Sinful Attachment

KABANATA 7

“Ang tagal niyo namang dalawa.” Danzel complained habang nakatingin kina Chase at Chaos na kakapasok lang sa office nila.

Half-annoyed, half-exhausted ang tono ng boses ni Danzel, parang matagal na talaga nilang hinihintay yung dalawa. He crosses his arms and slightly shakes his head, clearly not impressed sa timing nila.

“And you didn’t even bring us food. Seriously,” Charlotte added, sarcastic ang tone niya, making the situation even more amusing instead of serious.

It doesn't take long before Chase and Chaos both laugh at their comments. Kahit pinapagalitan sila, halatang natutuwa pa rin sila, like this kind of chaos is already normal for them.

“May sagot ka na ba sa tanong ni Chase ha Chaos?” Tumatawang sambit ni Danzel na prenteng naka upo at naka sandal sa kaniyang kinauupuan.

“Ayan na naman sila,” Chase muttered under her breath, clearly referring kina Danzel, Charlotte at Chaos na agad na naman nagsimula sa usual teasing nila the moment na pumasok sila sa office.

Mababa lang lang ang tonon ng bose ni Chase, almost like she is talking to herself, pero Chaos still caught it easily. Napahinto siya for a second bago siya napatawa nang mahina, clearly amused. He turned his head slightly toward her, watching her reaction like he finds it entertaining how predictable their friends are, and how predictable din yung reaction ni Chase sa kanila.

On the other hand, si Chase tries to act like she doesn’t care. Straight lang yung expression niya, but may slight annoyance sa eyes niya na halatang halata pa rin. It is nothing new for her. Danzel and Charlotte always have something to say, always making noise, always finding a way to tease them whenever they are together.

Still, kahit ganun, she doesn’t really stop them. She has already gotten used to it, even if she keeps pretending otherwise. And Chaos, noticing all of it, can’t help but find the whole thing a little funny, especially how she always complains but never really leaves or pushes them away completely.

“Hindi nga niya maalala e.” Tumatawang tugon ni Chaos.

“Yun lang, lasing.” Sambit ni Danzel sabay tawa rin.

“Ano ba kasi ‘yon?” Chase said irritably, mas matalim ang boses niya this time habang tuluyan siyang humarap sa tatlo.

Her eyes were already narrowed, clearly showing how annoyed she was. She looked at Danzel, then Charlotte, then finally Chaos, as if silently asking who started it this time. Halata sa expression niya ang pagka inis, like she has already reached her limit sa nonstop teasing at chaotic energy nila the moment na pumasok sila sa office.

Danzel looks like he is about to speak pero bigla rin siyang natigil, habang si Charlotte ay may maliit na amused smile, parang enjoy na enjoy sa nangyayari. Si Chaos naman, nakatayo lang nang calm, watching Chase’s reaction with a faint hint of amusement sa eyes niya.

Kahit na halatang irritated si Chase, may something familiar pa rin sa lahat ng ito. This is not new for them. It is their usual dynamic, where she acts annoyed, and they all somehow make it worse just to see how she will react next.

“Ipaliwanag mo nga Charlotte.” Sambit ni Chaos sabay turo kay Charlotte na may magandang ngiti sa kaniyang labi.

“Ano ba kasi yon? Pasa pasahan e.” Reklamo ni Chase na may masama pa ring tingin sa kanilang tatlo.

“Nag inom tayo kagabi diba?” Panimula ni Charlotte hagabng tumatango tango pa.

“Wala kasi si Chaos non, busy sa studio.” Pag paparinig ni Danzel.

“Oh ano nga?” Tanong ni Chase.

“Edi syempre, dahil wala yung bantay mo, at wala yung taga sapo ng mga alak na dapat ikaw ang iinom… Nalasing ka.” Kibit balikat na sambit ni Charlotte.

“Mabuti nga at nasa VIP room tayo ng bar mo, kasi ang hirap mong alagaan.” Dagdag ni Danzel dahilan para mapataas ang kilay ni Chase.

“So ayon, dahil may isang babaeng lasing na lasing diyan, bigla nalang siyang nag maoy at nag kukulit.” Paliwanag ni Charlotte kay Chase.

“At first, we were just letting it slide, but that girl couldn’t stop kasi she was too drunk and too playful. Then out of nowhere, she grabbed Danzel’s phone and actually called someone,” paliwanag ni Charlotte, habang ine-explain kung ano yung nangyari last night.

The way she tells it makes it sound even more chaotic than it probably was, parang bigla na lang nagulo lahat without warning, like everything just suddenly got out of hand.

“Sino kaya yung tinawagan na yon?” Tumatawang tanong ni Danzel habang pinapakita ang call logs sa kaniyang notebook.

It’s Chaos.

Chaos 04/10/26

“Edi ayan di na namin mapigil e, syempre sumagot yung tinawagan.” Dagdag ni Charlotte.

FLASHBACK

“Problema mo Danzel?” Bungad ni Chaos matapos sagutin ang call mula kay Danzel.

“Excuse me, I’m not Danzel.” Mataray na sambit ni Chase sa kabilang linya dahilan para mapahinto si Chaos.

“Poli, wait lang ha, sagutin ko lang ‘to.” Paalam ni Chaos sa mga kapwa choreo niya bago lumabas at kausapin si Chase.

“Why did you even use Danzel’s phone to make a call?” Chaos asked, clearly confused as he looked at Chase.

His tone wasn’t angry, more like genuinely curious, as if he was trying to understand how the situation even ended up like that. He tilted his head slightly, waiting for her explanation while still processing everything he just heard.

“Hold up, are you drunk?” Takang tanong ni Chaos.

“So what if I am? I miss you.” Walang prenong sambit ni Chase na ikinabigla naman ni Chaos.

“What the f/uck?” Tanging tugon ni Chaos.

“Tara na mag live in, hindi ko pala kayang mawalay sayo Chaos. Please, live with me tutal ikaw din naman palagi nag hahatid sundo sakin, sabay tayo kumakqain and all. Come on, live with me.” Chase said seriously.

The words came out direct and honest, without her usual teasing tone. For a moment, the room felt different, like even the usual noise around them seemed to quiet down. She looked at Chaos straight, not joking this time, as if she had already thought about it more than once and finally said it out loud. Habang si Charlotte, Danzel at Chaos ay bahagyang natigilan at tila nmaguguluhan sa naririnig nila kay Chase.

“Huwag mo na pag isipan, hindi na kita papansinin at kakausapin ever again kapag hindi ka um-oo.” Dagdag ni Chase at mabilis na pinatay ang call at hindi na hinayaang makasagot pa si Chaos.

Naiwan si Chaos na nqagtqataka at naguguluhan sa kaniyang narinig. “Does she seriously wantme to live with her? D/amn.” Chaos muttered under his breath while shaking his head to himself, his hand resting on his forehead as if trying to process what he just heard.

He looked completely stunned, like he didn’t know whether to laugh, sigh, or just question everything that was happening.