Sooooooo.....
I have a question.
Actually, these are questions.
Is there a possibility that a woman can experience blue balls?
Next question, if there is, what it's called then?
Because goddamn it, the burning desire Reid left me with is something I know only he can extinguish. I tried to get rid of it. With all the toys I have in my unit, none of which gave me the satisfaction I'm craving, the unfulfilled gratification Reid planted.
It's been three days.
No text, no calls.
Nothing.
I shouldn't be mad, right? Pero sana man lang umalis ng may rason na naiintidihan ko. Hindi 'yong mega walk out tapos wala man lang ni-hi or ho. Then again, I remembered what Arcie usually says, Reid will make you understand when he wants you to understand.
"Bakit ang sungit mo naman?" Mapilyong tanong ni Aub sabay patong ng box ng pizza sa mesa ko. "Wala man lang 'Hi, Aub. Na-miss ko ang kagandahan mo!' pagkapasok ko rito."
Inirapan ko lang siya na sinagot naman niya ng maikling tawa. She texted a few minutes ago saying she'll drop by since she's near the area.
On other days, I would loooooove to have her company, but right now, I rather be alone with my thoughts.
"Nako, nako, nako. Ito na nga ba ang sinasabi ko." She exclaimed. I stopped typing and looked at her. She squinted her eyes all knowingly. "Hoy, Elora Isabelle Sapphire, 'wag mong sabihing in-love ka na kay Clark Kent with tattooes ha!"
Whatever gave her that idea made me laugh. "Sira ka sa tuktok!" Tugon ko.
I saw her visibly relaxing her shoulders, "Eh ano nga? Bakit napakasungit mo?"
"Wala! Naiinis lang ako. Kasi, dapat, isusuko ko na ang Bataan sa kanya. Tapos-"
"Ateng, matagal mo ng naisuko 'yan."
"Ano ba? Makikinig ka ba o hindi?" Masungit na sabi ko. Sandali siyang tumawa saka sumenyas na para bang zi-ni-zipper nito ang kanyang mga labi.
"Anyway, andoon na kami. We're in that moment. Tapos 'yong kumag biglang sumagot ng tawag at biglang nagmadali umalis. Ni-hi ni-ho wala, umalis na lang ng walang anu-ano."
"Sino ba tumawag kay Papi Kent? Wait, lang. Walang awoj 'yon, ha! Baka naman the other woman Anne Curtis beauty pala ang peg mong bakla ka!" Saka niya ako binato ng hot sauce na siya namang inihagis ko pabalik sa kanya.
"Sa tingin mo papayag akong maging kabit? Sa ganda kong 'to?" Ani ko na may kasamang irap. "Kapatid niya ang tumawag sa kanya. Apparently, as I've heard from his friends, basta si Colette ang usapan. He'll drop everything and go, no questions asked."
Aubrey just shook her head while she's spreading hot sauce on the slice of pizza she's helping herself with. "Well, kung ang gusto mo lang naman ay makahanap ng mg-reresucitate sa iyong pechay, I can give you selections."
"Shuta ka! Hindi pa naman lanta ang lagay nitong pechay ko."
"Ay nako, mare. For sure, hindi na fresh harvest 'yan gawa ng matagal ng 'di nadiligan!" She immediately replied before biting from her pizza.
"Ewan ko sa'yo! Bakit ka nga ba ulit narito at naninira ng araw ng may araw?" Pag-iiba ko sa topic.
Isinara niya ang Macbook ko bago ito pinatungan ng paper plate na may pizza. "Kumain ka muna." She ordered. Kumibit-balikat na lamang ako, may ugali kasi si Aub na gusto niya lagi siyang may kasabay kumain.
"So, bakit ka nga ba napadaan?" I repeated.
"I need to go buy a present for your sister-in-law. 'Diba birthday dinner niya mamaya? I don't know what to get. Luc said we should bring a cake, but we cannot find a vegetarian baker that will do a rush order. Nawala kasi sa isip ko to do gift shopping in advance."
I nodded my head, "Just get her kitchen supplies, she'll love it. Mahilig 'yon magluto."
"Anything related to kitchen? Or something specific? Like baking?"
Umiling ako saka inubos ang slice ng pagkain na nasa harap ko bago ako sumagot, "No, nothing in particular. Anything kitchen related she'll love it."
After that, Aubrey steered the conversation to their upcoming trip to France. She has a sister who lives there and has been visiting the country thrice a year for seven years already, but this is her first time bringing Lucy with her, so she's quite nervous about it. Kailan lang din kasi siya naging open with her sister about her sexuality, and I'm super duper happy that Ate Riya accepted her with no drama.
"Oh siya, aalis na ako at mamimili pa ako. Sabi ko kasi kay Luc sa may mall na niya ako sunduin, baka magalit siya kapag nauna pa siya sa'kin doon." She said while standing up.
As usual, she fixed the mess we made when we ate. Stuffing the left over pizza at my fridge before coming to me and offering me her tight hug.
"See you tonight! Promise magbe-behave kami ni Luc." She kid.
I chuckled. "Lucy is always on her best behavior. Ikaw lang naman ang bad influence sa aming dalawa."
She rolled her eyes, "Says the woman who sent naked pictures to an unknown number."
"Hoy! Ikaw ang nagsabi na gawin ko 'yon!"
"Dapat kasi 'di ka nakikinig sa lasing."
Pabiro ko siyang binatukan bago ko siya inakap muli. "Tse! Kung 'di ka lang masayang kaibigan matagal na kitang tinakwil."
She laughed before she gave a pat in the back and left. Once she was gone, I was again surrounded by the agonizing silence that was my companion earlier. Nawala na nga sa isip si Reid, pero heto't nagbabalik.
I dropped myself on my chair rather heavily before dragging my phone on my face. A lot of messages and missed calls but none of which from the guy I hate but oh so needed. Like my body is on fire for him.
Is this one of his tactics?
To make me want him more?
To have this desperate need for him?
Is he also thinking of me like I'm stuck wondering about him?
Do I have the same hankering feeling for him? Or am I just another warm body for him?
"Ahhhh! Bwisit ka talaga Almodovar!" Tili ko sabay untog sa sarili ko sa mesa ko. Hindi na ako makatrabaho. Ilang minuto pa ako sa posisyon ko bago ko napag-desisyunan na bahala na si batman.
Kung nasan man siya, siguro umiiling na siya dahil siya nanaman ang bahala sa lahat. Inabot ko muli ang cellphone ko saka ako nagsimulang mag-type.
"My sister-in-law is celebrating her birthday tonight. It's not a big party, not over 20 guests siguro. You can go if you're not too busy." Then I added our house address before I pressed send.
Tinitigan kong magsabi na delivered ang mensahe bago ko ibinaba ang cellphone ko sa mesa. I don't fucking know if tama ba ginawa ko, or masyado ba akong papansin o kung ano man.
Hindi ko na actually alam ang gusto ko mula kay Reid. I mean, I'm clear when I said I don't want to deal with him personally, much more sexually, pero tanginang shet naman, para akong tangang uhaw na uhaw sa kanya.
--
"Daddy, this is Lucy and Aubrey, remember them?" I said while introducing my two newly found friends to my uptight father. Actually, I don't know how he'll react but I already briefed my lesbian friends about my dad's closed ideology about most of the stuff that are present on the surface of the earth.
"Ah, yes. The lesbian couple." He directed mentioned as he offers his hand to them. I mentally face palmed. Mom elbowed him smartly, "Nathaniel, be nice. Kaya wala masyadong inuuwing kaibigan ang mga anak mo dahil ganiyan ka." She said with a tight smile.
"Sorry, girls. Pagpasensyahan niyo na ang Tito niyo. I'm Elena, Sabel's mom."
I groaned at the nickname she never outgrew using. "Ma, Fire nga kasi." I corrected but she just shook her head and ignored me. Classic mom. If you're wondering paano sila nagtagal ng Dad ko is because my mom, most of the time doesn't give a fuck. She's that type of a person na kahit galit na galit ka na sa kanya, she can look you straight in the eye and ask if you're done throwing tantrums.
"Ang cute naman po ng Sabel na nickname, Auntie." Sulsol naman nitong si Aubrey. Pinandilatan ko siya. Syempre, hindi ako pwedeng maging balasubas dito dahil nandito ang aking parentals.
"So, Sabel once mentioned that you two are in a trading business?" Dad, being the business man that he is of course drove the conversation directly to a topic he's interested about.
Lucy nodded, "Yes po, Uncle. We do ForEx, Bitcoin, NFTs, and electronics."
"Really nice." Dad answered before sipping a little from his rum. "Sabel, maybe you should learn from this two, 'no? Maybe it's time you ventured into a more progressing business."
I sighed and before this conversation even go deeper into something I don't like talking about, I waved at my sister-in-law and Kuya who's going our direction. We have this secret sibling gesture that says SOS. Kaya alam na ni Kuya na nagpapa-ewan nanaman itong si Dad sa mga bisita ko.
"This is Ate Leigh, short for Everleigh. And this is Kuya Yno, whom you met already." I said in short introductions.
Lucy and Aubrey greeted Ate Leigh and have her their present before we got invited towards the house backyard where the pool and the other visitors are.
"Mare, 'di ko kinaya 'tong bahay niyo, puro salamin, bawal mga tulad kong laking kalye." Bulong ni Aubrey ng nasa bakuran na kami.
"Ilang square meters 'to, Fire?" Lucy questioned while she was admiring the interior of the house, I think.
"460." I replied keeping it short. Hindi kasi talaga ako komportable kapag ganitong usapan. Because people think, that when your parents are rich, you're living with a silver spoon in your mouth. I was lucky to have that choice, but again, I wanted to make my own way towards success.
Before they could even ask me more questions about my parents' house, Ma ushered us towards the buffet table to eat.
"Masarap 'yang vegetarian dumpling, try mo. Gawa 'yan ni Ate Leigh." Turo ko kay Aubrey na mukhang lost kung anong unang kukunin. I was about to say more pero ngumuso siya sa likuran ko kaya umikot ako para harapin kung sino man ang itinuturo niya.
It's my dad with some random guy I've never seen in my life. "Sabel, this is Silas. Do you still remember him? Anak ng Tito Rowan mo. Kauuwi niya lang galing US, katatapos niya ng Masters niya sa Boston."
Naramdaman ko ang kilig-kurot ni Aubrey sa likuran ko na binalewala ko. Mamaya ko na babawian ang gaga.
I smiled at Silas and took the hand he was offering for a shake. "We used to go piano lesson together when we're four, remember?" Tugon niya.
"Oo nga, eh. Tagal na rin 'no?" I awkwardly replied which he answered with a smile and a nod. "Welcome sa party. Nandoon si Kuya Yno kung gusto mo silang makausap." Simpleng pagtataboy ko. I'm not really in the mood for a meet and greet if you ask me.
I have enough boy problems as of the moment and I'm not willing to add more to it.
Silas read my cue and politely excused himself, na of course, hindi nagustuhan ni daddy ever dearest.
"Sabel." He said in his signature authoritative tone. One word, but it's packed with a lot of meaning.
"Dad, please not now." I hushly replied.
He glared at me one more time before he marched away from me. Well, ready na ako sa sermon mamaya.
"Wow, daig pa diktador ni daddy." Bulong ni Aubrey sa'kin ng nasa mesa na kami at kumakain. Tinanguan ko lang siya.
"No wonder, ayaw mong umuuwi rito." Dagdag naman ni Lucy.
"Nako, worse pa 'yan kapag kami-kami lang. Controlled pa yan kasi may mga bis-"
"Fire." Natigil ako sa pagsasalita ng biglang lumapit si Kuya samin. Tiningala ko siya at nakitang may bakas siya ng pagkatuwa sa mukha. "Congratulations! Mukhang daddy approved." Ani niya.
I looked at him confused. "Huh? Ang alin?"
He mirrored my expression. "'Yong dine-date mo, aliw na aliw si dad kausap."
"Ano? Sino?" I said, panic evident in my voice, saka ako napatayo.
Hindi na nakapag-salita si Kuya. He just pointed at the direction near the buffet table where dad is standing. I narrowed my eyes to see who's behind him, and kill me now. Kingina.
It's Reid Freaking Almodovar.