Mich POV
Nandito lang ako sa loob ng comfort room. After the scene I witnessed, I just averted my gaze from them and walked back out of the door like I do not give an ounce of care about it. Because I really don't.
That's what I want to believe.
Like.....
What the fuck is wrong with her? Mas lalo lang umigting yung galit ko. Kanina lang, kabado ako at nais nang humingi ng tawad sa kaniya. Gusto ko lang din namang kausapin siya nang maayos tungkol sa nangyari. Tungkol sa impulsive action ko na alam ko'y hindi niya ginusto.
Ako rin naman, hindi ko iyon ginusto. Hindi ko lang maintindihan sa sarili ko kung bakit ko nga iyon nagawa. Nais ko lang din na magkaayos na kami. I am not denying that I do miss her. Besides Rain, Anntonia is the top tier best friend I have.
But with this fuckery she's doing, gusto ko na lang din lumayo sa kaniya.
I took one last glance of myself on the mirror so I can go back to the conference room.
The moment I held the door handle, sabay na rin itong bumukas at agad nasalo ng paningin ko ang mukha ng babaeng kanina pa nasa isipan ko. Without a beat, she rolled her eyes at me and pushed the door harder which made me step back until my back hit the wall.
"Serves you right." mahina niyang bulong pero narinig ko pa rin naman.
Gusto ko siyang murahin, gusto ko siyang sampalin.
Gusto kong magsabi ng masasamang words!
But I kept my cool, and just stood straight. I didn't give her another glance anymore and walked out of that suffocating comfort room.
Discomfort room na ata dapat ang tawag doon.
When I got back in the conference room, Mamita immediately gestured her hand to come near her. I was greeted by different personalities - directors, creatives, chairpersons, designers - basta ang dami nila!
My mom led the way to introduce me to some more people. The conversation just revolved around us inviting them to my birthday party. Medyo kabado lang ako dahil mga propesyunal ito, so I am hoping they get to enjoy the theme of my party, lalo na't may plano ako sa araw na iyon.
"We will be there, Michelle. We can't wait for you to be part of the team." I shook the hand of the director that my Mom introduced.
Akalain niyo 'yon, may pateleserye na para sa bebe gurl niyo.
Marami pa akong kinamayan dahil halos lahat nga rito ay imbitado sa birthday party ko.
"Thank you for inviting us, Madam, you really do have the potential to be a beauty queen. Ngayon pa lang ay ramdam ko na ang charm at poise mo." bumeso ako sa isa sa mga usual judges ng isang national pageant.
"No Ma'am, I should be the one thanking you po. It would be an honor to have you as one of my guests. I'm looking forward to seeing you there po, we'll send a formal invitation to you once everything is settled. Please expect it a week from now."
I feel drained. Ilan pa ba ang hindi pa namin nalalapitan. I understand why this physical interaction with these people is important especially to my Mom and Mamita, but gosh...
Puwede naman kasing mag-post na lang sa isang Facebook Event! Michelle Dee @23, be there! Pahirapan pa, nako naman.
My mom probably sensed the fatigue radiating through me, so she excused ourselves to the people surrounding me and guided me to one of the chairs. I gave her a small tired smile as I sit down.
Aba'y fuck the shit out of me. I can see through my peripheral vision that two familiar figures are approaching us.
"Tita, I want you to meet my boyfriend, Ivan Pandi."
.......
"Pfft....hahahahHAHAHAHA" agad kong tinakpan ang bibig ko at kinagat ang ibabang labi ko para pigilan ang tawa ko, hindi ko naman kasi aakalaing matatawa ako nang pagkalakas-lakas.
Shitballs na apelyido 'yan. Tunog panty.
Kingina natatawa na naman ako. I cleared my throat a couple of times, because I can feel her eyes shooting daggers at me.
"Oh nice meeting you, Ivan." seryosong bati ni Mom dito sa lalaking mas malaki pa ang ngiti kaysa kay Elmo the puppet. Pero napansin kong maliit lang na nginitian ito ni Mom, which is unusual of her because she always approaches people more warmly, with a handshake, at the very least.
"I would like Ivan to be my plus one at the party po." dagdag pa ni Anntonia nang may matamis na ngiti.
Woah, ang lakas naman ng loob nitong magdala ng plus one, siya ba ang may birthday? Besides, who even told her she's invited?
Well I guess it's already given, since she is family.
But who freaking told her that this panty guy is invited? To my birthday party?
"I----"
"Oh I don't think we can accommodate one more person, dear, I am genuinely sorry for this. At this point, we still need to invite a couple of important people pa. Michelle's birthday party is not only a celebration but an opportunity for her to gain more traction, right hija?" si Mom na ang pumutol sa sanang pananaray ko sa ex-childhood best friend ko na ngayon ay wala na ang ngiting iginagawad niya kanina, while my Mom is trying to catch my attention with her samahan-mo-ako-sa-trip-ko look.
Also, I know when my Mom has her plastic self is turned up, and I clearly heard it in her voice as she apologized for the inconvenience this brought upon the couple in front of us.
"Uh, yeah Mom. Besides, we haven't discussed about our guests bringing plus ones, I mean, this is why we're personally inviting people right now." I graciously replied as I stood up from my seat to face them.
"Hi, I'm Ivan Pandi. My love, Ann, has told me great stories about you. She's lucky to have you as her best friend and sister." the man reached one hand to shake my hand, but before I reached it, I took one glance at the woman beside her whose ears are now turning red.
Dahil lang tinawag siyang my love? Kasuka.
"Hi, nice to meet you. Again, I apologize if we cannot invite you to my birthday party, maybe I'll have one more celebration, a much more casual one so maybe then we can invite you so you could meet our family and get to know each other more." I shook his hand and gave him a genuine smile as much as I could. His hand is rough, parang may mga kalyo. Kawawa naman si Anntonia, nagagasgasan ang kutis.
May itsura naman itong lalaking 'to. Maskulado, moreno, at matangkad. Siya ang masasabi niyong tall, dark, handsome, and mysterious.
He softly chuckled and I saw his face blush and glanced at his shoes before replying to me. Akala ba niya I am checking him out? Excuse me, inoobserbahan ko lang naman kung ano ang nakita ni Anntonia sa lalaking 'to. Tinaas niyang muli ang paningin sa akin
"No, yeah, that's no problem at all. I told Ann not to bother anymore but she is persistent. Just--- ah aha ow. Sorry about that." parang may kumirot sa braso niya kaya ito napa-aray. He caressed the hand of the girl who is clinging on to his arm.
I took one deep breath first before excusing myself and also my Mom who is just gracefully standing on the side.
"Well it's nice to meet you again, Ivan. May we excuse ourselves? We still need to greet a few more people. Excuse us." I bid goodbye to the man and held Mom's arm to prompt my Mom that I want to get out of this interaction right now.
"Su-sure. Nice to meet you again, Michelle. Ma'am." he nodded his prince like a prince at my mother. Mom gave the same nod to him as we walk away.
"Are you okay, anak?" she asked me when we are a few meters away from the couple.
"Why won't I be, Mom? Is something...is there a problem po ba?"
Tinitigan niya lamang ang mukha ko, papalit-palit ang tingin sa kaliwa't kanang mata ko, tila may hinahanap na sagot o emosyon. I just squinted my eyes at her and gave her my biggest sweet smile.
"Mom, I'm okay. I feel great. I am excited for my birthday party. Noong una parang ayaw ko pa po, pero ngayon, I have a reason to look forward to it. So do not worry too much about me. Sige ka, magkaka-wrinkles ka niyan." agad napalitan ang kaninang mukha niya ng ekspresyon na parang batang nabigyan ng regalo, ngunit kinurot niya rin ang tagiliran ko.
"Ikaw talaga, anak. Ako? Wrinkles? Pang-diyosa kaya ito noh!" sambit niya habang hinahaplos pa ang mukha niya nang marahan.
"Syempre! Kanino pa ba ako magmamana?" tinawanan niya lamang ako. Bago pa kami makalapit sa mga tao, marahan niyang tinapik ang braso ko.
"What made you look forward to your birthday, dear?"
"Secret, you'll know by then. It's my surprise, especially to you and Mamita." I playfully winked at my mom.
"It's your birthday but ikaw pa talaga ang may pa-surprise sa amin, ha? Hmm, I'm intrigued. But, I guess I'll just wait then. Siguraduhin mong matutuwa kami diyan." pang-aasar niya sa akin.
"Super." I smiled at her and kissed her cheek.
I can't wait. I hope the next two weeks just fly by faster. I am scared, but there is a fire inside of me that is ready to burst, at least in a positive way.
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A/N ----- naiinis din ako kay Anntonia!!! But I can't wait to publish the chapters of her POV, ilang tulog pa ang kailangan.
Also, ano kaya ang pasabog ni Michelle sa birthday niya? Hmm......
Please don't hesitate to comment your thoughts/reactions, your votes will also be highly appreciated! Also, thank you soooo much for reading my story, this girlypop is excited to share with you the next chapters, there's so much more to come! May ipon pa ba kayong patience? hahaha
- blue