Dwayne's Point of View
The big day...
Everyone is waiting, some were excited and some were nervous. The greatest CEO of wines was on the stage, sitting like a Lord. Haylee, Angelo, Maica and Neat was in beside me. Lily was left with the two kids, watching the event through live.
"Kinakabahan ako, I didn't expect this venue to be like this." Maica whispered. "Hindi naman ako kasali at taga-nood lang pero bakit? Huhu," such a crybaby. Angelo wrapped his arms on her waist. What a man.
"Wife, how 'bout you? Nervous?" I turned to my wife and saw her shaking. "You okay?"
"H-Hindi ko alam. Pati ako, hindi ito ine-expect. Phew, pigilan mo akong magback-out." she tighten her grip on her light-blue dress. She's stunning right now, I mean she's always beautiful but seeing her wearing a fitted dress makes her more beautiful. I chuckled and hold her waist too.
"Don't be nervous. You chose this for the first place. We're here if you want some help. Specially me, I will be there for you. Don't worry, everything is fine." I tried to enlighten her. It doesn't seem good if she keeps on being like this. "You said that we should be positive, so be positive."
Here's the plan. If everyone will be confused about the two wines, of course we will protest for it. Haylee will be coming with me on the stage later. It's just the wine they have, not the message through it. I trust Haylee and our friends trust us too.
"Good luck sa inyong dalawa. You'll surely win, kayo pa. Don't take negative energies, they're the negative ones. Negative will never take over the positive." Angelo said. "Kapag nanalo kayo, magiging kami na ni Maica." Maica's brows furrowed.
"The freak? Manahimik ka nga, baka 'di pa manalo, e." I heard Haylee's laugh. Good thing that she can still laugh. "Oh, sorry nga pala sa negative what if. Sure win 'yan. Nandito kami nitong gagong si Angelo para magcheer sa inyo mamaya kahit nakakahiya. Bangasan niyo iyang mga manggagayang iyan, wala silang kayang gawin kaya nanggagaya na lang." she said, annoyed.
"Angas, ah. Sige, salamat sa pagbibigay ng rason para mapangiwi ako, Jam." Haylee sarcastically said. "Ho!" he hugged me back.
"Ho, pda." we heard a whisper from behind. It was Neat, averting his gaze on us. "By the way sir, naayos ko na iyung pinapagawa mo." he smirked playfully.
Haylee's brows furrowed and Angelo chuckled, Maica seems not informed huh.
"Ano 'yon?" Haylee's suspicious. "Bakit? Nagblack mail ba kayo para tayo ang manalo? Omaygash, Dwayne,'wag ganiyan." I laughed a bit.
"We won't do such a thing, wife. You'll see it later." and as that, we turned are gazes back at the stage. Waited and watched those performances that random band's have performed.
"Hello ladies and gentlemen, now is the time to do the competition. Mr. Thomas, the one and only greatest CEO of wine corporations will be our judge. We have fifteen types of liquors here," he pointed the table behind him. "Mr. Paul Thomas can't taste a hundred of liquors so we come up to an idea where some corporations all over the world will team up with another corporation. Some of the corporations gave up or didn't made it so as you can see, only fifteen liquors were here." an announcer announced on the stage.
"This is it, woah, I'm having goosebumps." Angelo whispered.
"Let us give Mr. Thomas an applause for he'll be giving us his short speech," he handed the microphone to Mr. Thomas.
"So, it's a great day today. All of you already know me so wouldn't introduce myself anymore. I made this event because I am currently finding a liquor that will be a good fit for my taste. I stopped making my own wines due to the fact that I am now growing old. I will name the price, ten million will do." everyone gasped. "Making wines and other types of liquors was my hobby, I became successful because of it. Every wine I make has a message. I make wines not for the money, or something else. But because I want to give messages through it, through the taste."
I gazed at my wife, look like we found someone like her. Someone who's always finding lessons from today's and applying it for tomorrow. Someone who's not selfish, because they always want to share that lesson through message on stuffs.
"That is what I wanted. It's not just about the taste and quality, but also the good thing about its taste. So, good luck." everyone clapped again. That was an amazing speech though.
"Thank you Mr. Thomas. Now, let's begin!"
Haylee's Point of View
Kinakabahan, nanginginig at naeexcite. Hindi ako kailanman nakasaksi ng ganito, pangdaigdigang kompetisyon at tungkol pa siya sa mga alak.
Nagsimula na nga at kaniya kaniyang paliwanag ang mga ibang taga prisenta ng mga alak. Magagaling at mukhang maayos naman ang mga lasa dahil sa ekspresyon ni Mr. Thomas. Nasa bandang huli ang sa amin pero nape-pressure ako. Hindi makalma ang tibok ng puso ko.
"Now, it's for the Biney Wine of Wendern Corp. Oh, looks good." anunsiyo ng lalaki. Iyon ang alak na nagaya mula sa amin. Isang lalaki ang pumunta sa entablado at nakangisi ng malawak. Sa tingin ko ay siya ang CEO ng naturingang korporasyon. "Looks good and I guess, it'll taste good too. Let's find it out!" pinasa nito ang alak sa matanda.
Pinanood kong mabuti ang reaksyon niya. Napatango siya at kinuha ang mikropono.
"It's indeed tastes good. Care to tell us about it?"
Nagsalubong ang mga kilay ni Dwayne, ngumiwi si Angelo, umarko ang kanang kilay ni Jam at nagkuyom ng kamao si Neat. Nanatili akong kinakabahan. Wala akong pokus sa sasabihin ng lalaki, ang iniisip ko ay ang pagharap sa mga tao mamaya.
"We made it overnight," lahat ng kasama ko ay umiling habang nag't-tsk'. "It tasted bitter and sweet, right? Well, we made this to tell you that, you can compare yourself to our Biney every time you drink this. Bitter at first but it'll taste sweet when you swallow it. It's like you, or us, you'll never know something if you go on what you see at first but if you dig deeper, you'll see." halos mapatanga kaming lima.
Anong konek? Bitter and sweet, paano napunta sa panlabas na anyo at panloob?
"Tsk, wala pala, e. Sure win na talaga." nakangising komento agad ni Angelo.
"Hmm, makes sense.." mahinang bulong ni Mr. Thomas kahit parang hindi siya kumbinsido. Gusto kong matawa pero pinangunahan ako ng kaba nang ianunsyo ang huling alak at sa amin iyon.
"Now is the last but not the least, Malema Wine from Chen Corporation together with the Henderson's."
Si Dwayne ang pumunta sa harap. Inabot nila sa matanda ang alak. Kinabahan kaagad ako nang makita ang reaksyon niya. Reaksyon na para bang nagsasabing parang may mali. Kinuha nito ang mikropono at nagtatakang humarap sa asawa ko.
"I am sorry for this but it looks like your wine tastes like the previous one." lahat ay nabigla. Nilingon ko ang kaninang lalaki at nakangisi na naman siya. "It looks like there's something wrong. Did someone from the two of you copied the wine?"
Umakyat ng mayabang ang lalaki. "I think they plagiarized us. Oh, sorry for the offensive comment but you are more offensive to us. We made the wine overnight. So my assistant was right, some random corporation plagiarized ours. I didn't believed it at first. Why would you do such a thing, Mr. Chen? Sorry but I want to ask you, you were one of the most engaging CEO in the Philippines, but why would your corporation could do such a thing like copying someone?"
Ngumisi lang si Dwayne. Muntik pang sumugod si Jam pero napigilan nina Angelo at Neat.
"Mr. Chen? Care to explain?" hindi inalintana ni Dwayne ang mapagsuspetyang tinig ng matanda.
"I am hoping for your permission for me to continue Mr. Thomas. Don't disqualify our wine that easy. Well, maybe we are the one who plagiarized the Biney Wine, you can go on that idea but let me have a chance to share a message or the details of the Malema Wine." kalmadong sambit niya.
Nagtaka lalo ang matanda at natigilan pa rin ang lahat.
"Why would you? You plagiarized it so why would you come up with a message or details?" pampipigil ng lalaki.
"Why? You seemed confused or full by yourself, Mr. Obama. This is my turn, you're off." napa'ooh' ang dalawang katabi ko. "I am asking Mr. Thomas to let me have a chance, I did not mentioned your name to ask for it Mr. Obama." natuwa ako ng kaunti. Savage iyarn hubby?
"Okay. I am letting you to." nawala ang ngisi ng lalaki at hindi na siya pinansin pa ni Dwayne.
"Malema was one of the underrated wine of the Chen Corporation before. It was made by an employee who stayed at the company for a decade but soon was found dead. Its taste was full bitterness but then changed into that." nanlaki ang mata ko roon. Hindi ko inakalang gawa ang Malema ng isang empleyadong patay na. "And honestly speaking, Malema Wine is the not a duplicate because, we made it ourselves overnight. And as a proof, here is my wife to confirm it." tumungo sa akin ang paningin ng tatlo na para bang sinasabihan akong kaya ko 'to.
"Come on Mr. Chen, you shouldn't make stories about this and let your wife stay out of this. Don't add lies to prove that your Malema is the original wine." tinignan niya lamang ito.
"Why? Afraid? Why would I let my wife stay out of this if she's the one who come up with the Malema's message? I can let my wife tell everything." napalunok ang lalaki.
"You can let her, where is she, Mr. Chen?" tanong naman ni Mr. Thomas. Tinignan ako ni Dwayne, senyas na dapat na akong umeksena. Plano ko 'to kaya hindi dapat ako umatras. Dahan-dahan ay lumakad ako paharap. Nasa akin ang lahat ng mata. Umiwas ako sa kanila para mabawasan ang kaba ko.
"You can't—,"
"Let them Mr. Obama. I am the one who will decide here." pagpigil sa kaniya ng matanda. Napatikom kaagad siya at biglang namutla. "Now lady,"
Huminga ako ng malalim at tumingin muli kay Dwayne bago abutin ang mikropo sa kamay niya. Tinignan niya ako na para bang ibinibigay niya sa akin ang pagkakataon.
"U-Uhm, Malema was indeed an underrated wine of Chen Corporation for its bitter taste. I was there when we choose to improvise the wine. We decided to change its taste. We wouldn't do such a thing like plagiarizing." huminga ako ng malalim bago magpatuloy. Lahat ng mata ay nakatutok sa akin. "Malema tastes bitter at first but when it reaches your throat, you'll taste the sweet effect. It's like life,"
Tumingin ako kay Jam. "Most of all people don't experience good lives at first. If you put yourself on those people's shoe, it was like eating nor drinking a bitter meal and drink because you couldn't afford some sweet and delicious meals." sunod ay si Dwayne. "Some people out there might be alone, no romance and happiness, it feels bitter and sad right?"
Sa huli ay kay Mr. Thomas. "And one last thing, some people out there might be living in a world of lies. Everything was a lie and if you think of it, maybe you'll ask your self, 'how painful is that?' . Pain tastes bitter if you would base the wine on that kind of feeling."
Then finally, sa lahat naman ako tumingin at ngumiti.
"If you would like to observe life, you can tell to yourself that 'yeah, bitter comes first.' Malema's meant to tell you that bitter comes first on life. See? Those people who didn't gave up had their great lives now, they can now finally taste the sweetness of life. Those people who have been alone for a long time are now enjoying the romance and sweetness of love. And lastly, lies never stay on your life forever. Truth will always come and truth tastes sweet too. Happiness tastes sweet. After having those experiences, painful experiences to success is like tasting Malema." they look amazed.
"And now, Mr. Obama. How could I come up with that if we are the one who plagiarized you?" hinarap ko ng buong tapang ang lalaki na natigilan din.
"What a wonderful speech, lady. I can prove that Malema wine was the original wine. It's not good to own someone's masterpiece Mr. Obama. The wine tastes great. I already made my decision and of course, it was obvious that these people won. The message touched my heart. The wine was great, you were great."
Nagpalakpakan lahat. Napangiti ako ng malapad habang naglalaglagan ang mga kulay gintong mga papel sa amin ni Dwayne. Nakakagulat dahil agad-agad ang pag anunsiyo ni Mr. Thomas.
"Woo! Told yah sister!" sigaw ni Jam.
"That's my best friend, man!" si Angelo naman.
Parang hinaplos ang puso ko dahil sa sunod kong nakita. Bawat mukha ng mga tao pati na ang kasali sa kompetisyon ay manghang mangha. Kahit hindi sila nanalo ay nagawa pa rin nilang purihin kami.
"Congratulations! It was an indeed touching message. Our CEO didn't even think twice on deciding. Once again, let's congratulate them for winning the International Liquors Competition! We are live and being watched by so many people by the way, look at the camera couple!" biglang lumapit sa amin ang taga anunsyo at may kasamang cameraman.
Nanlaki ang mga mata ko, live?!
Ow, it was said international nga pala pero bakit kailangang live?! Walang sinabi si Dwayne, ang akala ko ay ifi film lang saka ipapanood.
"Mrs. Chen, what would you like to say after winning this competition?"
"U-Uhm," sinulyapan ko si Dwayne. Ngumiti lang siya sa akin. "It's overwhelming. I can't believe I am being watched all over the world right now but yeah, hehe. I hope that everybody will take my message. Thank you to Mr. Thomas for trusting us." pagkasulyap ko sa matanda ay nakatingin din ito sa akin jaya nginitian ko, narinig naman na siguro niya ang sinabi ko.
"What do you want to say to Mr. Obama after what happened earlier?"
"Uhm, let's not own someone's masterpiece. It's what Mr. Thomas have said." I chuckled. Nahihiya pa rin ako pero ayokong sumablay.
"Congratulations again, Mrs. Chen! That was amazing!" nakipag shake hands ako sa kaniya bago pa siya pumunta kay Dwayne.
"Omg! Kyahh!" paglingon ko, si Jam agad ang sumalubong ng yakap sa akin. Halos matalon na niya ako, buti at hindi kami natumba. "Sabi sa'yo, e! Yiee, alam kong dahil din sa akin kaya mo iyon nasabi. Napansin ko kaya, omg ka sis. Pinapakyak mo'ko." narinig ko ang pagsinghot niya sa balikat ko. "Kailangan talagang isali mo ako ah? Nakakaloka ka." niyakap ko din siya pabalik.
"Congrats Haylee! Ang galing mo!" nakipag fist bump sa akin si Angelo kahit yakap ko pa si Jam.
"Okay ba pag eenglish ko?" tumango siya at ngumiti. "Jam, tumahan ka na nga, nakakahiya ka." balik usal ko kay Jam na umiiyak pa rin.
"Ikaw naman kasi, e. Buti nga hindi ako umiyak kanina. Alam mo bang muntik na? Tapos ngayon, ayon, nailabas ko na." kumalas siya at pinunasan ang luha.
"Totoo naman kasi, e."
Ilang papuri pa ang natanggap ko sa ibang tao bago natigil. Lumapit sa akin si Dwayne para yakapin sa beywang.
"You did great." bulong niya.
"We did great." pagtatama ko pa. Nagtinginan kaming dalawa, mauuwi na sana sa titigan nang marinig ko ang boses ni Nathan.
"Mommy, daddy!" tumakbo ito papunta sa akin. Kasunod niya sina Kate at Lily. "Wow, I watched you on tv mommy and daddy!" yumakap siya sa beywang ko at tiningala kaming dalawa. "You both did great po!" nginitian namin siya at parehong hinalikan sa noo.
"Thank you, baby." sabay pa naming usal.
Nagpapicture sa amin ang ibang tao pati na rin si Mr. Thomas. "Congratulations again. I hope that you can still willing to spread messages."
Nagpasalamat kami sa kaniya. Ang akala kong matatapos ng event ay biglang nag-ingay. Nagtipon ang lahat ng tao, ulit. Namataan ko si Neat na kausap ang taga anunsyo. Napangiti pa ang kausap niya nang may sabihin siya dito.
Biglang lumapit sa amin ang lalaki na nakangiti ng malapad. Mukhang may inaabangan din ang lahat. Anong meron?
"A-Anong meron?" pabulong na tanong ko kay Dwayne. Biglang lumayo sa akin ni Nathan at tumakbo kay Jam. Nakangisi naman ang dalawa. Biglang nawala ang ilaw sa buong reception at naitutok lang sa amin. Takang taka na ako.
"Let me tell you a story.." lumingon ako kaagad kay Dwayne nang magsalita siya, nakangiti at nakaharap sa madla. "There's a man who have a son. Everyone thought that he just adopted the boy because it was his brother's. But little did they know, he was the real father. But he also thought the wrong idea." biglang natigil ang katawan ko nang tignan niya ako. Pamilyar.
"He thought that the boy was his son on his brother's wife. A little bit weird right? But it comes out that his brother's wife had a twin and it was the real mother of the kid. Everything was a mistake, a beautiful mistake. Fate didn't let them go in vein so they're now living together. But, at first, they just married for the sake of the kid. The kid has a trauma and only his mother and father can touch him. The father didn't knew that the woman he married was the real mother of his son until his brother's wife appeared. He thought that she's dead but no. She unlocked the truth. That truth made the couple apart for a short period of time and cause a trouble but everything went okay after those." nanubig ang mata ko, seryoso ba siya? Live pa kami, oh.
"Many of you might be asking why did I called for this. It was because I want you to witnessed something." lumapit siya sa akin habang nanatili akong nakatulala sa kaniya. Niyakap niya ako sa braso at kinindatan. "See this woman beside me? She's my wife and she's the real mother on the story, I was the father. I want all of you to know our story. We married before only for the sake of our son because we don't have any ideas on what is the truth that time. But we develop our feelings to each other. The contract became surreal. But here's a thing," tumigil siya saglit. at kumalas sa pagkakayakap sa akin.
May kinuha siya sa likod niya.
Isang puting maliit na kahon.
Tuluyan nang kumalas ang mga luha sa mata ko. Naghiyawan ang mga tao.
"D-Dwayne,"
"I don't want to continue this relationship that has started with just a contract. So here I am," niluhod niya ang isa niyang tuhod at binuksan ang kahon. Isang singsing na may diyamante sa gitna ang bumungad sa akin. "Kneeling in front of the woman I love the most."
"D-Dwayne, a-anong..?" hindi ako matuloy tuloy sa pagsasalita.
"Haylee, my wife, my love, my baby, my babe, my lovely sweetheart, my divine darling, my sweet honey, I am kneeling in front of you, asking you to marry me again. This marriage will be realistic this time. It's not for the contract anymore, it's not for a job anymore. It's not about for the lies anymore because it is for the true love now."
"Woo! Say yes!"
"I told you, I will marry you again. I am not a prisoner of love before we met, yes that's true. But as you can see right now, I am willing to walk inside a cage if you'd ask me to. But baby, if you would, I want it to be on your heart. I want to be a prisoner inside of your heart. Wife, answer me." umagos na tuluyan ang mga luha ko pero nagawa kong matawa ng mahina.
Hindi ko siya inimikan saglit at kinuha ang singsing. Naluluha kong isinuot iyon sa daliri ko. Nagsigawan na silang lahat dahil doon. Nakangiti na ring tumingin sa akin si Dwayne. Ipinakita ko sa kaniya ang kamay ko.
"Engage na ako, oh." pagbibiro ko. Dali-dali siyang tumayo at hawakan ang magkabila kong pisngi.
"I knew you were going to say yes."
"At bakit naman kita hihindian?" nginisihan ko siya.
Nagpatuloy lang ang mga tao sa paghiyaw. Nagpapalakpakan ang iba at dinig ko ang kilig na tawa ni Nathan. Wala akong oras na lingunin silang lahat.
"Double celebration! Woo!"
"This will be the second filipino phrase I will tell you." tinaasan ko siya ng kilay. "Mahal kita. Mahal kita, Haylee ko." nagulat ako doon. Nanlaki ang mga mata ko at lalo na nu'ng halikan niya ako!
He claimed my lips again in public!
But this time, hindi ko masyadong pinansin ang mga tao. Ipinikit ko ang mga mata ko at dinama ang halik niya. Kumalas siya nang halos hindi na kami makahinga.
"Let's get married now,"
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Astrid Manunulat