She opened the door just seconds after he buzzed the doorbell.
"Pasok, Jay. Before you say anything, may gusto sana kong sabihin sayo."
She motioned for him to sit down then sat across from him, with her legs tucked under her.
"Hindi ko nagustuhan yung tono ng boses mo kanina. Parang ano kasi, parang sobrang laki na ng kasalanan ko. First off, as far as I know, you and I are not dating. I don't even know kung nanliligaw ka ba o we're just friends with kissing benefits. Which is weird. Kaya you have zero right na pagbawalan ako makipag-usap kahit kanino."
She raised a finger when she saw that he was about to say something.
"Patapusin mo muna ko, please, Jay."
He nodded, closed his eyes and leaned back. He looked like he was braced for the worst and that melted her heart. Carefully, she stood up and sat on his lap. His eyes flew open and as if they had a mind of their own, his arms went around her waist and pulled her closer.
"I'm sorry, Dei. I'm sorry. Natakot lang ako. Wala pa nga, hindi ko pa naaayos, mawawala ka na. And those guys, they're fun... masaya kasama, they're more like you and I got scared na baka mas magustuhan mo sila kesa sakin."
She felt more than heard the sob that escaped him. She pulled away so she could look him in the eye while she spoke.
"Nakakatakot ang intensity mo, Betty. Pero... look at me and listen closely okay? Those guys? They're my friends. That's all. I'm friendly eh. Well at least I'm trying to be. Being this level of outgoing goes against my nature na tahimik lang sa isang tabi. Mukmok lang. Observe observe ganun. And I feel like I already wasted so much of my life being cooped up in my own world. So I made a promise to myself to be more open to new experiences, new people. That doesn't mean however that I want to date them."
For the first time since he arrived, she saw a ghost of a smile play on his lips.
"Uhm... so who do you want to date?"
She quirked an eyebrow and pursed her lips.
"Fishing ka no, Betty? Ikaw. I want to date you. BUT! Ay jusko teka naman kasi meron pa kong sasabihin. Ang OA ng pagsunggab agad. You have to promise to trust me, okay? I won't stop being friendly just because we're dating."
He pouted, his lower lip poking out like a toddler who's been told he couldn't have any more candies.
"Pero ako lang ikikiss mo diba? That privilege is mine and mine alone, right? I want that written down and signed by the both of us."
She laughed out loud, stood up and sprinted towards her room. A minute later she came out with a pen and a piece of paper in her hands.
On it was written, "This contract certifies that the parties whose signatures appear below agree to exclusively share kisses and other benefits until both parties mutually agree to nullify said exclusivity."
He read it out loud and signed his name right next to hers.
When she checked, she saw that he made a slight modification to what she wrote and signed his name as Richard Betty Faulkerson Jr.
"I like your name. Talagang inilagay mo yung Betty, no? At may paandar ka pang or until death do them part. You don't do anything half-assed no?"
"Siyempre naman. Why settle when you can go full throttle? So Miss Dei, we need to make this exclusivity contract legal and binding para wala ka ng kawala sakin."
"Hmmm? Lemme guess, we do that by---"
He didn't let her finish.
They spent the rest of the day wrapped in each other's arms, kissing.
