"Selos ka? Ganun?" I teased.
He wasn't kidding. He's looking at me with a blank expression.
"Uuuuyy selos siya oh" I teased even more. His expression didn't budge. "I had a dog named Derek." I tried to look at the family pictures na kita si Derek. I pointed at Derek to show him.
He had to come close to see dahil kuha galing sa malayo at maliit sa picture si Derek. "Oh, the dog's name is similar to your ex's name. Fantastic." he mentioned sarcastically.
"He's gone now" I uttered.
"Sorry to hear that" Victor's expression quickly shifted, bitterness became concern after kong sabihin na wala na yung aso.
"Nawala si Derek sakin a week after akong iwanan nung katukayo." I explained.
Mahirap nang i-spelingin ang mukha ni Victor, hindi rin niya yata alam if he'll feel sorry for me because my dog died or the fact that I named the dog after my ex upsets him. Pati grammar ko affected na.
His good arm lodged at his waist in frustration. He looks pissed.
"Affected ka masyado? Halika doon tayo sa cage niya, well if they haven't moved it yet" Nauna akong maglakad not bothering to look back at Victor. Naririnig ko naman yung steps ng tsinelas niya.
"You have a very nice place" Victor said from behind me. Nasa tapat kami ng pool side.
"It's not mine, it's my parents' place" I corrected Victor.
Hindi nila ginalaw yung cage ni Derek. It's the same big cage with the same old lock.
"So Derek was a very big dog?" Victor asked.
"Golden retriever" I replied.
"Ang laki ng cage niya" Victor looked amazed dahil pang lion ang cage ni Derek.
"It's the biggest we can get from the store" I explained. "I didn't want Derek to feel like he's in a cage and so I can get in and play with him."
"You must've loved him so much" I think he means the dog because he doesn't sound pissed.
"Yes I did" It made my eyes water for a bit, but I have to talk to him about something. "Victor, we need to talk"
"About what?" He frowned. His eyes widened "Are you breaking up with me?"
"No, not exactly" I panicked.
He tilted his head and looked up. After a while, his eyes met mine, one hand at the back of his neck, "So what is it about?"
"I want us to break up" I watched his hand drop from the back of his neck, his mouth slightly opened. "But! Wait!" I raised my hands for him to cool his jets. "Only because I want to start fresh and take things slow. I mean we're back in Manila, it's the real world now."
Victor seemed to have calmed down but still frustrated. "Ok, how do you want things to be?" He sounded like nagpapabili lang ako ng kung ano sa hardware to get things fixed.
"Teka lang, ha?" I held his hand. "I thought about us having a kid together and yet hindi mo alam ang favorite color ko"
"It's blue" He stated.
"Cobalt blue" I corrected him. "Lucky guess, but that's not my point, I want us to go through the normal get-to-know-each other phase, like go out on dates, take things easy."
Victor stopped talking, mukhang nagi-isip siya kung anong gagawin niya about what I said.
"It works both ways, may gusto ka ba? It's not just what I want that matters, shempre may say ka rin" Nakonsensya naman ako ng onti. "Uy"
Chapter 10: Back to the big house
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