It was around 6:30AM nang marinig ko ang alarm ko. Nag-unat ako ng kamay at tumayo mula sa kama. Dumiretso ako sa banyo ng aking kwarto para makapagshower at para makapagkape na rin. I was in the shower for just 30 minutes. Nagbihis ako kaagad para makapagkape.
I don't usually eat breakfast, okay na ako sa kape lang. Also, I live alone. I am still staying in The Estate since it is near the office as well. Cece and I used to live together until 2 years ago when her boyfriend, Leo, asked her to move in together. Since then, di na ako naghanap ng makakasama.
The old room that Cece used to occupy is just empty. I wanted to make sure na kapag pumupunta siya rito ay alam niyang may tutulugan pa rin siya. She goes here at least once a month to spend time together. Siya ang naging bestfriend ko at siya ang may alam ng lahat, well, except now about Ryu's proposal.
I don't have the guts to tell her yet especially when she is also getting married 5 months from now. Ayokong makadagdag sa stress niya sa pagpaplan nila ni Leo ng wedding,I will tell her soon, though.
Natapos na akong magkape at dumiretso na sa paghugas ng tasa kong ginamit. Nasanay na ako sa gawaing bahay dahil sa kagustuhan kong maging independent, inuunti-unti kong pag-aralan ito. Although sometimes, pumupunta si Ate Criselda para maglinis at maghatid ng mga niluto niya sa bahay, or magdala ng mga groceries na inutos ni Mommy.
I brushed my teeth and applied some blush on after, then a little lipstick plus eyeliner, then I'm all set. I grabbed my keys and my bag when I heard na nagbeep ang cellphone ko.
Nagulat at nanlaki ang mga mata ko. It was Ryu.
Ryu: Good morning, Ky. I am at the basement. I'm picking you up, you ready?
I stared at his text for ten seconds then decided to reply. I head out the door and locked it.
Ako: Hi, good morning. I'll be down in a minute.
I pressed send and headed to the elevator. Hindi naman matagal ang paghihintay ko sa elevator at agad kong pinindot and basement kung nasaan si Ryu. Guess, I won't be taking my car today, sa isip ko.
When I got out of the elevator, agad kong nakita si Ryu sa labas ng kotse niya. He waved and smiled. I know he is doing this just to convince me to say yes, still, it's a no. I headed my way to him at pinagbuksan niya ako ng pinto. I said thank you at pumasok na din sa kotse.
Nilibot niya from passenger's seat patungong driver's seat. "You had breakfast?" tanong niya habang nilalagay ang seatbealt niya. He knows I usually don't eat breakfast, so I stayed quiet.
"I knew it." he said. Nilingon ko siya at tinitigan ng masama. He chuckled at nagdrive na siya palabas. The office is at least 15 minutes away from my place. But instead of making a right, he made a left. Nagtaka ako at tinanong siya sabay turo sa tamang daan, "Ryu, the office is that way. Why did you turn left? Male-late tayo."
"I'm your boss, don't worry. We're going to buy breakfast before heading for work." sabi niya while smirking. I let out a sigh to let him know my frustrations pero nakangiti lang siya. Dumiretso kami sa isang bagong kainan.
When we arrived, he parked just outside the restaurant called The Log and went inside. The place says it's opening hours are from 9:00AM to 10:00PM. "Ryu, the place is still closed. Let's just go. We still have a meeting."
Nasa may pinto na siya at ako ay nasa may hagdan pa lang. Bumalik siya sa kung saan ako nakatayo at hinawakan ang aking kamay at hinila. Nanlaki ang mga mata ko nang dire-diretso siyang pumasok. The waiters who are arranging the tables and chairs ay nakatingin.
Nagulat ako nang binati siya ng mga tao. "Good morning po, Sir Ryu. Maam, good morning."
"Good morning din." sagot ni Ryu sa mga tao nang nakangiti. "Good morning po." tipid kong bati. A guy came from the kitchen door at nakangiting bumati kay Ryu. "Ryu, my man! Good morning. Aba, magkasama kayo ni Ky?" bati ng lalalaki nang naghigh five at ngakayakapan sila, at laking gulat ko na kilala niya din ako.
"Good morning, pare. Sorry, napaaga kami. Can we have two breakfast meal on the go?" pakiusap ni Ryu sabay lingon sa akin. I stared at the guy and finally remembered who it was, it was Louie, his friend from college na dating engineering at nagshift ng Business Administration.
"Louie? Hi, how are you? Di kita nakilala agad, sorry. You own this place? Pasensya, ang aga namin." bati ko at bigla siang yumakap sa akin. Talagang friendly si Louie, nagkakilala kami since napunta din siya sa bahay nila ni Ryu, sometimes on a Sunday afternoon para sa school stuff. Hinila siya ni Ryu, "Tama na yan, pre. Late na kami."
Tumawa si Louie. "Nothing's changed, huh? Alright, pre. Relax muna kayo diyan and two breakfast meal will be served." Tinapik niya ang braso ni Ryu at pumasok na sa kitchen.
"I can't believe Louie owns this. Palagi ka ba dito?" kuryuso kong tanong sa kanya at umupo sa bar counter ng restaurant. "Minsan, pag nagyaya sila nina Vince at Joaquin."
"Oh, so you guys are still tight. That's good." I said smiling. Tiningnan ko ang palibot ng restaurant ni Louie and it's giving me a rustic vibe. 15 minutes later lumabas ulit galing kitchen si Louie dala dala ang paperbag na may lamang food.
Kinuha ni Ryu ang paperbag sa kamay ni Louie at nagpaalam na, "Pare, will go ahead. Thanks for this one." Nagkamayan silang dalawa. Hinawakan ulit ni Ryu ang aking kamay at hinila papalabas. "Bye, Louie, thank you." paalam ko. Louie waved back and see us go. "Ingat kayo, Sir." sabi ng mga waiters. "Thanks, guys." si Ryu.
We got inside his car at nagseatbelt na. Nilagay ni Ryu ang paperbag sa likod na upuan at umalis na kami para magtungo ng office. Dahil walang traffic sa dinaanan ni Ryu, 10minutes pa lang, nakarating na kami sa office. Sabay kaming umakyat papuntang floor ng office. Nang nakababa na kami ng elevator, my office is on the left, while his is straight, sa dulo.
I was about to make a left nang naramdaman ko ang kamay niya na hinawakan ang kamay ko at hinila papuntang opisina niya.