jusko po, kung alam niyo lang.

"That's great! It's like we have two sets of twins." Sabi ni Mama. Hay naku, Ma. Nagkatinginan tuloy kami ni Julien for a brief moment.

"Yeah." Sabi ko nalang sabay fake-ngiti.

"Oh, which reminds me, we're having a house party this Saturday. We're throwing a party to celebrate closing the deal. Just close friends." Tito Javi said.

"Okay." Sagot agad ni Julien.

"There's more, son. Are you all up for another sleepover? Your mom here suggested we give everyone a day off at the house since we'll hire a catering service. Bonus day off for taking extra care of our babies. What do you say, Andy?" Tito grinned.

Ugh. Classic Mama. Masyadong galante sa day offs. Nagkatinginan ulit kami ni Julien. But our date? I saw him nod a little while our parents waited for me to answer.

"Sure, Tito...it's fine with me. I like babysitting the twins." Sabi ko.

"Me too." Dagdag ni Julien.

"Great! I know we can count on you both. Don't worry, I'll give you allowance." Sabi ni Tito Javi.

"Honey." Mama scowled at him.

"Why, hon? It's not a bribe if they agreed first. It's an incentive." Sabi ni Tito.

"Alright, if you say so." My mom concurred. Julien and I both grinned.

"Can we get Mcdonald's ice cream?" Tanong ni Rosie.

"I want chocolate fudge." Dagdag ni Adie.

"Andy and I can get the ice cream. It's just around the corner." Julien volunteered. I nodded when our parents looked at us questionably.