“See Oi Bao! I told you not to call me ‘Dad’ in public!” Tony yelled after Thomas who was walking away and laughing to himself.
Tony turned to look at the two ladies sitting across the table from him. “Why would you think we’re gay?”
Andrew gave a gurgle when the two women touched their earlobe. He said to Tony. “I told you to shave your head instead!”
Tony shook his head in disbelief and finally choked out his own strained laughter. “I chose to have my ear pierced for the Aids Fundraising.” He lifted his head to take in a breath of fresh air; however, it was mixed with a shot of adrenaline. “I am not gay! I do like women!”
“Oh?” The two women gave their response to acknowledge his gender preference. Kalina was especially glad and started seeing him with a different perspective. When she eyed him in a teasing manner with the pair of ocular retina God had given her, Tony felt his cheeks warming up by the adrenaline in his blood. Kalina was thoroughly enjoying watching him blush.
Megan on the other hand was sitting with her head tilted as she stared at Andrew with wonder. She was trying to figure out why he looked so different. She noticed his hair was eponymously styled with a slightly longer fringe and he applied just enough gel to make it appear smooth and slick; not limply and not wet. It was just perfect, even in Megan’s eyes. She then studied his branded clothing and wondered how he could afford such expensive attires based on his salary as a mail room clerk.
When Andrew noticed her staring, he sent her a glare. “What? You know I’m not gay!”
Megan decided not to dabble into that sensitive subject of how she would know that. But she accidentally vocalized her thoughts. “But why would you want to be with … oh forget it.”
“What? Spill it out, Megan!” Andrew demanded.
Tony just realized Andrew had mentioned this name before. He was confused while trying to fit the pieces of the phone conversation he just had with Andrew about the ‘live-in maid’ two hours ago. He turned to Andrew. “Her name is Kimberly!”
“Kimberley is her middle name!” Andrew turned to address Tony and added with a touch of irritability. “You didn’t do your background check thorough enough! Perhaps I should report that to Madam Tang!”
Kalina noticed Megan’s startle expression at the mention of the name so she decided to speak up on her friend’s behalf. But mainly it was because she was curious like a cat. So she said to Andrew. “Megan was just wondering how a good-looking guy like you ended up with a cougar!”
Andrew’s adrenaline was causing his pupil to dilate. If his tan complexion could get another shade darker, his face would be a metallic brown because of the heat radiating through his skin.
Kalina continued even though Megan was nudging her with the elbow to stop. Ignoring her friend, she continued. “I don’t know Madam Tang or what she has to offer, but I’m sure you won’t have any trouble finding someone around your age or even younger.”
Andrew was waiting for Megan to look his way, but he could tell she was intentionally avoiding eye contact with him. So he picked up his iPhone and started texting. A few seconds later, Tony’s phone chimed with a text notification.
Andrew: What do they know about Tang and I?
Tony: Never mentioned anything to Kimberley.
Tony: I meant Megan!
The two women watched with interest as the two men thumbed their smart phones. After a minute of being ignored by them, Kalina got agitated and grabbed Tony’s phone.
“Hey!” Tony tried to retrieve it back but was met with unsuccessful attempts. He was also a rather timid person and didn’t know how to demand it back from her. Andrew was in the middle of typing something when he realized what just happened, so he deleted his message and placed his phone on the table.
Kalina typed something on Tony’s phone and then handed it back to him without a fuss. A minute later, her Samsung Smart phone buzzed.
Megan took courage and observed Andrew’s behaviour. She was half expecting him to respond to Kalina’s earlier comments. When he didn’t, something inside her compelled her to speak. “I guess your taste in women changed. Is that why things did not work out for you and your wife?”
Megan couldn’t believe these words came out of her own mouth. She even turned to look at Kalina who was just as surprised, but in a ‘proud of her’ way. As soon as Megan saw Kalina’s grin, she blurted out the next thought that came to her head. As soon as she said her thoughts, she covered her mouth as an apologetic gesture. “Oh dear! Are you a widower?”
Tony who was still browsing among the clouds picked up the last word and looked at Andrew. “Who? Andrew? A widower?” Tony chuckled and turned to Megan. “Kind of impossible when he doesn’t believe in marriage!”
Andrew glared at Megan with menacing eyes until he noticed her cell phone sitting next to the set of chopsticks. Megan followed his glance and somehow knew he was about to grab it. Her reflex caught on but she ended up grabbing his hand instead. Instantly, there was this Ta Ta Ta Dah! Ta Ta Ta Dah! (You know, Beethoven’s Symphony 9) Their very first touch in 17 years and it appeared that the electrifying magic was still there.
Kalina and Tony saw the whole kerfuffle and smiled to themselves. Megan couldn’t be quick enough to retrieve her hand but Andrew basted himself in delight while watching her cheeks glow. There was an invisible smirk on his face. Holding her phone, he did the same thing that Kalina did to Tony’s phone. When his phone buzzed, he placed Megan’s back beside her set of chopsticks. Then he checked his message and responded to it. Seconds later, Megan noticed a buzz on her phone with a new text message notification.
She read the message that was flashed across her screen and looked at Andrew. “I only get three text messages with my plan. If I go over because of you, I will send you the entire bill!”
And so this was how the blind date became a battle between the Android and the iPhone. When Thomas approached them to take their order, he was surprised to find the four of them thumbing and fingering their phone. There was no verbal conversation between them and he noted how the women were prone to using their third finger for texting. After being deemed as transparent, he had to wave a white napkin in front of them to stop. Finally, when he was done taking their order, he told them to continue with their Smart Phone Dating Game. “May the smartest phone wins!” Thomas announced cheekily.
Andrew: Who told u I have a wife?
Megan: Ur fiancée.
Andrew: Fiancée? Whi? (Andrew meant ‘who’ but Megan read ‘which’)
Megan: The one I met. So U had more than 1.
Kalina: Do u know about A&M?
Tony: Yes.
Kalina: What u know?
Tony: Not much. You?
Kalina: Lots!
Andrew: Annette knows Megan?
Tony: Don’t think so. Why?
Kalina: Striking resemblance!!!!!!! No wonder u were so affected!
Megan: He is nothing like him.
Megan: (3 seconds later) He better not be. I’ll be heartbroken.
Kalina: I think we should ditch them after dinner.
Tony: How?
Kalina: Did A drive U here tonight?
Tony: Yes.
Kalina: Got a plan!
Meanwhile, back behind the serving counter.
“Why didn’t you tell me your Dad is the Human Resource Director at ATT & MA?” Dani gave Thomas a light smack on his arm upon his return to the kitchen after taking the order which she had forced on him.
“Ouch!” He tried to fight back. “You never asked!”
“Did you tell him to give me the job?” Dani looked Thomas in the eyes with suspicion until he smiled and shook his head. She let out a breath of relief and continued. “How did he end up being your father? He is not that old!”
Calvin placed his arm around Dani’s shoulders. “Stay and help him clean up tonight! He’ll tell you the whole story! And then you can meet each other’s parents!”
Dani attempted to elbow Calvin but his reflexes were too quick for her and he managed to escape. Like a smitten maiden, she turned to Thomas and offered her services. “I can stay tonight if you need help.”
Thomas acknowledged her offer with a nod and continued to place food on the wooden boats in front of him. Dani looked at him for a few more seconds because she wasn’t sure what his nod meant. To stay or not to stay, that was a question she was going to have to answer before hanging up the ‘Closed’ sign on the door. She sighed to herself. “Men!”
Megan returned from the Ladies’ Room and found Andrew sitting at their table alone. “Where is Kalina?”
“She left with Tony!”
“All by herself?” Megan asked as if a mother had deserted her child; her being the child. “How could she leave me here by myself?”
“No, not by yourself! I am still here.” Andrew found her reaction amusing. “Anyways, are you ready to go?”
Megan’s eyes widened. “Go where?”
“Go home!” Andrew responded matter-of-factly. Then a memory was triggered. He remembered saying the same thing to her on the night of his 21st birthday. He took in her immediate reaction which let on that she was revisiting the same memory as him. He knew he couldn’t allow himself to reminisce what took place 17 years ago, so he cleared his throat just to steer clear of it. “I was appointed as your designated driver tonight. Being that we share the same residential address!”
Megan looked at the empty bottles of Sake on their table that could only be counted by using the fingers of both hands, she wasn’t about to entrust her life to him. “I think I should be your designated driver. Hand me your keys!” He gave her a smirk and then placed a set of keys in her palm.
When they turned the corner, Megan saw three cars parked by the side of the road. The first one was a family van, she was pretty certain that wouldn’t be his. Then she walked past an expensive blue sport car and headed towards the third car which was an older model of the Toyota Corolla. The car was somewhat falling apart with obvious dents on the front and back bumper. Bingo, this must be the one. So she stopped and turned to wait for Andrew who was leaning against the blue sport car with his arms crossed. He shot her a smirk and flickered his index finger for her to come back. He caught the shock which Megan was trying to hold back when she realized the car was a Lotus Elise S. The question on her face was too obvious to Andrew.
“Yes, if you must know. Madam Tang bought this for me!” He decided to rub it in. “I do my part to make her happy! She gives me all the toys that I like!”
Megan swallowed the gasp that wanted to escape from her throat; she didn’t want to give him the upper hand. She didn’t want him to know how disgusted she felt at the thought of the image he just painted in her mind. She handed the keys back to him. “I can’t risk anything happening to this car. Even my life insurance is not enough to cover it!”
He grinned and took his keys from her. Pressing the remote, he then held opened the door for her. “Ready to head back to the cougar den?”
“You are such a scumbag!” She said to him after getting into the car. When he was about to close the door, she added. “I’m surprised you didn’t ask for the Evora S IPS!”
This time it was Andrew’s turn to be shocked; that Megan knew her cars.
On the way back to the condo, Andrew’s cell phone that was sitting on the dashboard started ringing. Megan noticed the name of a female caller on the display. “Audrey? Wait a second!” He put on his Bluetooth earphone.
“Audrey, what’s up?” Andrew asked while Megan sat still and listened to the one-sided conversation.
“Can you wait till I get there?” He looked at the time on the dashboard. “Maybe 45 minutes? Okay, I’ll see you soon!”
As soon as he ended the call and took off his earphone, Megan offered. “I can take the subway back.”
Without any hesitation or further explanation about the call, he accepted her offer. “Alright, I’ll drop you off after this light. There is a station over there!”
Megan couldn’t help but felt a tad disappointed. In her dictionary, a guy dropping a single lady off at the subway station at 11 pm was definitely a scumbag. If Bebe was with her, she would have given her two cents worth. ‘Well, you offered! So don’t judge him!’
Early next morning, Megan was sitting in her dream kitchen enjoying breakfast all by herself when Kalina called. Bebe was lying on the floor under the dining table for her master to use as a foot support. Kalina wasted no time when Megan answered her call. “So did you two get a chance to revisit your university days?”
“Is that what you were trying to do? Ditching me like that?” Megan’s tone turned reprimanding. “Some friend you are!”
Kalina laughed for she was used to hearing Megan lecturing her. “How did you know it was him?” At that moment, Bebe decided to get up from under Megan’s feet and trotted out of the kitchen.
“It’s so obvious! Like I said yesterday, there’s that striking resemblance!” Kalina gave credit to her own smarts. “I didn’t even have to ask you!”
Bebe wandered into the living room and confirmed to herself that she wasn’t hearing things. There was truly keys jingling on the other side of the main entrance door. When Andrew opened the door, she wagged her tail to greet him. Andrew pet her head and the canine turned into a lump of whipped cream. Andrew lowered himself and started cuddling the dog. Feeling loved, Bebe pulled her lips back just enough to show her front teeth, without the vampire looking pair. ‘Finally, someone treats me like a real being and pets me with hands instead of those smelly feet!’ Bebe said to herself.
“Yeah, I know!” Megan’s voice drifted into the living room from the kitchen.
“Are you planning to tell him?” Kalina asked with concern.
“No,” Megan sighed. “He turned out to be a total disappointment. First Madam Tang, he might even have some other woman out there too!”
“What do you mean?” Kalina asked.
“Well, he didn’t come back last night.” Megan tried to remember the name on the phone display. “He dropped me at the subway after he got a call from a woman named Anne, no…. Anita…no...maybe Amanda.”
“Audrey.”
“Yes! Audrey! I bet he spent the night…!” Megan realized that wasn’t her inner voice. Though she knew whose it was, she pretended she heard nothing and continued the conversation with Kalina.
“Did I just hear …” Kalina had sharp ears.
“Yes, you certainly did. I need to get back to work now.” Megan hinted with calmness.
“Busted!” Kalina started laughing. “Call me later!”
Andrew waited to see how long Megan would keep her back to him. He knew she was aware of his presence when she deliberately straightened her posture after realizing he gave her the name prompt. Bebe was still cuddling by his legs, she decided he was now her new found love. She barked at Megan. The same bark that meant exactly what Kalina said just before she hung up. ‘You are so busted!’ She barked again. This time she was saying, ‘I’m so ashamed to call you master now.’ Then she looked up at Andrew who was grinning at her with a smile. Bebe pulled her lips back. That was her way of smiling.
“Bebe Chan! Why are you not at my feet begging for mercy so I don’t send you to the balcony on this cold rainy day?” Megan asked in her strict sounding, dog threatening tone of voice.
“You don’t have to take it out on your dog!” Andrew approached the table and sat down in front of Megan so he could see her reaction. “Just because I spent the night with Audrey.”
Bebe followed him and placed her head on his lap. When Andrew scratched her ears, she purred and then gave Megan the look.
Megan opened her mouth only to articulate silence. She didn’t know whether to react to what Bebe did or to what Andrew said. But when she saw the amusement in Andrew’s eyes, she finally muttered. “I hope Madam Tang won’t ask me where you were last night.” Then she pointed her finger at him and told him with seriousness. “I won’t lie to her if she asks!”
Andrew gave out a hearty laugh, got up from his chair and went to his room.
Meanwhile, at Q-Pete Café.
Kalina: Does Andrew have a girlfriend named Audrey?
Tony: Audrey? Who is Audrey?
Kalina: He never mentioned Audrey to you?
Tony: I only know one Audrey.
Tony: From the mailroom.
Kalina: U have dinner plans tomorrow?
Tony: No. Why?
Kalina: Meet me at The Riz Bowl @ 7pm
Kalina: BTW, you are paying.
After breakfast, Bebe was in Andrew’s room watching him pack for his trip. While he was locking up his room, the dog scurried back into Megan’s room and sat by her bedside table. When she saw Andrew walking by, she barked to get his attention. Andrew finally took a look inside Megan’s room to see what the dog wanted. When he wouldn’t enter the room, Bebe approached and gripped his wrist with her mouth. She pulled him towards the bedside table. When she released his wrist, she starting licking the particular photo frame that was next to the alarm clock. This was how a dog invites someone to meet her family.
The photo was indeed a shocking revelation for Andrew. So shocking he couldn’t take his mind off the images of the two people in the photo during the long flight to Spain. One of them was Megan; the most shocking part was that he knew the other person in the photo as well.
Notes on Chemistry of Love – Pheromones I
This one is rather hard to explain. Let’s start with a definition from a kid’s dictionary. These are chemical signals produced by the body to send messages to other members of the same species. The attraction is physical, but not always sexual.
Have you ever been drawn to someone you didn’t find attractive, but just enjoy being with the person? One the other hand, have you ever met ‘that perfect someone’, yet finds there is no spark there? Perhaps Pheromones might be the reason.