Sari
I wished that his healing was immediate. It was not. There were still a few days where he was too weak and all he could do was sleep. The good thing though is when he would wake up, he would always go, "Asan po si Sari?"
And when he sees me, "Hi McSarimanok!"
He lost consciousness while I was at the office and it was a miracle I got through my meeting. My heart wouldn't settle until he woke up.
Tapos nagdrama na nakalimutan ako.
Yung puso ko talaga!
When his parents gave us sometime alone, I said, "Amnesia?! Amnesia? Sobra yung pagaalala namin sa'yo, nakuha mo pang magbiro! Leche ka talaga."
"Sorry, Noks! Para kapag kinuha ng showbiz yung kwento natin, kumpleto na drama."
I rolled my eyes. "Kulang pa."
"Anong kulang?"
"Sampalin nung bidang babae yung nakakabwiset na lalaki."
He laughed out loud then. That's when I knew everything would be okay. "Basta may torrid kissing scene pagkatapos ha."
"Mukha mo."
"Pogi."
I stuck my tongue out at him. Turning serious, I asked, "The doctor's have cleared you but ikaw? Tell me honestly, how do you feel?"
"I feel great. Nothing to worry about, Mahal ko."
For a second, I saw the Datu grinning up at me and for the first time, I just accepted it— Happy that I could share this with "them", but even more grateful that this moment belonged to me and Malik.
"Does it bother you? That we'll share this life with them?" I asked Malik.
After some thought, he answered, "Not really. We share our lives with family, friends and random people anyway... I think of it as sharing it with a distant relative we have an unusual bond with."
Taking my hand, he continued, "Ang important for me, mahal din ako buong buo nung pinakapaborito kong chicken."
I rolled my eyes. "Ibon nga kasi! Ibon! Hindi manok!!!"
*
How did he court me?
When he was well enough, he appeared at my door with about 50 potted plants. "Sayang sa pera yung bulaklak, tapos mamamatay lang din. Kaya! Tadah!!! Nakatanim na yung seeds diyan."
He tended to those plants for weeks! But, ang tumubo lang ay yung monggo.
"Hmmm I guess hindi tayo makakapagtayo ng organic garden," he said, scratching his head.
Another thing he did, DIY chocolates. "Para special!!! Ako gagawa."
Napuno na siya ng flour, chocolate powder pero wala pa din. He then kicked me out of his kitchen. "Umalis ka muna! Nako-conscious ako eh."
Ang cute naman kasi niya? Ang saya panoorin pero, sige, iniwan ko. It was the following day when he arrived grumpy. Handing me a cup, he said, "Hindi magawa. Ayan, milo na lang. Pinagtimpla na kita."
He stomped away but I gushed loudly. "WOOOOOW! Ito na ang pinakamasarap na Milo ever!"
Nagpigil pa siya ng smile but he turned back and asked, "Talaga?! Talaga, Noks?! You like it!!!"
"Oo! Isipin mo, tamang-tama yung tamis ng Milo at alat ng asin?!?!"
He looked horrified and got the cup to taste. "Hoy! Hindi naman maalat."
"Hindi nga. Joke lang, Malik!!!!"
He chased me around our growing monggo garden.
*
When we got word that Lola Meding fell ill, we took a leave and made sure to visit her. When we arrived hand-in-hand, it seemed to lift her spirits.
"Mabuti naman," she said, weakly. "Masaya ba kayo?"
"Masayang-masaya po ako, Lola!" Malik answered. "Si Sari po medyo napipilitan pero wala naman akong balak pakawalan siya."
I rolled my eyes. "Huwag po kayong maniwala diyan, Lola. Alam niyo naman po kung gaano ko ka-gusto yan."
"AYIIIIIIEEEEEEEEE! Oo nga alam ko. Gusto ko lang pinapaamin ka."
It was true. As each day goes by, I was more and more certain that I was hopelessly in love with Malik and I was truly happiest with him.
When we finally became intimate, I revelled in attention and pleasure he gave me. We didn't have visions that night. It was just him and me.
Every kiss, touch, suck, groan, moan.
The following morning, I could still feel him inside me even if he was already out of bed, taking a shower.
He gave me a kiss when he finished. "Pagod?"
I nodded.
"Ang wild mo pala," he teased.
We started out making love but by late night, it did get quite "wild". Then, we woke up earlier that morning and still got in another round.
I blushed at the memory of waking up to him still inside me and moving to get "him" awake. "Did you like it Malik?"
"Sobra. Sobra." He tucked my hair behind my ears. "Ligo ka na. I'll cook us breakfast."
He loaned me his shirt and as he was helping me into the tub (moving was difficult because I was sooo sore), and while he worried about all the hickeys he placed on me ("May masakit ba? I'm sorry. Nakakagigil ka kasi but that's no excuse. Sorry, Noks. Sorry, sorry."), I looked at him and said, "I'm so happy I'm with you, Malik."
"Sobrang saya ko din, Sari. Sobra."
Yes, that time was filled with moments that would probably be cut by any censorship board. But, it was also when I felt certain that what we had was strong and no matter what, I was sure...
Malik and I would make it.
No, he did not name our little boy after a rooster.
"What about Bahaghari? Tagalog ng rainbow? Nickname... BAHAG!"
Ang kulit ng tinga talaga eh. Proud pa siya nun!
But, we agreed that since the rainbow would need both sunlight and raindrops, we named our boy Ulan.
And we remained happy and annoying each other for as long as we both lived.
As we both came to our life's end, we had one with wish: that if we would be reincarnated again, we would want it to be him and me... infinitely.
The End