Chased By The Red Flag

3: Comfort

“Monday na Monday teh, bakit parang ang lalim ng iniisip mo?” Carlie asked Yuna as they were having their lunch at the university cafeteria. She kept on checking her phone non-stop in the middle of a nice meal and this usually happens whenever she needed to reply to her group mates for a project or a report. “Ano ba ‘yang ginagawa nin’yo? Bakit parang sobrang tutok na tutok ka naman? Himalaya yata na hindi nin’yo natapos no’ng weekends!”

“Huh? Wala naman na akong unfinished na mga reports, I think. Sa pagkakaalam ko, okay naman na kami. You know what’s super surprising? I only read the chapter about a laboratory exam earlier this morning for our quiz and I aced it! Holy! I didn’t think my brain could work like that! Akalain mo ‘yon? Kahit pala hindi ako masyadong magbabad sa pag- aaral may maisasagot pa pala ako.”

“Teka- uh, ilan ang score mo?”

“Fourteen over fifteen, not bad huh? Are you amazed as well?”

“Okay, normal naman na sa’yo ‘yon. Pero… bakit kanina mo lang pinag- aralan? You- what did you do instead of reading ahead?”

Yuna chugged a glass of cold water to avoid answering the question and then continued to finish her food without saying anything to her cousin.

“Hala teh, bakit hindi ka na bigla namamansin? Bakit ka nagmamadali? May klase ka pa ba after?”

“Wala na, wala akong klase mamayang hapon. Bakit?”

“Anong bakit? Ikaw nga itong tinatanong ko kung bakit ka nagmamadali. Hindi ka mauubusan ng upuan sa library girl. Kalma ka lang d’yan.”

“I wont be staying at the library. I actually just ate lunch with you because I felt bad that you left your classmates because you want to eat with me.”

Carlie sarcastically laughed, “Excuse me?” he said. “You want to eat with me because you felt bad? Oh, no! I wont even focus on that statement. Kailan ka pa hindi dumiretso sa library?”

“I don’t have classes. Maluwag naman palagi ang schedule ko tuwing hapon. So, what’s the problem with that?” she asked. “I can study in my apartment. Mas tahimik pa roon.”

“Yuna? Ikaw ba talaga ‘yan? Bakit parang hindi na kita kilala? Sobrang iba na ang mga sinasabi mo- wait, may problema ka ba? You can tell me, I will do my best to help!”

“No, I am not facing any problems at the moment, believe me when I say that, please.”

“But you never say no to the library!” Carlie have his mouth wide open, gasping for air while fanning himself with his own hands. “You changed girl! What happened to you?”

“May gusto lang akong gawin sa apartment. Why are you asking too many questions? Bilisan mo na d’yan dahil kailangan mo pang pumasok sa klase mo. Kapag na-late ka, baka mapagalitan ka ulit ng professor nin’yo.”

She almost got out of the sticky situation. But then, her heart sank to the bottom of her stomach when a beep was heard from her phone. Slowly, she looked at her cousin. His eyes almost budged out of his face, completely stunned from the information that he just unlocked.

“May kausap ka na,” he whispered. “Kaya ka ba excited na umuwi? Busy ka na sa ka- chat mo? Let me see!”

“Carlie, no. This is all a misunderstanding and nope, I am not talking to anyone in particular, thank you! Bye na ha? I love you!”

“Teka- Yuna! Hoy!”

She got out of there so fast. And she never looked back even though Carlie kept on screaming bloody murder just to get her attention. Pinatitinginan na rin ang babae ng mga nakakasalubong niya.

“Oh gosh, why did I even let Carlie know about this? I was too dumb to not keep my phone on silent mode! I wanna get away so freaking fast.”

“Yuna!” she halted as soon as she got out of the university gate when a tall, handsome man wearing all white as his uniform stopped him. “Yuna! Long time no see!”

“Kenn!” Yuna awkwardly smiled. “We just met last week, no?”

“We did! Last Friday!”

“Ye- yeah… and it’s Monday today.”

Kenn shrugged, “Exactly!”Palipat- lipat ang tingin ni Yuna sa lalaki at sa daan na nasa likuran niya.Kailangan lang sana niya ng limang minuto para maglakad at ngayon ay masaya na siyang nakahiga sa may kama niya. But she was spotted by this guy instead.

Kenn was her former classmate. Dati silang magkaklase buong first year nila sa college. Kaya lang, lumipat ng course itong si Kenn. From medical technology, he decided that he wanted to be a nurse instead. Hindi sila masyadong close, ngunit alam ni Yuna ang ugali nito. Noon ay sobrang sama ng loob ni Yuna dahil palagi nalang siyang sentro ng tukso magmula kay Kenn at sa mga barkada niya. Naroon na at palagi siyang tinatawag na ‘nerd’ o ‘di kaya naman ay ‘robot’ dahil sa talino niya.

But now, he’s someone that never fails to show up just to make sure that Yuna knows he’s interested. At first, Carlie was pushing her to get to know Kenn better. However, even if she tries to, she couldn’t get comfortable enough with him. There’s just something icky about him and she couldn’t really pin point what that is.

“I’m so sorry Kenn, I really have to go-”

“Where to? Aren’t you staying at the library this afternoon? Kung gusto mo samahan na kita. May kailangan ka ba na bilhin sa labas? I can go with you too!”

Yuna scrambled her brains just to find a perfect reason in which he wont have any response to. Ilang beses na rin niya kasing ginamit ang dahilan na kailangan na niyang umuwi sa apartment noon, at talagang hinatid pa siya ng lalaki kahit na halos mag lupasay na ito para iwanan siya.

Kaya naman noong narinig niya ang pamilyar na ring sa cellphone niya, halos mahalikan na niya ang gadget sa galak. For the first time ever, the alert from that freaking app saved her life.

Sinagot niya ang tawag ng lalaki mula sa kabilang linya, “Hello?” she said.

“Oh God. I’m so sorry,” it is Matteo and he sounds a hundred times hotter than he normally does. His morning voice is enchanting as hell. Halos makalimutan na ni Yuna ang gusto niyang gawin. “Thea, sorry! I meant to send you a message, napindot ko lang ang call button accidentally, I just woke up, you know.”

Pasimpleng nilingon ni Yuna ang lalaking malapad ang ngiti sa harapan niya sabay sabing, “Yup babe, hello? Paalis na ako, sorry, late siguro ako nang kaunti!”

“Am I dreaming or what?”

“Babe? Sinong babe ang kausap mo? Kausap mo ba ‘yong pinsan mo?”

Magkasuno na narinig ng babae ang tanong ni Matteo at ni Kenn. She turned to the one in front of her and said… “Sorry, I need to go somewhere. See you later, okay?”

“Thea,” Matteo almost moaned that name. Aside from being very low pitched, it sounded breathier, giving Yuna the chills that ran down her spine. “Are you using me to break someone’s heart? That’s so mean.”

“Hmm? Yes, absolutely!” she cheerfully answered, knowing that Kenn is right behind her, still following.

“Is he gone yet?”

“No, definitely not! But I am walking to my apartment now.”

“Tell him to f*ck off. What the heck? Baka gusto niyang umuwi ako sa Pilipinas para lang sapakin siya hanggang sa mabawasan siya ng bagang!”

“I can’t do that. Gagi,” she let out a hearty chuckle, making Kenn raise an eyebrow. “Para namang kaya mong gawin ‘yon.”

“I already told you, just tell me to come to you and I will literally appear right in front of you the next day. Hindi ako nakikipag biruan.”

“Yeah right, right,”

“You don’t believe me huh? ‘Wag mo akong masyadong hamunin. Tumototoo ako Thea.”

“Sino ‘yang kausap mo?”

Yuna turned to face the guy behind her, “Uh, Kenn, nand’yan ka pa pala?”

“Tell that mother f*cker that I am your boyfriend. Ngayon na- no, better yet, let me speak with him.”

“Let me talk to him,” sabi ni Kenn bigla.

“No- no, I don’t think that’s needed Kenn,” narinig ni Yuna ang gigil na pag buntong hininga ng lalaki sa kabilang linya. “I’m talking to by boyfriend.”

“Babe, you better tell him to leave you alone now. Sabihin mo kailangan mo na umiwi kasi bebe time na. Iwanan mo ‘yang g*gong ‘yan.”

“Kailan ka pa nagkaroon ng boyfriend? Bakit hindi ko alam?”

Yuna rolled her eyes and asked, “Why do you need to know?”

“Say sorry honey, may kakilala ko lang na kumakausap sa akin. I’ll be there soon.”

“Hmm,” parang nanuyo ang lalamunan ni Yuna sa utos ni Matteo sa kan’ya.

“Say it, now.”

As naturally as she can she followed what Matteo just said, “Honey, I’m sorry. May kinakausap lang ako rito na kakilala ko, I’ll be there soon okay?”

Parang tambutsong umuusok ang mga ilong ni Kenn sa galit, “Tang*na?” he yelled.

“Say that you don’t know if you can stay with me for the night. Siguradong patatahimikin ka na niya.”

“No- no, I don’t think I’ll be able to sleep over tonight. Maaga pa ang klase ko bukas.”

“That’s my good girl.”

“Uhm, Kenn kailangan ko na talagang mauna ha? Sige, bye bye!”

Hindi na pinansin ni Yuna kung nakasunod pa ba ang lalaki sa likod niya pero sinigurado niya na bilisan ang paglalakad hanggang sa makarating sa tapat ng apartment niya. She opened the gate so fast, hindi na rin niya nabati ang isang pamilya na nakatira sa may first floor dahil dumiretso ito sa second floor at nag kulong sa unit.

“Oh my gosh, that is for sure going to ruin my whole life if he tells my cousin!” instead on focusing on what Yuna just said, the man on the other line just hummed angrily.

“So you have someone out there following you like a lost puppy huh?” pabulong nitong tanong. “Ang sabi mo sa akin single since birth ka at walang kahit na anong kaalam- alam tungkol sa relationships? But now, I found out that you are a cold hearted heart breaker! You just obliterated that poor boy’s hopes and dreams right there!”

“Eh anong gusto mo, i-date ko siya?”

“Okay, let’s not go there. I am at the front of the line here, please remember that miss.”

“G*go.”

“In fact, you already claimed me as your man. So, paano ba ‘yan?” napangiti ang dalaga sa malokong tanong nitong si Matteo. She can clearly tell that he’s smiling while talking to her and it makes her heart flutter. His stupid giggles and jokes, those grew on her over the weekend, a lot. Never in her dreams did she imagine that one day she will be stoked to hear a man’s voice, spewing nonsense matters over reviewing her lecture notes.

“Are you going to work today?”

“I see, you completely ignored the fact that I want to be your man,” bulong ng lalaki. “No, I am not. I will be working from home. Wala naman akong permanent na office rito.”

“Oh, so, saan ang office mo?”

“Sa Manila- gusto mo ba ng trabaho doon? Para hindi ka na palipat- lipat sa mga freelance jobs mo. Puwede kitang kunin bilang isa sa mga virtual assistants! Kahit na ‘wag ka na mag trabaho, sagot ko na ang sahod mo.”

Yuna almost chocked at her own saliva while laughing so much, “Adik ka talaga eh, ‘no?” hirap pa siyang sabihin dahil hindi siya makahinto sa katatawa.

“Thea, I swear! ‘Di ba sabi mo sa akin gusto mo na mag part- time para may sarili kang pera? I am actually willing to hire you, I promise!”

Thinking that all of these is a part of Matteo’s online persona, she just went along with it while laughing at him as well.

“Oh yeah? So puwede rin akong pumili kung magkano ang sahod ko?” tanong niya pa at ipinatong ang phone niya sa may kama para makapag bihis ito habang kausap ang lalaki.

“Sure! Tell me, how much do you need for a semester? Kung gusto mong ganoon kalaki ang sahod mo per month, I will be more than willing to give you that.”

She shook her head while giggling, “Yeah, right, absolutely.”

The frustration in his voice kept on spiking, “I am not delusional, and I am not kidding. If you want that, I will give you that. And I am serious.”

“Tapos hindi mo ako kailangan na mag trabaho? Ayos ka lang ba? Sige nga, papaano naging tunog totoo ‘yon?”

“You can treat me as your job.”

“Isa na naman ba ‘to sa mga pg-18 mong banat?”

“Ha? Anong ibig mong sabihin?”

Yuna rolled her eyes, “Are you going to say that I should treat you as my job and that I just have to do my job well?”

“Oh- oh…” now Matteo started to laugh. You can hear the huge grin on his face when he said, “I did not think about that. But if you want to do me, I wont say no. I’ll tell you that.”

“Matteo, hindi mo ako makukuha sa ganito. You might want to up you p**n collection. You wont be getting some.”

“I told you about my collection once! You don’t have to bring that up every moment that you can, hello?”

“Hindi ko naman sinasadya! Naalala ko lang kasi ‘yong na-send mo sa akin na screenshot ng mga nasa bookmarks mo. Proud ka pa na ipakita eh.”

“I was just sharing it! Baka mamaya may magustuhan ka rin sa mga paborito ko. Edi perfect!” he yelled. “Bakit pala ang hina ng boses mo? Anong ginagawa mo?”

“Ah, sorry! Nagbibihis kasi ako, sandali.”

“Are you trying to seduce me this early? Let me tell you, it works.”

Kung alam lang ni Carlie kung gaano na kalayo ang narating ni Yuna sa landas na gusto niyang tahakin nito, malamang ay nakapag sponsor na siya ng misa ngayon at ngayon din! Sino ba naman ang mag aakala na ang mala anghel na babaeng ito ay nasasakyan na ang mga biro at pasimpleng panunukso ng isang lalaki. Sa sobrang komportable niya nga na kausap itong si Matteo, kahit na anong topic pa ang dayuhin nila, wala na siyang problema. They have talked about a lot of stuff. Mostly about really lewd ones too.

For example, she already knew about his wild past. All the partying, and the fun times he had when he was in college and while he started to do modelling. There are two things that stood out to her. First is that he once stepped foot at a swinger’s party with her ex and that’s the reason why they broke up. And second is that he enjoys to watch adult films, even when he’s just bored. He claims that the poor acting makes him laugh more than h*rny. Harap- harapan niyang ipinapakita sa babae kung sino siya talaga, maloko, maharot at palaging nasa mood.

And Yuna opened up to him. She freely stated that she thinks she will die as a virgin in this lifetime. Wala siyang alam na kahit ano basta nasa usapang s*x. Naikuwento na rin niya na hindi pa niya naranasan na uminom ng kahit na anong alak at hindi pa siya nakatapak sa bar or club kahit na kailan.

Of course, Matteo is very open about breaking all her firsts. And they were comfortable enough to talk about it and laugh it off.

That afternoon, Yuna studied while still on the call with Matteo. Nakasanayan na nila na mag aral at mag trabaho nang sabay. He plays a soft, calming melody of a piano to help them both focus on their tasks. Habang napupuno ng makulay na highlights ang mga papel sa harapan ni Yuna, naririnig niya naman ang mahihinang paglilipat ng pahina sa kabilang linya. Matteo told her that he’s reviewing a bunch of reports and he has a ton of papers to sign. By the sounds of it, his statement checks out.

She pulled back to stretch a bit. Halos tatlong oras na rin ang naubos magsimula nang mag basa siya. Kasabay ng pag tayo niya mula sa upuan, may narinig siyang kalukos mula sa phone. Parang kinuha ni Matteo ang kan’yang telepono mula sa lamesa at sa kasalukuyan ay nakakarinig si Yuna ng mahihinang tunog mula rito.

“Maybe he’s typing?” she thought to herself.

A few seconds later, she heard a faint sound of the doorbell. Kaagad siyang napalingon sa phone niya dahil wala naman siyang doorbell dito sa apartment niya. Alam niyang galing ‘yon sa tinutuluyan ni Matteo.

“Ah, my food is here,” he whispered. “I’ll be right back.”

Paalam nito habang naka yukong inaabot ni Yuna ang sahig para makapag unat- unat, “Sure!” sagot niya pa.

His footsteps gotten quieter when she stood up.

“What the-” napatakip siya nang mabilis sa bibig at lumayo sa cellphone na nakasandal patayo sa ilang mga libro. Parang tatalon ang puso niya sa kaba nang makita ang nasa screen niya ngayon. She can clearly see an expensive looking shelf on it. Nakabukas ang camera ni Matteo at mukhang nasa stand din ito at ipinapakita ang mga libro niya sa likuran.

Pakiramdam ni Yuna ay masusuka na siya sa kaba. Hindi niya rin kasi sigurado kung pati ba ang camera sa cellphone niya ay nabuksan din o sa linya lang ng lalaki kaya lumayo siya sa matatanaw nito.

Nag dadalawang isip pa siya kung papatayin niya ang tawag o sasabihin niya sa lalaki na nakabukas ang camera. She couldn’t think straight. Huli na ang lahat ng marinig niya ang papalakas na yabag ng lalaki.

On the screen, she saw something that she did not expect. She saw a man walk up to the phone, wearing a gray loose sweats and a long blue robe that is untied. Sa loob no’n ay walang suot na kahit na ano ang lalaki. Kitang- kita ni Yuna ang maputi at makinis na balat nito at ang maganda niyang katawan. It is his whole abs, up to the chest. Parang sinadya pa dahil saktong naputol ang shot sa may leeg. 

Parang nanghina ang mga tuhod ng dalaga. Tahimik pa siyang napadasal dahil sa nakita.

“Oh sh*t!” she heard the panic in his voice as he turned the cam off. “Thea? Did you see something?” he asked.

She held back everything. Mahigpit niyang tinapkan ng dalawang kamay ang kan’yang bibig habang dahan- dahan na naglakad sa may pintuan niya.

“Thea? Uhm…”

She opened and closed the door before acting cool and answering, “Ah? Ano? Sorry may sinabi ka ba?”

“Wait, did you not- I mean, anong ginagawa mo?”

“Wala naman, kumuha lang ako ng miryenda,” she lied. It seemed to work, she heard a sigh of relief coming from him. “Bakit? May sinabi ka ba? ‘Di ko narinig, sorry!”

“Wala, wala naman akong sinabi. Akala ko lang… ah basta, wala.”

She forced a gulp down and reached for the remote of her air conditioner, “Grabe ang init sa Pilipinas talaga… woah, grabe.”