A Fairytale's Mishap

CHAPTER 17: Threatened

"I seriously cannot believe this is happening!" Patuloy kong alburuto habang nagmamaneho siya.

"Kairi, would you relax? Ako lang naman ang nakakaalam na wala kang suot eh."

Mabilis akong lumingon sa kanya at minulagatan siya, "That's exactly the problem!"

"How could that be a problem? I've seen you naked already. We've done things more than just being naked..."

"Stop!" agad kong suway. I don't even wanna hear the rest of what he's gonna say. Humugot ako ng malalim na paghinga at tumingin sa labas ng bintana.

"Okay, I'm sorry. I'm just trying to convince you that they're not gonna find out you're current predicament right now. I'm just trying to make you feel comfortable."

"Comfortable? By bringing up what happened a while ago? Well, I think you're doing such a good job." Pasarkastiko kong sabi.

"Okay, again, I'm sorry. But what do you want me to do? It's not like there's any other possible solution right now. Pwede tayong maghanap ng convenience store, but looks like you're almost half a day late with your class. Sabi ko na nga sa 'yo na pwede namang wag ka ng pumasok."

"No, that's not possible anymore. I've been absent too many times."

"I can make some calls if you want. Talk to your teachers or something."

Pasulyap akong tumingin sa kanya saka muling ibinalik ang tingin sa labas, "At sino ka naman sa akala mo para gawin yon?"

Narinig ko ang mahina niyang pagtawa, "You just gonna keep on underestimating me, don't you?"

"Oo na! Ikaw na! Pag-aari mo na ang buong mundo."

Muli siyang natawa, "Geez, you're cranky this morning."

"Paano namang hindi mag-iinit ang ulo ko. I'm not wearing anything down there. And I even let things happened that shouldn't have happened in the first place."

"Don't beat yourself about it. That happened because we're attracted to each other. That's normal. Ikaw na rin ang nagsabi na may mga one-night stands ka. Clearly, what happened to us was so much better."

"And why is that?"

"Because I could assure you that's not just a one time thing. That it will happen again... and again... and again."

Natawa ako ng pasarkastiko, "You wish, Jake!"

"And again... And again... And..." nang-aasar niyang patuloy.

"Stop it!" Deep inside though, I'm trying not to smile.

Ilang minuto pa ang lumipas bago namin narating ang campus. Sa bungad pa lang ay tanaw na ang grupo ni Jake. They're all sitting there as if waiting for something... or someone.

Kasalukuyang pinaparada ni Jake ang sasakyan nang muli ko siyang tiningnan, "Mukhang inip-inip na sila sa kakahintay sa kanilang mahal na prinsipe." Tinitigan ko siya kung may masasaling ba na alaala sa kanya sa pagbigkas ko ng salitang prinsipe. Pero ngumiti lang siya.

Nang huminto na ang kotse ay inunahan ko na siya sa mabilis na pagbaba. Siguradong pagbubuksan na naman niya ako and I just don't want them to speculate. Pero alam kong wala ring kwenta dahil sa pagtingin ko sa grupo ay halata na sa mga mukha nila ang panghihinala.

Mabilis na akong humakbang kahit dinig ko ang pagtawag sa akin ni Jake mula sa likuran. Mabilis ko rin na nilagpasan ang grupo. I know I could say hi to them or something. Besides, we were already introduced. But there's something about how they look at me that made me just ignore them. Obviously, to them, I just don't belong.