The night came and we were on our usual places. Her in the bed and me on the floor.
I was staring at the ceiling trying to erase the moments earlier. "So... so naked."
"Can we uh.. not talk about that please?"
I shrugged my shoulders. "Just saying."
"So uh.. what's the deal with you and your father?" She asked me carefully. She must've heard something.
"Oh, I'm sorry that question is not on the binder. Tsk." I said.
"I thought you were the one that said we needed to learn about..."
"Not about that I didn't."
"They will going to ask."
"Not about that Jhoana!! Good night!!" I said in a much louder voice.
I heard her sigh. There was an awkward silence after that.
"I like It's Showtime." She said out of nowhere.
"What?" I asked her.
"I enjoy watching the people that are on that studio even my Tagalog is not good. I still enjoy watching that. I took ballet lessons in elementary. I think volleyball players are sexy and attractive."
She is confessing and sharing things to me.
"Don't like flowers on the house cause they remind me of funerals. Never played a video game. I read Harry Potter every Christmas."
"All of them?" I asked.
"All of them." She agreed. "That's my favorite book. Haven't slept with anyone for over a year and half. And I went to the bathroom and cried after Bobby called me a Poisonous Bitch."
Wow, I thought she's okay with that.
"And the bird tattoo?" I asked.
"They are Swallows. They are a kind of bird. Got them when I was 16, after my parents died. Stupid." She cleared her throat. "I'm sure there's many many other things, but that's all I can come up for now."
I didn't said a word. I was surprised. She's telling personal things to people other than Satan. Kidding.
"Uhm, you still there?" She asked me
"Yea. I'm here. Just processing everything. You really haven't had sex in 18 months?"
"Oh my God, of all of that, that's what you remembered?"
"That's a long time!" I said and chuckled. Which she also did. I breath deeply before saying the things that I will say next. "Jhoana?"
"Yes."
"Don't take this the wrong way but, you are a very, very beautiful woman."
I didn't saw it, but I know she smiled. I can feel it! She didn't said anything so I drifted off to sleep.
I hope I'm right.
--
I was woken up by a smash of pillow on my face. "What?!"
"Bea, your mom is at the door!"
"Oh! God!"
"Just a second." She shouted before whispering to me. "Come here, bilis." I looked at her with wide eyes, not because she spoke in tagalog but..
"Are you wearing make up?" I asked her. She was wearing a lipgloss and her cheeks are pinch red.
"What?! No. Come!!"
Apparently, she did applied some make up cause she felt insecure on how she looked when she woke up. My words last night affected her.
I laid beside her.
"Cuddle." She ordered me.
"What?!" I asked as she lay not facing me
"Just hug me from behind." We were rushing cause there was knock on the door again.
"Come in." I shouted. Then emerged mom holding a tray of cinnamon rolls and coffee.
"Oh you shouldn't have gone to all that trouble." Jhoana said sweetly.
"No, you are family now. It's no trouble."
"Hey you have room for one more?" My dad said from the door.
"Oh." Jhoana exclaimed.
"Wow. Can we not do the family reunion now, we just got up, if you guys don't mind."
"Well you're mother and I have come up to a proposition and I think it is a terrific idea. We..."
"We want you to get married here tomorrow." My mom finished his sentence excitedly.
"Wha.. what? What?" Jhoana said.
"Well you are gonna get married anyways. So why don't you get married here where we can all be together and that lola can be a part of it."
"Oh. N-No. T-Tomorrow is lola's big birthday, we wouldn't want to steal the spotlight from her." Jhoana said stuttering.
"Yeah." That's all I could say.
"I have 89 birthday parties. I don't need another one!" My lola walked inside and spoke.
"Oh." We both said.
"It would be a dream come true for me to see my one and only apo's wedding. So, you'll do it?" We looked at her and was ready to decline but she threatened us. "Before I'm dead?!!"
"Okay okay!" We both said with matching thumbs up.
Takot lang namin.
"Yehey!" She said excitedly and laughed with my mom. "Yes!"
"Okay we will arranged everything. And you can get married like we did in the barn."
"It's a tradition!" My lola added.
"Ohh, wow!!!" Jhoana said sarcastically. But not enough for them to sense. "I've always wanted to get married in-in a- uh, barn. Wow!"
My lola's smiled widened. "It's a sign!! Oh my, it's a sign from the universe that you are meant to be together, I must give thanks!" She walked out on us.
"Okay I know I should leave you alone now. But I'm just so excited." She almost wanted to jump in on the bed with us, but she contained herself. Dad pulled her out of the room.
When we were alone, I immediately exclaimed. "Oh my God." She looked at me in worry. "When my mom finds out that this whole thing is a joke she's gonna-she's gonna be devastated, and my lola's gonna die." I was panicking.
"Oh she's not gonna find out." Jhoana said trying to calm me down.
"And my father! My father what the hell is that? He's a part of this! Where did that come from?!" I stood up and look far. "Oh God Jhoana!!" I exclaimed.
"Bea, look. They are not going to find out okay? Just relax." She stood up and I felt a warm hands that is slowly wrapping my stomach from behind. "Relax okay? It's not like we are going to be married forever, we'll be happily divorced before you know it. We'll be fine. You okay?"
I looked at her hands and slowly turned around to face her. "Yeah." I said softly looking at her eyes. Before it was the mirror of hell but now, it feels like, a little taste of heaven and a spoonful of trouble.
We stayed like that for about 10 seconds and when she got into her senses. "Coffee?" She asked me and walked towards the tray that my mom brought.
"Ah yes." I said and cleared my throat.
"Would you like a Cinnamon light soy latte?" We chuckled at her pun joke and I returned to seat on the bed.
"You know what?" I said. "You're right. A quickie divorce will be fine. It's going to be fine."
She brought the plate towards the bed. "Everything will be absolutely fine." She looked at the bread. "I should learn how to cook, so I can take care of my wife. Keep her happy, I don't want you leaving me for another woman."
We chuckled on her statement and I get the plate from her. "I haven't left you yet, Jhoana." She became quiet so I looked at her. "You okay?" I asked.
"Yeah, I uh, I'm gonna go."
"Where?"
"Outside."
I frowned at her. "Okay. Alright." When she left, I sighed loudly.
Alright.