Bakit 'Di Na Lang Totohanin? (ALDUB-inspired)

Twenty-Six

DISCLAIMER: — see first chapter —

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Who else is excited for Imagine You & Me coming out next month? Love the theme song too sung by Maine; I'm not particularly fond of the duet when they sang it together last Saturday, but the lyrics was really heartfelt. And since the annual Wattys Award is starting this month, I decided to enter this story as one of my entry choices for this year's #Wattys2016; hope you guys continue to support this story and help promote it too. I am slowly working on getting it updated as often as I can so here's to looking forward to more story updates in the weeks to come!

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XXVI.

Maine POV

VALENTINES WEEK IS ALMOST OVER. Hay salamat at malapit na ring matigil ang non-stop dating ng gifts sa akin from my so-called Secret Admirer. Naiinis na nga sa akin si Alden kasi laging ang dami kong dalang gamit pauwi, and nagmimistulang storage place ko yung trunk nung car niya coz I never bothered taking the gifts I received up to my place.

"Kung chocolates yung mga regalo sa iyong yun ng kung sino mang kumag yang nagpapadala sayo ng regalo na yan, you will owe me big time for detailing if those chocolates melted and made a mess of my trunk," Alden threatened me as he drove us to work this Friday morning.

"Sobra ka naman. I don't think it will leak from the boxes if ever chocolates yun na nag-melt."

"Bakit ba kasi ayaw mong dalhin sa apartment mo yung mga gifts sayo? At least doon you can easily dispose of them sa garbage can or bakit hindi mo na lang itapon sa basurahan sa work yun if you have no intention of opening them?"

I'm surprised that Alden was taking this Secret Admirer business calmly. After his near freak-out when he saw the first gift I received from my admirer I expected the worse from him. Pero he surprised me by maintaining his cool about it kahit na madalas niya akong hinihiritan dahil nga ginagawa kong storage cabinet yung trunk ng car niya.

"Kasi nga ayaw kong makita ako nang kung sino man iyong admirer kong iyon na itinatapon lang yung gift niya."

"But I thought you don't give a crap about whoever is giving you those gifts?"

"I don't."

"If you don't, then why does it sound like it's a big deal kung mahuli ka niyang itinatapon mo yung regalo niya? Maybe that's the hint he needs if he can't get it through his head na walang interest na malaman kung sino man siya," Alden pointed out rather passionately as he swung in to the parkade entrance of our office building.

Hindi ako nakasagot kaagad.

Okay, let me be honest here. Although sabi ko kay Alden na I don't give a crap whoever my secret admirer is, deep down inside curious din naman akong malaman kung sino itong Romeo ito na bigla-bigla na lang nagparamdam sa akin this year. I would've suspected Ike to be the culprit, pero I don't want to jump to conclusions kasi since we reconnected eh he hasn't shown any sign of wanting to get back together with me. Besides, doing this secret admirer thing isn't his style. Ike doesn't like playing mind games. Sweet and romantic siya, pero I doubt he would've let the secret admirer mystery go on for so long – like a damn week long!

Alden and I dropped the subject of my growing pile of gifts in his trunk as we made our way in to our building. It was just the two of us who got on the parkade floor he parked, but once we reached the main floor eh maraming sumabay na sa amin. Hindi na kami nakapag-usap and Alden got off his floor without as much as giving me a backward glance to let me know he was off.