Once what he asks of her sinks in, she gives him a gentle smile and nods. "Okay."
He releases a sigh of relief that he's been holding in his chest while he waited for her response and his face breaks into a grin. "Thank you. Uhm... Sa garden tayo?" He asks, holding out his hand.
"Sige," she says, placing her hand on his palm so he can help her down.
Instinctively, he walks slightly behind her and his hand settles at the small of her back as they go to the garden. It's second nature to him to take care of her and make sure she's safe while she trusts him completely, knowing for a fact that as long as they're together, he won't let anything bad happen to her.
When they get there, he helps her sit on the garden swings and stands in front of her. He stares quietly at her face as she gazes back at him, her eyes sparkling like the stars in the night sky and the moonlight casting an ethereal light on her beauty.
"Uhm... RJ?"
"Hmmm?" He hums in response, still enchanted by her.
"Pwedeng umupo ka? Masakit sa leeg kung mag-uusap tayo nang ganito." She giggles.
He chuckles and shakes his head, blushing softly. "Sorry. Uhm... Okay lang ba tumabi sa'yo?" He smiles.
"Siyempre oo. Ano bang nangyayari sa'yo? You're acting so weird." She laughs. "Kanina you hugged me na parang twenty years tayong hindi nagkita eh a few days lang naman and we always talk to each other sa Bulaga and sa FaceTime. Ngayon naman, you're acting like a little puppy left outside the door at ayaw papasukin ng amo." She rolls her eyes at him and chuckles.
"So yes?" He grins.
"Oo nga! Kulit! Umupo ka na or uuwi na ako."
"Eto na. Eto na." He quickly sits on the space beside her.
For a few seconds they just sit looking at each other, smiling. If it were up to him, he could just stay that way with her, staring at her all night, tracing every precious line and gentle curve of her face with his eyes and etching them safely in his memory for every moment that they spend apart to keep him sane until their next reunion.
She's gotten use to his piercing gaze but the way he's looking at her now, stirs something new in her, like a tinderbox rekindling a spark of a lifeless bonfire after long cold nights.
She clears her throat and looks away then turns back to him. "What did you want to talk about?"
"You. I mean us. Our family, I mean my family." He takes a deep breath and smiles at her. "I want to thank you, Maine. For today. Napasaya mo talaga ak... sila for spending time here with them. Ak... si Lola lalo kasi ikaw talaga ang una niyang hinanap sa akin pag-uwi niya kaya sobrang saya niya nung nakapunta kayo nina Nanay sa Birthday dinner ko. Salamat nga pala dun ah."
"I think you thanked me for that ng mga 24 million times. So for the 24 millionth time, you're welcome, RJ." She giggles. "Tsaka you don't need to thank me for this. Masaya din naman ako. I really missed them lalo na... ik... si Lola." She quickly looks away and blushes.
"I'm really happy na walang nagbago sa inyo, Maine."
She looks at him again. "Wala namang dapat magbago di ba? Pamilya pa rin ang turing ko sa kanila at nagpapasalamat ako na ganoon din sila sa akin. Ikaw din naman, you're always welcome sa Bulacan at hindi nagbago ang pagtanggap ng pamily at mga magulang ko sa'yo." She smiles at him sincerely. "Parang tayo. We're still friends. Walang nagbago."
"Only we stopped trying to make US work." He sighs, his eyes suddenly sad.
"Yeah..." She sighs and silence follows.
Slowly, his hands move to hold her hand. She lets him then looks up to meet his gaze.
"Maine? What if I want to try again? Will you be willing to try with me?"
She wants to say yes. Her heart says so but in her mind, there's a little voice stopping her. Her optimistic side knows that in a perfect world, where everything falls into place, where people would just let them be, where they could just love and be loved without complications, they could. But the realist in her knows that they are not that perfect world, that all the challenges that stood in between are still there, that some people will still do anything to see them apart, that hatred and fear exists and everything could still go wrong.
"We've been through this, RJ. We tried. So very hard and we failed. What if we fail again? What if this time, we seriously hurt each other and destroy what we have?"
"What if we don't? What if this time, we do it right? What if this is it? Don't you think WE deserve another chance?"
"What if it's not meant to be and we're defying all the powers that be in the Universe? What if that was it? That we were destined to meet and create a phenomenon that will bring people together to do great things and we have served are purpose already?" She asks, the voices inside her still fighting.
He sighs and thinks for a moment. "Do you actually believe that, Maine? Pakiramdam mo ba talaga hanggang doon na lang tayo?" He holds her hand tighter and looks deep into her eyes. "Kasi... kasi ako hindi."
She gazes back at him, heart screaming in her chest and eyes brimming with tears. "No," she whispers. "I don't think hanggang doon lang tayo, RJ. In my heart, kahit gaano kahirap paniwalaan at gaano pa kalabo makita sa ngayon, I still believe na Ikaw at Ako, together, we can make it til the end. Na sa tamang panahon, tayo pa rin, habang buhay."
At that moment, all the words that he put together in his head to tell her floats away. All that's left inside him is hope for their future and faith in their love and the One who holds the key to their story. He pulls her into his arms and holds her tight, letting his tears flow as he nuzzles her hair and she snuggles on his chest.
They stay that way for a while, hugging and crying silent tears, their hearts overflowing with love for each other. After some time, he kisses her temple and slightly pulls away to look into her eyes. He wipes the tears on her cheek with his thumb as he cups her face.
"Maine, alam kong mahirap, pero hindi kita bibitawan kasi I can't imagine living my life without you in it."
"What if we can't start building from the rubble that we left? Sabi ng Tatay, mas mahirap bumuo ng bahay na maganda at matibay at ayon sa gusto mo by renovating a run down building, mas maigi pa daw magtayo sa bakanteng lote. Paano kung ganoon din tayo? There's so much history between us."
"Then we go back to the beginning. We start building from there. Balik tayo sa umpisa. Before the romantic dates, the cozy sleepovers, the fights, the cuddles and the kisses." He smiles, his eyes glistening with hope. "Please, Maine."
She smiles at him, with a tender look in her eyes, she touches his cheek and nods. "Saan tayo maguumpisa? Sa siomai? Sa fansigns? Sa dubsmash? Sa splitscreen? Sa Twerk It Like Miley? O sa pabebe wave?"
His smile widens and he feels his heart jumping up and down with extreme joy. "Sa blurred photo." He grins.
He then takes out his phone and holds his hand out then takes a blurred photo of them. They both smile as they look at it, with her head on his shoulder and their hearts on their sleeves.
From the second floor balcony, Riza quickly wipes away her happy tears and smiles. She closes her eyes and turns her face up to the night sky. "Ma, samahan mo po ako pag-pray sila ha? Sana ito na talaga. Maging mas matatag pa po sana sila at wag bumitiw sa love nila sa isa't-isa kasi mahal ko po silang dalawa at alam ko po na sila lang ang makakapagpasaya sa isa't-isa nang ganito. Pakisabi na din kay Lord na gusto ko nang maging Tita. Love you, Ma."
The End
***
Unbeta'ed and not proofread. Thank you for reading. ☺️