Kabanata 10
1527 Words
Caya
I swallowed hard before I finally lifted my hand to knock on Rafael's door. Nagtatalo ang hiya at kaba sa aking sistema kaya nang buksan niya ang pinto ay halos hindi ko nagawang tumitig pabalik sa kanya. There was a hint of tease in his playful brown eyes as if he knew exactly why I came here.
"Yeah?" bungad niya saka sumandal sa frame ng pinto at itiniklop ang hulmadong mga braso sa tapat ng dibdib. Gosh, why is he half-naked? Hindi ko tuloy maiwasan ang mapasulyap sa kanyang katawan.
My throat dried. Look at his sculpted body? He's not that muscled, though. Hindi gaya noong mga nakakatakot na ang laki ng katawan. His built was enough to make girls drool over him, and I hate myself for wanting to touch every crack and curve in his body.
Nilunok ko ang sarili kong laway. "Uhm, may . . . naiwan kasi ako."
"Really? What is it?" halatang patay-malisya niyang tanong.
I pouted a little. "Alam mo na 'yon."
His lips curved for a meaningful smirk. "Just say it, Caya."
I rolled my eyes. "Iyong . . . ano! Kulay red."
He scoffed. Halatang hindi na nakapagpigil. "Red? Lipstick?"
Lalo akong napasimangot. Pinagti-trip-an pa ako, eh! Napakuyom tuloy ako ng aking mga kamao.
"'Yong . . ."
I almost said it. Kaya lang ay mayroong guest na lumabas ng kabilang cabin. Nahihiya tuloy akong yumuko at hinintay ang guest na pumasok ng elevator. Nang makaalis ay muli kong tiningala ang namumula sa kapipigil ng tawang si Rafael.
Naningkit ang mga mata ko sa asar ngunit imbes na tumigil ay talagang bumuhanglit pa ang lintik ng tawa na para bang aliw na aliw siyang makitang namumula akong parang kamatis!
"Ibalik mo na nga ang underwear ko!" I hissed.
"Hindi ko naman kinuha. Binaba ko lang. Besides . . ." He licked his sexy lips then smirked. "Finder's keepers, right?"
I gritted my teeth. "Hindi mo naman masusuot 'yon, eh!"
"Hindi nga, but I can look at it when I feel horny," tahasan niyang sagot dahilan upang lalong mamula ang aking pisngi.
"Bastos!" I punched his chiseled chest. "Akin na!"
He laughed softly. "Alright, I'll give it back to you but let's have a drink first."
Sumimangot ako. "Kapag may alak, Rafael, may balak."
Ngumisi siya at ang mga mata ay tila kumislap dahil sa muli kong pagbanggit ng kanyang pangalan. Seriously, he's the only one whom I think becomes happy whenever I'm calling him by his first name.
"Wala na akong balak. Pero kung ikaw meron pa, hindi naman ako tatanggi. Besides, ikaw naman ang nang-akit sa akin," aniya.
Napakurap ako. "Anong nang-akit? Ikaw kaya ang nanonood sa'kin?!"
His eyes sparkled. Tila aliw na aliw makitang napupundi ako sa kanya ngayon!
He laughed softly then patted my shoulder. "Let me go get a shirt. I'll be right back. Huwag ka nang pumasok at baka maakit mo na naman ako."
Mangani-ngani ko siyang hambalusin sa inis ko ngunit tumatawa lamang ang loko na pumasok ng kwarto. Hindi man lang isinara ang pinto. I saw him put something red in his pocket before he wore a blue shirt. Siguradong ang panty ko iyon!
I sighed. Bumalik ako sa kwarto ko para kumuha ng bagong underwear. I wore it after washing myself. Saka ako ulit lumabas ng cabin.
Naghihintay na siya sa labas nang maisara ko ang pinto. Ngingisi-ngisi pa nga!
"You wore a fresh undies?" he asked.
Tumaas ang kilay ko. "Alangan naman po, Attorney na rumampa akong walang panloob, hmm?"
"Good. Maybe I can collect them all like how I used to collect Pokemon cards," he murmured.
"Ano?" I asked. Naiirita ang boses.
"Nothing." He grinned. "Let's go get some beer."
"Will you give me back my Versace underwear later?"
Nagkibit-balikat siya. "Depends. Let's go."
Napabuntonghininga na lamang ako nang kaladkarin na niya patungo sa elevator, ngunit imbes na bumalik sa pool area ay idinala niya ako sa highest view deck kung saan walang ibang tao.
"Stay here. I'll get us some beer," aniya.
Hindi na rin niya hinintay ang sasabihin ko. He went back to the elevator and had been gone for more than ten minutes. Aalis na sana ako dahil baka pinag-trip-an lang ako ng lintik na iyon at iniwanan na rito, ngunit nang akmang pupunta na ako sa elevator ay bumukas iyon.
Rafael walked out of the elevator carrying a whole bucket of beer. May dala pang kumot kaya hindi ko napigilan ang pagkunot ng aking noo.
"Bakit may kumot?" Tinaasan ko siya ng kilay. "Excuse me lang, Attorney pero kung balak mong ituloy ang pakikipag-s*x sa akin dito, huwag mo na hong i-entertain ang idea mo. Artista ako pero hindi po ako bold star."
He scoffed. "You really have trust issues, huh? Can't blame you, though."
He opened a bottle of beer then handed it to me. Maya-maya ay pinaharap ako sa may railing. He then opened another bottle for himself, and then, he did the unexpected.
Rafael Avila, the man I thought was a walking red flag with a lot of bad habits in his body, put on the blanket around me before he stood beside me, extending the blanket on his shoulders. Napatulala ako sa kanya dahil sa kanyang ginawa, at nang napansin ang aking reaksyon ay ngumisi siya bago sumimsim sa kanyang bote.
"Why? You think I'm that heartless? Malamig na masyado at kung ganyan ang suot mo, hindi tayo tatagal dito," aniya na tila nabasa ang tumatakbo sa aking isip.
Napalunok ako, ang pamumula ng pisngi ay tinago gamit ang paglipat ng aking tingin sa payapang karagatan.
"S-So you . . . went downstairs to get a blanket? K-Kaya ka natagalan?" I asked. Bakas na sa tinig ang pagkahiya.
"Yeah but the blanket in my cabin is pretty thin so I had to wait for the staff to get me a thicker one." Hinimas niya ang tela. "This is comfy? I wonder where they bought it? I think I want to switch my blankets into this one. Anyway . . ." Iniumpog niya nang mahina ang kanyang bote sa akin. "It's a pretty great night and a whole damn sky filled with stars. Maybe we can talk about life and all the things that f****d us up."
I smirked. "Akala ko ba ayaw mong lapitan kita o kausapin kasi hindi naman tayo close?"
Umismid siya. "May magagawa pa ba ko? Kreige just chatted me. Nakarating sa kanya 'yong video na may nang-harass sa inyo ni Astrid. He said I should keep an eye on you so I will keep an eye on you even if it's against my will." He adjusted the blanket to make sure I wouldn't get cold. "We're in the middle of the ocean anyway. Pagbalik ng Pilipinas, we can pretend as if we don't know each other. For now, maybe we can forget that your confession sent me to jail," he said then winked at me as if he's letting me know that it was just a joke.
I sighed. "Sorry. I was . . . just desperate for my freedom, and for Kreige's, too."
Humugot siya ng malalim na hininga. "Didn't you at least feel something for Kreige? I mean, you keep on switching places with your sister back then so you spent an ample amount of time with him."
Lumunok ako. "No, probably because he's not my type."
He whistled. "And what is your type?"
I blew out some air, jugged my beer, and then watched the stars up above. "Someone that . . . feels like home."
"And he didn't feel like home to you?"
"No." I shook my head. "Probably because we don't have the same connection he and Attorney Ortega have."
"You mean a soulmate connection, huh?" he asked.
"Huwag mo kong tawanan," suway ko.
"Why? Am I laughing, hmm?" he asked while stroking his hair.
I sighed. "No, but I feel like you're laughing internally because men are not often all-out with topics like that."
He scoffed. "Shakespeare's a man. John Green, too. Even Nicholas Sparks. The director of Titanic is a man as well. There are a lot of romantic men in history so I really don't get why men are often stereotyped as someone who do not appreciate stuff like that."
Napakurap ako. "You . . . appreciate romantic films and novels?"
"Sort of." He licked the stain of beer on his lips. "I used to, not until I entered hell called law school." He chuckled softly.
I found myself grinning. "What's your favorite romance film then?"
"A Walk To Remember."
I gasped out of excitement. "No way! I love that movie."
"Oh, yeah?" He smirked. "How about we go take these beers and finish it in my cabin while watching the movie? I have a copy in my laptop."
I lifted a brow. "No s*x?"
He scoffed. "Not unless you'll ask for it of course." He moistened his lower lip. "Hindi naman ako tatanggi."
I rolled my eyes jokingly then stared at his carefree, genuine smile. Maya-maya ay wala sa sarili akong napabuntonghininga.
May kanais-nais na bahagi rin naman pala sa pagkatao ng lalakeng ito . . .
- Writer
