All at Once (Absinthe Series 6)

Kabanata 9

Kabanata 9

All at Once

Laglag ang panga na nakatingin lang ako kay Rogan. Umatras ako at naiilang na tumawa sa kaniyang sabi.

"No, no," agap ko, "I'll treat you lunch. That's just it. Wala ng dinner."

"Why is that?"

I pursed my lips. I tried to divert my attention from other things because I knew he was staring at me. I never expected that he'll drop something like that.

"You promised me dinner," aniya pa.

"Well, naging lunch na ang dinner na iyon." Nahihiya kong sabi at nagbaba na lamang ng tingin.

"Okay," aniya kaya naman nakahinga na ako nang maluwag.

It was actually nice to have dinner with him. Maganda din siyang kausap kasi nakikinig siya sa akin. Pero naisip kong hindi ata ito tama para sa akin. I want to be friends with him but every time I think of that, palagay io ay hindi tamang makipagkaibigan sa kaniya.

"Let's go?" kapagkuwan ay ngumiti ako sa kaniya. Tumango naman siya pero bahagyang salubong ang kilay. He turned his back on me and went towards the door. Sumunod lamang ako at lihim na napangiti nang pagbuksan niya ako ng pinto.

"Convoy na lang tayo?" I asked because I saw his car parked in front of the cafe. Iyon lang ata ang naiibang kotseng nakaparada dahil sa brand nito. At natatandaan kong ito ang nasakyan ko noon.

"You can ride with me. Dito pa rin naman ako babalik mamaya."

"Okay," I smiled again. Nagtungo kami sa kaniyang kotse at pinagbuksan niya na naman ako ng pinto.

They were trained to be a proper man, I can say. Lahat yata ng nasa angkan nila ay tinuturuan ng magandang asal at maayos na pag-asta lalong-lalo na kung nasa harap ng maraming tao. Their family is well-disciplined too and were monsters in business. Kilala ang halos lahat sa iba't ibang larangan.

Zobel-de Ayala clan is indeed a standard.

"Where do you want to have lunch?" ani Rogan nang magsimula na siyang paandarin ang kotse.

"Sa Casa Gomez. I miss their food right now. Okay lang ba iyon sa'yo? If you want to go somewhere else, it's fine with me. Ako naman ang magbabayad eh."

Marahan siyang umiling. "Casa Gomez is fine. Do you have a reservation?"

"Wala eh, nakalimutan ko. We can just walk in but if puno na, okay lang naman na sa iba tayo kumain."

"We could check out Casa Gomez' other branch." he suggested.

"Okay. That's a good idea." tumango ako at ngumiti sa kaniya.

I was watching outside the window. It looks like ot will rain any minute now. Sana ay makaabot kami ng Casa Gomez bago pa umulan.

Rogan drove a little bit faster. Ilang minuto lang ay natanaw ko na ang ipinagmamalaking restaurant ni Raya.  Ever since the Absinthe promoted the restaurant, it became a celebrity spot. Kaya nagkaroon na ng reservations bago pumunta para masecure ang table kung sakaling dadagsa.

Then Raya made it a promise to build another branch just around the city. Sabay na ginawa ang dalawang magkaibang branch na iyon. And after a year, mas dumami pa ang dumagsa doon.

Pareho lang kami ng edad ni Raya pero iyong success niya, nag-uumapaw na. It was from her hardwork and determination. Madiskarte lang talaga si Raya at may motivation sa bawat ginagawa kaya hindi na nakakapagtakang ganito na siya kasuccessful ngayon.

We don't have a reservation but luckily, hindi pa puno ang main branch ng Casa Gomez kaya madali kaming nakapasok ni Rogan.

The different ambiance was quite refreshing to me. Hindi katulad sa cafe, ang Casa Gomez ay pampamilyang restaurant. The atmosphere feels like home whenever I stepped inside. Iyong ngiti ng mga crew napaka-welcoming din kaya naman pakiramdam mo ay hindi ka maa-out of place sa lugar.