Henny VIII

HENNY It is past midnight. The world’s widely yet quietly awake. From up here, I can see cars zooming through the unclogged roads, streetlights blinking like giant fireflies. At night is when the beauty of metropolis truly shows—raw, yet brutally occupied. The city’s silently awake, so am I. Hindi ako makatulog; hindi ako pinapatulog ng isipan ko. “Eighth…” bulong ko sa sarili habang tinititigan ang singsing na ibinigay sa ‘kin ni Arthur nang mag-propose siya sa akin. Custom-made and covered in diamonds because he said they’re forever. Arthur Salvacion. An accountant and a businessman born to a rich family. A man with money, fame, and looks. A hot bachelor, a man who can make anybody crawl and líck his feet if he wanted them to. And what a world, truly, because that young, rich man, happened to be my fiancé. Me, Hennessy del Junco, a Literature graduate. I was born with a silver spoon too, and as what people say and I quote: "sobrang ganda mo, Hennessy. Puwede kang model!" We, Arthur and I, we're the perfect match. We are equals in money, fame, and looks. We are the perfect couple... or so I thought. All this time, I thought… I thought Arthur was mine. Malaki ang tiwala ko. I thought the bachelor Salvacion was mine alone. “Oh, hi! Hi Vander! Napadaan ka?” Dumaan kanina sa condo unit namin ni Arthur si Vander. Vander Laxamana, Arthur’s best friend since college and workmate. Parang nagmamadali siya na ‘di ko maintindihan, kinakabahan na ‘di ko alam. “Van? What is it?” I asked him again, a little worried this time. “P-Pasok ka…” “Is Arthur around?” Vander entered the house, looking constipated. I shook my head while pouting. “Hmm, wala siya, Van. Business trip in Palawan daw, sa Coron. You didn't know?" Dalawang linggo raw ‘yung business trip nila sa Palawan. They’re with a lot of people. Dalawang araw na nang umalis siya pero ‘di pa rin siya nagbibigay ng update sa ‘kin pero naiintindihan ko. Nag-away kami bago siya umalis. Medyo matindi ang naging pagtatalo namin. Nagkataasan kami ng boses at dinabugan niya ako. At ang dahilan? He wanted us to open our relationship, at least before we get married, he said. Arthur wanted to “experience” things before we finally tie the knot. It sounds so, so stúpíd and incredibly disrespectful. Hindi ko alam kung bakit niya naisip ‘yon. Arthur and I have been in a relationship for two years. I thought, if he wanted a taste of being single, "freedom", he should’ve done it before he proposed to me. “Are you that hórny, Arthur?! Open relationship, nasisiraan ka na ba?!” sigaw ko sa kaniya dalawang araw na ang nakararaan. Halos mapasabunot ako sa sarili ko sa sobrang galit. “This is not just about séx, Hennessy! This is more than that! Don't be so ridiculous, ang guato ko lang ay makatikim muna ng freedom, pero ayaw kong maghiwalay tayo!” “How does that make sense, Arthur?! Ang tángá lang! Not just about séx? You’re just making excuses, god!” Galit na galit ako noon. I want our relationship to be monogamous. I want it to be just us. Only. Us. I was so bothered by that na hindi kami nagkaayos bago siya umalis. He just left, didn’t even say a word. “Uhm, Van? Hindi mo alam na may business trip? And I thought Arthur said everybody's coming..." “There is no business trip in Coron, Henny,” Vander answered. Umupo siya sa sofa habang ako naman ay nagdala ng orange juice sa kaniya. I giggled, putting down a glass in front of him. “How come? Arthur left. Nasa Coron siya as we speak." “He is in Coron,” Vander agreed, his voice shaking a little. Sumimsim siya sa orange juice. “Pero hindi para sa isang business trip, Hennessy.” Napalinga-linga ako at natawa uli. Hindi ko alam ang ibig sabihin ni Vander. “O-Okay, Van. Can we get to the point already. Kinakabahan ako.” Vander stared at me. Makahulugan, seryoso. Hindi ko kayang ibalik ang intensidad ng titig niya dahil masiyado iyong malalim. “Hennessy… Arthur is cheating on you." He dropped the bomb. I shut down completely with what Vander said. Nagpaulit-ulit muna sa isip ko ang sinabi niya bago ko naintindihan… bago ko naproseso. I shifted on my seat, my eyes feeling warm and my hands trembling. Nanuyo ang lalamunan ko sa sinabi ni Vander. I was waiting for him to say it was just a joke. Palabiro si Arthur at Vander, baka naman nagbibiro lang sila, 'di ba? “V-Van… hindi m-magandang biro ‘to,” banta ko kay Vander. I gripped on the hem of my shirt, feeling the sweat on my palms. “T-Take it back. Hindi nakakatuwa, Vander.” Vander looked down. “I… I am not joking, Hen. This is real, I wish it was just a big bad joke. Ayaw ko ring marinig at ‘di ko rin masikmura, pero totoo ang lahat. I am so sorry, Henny." Unti-unti nang tumulo ang luha sa mga mata ko. I was shaking, I couldn’t breathe properly. Fear dawned on me. “A-Arthur can’t do this to me. Hindi ako m-masasaktan ni Arthur, Van. You know that! W-We both know that, right?!" Vander shook his head. “I’m sorry, Henny. Akala ko rin. Akala ko rin… God, this is too much for you. I'm sorry for saying it like this, but—" “Vander… p-paano? Paano m-mo nasasabi ‘to sa akin? Don't lie like this, Arthur is your friend, oh my god! D-Don’t lie like this!” Vander took his phone from his pocket and made a few swipes. Sa bawat segundong lumilipas, lumalakas lalo ang t***k ng puso ko. Nabibingi na ako sa lakas ng kalabog. “Have a look, Henny. You decide if it’s real or not.” Nanginginig ang mga kamay ko nang kunin ko ang phone at mapanood ang video na nagpe-play roon. It was a video of a man lying on the bed naked, with seven unclothed girls dancing and taking turns sitting on the man’s face. The man… the man was Arthur. Arthur Salvacion. My fiancé. “O-Oh my god,” I uttered. Nabitawan ko ang phone sa mesa at napaawang ang bibig. Para akong sinaksak, diretso sa dibdib, tagos sa likuran. Namanhid ang buong katawan ko sa nakita at litong-lito ako sa dapat kong maramdaman. “He isn’t on a business trip, Henny. Vacation with his seven other girlfriends.” "Seven... God... I'm going to... this isn't real. These, all of these?" “There are more. He sent it to our friends, but I believe… these aren’t the only things he have. Baka mas marami pa.” Umagos nang umagos ang luha ko. Patuloy pa ring nagpe-play ang video at naaaninag ko ang ginagawa nila roon. Arthur was groaning while the girls were líckíng his body. They were touching him, some were down on him… some were kissing his lips, sitting on his face. It was a lot. I could hear them móaníng, begging Arthur for pleasure. Nasisiraan ako sa naririnig ko. They were calling for him. They were móáníng his name! “STOP IT!” Agad namang tumigil ang video dahil kay Vander at napahagulgol na lang ako sa sofa. Ang sakit-sakit at tuluyan nang gumuho ang mundo ko. “Arthur recorded this. Sent this to another workmate who’s in an open relationship too, then forwarded it to me for laughs. Sabi niya… nasa open relationship na rin daw kayo.” Nag-angat ako ng tingin kay Vander. Agad akong umiling at napatayo. “N-No? No, we’re not! Hindi ako pumayag doon!” “I know… I know you wouldn’t want that. That’s why I’m here to tell you these things, Henny.” “Did… did h-he say anything else?” Vander didn’t answer. Napalunok lang siya at yumuko uli, pinagdikit ang mga daliri na parang nagdarasal. “H-How long has this been going, V-Van?” “One year. He said one year, Henny.” Napasinghap ako. One year. A whole fúckíng year. I’m being cheated on with not one, not two, but with seven different girls for one whole year. Ang dami ko pang gustong itanong kay Vander pero bigla na lang nagdilim ang paligid ko. I vaguely remember Vander calling for my name until I heard nothing anymore. Nagising na lang ako na hilong-hilo at masakit ang katawan. Halos hindi ko maidilat ang mga mata ko. Kinapa ko ang tabi ko. Wala roon si Arthur. Totoo ba ang lahat? Hindi ba ako nananaginip? I checked my phone and saw texts from Vander. He told me I fainted so he put me to bed and let me have my rest. So it’s real then. Everything. Ngayon, narito ako sa reading nook. Nakaupo. Nakatanaw sa malayo, nag-iisip. Iniisip kung bakit nangyari sa amin ito ni Arthur, bakit ginawa niya sa akin ‘to. I am not many things. I don’t know how to cook some of his favorite dishes. I can’t run a business like his parents wanted me to do. I am not and I can’t be perfect, but héll I wasn’t a bad partner. I know that—we both know that. Wala sa sarili akong nagtipa ng mensahe para kay Arthur. I don’t give a dámn about what he is doing right now, whether he’s fúckíng seven different women or drowning somewhere, I don’t care. I am angry. Going insane, even. Pinapahiya niya ako. Tinatapakan niya ako, binabastos niya ako. My heart getting broken, that’s fine, I’ll get over it. But my ego getting stomped on like this? To: Arthur Hi, Arth. I hope you’re okay over there. I miss you and I love you. Enjoy the beaches in Coron! Be happy while you’re at it, wala na ‘yan pagbalik mo sa Manila, haha! About your request last time, let’s try it then. Let’s open this relationship. I’ll see you soon! : ) He wants this open relationship so bad? He’ll get it. Besides, he played with fire before I even agreed to this. He cheated on me. I'm not sure where this will get me. But I want to get back at them. I can't... I can't take this lightly. I will not let this pass. Pinipilit niya ‘tong open relationship na ‘to kasi hindi niya kayang manatili sa isa. Gustong tumikim ng iba pero hindi kayang magpapapalit-palit at iharap sa pamilya niya. He started this. But he’ll regret it. I’ll make sure of it. Arthur played with seven girls behind my back. Hindi ko alam kung anong motibo niya, ‘di ko rin alam kung pang-ilan ako, pero mahalaga pa ba ‘yon? Whether I got to him first before those girls or not, it doesn’t really matter. He got seven there, one in Manila. Makes us eight. I am the eighth. “f**k you, Arthur.” I’ll figure this out. I’ll get back at him and savor this set-up he so desperately wanted. Because I may be the eighth woman, but I’ll be the first one to bring him down.