Let's Talk About Us [Completed]

49. Lies

I looked at her, my eyes must have been flashed with defiance, as I glowered at her.

"Ooppss," she grinned knowingly. "O baka naman takot ka lang-- takot ka lang na makaharap siyang muli dahil baka may bumalik na bagay na kinalimutan mo na?"

"Emma—"

She sipped on her coffee first before she said, "Friend, iba ang hindi handa sa takot. At mas lalong iba ang kinalimutan na sa nakalimutan na. Does it make sense?" then her gaze shifted to me meaningfully.

***

Napaisip tuloy ako sa sinabi ni Emma. Hanggang sa pag-uwi ko ay hindi maalis sa isip ko ang mga sinabi niya. Hindi lang ba talaga ako handa o sadyang takot lang ako sa mga posibleng mangyayari sa amin ni Garrett?

Sh1t. I massaged my temples gently. Sumasakit ang ulo ko sa stress.

"Hey, are you okay?"

Bumungad sa akin si Arthur na prenteng nakaupo sa sofa sa living room. I tried to pull a smile on my face. Ba't ang aga niya naman yatang umuwi ngayon?

"Kanina ka pa nakauwi?" tanong ko at saka ako lumapit sa kanya't naupo sa tabi niya.

"Yeah. I filed a resignation letter to the E.H.U. I am no longer an instructor now," sabi niya kaya tinignan ko siya nang nagtataka. Alam kong every Saturday lang ang schedule niya dun pero bakit niya naisipang mag-resign?

"Anong meron?"

Ngumiti siya sa akin bago nagkibit-balikat. "The company needs me more. Anyway, kamusta ang pamamasyal ninyo ni Emma?"

Sumandal ako sa sofa at tinuon ang paningin ko sa LED TV. "Ayos lang naman." It's not fine, really. Mas lalo lang ako na-upset kung alam mo lang.

"Glad you finally went out. Masyado ka nang nabuburo dito sa penthouse. 'Di ka na nasisikatan ng araw, Alison." He said with a slight chuckle as he turned on the TV. Tumayo siya at mukhang may isasalang na DVD sa player.

"Nga pala, tinext kita. Why didn't you reply to my messages? I even called you earlier but you were out of reach even lately..."

"Uh... Nasira kasi yung sim card ko. Nakabili na rin naman ako ng bago."

He smiled at me and I felt a sudden sting inside my chest. "Alright. Save your new contact on my phone," sabi niya't iniabot sa akin ang phone niya. Puro nalang ako kasinungalingan sa harap ni Arthur. I feel so bad.

Silence... Soon after I put my new number on his phone, my gaze wandered around the penthouse. Nakakapagtaka dahil tahimik yata ang buong kabahayan. Mukhang wala sina Manang at Venice.

"Arthur, si Venice?"

Tumayo siya. Mukhang naisalang na niya ang DVD. "Hiniram nila Mama at Lola," sabi nito at bumalik na sa tabi ko sa sofa. His arm made its way across my shoulders. "Habang wala sila, manuod muna tayo ng movie."

The movie was quite interesting. Nung una ay naiinis ako dahil isang Taiwanese movie ito but thanks to the not so perfect subtitles, I got to understand the whole movie.

The movie title is Campus Confidential. It was all about a college hottie who fell for someone who's completely opposite of her ideal man. Okay, a Computer geek to be exact. Nahulog ang loob ng bidang babae sa lalaki dahil sa mga kasinungalingan nito. Indeed, the movie shot right at me.

Those freaking lies...

"Arthur..." tawag ko sa kanya nang matapos na ang movie.

"Hmm?"

I stook a deep sigh first. "Kung ikaw yung nasa posisyon ni Kiki Liang, magagalit ka rin ba sa ginawang pagsisinungaling ni Lucky Wu?"

He shrugged his shoulders as he looked straight into my eyes. "Of course, I'll get mad. I hate it when people toy with my feelings. But I do understand Lucky Wu. Mahal niya si Kiki Liang kaya niya nagawa iyon," he grinned like a smartass. "You know, people get motivated to lie when they feel that their self-esteem is threatened. In that case, it pushes them to lie at higher levels."