"Gotcha!" biglang may humawak sa magkabilang braso ko.
My hazy state got shattered and I gasped when I got pulled back. I turned my head to see my captor and realized it was Orion.
"What the hell?" kunot noong sabi ko habang nakatingin sa kanya ng may halong pagkagulo at pagkainis.
"Finally!" another voice exclaimed. My head snapped at the direction of the sound by reflex and found my twin and Takumi. Hawak nila si Silas sa magkabilang braso.
"What's going on?" Silas asked.
"It's time for you two to get wet." Orion deviously chuckled.
"What?" my whole face crunched in puzzlement.
Hindi sila sumagot at hindi na nasundan ang sagot ko dahil bigla akong binuhat ni Orion. Impit na tili ang pinakawalan ko. I'm sure it caught a lot of people's attention.
"Bring me down, Orion!" I screamed at his ears, kicking my feet on the ground and wriggling.
Lumulutang ako sa ere habang patuloy ako sa pag palag. Halakhak lang ang isinagot sa akin ni Orion nang utusan ko siyang ibaba ako. Pati si Hadeon at Takumi ay nagsisitawanan.
"Shit... Don't." rinig kong pag-alma ni Silas. Napatingin ako sa kanya na hila-hila ni Hadeon at Takumi. It's the first time I heard him curse. It was such a weird word to hear from him.
Naputol ang pag-iisip ko nang bigla akong tumilapon sa ere. Isa pang nakakabinging tili ang lumabas mula sa bibig ko. My body slammed against the water as I submerged because of my weight and the impact. I heard the second splash and realized that must have been Silas.
I wiped my face as I gasped for air. Fuckers!
Madalas talaga ay may pagka-gago rin ang kambal ko. Tingin ko nga ay nahawa siya kay Orion. God. Should I ask Silas to stay away from that ugly fucker? I don't want him to get infected with that jerk's asshole quality.
I can swim. My twin wouldn't approve of the plan if I couldn't, pero kahit na kaya ko naman lumangoy ay naramdaman ko ang pagpulupot ng isang braso sa akin. My head turned and found Silas' grim face.
Hindi na ako angal nang isama niya ako patungo sa gilid ng pool. I can't reach the floor but I know how to make myself float. Silas didn't know that, that's why he grabbed my hand and made me grip on the edge of the pool.
Narinig ko ang tawanan ng kambal ko at dalawang gagong kaibigan niya. My eyes searched for them. I found them by the pool, at the spot where they threw us off. They were looking at us with complete amusement. I sneered and raised my arm to salute them with my middle finger. Mas lalo lang silang natawa. It irritated me.
Hindi ako nakatiis at mabilis na umahon mula sa pool. I'm gonna kill all of them and I'm gonna start with that sandwich cookie! They remained on the spot even when I got up from the pool. Nang magsimula akong tumakbo patungo sa kanila ay saka sila nagsitakbuhan. They separated ways, I locked my eyes on Orion.
"Wag na wag kang magpapahuli sa akin!" sigaw ko habang patuloy ang paghabol sa kanya. Sa tuwing may nakakasalubong akong mga tao ay sila na ang umiiwas para makadaan ako.
A hand suddenly gripped on my wrist. It stopped me from running. The sudden lack of movement made me fall back, crashing on a solid chest. Annoyance filled my face as I turned to whoever disturbed me. Nawala lang ang inis na nakaguhit sa mukha ko nang makita na si Silas iyon.
"Silas." I uttered, surprised. I was so focused on Orion that I nearly forgot about him!
His hair was all wet and brushed up like it'd been finger combed. Droplets of water were trailing from his face down to his body. My eyes gazed down to his body. That's when I only noticed that his upper body was bare. He's not wearing his top anymore.
"Here." Silas draped a wet black material over my shoulders. It must be his long sleeves button up shirt. He sighed as he stared at me with soft and gentle eyes. "Wear it, Laurene."
I bit my lip. Sa tingin pa lang niya ay natunaw na ako. Pati ang dapat na gagawin ko ay kasama sa natunaw. I've forgotten everything that happened before this. This is the effect that Silas on me. He could enslave me with his stares and make me follow his every whim with his words.
During Christmas break, Silas went to New York with his Dad. That's because most of the Gallego's are in New York. Kami naman ay nagkaroon ng family outing, this includes our grandparents plus Tita Avis and Tita Les' family. Those days, we chat and video call, but not as often because we're both busy with family activities.
Nang bumalik naman si Silas sa Pilipinas para sa New Year ay pumunta naman kami ng Netherlands. It's been a tradition to go there every New Year plus, it's also my mother's birthday. May sentimental value ang lugar na iyon para sa parents ko. Before New Year's Eve came, we went to their place, the ice skating rink.
It's like first day of school all over when the holiday vacation ended. While other students dreaded to go back to school, I was overly excited. School days means I will be seeing him again! I've done nothing but miss Silas for the past two weeks. I was so used to being with him almost all the time that being away from him brought me nothing but misery.
Maaga akong pumasok. I know he'll be at school early, too. My siblings were still getting ready for school when I left our house. Nang makarating ako sa school ay halos walang tao sa paligid. It was so quiet that I could hear the noise that my thoughts were making.
Kagat-kagat ang labi nang makaakyat na ako sa floor namin. Hindi na ako nag-abalang dumaan pa sa room namin at dumiretso na agad sa room nila Silas. My heart was beating hard and crazy when I opened the door. It stopped from beating my eyes found him. His eyes were already on me.
Unti-unting lumaki ang ngiti ko habang nakatingin sa kanya. Hindi ko magawang humakbang patungo sa kanya kagaya ng ginawa ko dati. I couldn't move. I missed him!
Tumayo si Silas mula sa kinauupuan, mukhang hinihintay ang susunod kong gagawin. Huminga ako nang malalim at pinilit na maglakad. My knees were shaking. Pakiramdam ko ay madadapa ako kapag tumakbo ako patungo sa kanya.
Silas didn't wait like he did before. His strides were big and fast as he approached me. He grabbed my arm and pulled me close to him. His arms wrapped around my body, hugging me tight that I know I couldn't escape if I try.
My heart resumed beating hard and fast. Having him near me made me realized how bad I craved for him. I missed him so much. I knew I was going to explode soon if I didn't tell him how much I do.
"Silas... I-" I was cut off from what I was about to say when Silas pulled me to him tighter. Like there's still a space between us that needs to be filled.
"I missed you, Laurene." malambing na sabi ni Silas. Mas lalong humigpit ang pagkakapulupot ng mga braso niya sa akin. He buried his face on my shoulder. "I missed you. So bad."
At tuluyan na akong nalusaw at nanghina. Kung hindi niya ako yakap ay baka kanina pa ako bumagsak sa lupa. Dahan-dahan kong inangat ang mga braso ko at kumapit sa likod ng uniform ni Silas. My heart slowly calmed down. His warmth soothed the havoc inside me.
When we pulled away from the hug, his hand immediately clasped with mine and intertwined our fingers together. He never released my hand after that. Kahit nang umupo kami ay magkahawak pa rin ang kamay naming dalawa. He made me tell him stories about my holiday vacation as he played with my fingers.
I only left the room when his classmates started to arrive. May ngiti sa mukha na bumalik na ako sa classroom. I was smiling the whole time. Kahit nang mag flag ceremony ay hindi ko mapigilan ang mapangiti mag-isa. Paminsan-minsan ay sumusulyap ako sa pila nila Silas. Sa tuwing makikita ko siyang nakatingin na sa akin ay mas lalo akong mapapangiti.
We faced the stage after reciting the Panatang Makabayan. Muli akong sumulyap sa gawi ni Silas ngunit napangiwi nang makita si Orion. Malaki ang ngiti niya nang makita akong nakatingin at matapos ay kumindat. He's blocking Silas from my view.
I sarcastically smiled at him and subtly raised my middle finger. That caused him to quietly snicker. Silas pushed Orion away. He was shaking his head, a small smile on his lips. Nang tumingin sa akin si Silas ay mabilis kong itinago ang kamay sa aking likod. Nagkunot ng noo siya sa akin at ngisi lang ang ibinalik ko sa kanya.
For our homeroom, I dutifullly listened to our adviser. That's what a good mood can do to me.
"Next agenda, your awaited JS Prom." like it's been practiced, the girls started to shriek on that note. "Silence, class."
Agad din na sumunod ang klase sa pagpatahimik ni Ms. Lim sa kanila.
"We'll need volunteers for the cotillion de honor." she stated and hands were raised followed by chorused calls and chants.
"Sali tayo, L." aya ni Des sa akin na nakapwesto sa harap ng upuan ko.
I scrunched my nose. "Wala naman akong mapapala d'yan."
"Ano ka ba? Makaka-partner natin ang mga seniors na sasali. Love life opportunity ito!" she gushed.
"I'm not interested on dancing with some random senior." I grinned. "If you want, you can join. I'll cheer for you. Or ask Pia."
"Mas masaya pag tayong tatlo! Come on, L. Don't be KJ." pilit niya pa.
Kahit anong pilit nila sa akin ay hindi nila ako nagawang mapapayag. It's a waste of my time and effort. Paniguradong may practice iyon every after dismissal. I'd rather go home earlier, or spend those free times with Silas.
Nang dumating ang recess ay dumiretso ako sa canteen. Hindi ako sumabay sa mga kaibigan ko. I'll be hanging out with Silas and the guys.
Nakaupo na sila sa table at may mga pagkain na sa harapan maliban kay Silas na pinapanuod lang ang mga kasama na masayang nagkukwentuhan. As if sensing my presence, he turned his head and immediately locked his eyes on me. Napangiti ako dahil doon. Kumaway ako at mas binilisan ang paglakad palapit sa lamesa nila.
"Hi!" bati ko nang makalapit at yumuko para halikan sa pisngi ang aking kambal.
"Where's mine?" Orion asked.
I turned my head and threw a sarcastic smile at him. I raised my hand in front of Silas's eyes to block what I was gonna do from his view. I lifted my other hand to give Orion a well deserved middle finger.
"When?" he gave me a meaningful look.
Nabigla ako nang hinawakan ni Silas ang kamay ko at ibinaba iyon. Hindi niya iyon binitawan kahit nasa ilalim na ng lamesa. Mula sa kamay naming magkahawak ay inangat ko ang tingin kay Silas. Nakakunot ang noo niya habang tinititigan ang katapat namin na paniguradong si Orion. If looks could kill... I bit my lip to hide my smile.
"I was just kidding!" agad na bawi ni Orion at hilaw na tumawa.
A small smile curved on Takumi's lips. He shook his head and clapped Orion on the back.
"Did you join cotillion the honor, twin?" Hadeon smoothly changed the topic.
Nakatawang nilingon ko ang kapatid. "No. Why would I?"
"Oh. Sayang. Kasali kasi si Silas." mapanuksong sabi ni Hadeon.
Both of my brows raised. My lips parted in surprise. I quickly snapped my head to Silas' direction. "You joined?"
"The class wanted me to join." mahinahon na sagot ni Silas.
"Bakit ka sumunod?" angal ko rito. Binitawan ko ang kamay niya. Bumagsak ang mga mata ni Silas doon bago muling ibinalik ang tingin sa akin.
"I thought it would be rude to turn them down." maamong pagpaliwanag nito.
"And now you'll be partnered up with hopefully a hot senior. Congrats!" Orion happily chuckled.
Nag-init ang buong mukha pati ang magkabilang tenga ko sa narinig. That's not a good picture to visualize! The thought of seeing Silas dance with some other girl makes me feel furious and violent.
"Bibili lang ako ng pagkain." matabang kong sabi at agad na tumayo para pumunta kung saan.
Damn... Should I join the cotillion, too?