The Case of Falling For You

"Maricon—" "Save it, Pa," I snapped, dragging my overpacked bags behind me na parang may buhat akong patay. Nakatalikod ako, pero ramdam na ramdam ko 'yung victory smile ni Kassy. Tignan lang natin kung sino talaga ang magwawagi, Kassy. Asawa ka lang ng tatay ko! Kung nagawa niyang palitan ang Mama ko—na let's face it, Miss Universe ang peg—eh kayang-kaya ka rin niyang palitan. Just. You. Wait. You evil stepmom discount version. "Take care there, Maricon," Kassy said in her signature pa-sweet na boses na parang hindi siya nang-aagaw ng tatay ng iba. I turned and glared at her. "This isn't over, you hoe." She laughed, all demure and smug. "But I already won, my daughter." Excuse me? Anak mo ko? As in anak-anakan mo ako, girl? I nearly dry-heaved. "Ugh. You're just five years older than me. Kilabutan ka ngang bwisit ka," sabi ko habang nililingon-lingon ang paligid. Nasaan ba si Papa? As always, ang timing niya ay parang PLDT technician—late. Lagi niyang naaabutan 'yung moment na ako na ang nagwawala, never 'yung mga panlalait ng Kassy na 'yan. Why couldn't he see the truth? Bakit ang lagi niyang nakikita eh ako ang kontrabida sa Disney movie naming dalawa? "Don't think about visiting. You won't be missed," she added, smiling that saccharine, demonic smile na malamang ang dahilan kung bakit napa-‘I do’ si Papa sa kanya. I clenched my jaw. "You b***h. Kung anuman ang pinagsisiksikan mo sa bahay na 'to, FYI, my Mom owned this! My father just owns half of the wealth you're drooling over like a hyena in Gucci. I get my Mom’s share and half of my Dad’s share. 'Wag kang feeling reyna, girl." At last, the smug look vanished from her face. Ayun, bumagsak din 'yung kilay niya. Obvious naman na pera lang talaga ang habol niya. Saan ba napulot ni Papa 'tong ginto ang mata pero tingga ang ugali na 'to? "Umayos ka, Kassy. Kapag nawala si Papa, sa akin ka manghihingi ng allowance. At kapag PMS ako noon? Good luck, girl." I turned on my heel like a telenovela bida and stomped out. Diretso agad ako sa sasakyan. Pilit kong isiniksik ang mala-bangkang luggage ko sa 100b ng trunk. Magsisimula na akong mag-drive at kung gusto kong hindi maabutan ng heavy traffic na parang life problems, kailangan ko nang lumarga ASAP. Kakatok pa si Papa sa bintana ng kotse ko, parang eksena sa isang MMK episode. "Maricon," he said gently. Napabuntong-hininga ako, pero binaba ko pa rin ang window. My Dad's old. Like, almost-retirement-plan-na old. Hindi ko talaga ma-gets kung bakit naisipan niyang mag-asawa ng babaeng kaedad ko. Slightly older lang nga si Kassy sa akin—slightly—at mas mukhang batang may utang kaysa asawa. "Here’s my card," he said, handing me his AmEx like a consolation prize. "I already talked to the condo admin. Everything’s ready for you." He looked at me like he wanted me to say something. I didn’t. I couldn’t. I didn’t want to fight with him. Matanda na siya. Who knows how much time we had left? Kaya nga ako umalis, kasi ayokong tuluyang magkapikunan kami araw-araw ng diyosa ng kaguluhan na si Kassy. And let’s be real… kahit anong galit ko kay Kassy, she’s pregnant. Pregnant with my sibling. As in kapatid ko na helpless pa ang nakatira sa tiyan ng malignong 'yon. Kaya kahit gustong-gusto ko siyang i-chokeslam minsan sa hagdan, tiniis ko. "Thanks, Pa," I muttered. "Call me when you arrive," he said softly. I just nodded and rolled my windows back up like I was sealing my emotions in a Tupperware container. Nag-drive na ako, tuloy-tuloy. Walang preno, walang stop-over. Parang may hinahabol akong deadline. Hanggang sa makarating na ako sa condo. True enough, mukhang kinausap talaga ni Papa ang admin. May nag-abang agad na dalawang lalaki para tumulong sa akin sa pag-akyat. Pag-akyat as in sa 34th floor! Diyos ko, parang Baguio stairs to heaven ang peg! Gusto ko nga lang ng lugar na mabilis takbuhan kung may fire drill. Eh ‘pag dito ako nag-stay, baka sa elevator pa lang ubos na stamina ko. "Tawag na lang po kayo sa baba kung may kailangan pa kayo, Ma’am," sabi ng isa habang hinihingal din sa kakabuhat ng makeup organizer ko na mas mabigat pa sa emotional baggage ko. I gave them some tip. Sila ang tunay na MVPs. I spent the next few hours fixing my things. Thankfully, fully furnished ang condo—salamat, Papa. It's two-bedroom, spacious, and very adulting-core. May pakialam pa rin talaga siya sa akin… except nga lang, I didn’t know a single soul in Manila. Nag-college ako sa Baguio. Lahat ng kaibigan ko, bundok ang bakuran. Bakit ba kasi dito pa ako lumipat? While mid-arranging, naramdaman kong parang may nagtatambol sa sikmura ko. Gutom na gutom na ako! I changed into a clean shirt—kasi ang lagkit ko na, bes—then went straight to the nearby mall. Namili ako ng groceries and toiletries. Habang namimili ako, bigla akong napaisip… What do I do now? Maybe I could work? But where? I finished PolSci, pero ang pangarap ko talaga, maging abogada ng bayan. Kaso nagka-stroke si Papa noon, kaya pinili kong manatili at alagaan siya. Then poof—dumating si Kassy na parang bagyong walang signal warning. Maybe I should go back to law school? I mean, hindi naman huli ang lahat, diba? May time pa. Kaya ayun, bigla akong na-excite. Instead of going home, I searched for law schools nearby. The top result? SCA. I checked my outfit in a window reflection. Mukha naman akong tao. Pwede na ‘to! Pumunta agad ako sa admin office ng SCA. Nakuha ko na ang listahan ng requirements. Nakakainis lang—lahat ng kailangan ko, nasa Pangasinan! Pa'no na? Kaka-alis ko lang! And I swear, if I see Kassy right now baka sa kulungan ako mag-enroll instead of law school. "Why are you even here?" may biglang tumawag. I turned around and saw a guy, tall, dark, and may itsura pero parang kulang sa tulog at pasensiya. Parang siya ‘yung tipo ng tao na laging galit kahit wala namang dahilan. "I was ordered to make sure that you'll get enrolled," he added. "Ano ‘ko, bata?" I raised a brow. "No, Andrè. You just have a history of not following through." Tumingin ako sa kanya, then sa sky. "Lord, this is my sign, no? This is going to be a long, messy, tragic but hopefully educational ride." Umusod ako sa isang gilid ng mahabang bench. May dalawang lalaking nag-uusap sa gilid ko. One of them handed the other a brown envelope. May assistant pa siya, in fairness. Big time ‘tong isang ‘to. Parang nasa mafia deal lang ang peg. But I wasn’t raised to meddle with other people’s affairs—thank you, Nanay—so I just ignored them and focused on reading the entrance exam requirements. Life tip: kapag stressed ka, pretend you're busy reading. Kahit grocery receipt lang ‘yan. Instant invisibility cloak. "Miss," I asked the admissions lady, trying to sound confident kahit ang totoo, gusto kong mag-resign sa pagiging tao. "What if wala pa pong PhilSat?" She answered in that calm, receptionist tone na parang hindi ako mukhang sabog sa kaba. “If you pass the entrance exam, you can enroll, provided that you'll take the PhilSat on the next available date.” I nodded slowly, kunwari naiintindihan ko, pero ang totoo, ang daming tumatakbo sa utak ko: bills, reviewers, bakit ako nag-law, tsaka paano ‘to naging life choice? "Can I see the schedule of the entrance exams?" tanong ko ulit, like a diligent student na wala pang nabubuklat na reviewer. She smiled and handed me a piece of paper. I sat down and looked at the schedule. FOUR DATES NA LANG. BUKAS NA ‘YONG PINAKA-MAAGA. NEXT WEEK NA ‘YONG PINAKA-HULI. Ano ba ‘to?!? Ni wala pa akong nare-review! Bakit parang nangyari lang ‘to sa isang iglap? I was just binge-watching true crime documentaries last week, tapos ngayon, law school na? I was doing a mental computation of how much time I’d need to study, as in legit mental math. Like: ilang chapters per day × ilang kape per hour ÷ ilang breakdowns per night = kakayanin ko ba ‘to? I was deep in that intellectual spiral when someone sat beside me. “You’ll study here?” Napalingon ako. He was tall. May dimples. Slightly wavy hair. And a jawline na parang pang toothpaste commercial. Parang nag-stop ng konti ‘yung music ng mall sa background. Or baka imagination ko lang. “Planning to,” I replied casually, kahit gusto kong sabihing, “Planning to cry first, then study.” “You know, UP it’s better. From what I heard, SCA’s like the worst law school,” sabi niya, even shuddering like SCA gave him trauma just from the thought. I arched my brow. “Really? Then why are you enrolling here?” Come on, logic, my dear Watson. He shrugged. “Let’s just say everyone in the family studied here, so I have no choice but to study here, as well.” Ah. The curse of family expectations. Classic. Tumango na lang ako. ‘Di ko na siya pinansin. Wala akong oras sa mga lalaking may assistant pero walang sariling paninindigan sa pagpili ng school. I was back to silently panicking about the exam. “Tuloy ka talaga?” “Yeah,” I said, my forehead creased like a freshly ironed shirt. “SCA’s the best school in the country. Bakit ‘di ako mag-aaral dito?” He tilted his head. “Huh... you’re one of those.” Napataas agad ang kilay ko. Excuse me? Those?! “What do you mean?” tanong ko. Feeling ko na-insulto ako kahit wala pa siyang specific na sinabi. He shrugged again. That was his favorite hobby, apparently. “Alam mo ‘yun? ‘Yung mga tao na feeling kapag ‘di sila nakapasok sa school na ‘to, parang end of the world na? But it’s not about the school. It’s about the student. Doesn’t matter if you come from the best school, if you’re a shitty student, you’ll most likely be a shitty graduate, too.” My lips parted in shock. ‘Di ko alam kung impressed ako or offended. Pero wow, confident si Kuya. “Wait, sino ka ba?” tanong ko. Like, hello, sinong nagbigay sa'yo ng permiso magsalita ng ganito sa random stranger? He smiled, and offered his hand. “André. You are?” “Maricon,” I said. I was about to shake his hand—until his assistant called him like a stage mom shouting for a child star. Agad siyang tumayo. Parang may slow-mo effect pa. At yes, napatingin ako sa legs niya. ANO BA NAMAN ‘TO. Ang haba! Akala mo pang fashion week. Legs for days. From where I was sitting, kita ko ang side-profile niya. Tangos ng ilong? Check. Full lips? Check. Dimples? Double check. Hair? Slightly messy in a just-woke-up-but-still-gwapo kind of way. I watched as he brushed his hair back in frustration while talking to his assistant. Mukhang may office drama na agad si Kuya. Episode 1: André and the Brown Envelope. Wow. The first guy I saw in this school... ganito agad ka-gwapo? Maybe it’s a sign. Not sure kung good omen or distraction. Pero salamat, universe? "Miss, I’ll take the exam next Sunday," I told the woman. She nodded and gave me the payment instructions. I turned to look at André one last time. Gusto ko sanang magpaalam. Konting Bye gwapo, good luck sa destiny nating dalawa! Pero busy pa rin siya, mukhang galit na galit sa kausap. Fine. Maybe we’d bump into each other again. Sabi nga nila, kung para sa’yo, ibabangga sa’yo. Literally, kung maliit lang tong campus. A few hours and a short existential crisis later... Bumalik ako sa mall. Dumiretso ako sa bookstore. Got myself two reviewers, a bar of dark chocolate (survival food), and a new pair of earphones kasi naiwan ko 'yung luma sa bahay. (Thanks a lot, Kassy, sa abalang hindi ko hiningi.) Pagbalik ko sa condo, plano ko quick nap lang, pero nagising na lang ako with a start dahil may malakas na... BANG! BANG! BANG! Akala ko lindol. I looked around, panicking. Hindi gumagalaw ang mga gamit ko. Walang lindol. Thank God! Pero kung lindol nga ‘yun, nasa 34th floor ako. Hindi lindol ang papatay sa’kin, kundi ang kaba. I got up slowly, pa-cautious pa, para akong nasa horror movie na nagsususpetsa kung saan nanggagaling ang ingay— At doon ko narinig ang... “Baby, oh s**t, yes, there...” ...I’m sorry, what now?! Sumunod pa ang isa pang BANG! kasabay ng pagbagsak ng picture frame ko. Basag. Parang puso ko tuwing walang stock ang Samgyupsal. One by one, nagsibagsakan ang mga dekorasyon ko. Even my floating shelf na pinainstall ko pa sa Shopee guy, naglalaylay na. How hard was this man—OH MY GOD. “André... yes, baby, there...” Wait. A-andré?—I mean... ANDRE?!? No. Freaking. Way.