Chapter 10
It's 10: 57 pm. I still have 5 cases to digest. I should be heading home by now.
But I'm not.
I found myself driving back to Xavier's condo in Pasig. Hindi ko din alam kung bakit ko to ginagawa. I have better things to do with my time.... yet here I am.
Dumaan muna ako sa isang fast food restaurant para bilhan siya ng pagkain... mukhang hindi naman kasi marunong magluto yang si Xavier. Isa pa, nang buksan ko yung fridge niya kanina, puro alak lang laman. This boy is really spoiled beyond belief.
I confidently walked inside the lobby, still glad the guards haven't noticed I'm not really a resident here. Dala-dala ko yung fast food sa isang kamay habang sa kabilang kamay naman ang mga reviewers na ginawa ko. He missed out on three days worth of classes. I'll just review him on these at baka barahin pa siya ng profs namin dahil wala siyang masagot.
I rang the bell before waiting for him to open the door. Nagulat nalang ako nang bumukas ang pinto at isang babae ang bumungad sa akin. She's really pretty... golden tan skin, long wavy hair and a friendly smile on her face. She was wearing pink satin nightdress, looking like she came from the shower and was about to sleep.
"Hi! Seb didn't tell me he's expecting visitors tonight, hindi man lang ako nakapag-ayos." She answered, a wide smile still plastered on her face.
"Seb?" Sino si Seb?
"Oh, Sebastian! That's my nickname for him! I've been calling him that since we were like 7 or something."
Sebastian nga pala ang tawag sakaniya ng mga kaibigan at pamilya niya. I wonder why he makes me call him Xavier instead. Odd.
"Are you his friend? Do you want me to call him? He's eating dinner lang right now."
Agad akong napatingin sa paper bag na hawak ko at tinago iyon sa likod ko. May pagkain naman pala siya, bumili pa ako ng fast food. I went back here because I felt bad for leaving him alone.... but I guess he's already being taken care of by this girl.
"Miss?" I was snapped out of my thoughts when she opened the door wider. "Do you want to go inside? I cooked too much food, you should eat with us!"
"No, it's fine. I just went here to give these reviewers to him." Inabot ko sakaniya yung envelope bago naghandang umalis. "Anyway, I'll get going now... it was nice meeting you." I smiled before leaving her, not even waiting to hear her respond anymore. I even heard the girl ask for my name but I didn't mind her and headed straight to the elevator.
Stupid, Alexandria. Pumunta-punta ka pa kasi dito, ano naman kung walang nagbabantay kay Xavier? Since when did you care so much about him?
Once I got home, I immediately plopped on my bed and scrolled through my instagram feed. Xavier posted an instagram story with the girl I met awhile ago. I felt my eyebrows furrow as I read the caption.
"She cooks the best food. Thanks for taking care of me. Missed you @MichaelaAngela."
I was snapped out of my thoughts when I heard my mom speak. "Alexandria, what's wrong? Why is your face scrunched like that? Kanina pa kita tinatawag." Huh? Had I been staring at the photo for too long? "Sorry, nothing Mom. I'm just reading something." I said before standing up to follow her down the dinner table where Dad was.
"Alright. Now tell us about the dinner with the Rodriguez. Any updates? Did they mention your brother?"
Sabi na eh. The only reason they even bothered talking to me is because of the dinner. Had I not met the Rodriguez family today, my parents wouldn't even bother talking to me. They wouldn't even acknowledge that I got home.
I sighed before telling them what I know so far. After that, they immediately dismissed me, not even daring to ask about my day or how I am.
Lagi nalang ganito. Nakakapagod na.
---
Hindi ako kabado sa PFR class namin ngayon dahil hindi naman ako on deck sa recit. Kinabahan lang ako nang tawagin ni Professor Ramos si Xavier para sa recit. Hindi ko pa naman alam kung naintindihan niya yung reviewer ko o kung binasa niya man yun.
"In the case of Rivera v. Heirs of Romualdo Villanueva G.R.No. 141501, why was Angelina not entitled to inherit properties from Pacita, her mother?"
I felt scared when I saw Xavier hesitate for a second and look into my eyes. Akala ko hindi niya to masasagot but he cleared his throat before confidently facing attorney. "Although it was revealed that Angelina is the illegitimate daughter of Romualdo and Pacita, a closer examination of her birth certificate reveals that respondent Angelina was listed as adopted by both parents. Pacita was 44 years old and on the verge of menopause at the time of her alleged birth. Under the circumstances, we hold that it was not sufficiently established that respondent Angelina was Pacita's biological daughter, thus, she cannot inherit from Pacita. Since she could not have validly participated in Pacita's estate, the extrajudicial partition which she executed with Romualdo was invalid." Xavier answered consistently, without any bit of confusion.
How the hell does he do this?! I've never seen him flunk a recit, not even once. Kahit gago si Xavier I can't deny that he's naturally intelligent. He's really gonna be a great lawyer one day.
Like always, the professor no longer probed him and went on to terrorize other students instead. Mukhang bad mood pa naman si Atty. ngayon... buti nalang tapos na ako. When Professor Ramos dismissed us, I immediately stood up to leave pero nagulat ako nang hawakan ni Xavier ang palapulsuhan ko.
"Care to explain why you went back to my condo last night without even saying hi to me?"
"What are you talking about?"
"Michaela told me you visited me last night. Why didn't you go inside?"
"It wasn't me. Di ko alam pinagsasabi mo." I lied, averting my eyes from him.
"Oh c'mon, Andra. You know better than to lie to me."
"How did she even know it was me?"
"She didn't. All she said was the girl was pretty... so you were the first person that popped in my head."
I rolled my eyes at him. "Ang landi mo talaga."
"Kidding. She said the girl was snobbish and left her hanging, not even bothering to answer her question. Who else is like that? Just you, Andra. Only you." He teased me.
"Wow, salamat ha? I love how that's my distinctive quality for you." I sarcastically replied to him.
"So you admit? That it was really you who visited my condo?"
"Oo na, ako na. Masaya ka na?"
"Why didn't you stay though?" He asked curiously.
"Baka iniistorbo ko lang kayo nung babaeng nasa condo mo. And besides, I only went back because I thought you were alone and no one was taking care of you. Mayroon naman pala."
Xavier started laughing out of nowhere, catching the attention of some of our blockmates. Pinagtitinginan tuloy kami ngayon. "Bakit ka tumatawa?"
"You sound like you're jealous. Tell me Andra, are you jealous of Michaela?" He leaned closer to me, a smirk plastered on his face.
"Why would I be? Gusto ba kita para pagselosan ko?" I spat back.
"Always so blunt. That's what I love and hate about you." He answered while shaking his head. "But for the record, Michaela is my cousin. She's a med student and dad asked her to check up on my stitches. We decided to have movie night and catch up with each other since she was already there.."
"Okay? And what am I supposed to do with that information?" Ano naman ngayon kung pinsan niya yung Michaela? Tinatanong ko ba?
"You probably thought she's my girlfriend since you caught her in my condo. I'm just clearing your head of that idea."
"Noted, but I don't really care." I answered before proceeding to walk out and head to the cafe. I made a mental note to eat for only 10 minutes because the remaining hours of my lunch break should be devoted to studying. Thanks to Xavier di ko pa tuloy tapos gawin yung apat na digests ko. Hay, pahamak talaga tong lalaking to sa buhay ko.
"Sungit talaga. Anyway, are you free after Consti later? Help me recap on the lessons I've missed? I'll treat you your favorite coffee!"
"Wag mo kong lokohin, Alleje. You did perfectly fine in class this morning, kahit recit walang mintis. Ikaw lang ang kilala kong kayang magabsent ng tatlong araw pero babalik din na parang wala lang nangyari. You sure as hell don't need me to review you."
"Okay, fine fine, you got me there. I'll just join you in the library when you study later. I'll still treat you coffee don't worry."
"Dapat lang! I wasted my time on you yesterday."
"Wasted? More like you enjoyed it. You clinged to me so much when you were sleeping! Remember?"
Hinampas ko yung braso ni Xavier. "Excuse me, you were the one clinging to me! You wouldn't even let go of my waist and you kept burying your face on my neck!" I retorted back.
"Chill, woman! I was just kidding. For such a thin girl, ang bigat talaga ng kamay mo!" He said before rubbing his right arm. I rolled my eyes at him before pretending to hit his arm again, to which he immediately shielded his body. "Masakit nga, Andra!"
Tinawanan ko nalang yang kaartehan niya at dumiretsyo na sa cafeteria. I told Xavier to line up for us while I reserved a table. Mahirap pa namang makahanap ng table sa cafe ng ganitong oras.
"Anong gusto mo—"
Xavier was cut off when Santino suddenly pulled me in to a tight hug. Bakit bigla bigla nalang siyang sumusulpot?! I felt everyone's eyes turning to us. Sinubukan kong itulak si Santino pero sobrang higpit ng hawak niya sa akin.
"Alexandria, I missed you."
"Missed me? We just saw each other last night." Ang clingy naman ng isang to.
"Still. My dad doesn't talk much at all, but last night, you were all he could speak about. He's really impressed. And it made me really miss you." Santino explained to me.
Damn. Did they really believe my lies? Are they really this shallow? Hindi ba sila nagtataka?
I heard Xavier cough behind us before I realized that Santino was still hugging me. I immediately pulled away from his grasp. So much for keeping whatever we have lowkey... now the entire school knows. Ugh.
"Anyway, you're eating lunch? Sabay na tayo."
"Sure, but Xavier's eating with us ha?"
Agad na sumimangot si Santino sa akin. "Why is that jerk always with you? Lagi nalang siyang nakabuntot sa'yo, he's like a dog."
"He's my friend."
"Then why is he acting more than that? Look at him he's staring daggers at me." Santino said before nodding his head to Xavier's direction. Fair enough, Xavier was really sporting an angry look at us.
I wonder why Xavier and Santino don't get along well. If they were both strangers to me, I would have thought they were best friends. They were both rich, privileged, and from the same fraternity. More importantly, they were both going to follow their father's footsteps in the future. Why do they despise each other so much?
"Ganyan lang talaga siya. C'mon Santino, I'm in a hurry." I answered before pulling his arm towards our table.
"What's he doing here?" Xavier answered.
"Can the both of you stop acting like children?! I have ten minutes left before I head straight to the library. Mag-away kayo kung gusto niyo, basta ako kakain na ako." I snapped at the both of them before taking my seat.
Napansin siguro ni Xavier na naiinis na ako ko kaya tumahimik nalang siya at pumila na. Sumunod din naman si Santino pagkatapos. When Xavier came back with my food, I was surprised to see the roast beef meal I always order every Thursdays. "How did you know I wanted to get this? Di naman kita sinabihan kanina ah?"
"You know, Andra... even though you're always bitching at me 24/7, I'm actually a really good and observant friend. On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, you always buy sandwich meals. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, you buy either chicken or roast beef with rice. And at 5 pm everyday, you head straight to the Law Library to get your beloved Iced Mocha." He said proudly before boastfully shrugging his shoulders.
I felt my heart soften at what he just said. Did he really remember all of this? These are tiny details I don't even remember about myself.
"So you're stalking me now? How creepy of you." I teased back, expressing the opposite of what I actually feel.
Xavier simply shook his head, pretending to be annoyed with me. "Classic Andra. Just eat the damn roast beef." He joked before putting down his plate and eating his food.
I took my phone out before pressing my timer. Once I clicked start, my 10 minutes ticked by and I started eating my food quickly. I didn't even notice when Santi took the seat beside me. Hindi pa nga siya nakakasubo ng pagkain niya, tumayo na agad ako para kunin ang bag ko. I looked at my phone timer. Nice, I still had 3 minutes to spare.
"Alexandria, you're leaving already? I just got here." Santino asked me, shocked that I'm leaving him the moment he sat down.
"Sorry Santi, I still have 4 cases to digest for my class later. Sunod ka nalang sa library after you're done eating, okay?" I answered apologetically. Sobrang bad timing naman kasi, ang dami ko pang digests na di nagagawa!
I heard Xavier groan beside me. "What?! He's going with us even in the library?!"
"Why, Alleje? You have a problem with that?" Santi answered back, clearly getting pissed at Xavier already.
I glared at Xavier signalling him to stop. I don't have any more time and energy to argue with these two. Kung gusto nilang mag-away dito sa cafe, bahala sila diyan. I smiled at them before waving them goodbye as I brisk walked towards the library.
Pagkarating ko sa library, agad akong umupo sa pinakamalapit na upuan bago binuksan yung laptop ko. I wasted no time in reading through my cases and typing my digests. I was just finished with the 2nd digest when I heard the chair beside me moving. Santino and Xavier were both holding on to the chair to my left because I was seated at the corner of the long desk.
"Sebastian, let go of the chair, I got here first." I heard Santino say.
"I don't care. You weren't even supposed to be here in the first place." Xavier fought back.
"Just get out of my way dude. I'm gonna sit beside Alexandria."
Before Santino could even move, Xavier already sat on the chair beside me. He faced Santi with a cocky look on his face as he leaned back on the chair. "You were saying something, Rodriguez?"
"The fuck, Alleje?!" Santino growled.
This caught the attention of the librarian who immediately shushed us. I internally groaned, these two are at it again. Nakakainis na.
"Okay, you know what? Ayan, sit on my chair if you want. I went here to finish my digests, kung mangugulo lang kayong dalawa, pwede huwag ngayon? The both of you aren't helping." I snapped at the both of them before sitting on the individual library desks instead. This way none of them can sit beside me and distract me. After 10 minutes, my phone buzzed twice from two texts.
From Xavier:
Sorry. My fault.
From Santino:
I didn't mean to distract you. Sebastian was being an asshole, it annoyed me.
To Santino:
It's fine.
I decided to reply to Santino instead while I simply left Xavier on read. Mahirap na, I don't want any bad blood between me and Santi, not while I'm still earning his full trust. It took me a good hour and half before I finished writing my digests. Ang choosy kasi ng Consti prof namin, gusto pang handwritten.
When I was sure everything was set, I passed by my seat awhile ago to check if Santi and Xavier were still there. To my surprise, it was only Xavier sitting on the chair. Santino must have left already. When Xavier and I made eye contact, I simply rolled my eyes at him. He called out my name but I walked past him and straight to my last class for the day.
Bahala ka diyan, Alleje.
-
Pagkatapos kaming i-dismiss ni Atty. Corpuz, Xavier went straight to my seat to talk to me.
"You're still mad? I'm sorry." I ignored him and continued placing my books in my bag.
He pulled my chin up to face him. "Hey, talk to me, please?"
I took a deep breath before facing him. "Xavier, you know how serious I am with law school right? You know I hate studying with our noisy blockmates that's why I prefer being alone. You know how many hours I spend in the library to make sure I don't flunk my classes. And awhile ago, you already know I was cramming my digests yet you chose to be immature and make a fuss with Santino. I'm not mad, I'm just disappointed."
"Okay you're right. I know you better than Santino and I should have been more sensitive awhile ago. Got it. Not gonna happen again, I promise." He said before raising his right hand like he was making a pledge.
"You won't be immature anymore when I'm studying?"
"I'll try my best."
"Fine, then we're good now." I said before smiling back at him.
"Yes, finally!" He answered while pumping his fists in the air. "You know I can't stand you being mad at me. I spent the entire Consti session awhile ago just thinking about how I'm gonna apologize to you. Good thing Atty. Corpuz didn't call me for recit today or else I would have been dead.
"Ewan ko sa'yo, Alleje." Ang drama niya talaga forever. " Kahit hindi ka naman makinig, you always find your way around recits anyway. Tara na, let's study already." I answered before pulling his arm out of the classroom. Pagkarating namin sa lobby, nagulat ako nang kunin niya ang kamay ko at hinila ako palabas ng building.
"Huh? Bakit ka sa parking papunta? Akala ko ba magli-library tayo?"
"Can we please study somewhere else? Santino might see you and I don't want that jerk joining us. You might get mad at me again."
I rolled my eyes at him. "Arte mo. Okay, tara. Where do you want?"
"Let's just go to Shangri-la so there's not much people there."
"Ugh! Ang layo ng Shangri-la. Sa EDSA pa yun, sayang sa oras."
"I'll drive us naman. You can study in the car and I'll even bring you back here if you want to get your car. I'm picking Xavina up after her piano lessons later anyway."
"Fine.... but you owe me coffee and donuts, okay?"
Xavier just laughed at my request before opening the car door for me and starting his car. "The key to your heart is really food and coffee, huh?" I simply nodded before putting my seatbelt on.
Once we got to Shangri-la, Xavier asked if he could go to the restroom first so I waited for him outside. As I looked around the mall, I noticed two familiar figures exiting a Spanish restaurant. They were both wearing business attires. I even saw the man smile at the woman beside him before offering his arm for her to take. Squinting my eyes to have a closer look, my heart skipped a beat when I realized who they were.
Senator Alleje & Congresswoman Juarez.
They looked like a couple on a date from the way they were acting. I was keen on getting Xavier away from this area immediately but luck was definitely not on my side today. Mukhang napansin ni Senator Alleje ang presensiya ko dahil tinanggal niya agad ang kapit ni Congresswoman Juarez sakaniya bago sila lumapit sa akin. Now they're acting like they barely even knew each other.
I felt someone poke my sides which caused me to jump in shock. I heard Xavier laughing behind me but it ultimately faded when the two figures appeared before us. I looked back at Xavier who looked surprised to see his dad here.
"Tita, Dad. What are you guys doing here?"
"We just had a meeting anak. Our colleagues went ahead of us."
Liar.
Xavier did mention awhile ago that there was not much people in Shangri-la. Maybe that's why they agreed to date here... so no one would know about their secret affair. Senator must have noticed my unease with their presence so he probed further by acknowledging me.
"Sebastian, why don't you introduce us to your friend here? I don't think we've formally met." I could almost hear the sarcasm in his voice.
"This is Alexandria, she's my blockmate and one of my closest friends in law school. Alexandria, meet Tita Gloria and my dad."
I faked a smile before extending my hands to them. "Senator, Congresswoman, it's such an honor to meet you."
Congresswoman simply nodded at me while Xavier's dad took my hand and gripped it too tightly, as if he was sending me a warning. "Right, I almost forgot. I remember seeing you in Ferdinand's birthday party. We met at such an awkward situation, I'm very sorry for that." He even dared to add a low chuckle, as if catching them all over each other was such a funny thing to remember.
"What do you mean by an awkward situation? What happened, Dad?" Xavier asked curiously.
"Care to enlighten my son, Alexandria?" He taunted me. It was as if he was telling me to go ahead and break his son's heart. Before I could even come up with an excuse, Congresswoman already interjected on my behalf.
"Nothing, Sebastian. I was just being careless and your dear friend here happened to notice it. It was an honest mistake." She answered briefly.
I scoffed. I didn't know that cheating on your husband is an honest mistake now.
"Anyway, we'll get going now. I still have a Senate session later. It was a pleasure meeting you, Alexandria. Be a dear and take care of my son alright?" He smiled at me mockingly. By take care of his son, he meant keep his dirty little secret.
"Goodbye Sebastian and Alexandria." Congresswoman announced before walking away from us.
Once they left, I realized I was still holding my breath. Xavier must have noticed because he immediately tapped my forehead after. "Are you okay? Why do you look like you've seen a ghost?"
"I'm fine, tara na. Cafe Lyon has Iced Cappuccino with Coffee Jelly, I want to try that." I said, pretending to lighten the mood. Once we got there, Xavier ordered for the both of us while I got my airpods and prepared my 8d music playlist. For three hours straight, none of us made a sound, only asking each other when a provision or case was unclear to us.
I sometimes catch myself zoning out in between reading cases. How Senator acted awhile ago is really messing with my head. Para bang wala siyang pakealam kung malaman man ni Xavier o hindi. He had no remorse for his sin and it bothered me so much. Is it wrong of me to keep this from Xavier? Dapat bang sinabi ko sakaniya ang totoo? And why am I the one carrying the guilt if I wasn't the one committing the mistake?
We finished studying at around 8 pm. Xavier had to tap my forehead because he caught me getting lost in my thoughts again. "You looked so bothered ever since we got to Shang. Do you not like it here? We can stay in the library next time if you're more comfortable studying there instead."
"No!" I immediately corrected him. "I'm fine anywhere. I was just thinking of a'lot of things kanina. Midterms is coming up na rin kasi."
"Okay, good. I was worried, you seemed really out of it awhile ago. Just tell me if you need any help with midterms, I can try to help or if not, we can always ask my dad."
His dad. Everytime he mentions his dad, there's always this sudden guilt weighing on me. We rode his car and on the drive back to Malcolm, I was still contemplating on what I should really do.
"Xavier, I have a question."
"Shoot."
"What do you think of liars?"
"Why?"
"Let say they're lying.... to protect you. Would you be mad at them?"
"I really don't believe in that. How do you protect someone by inhibiting the truth from them? Isn't their lack of knowledge already aggravating their circumstance? You're not protecting them, you're just delaying the pain when the truth comes out. And trust me, it always will."
"So you don't like liars?"
"Aren't we all liars?"
"Fair point, but you didn't answer my question. So do you or do you not like them?"
"I don't like liars but I'll always try to understand them. There are normal liars, there are also prolific liars. I lie, you lie, we all lie. It's just a matter of why and for whom. And trust me, in this profession we're bound to lie one way or another."
"Right, okay you make sense. Thanks for answering." I said before opening his car door. Xavier suddenly grabbed my arm to stop me from leaving.
"Why are you suddenly asking that? Are you hiding something... from me?"
I immediately freezed. Was I being too obvious?
"N-No! Of course not. Bakit naman ako magsisinungaling sa'yo?"
"That's exactly what liars would say. You know you can tell me anything right?" He probed further.
"Drop it, Xavier. You know me, I like understanding how people view things. Sometimes I think I'm correct but when I hear another person's perception, it easily opens my mind and allows me to reevaluate my decisions. I can see the situation in a new and unbiased light and from there, make a better choice." I explained, hoping it was enough to ease his curiousity.
"Fine, fine. But what I said still holds true, okay? I'll always be here."
I simply nodded at him before hopping out of his car. "Ingat ka."
He smirked at me. "Ingatan mo ako."
I rolled my eyes at him. His day never ends without flirting, huh? "Ewan ko sa'yo, Alleje. Stay out of trouble."
"Can't. You're trouble." He joked before waving me goodbye.
I shook my head before entering my car. He's not entirely wrong.... I am trouble.