JEVA woke up squeezing her head with her hands. It seems like the world is spinning.
Fuck! I didn't even drink a glass of liquor, why's my head spinning. She groans in pain. She doesn't like drinking alcoholic drink. Kung may kaibigan man siyang malakas sa inuman iyon ay si Kyza. Barumbada talaga ang babaeng 'yon.
She curled up and sat on the bed. She roams her eyes around. Good thing, I'm in my room. She let out a long breath at mahinang tinapik ang kaniyang dibdib.
Nakahinga siya ng malawag ng malamang hindi siya napadpad sa ibang lugar kasama ang ibang lalaki kundi maloloka talaga siya. If that thing will happen she wouldn't know how to feel and how to face her husband.
She examined herself. Her forehead wrinkled when she noticed that she had already worn a pair of pajamas and a big shirt. She pulled her pajamas' garter up and also checked her bra.
Pwew! Good thing she's still wearing the same undies she wore last night. Meaning, hindi nakita at pinakialaman ang kaniyang mga kayamanan.
Tumayo siya at dumeretso sa bathroom sink para makapaghilamos at makapagtoothbrush.
Binabad niya ang kaniyang mukha sa rumaragasang tubig. She remembered the talk she had with her friends.
"Shy's mom called me earlier." - pinakiramdaman namin ang isa't isa ng marinig ang sinabi ni Kyza. They are ten in the group but, Kyza and Shy are more close to each other since they've known each other since childhood. Nabuo ang circle of friends nila when they were on high school.
Kyza may be a badass but she is also a softie inside. She doesn't want her friends to be hurt. Jeva noticed her stopping herself from crying.
"Why? What's wrong?" - Nerize asked Kyza while she put her hand on the latter's shoulder. Akala ni Jeva siya lang ang nakapansin kay Kyza who has been zoning out since they left her room.
Even the light was dimmed. Jeva could see Kyza's nose reddened.
"Her mom said we almost lost her." - Her voice broke and they all gasp at what they heard. "Good thing she has been revived." - She continued.
Kyza gritted her teeth. "This is all Pietro's fault!" - ramdam mula sa boses nito ang matinding galit.
"I knew that there's already something wrong with Shy the last time we talked to her. It was on Zoom." - She said to herself that she'll ask Shy about it but she was so preoccupied with her own unexpected happenings in life.
Kyza leaned her back on the chair with a straight face. "I don't know why I trusted him with my best friend. I never thought he would treat her like an animal." - Jeva could see Kyza's tear escape from her left eye.
"Yeah, how could she maltreat her like that?" - Nerize furrowed her brows.
"How can you say that he mistreated her?"- Mari asked innocently.
Agad namang napatingin sa kaniya ang kaniyang mga kaibigan, she glance at Kyza. "You told us that you received a message from her before she got an accident."
That's true. Kyza told her friends that Shy texted him with only Pietro's name on it.
Lander agreed to her. Lander is our military army friend.
"It could be she's running away from Pietro or she's asking for his help. It's either of the two." - Jeva rolled her eyes. Mari is really a writer, kaya malawa ng imagination ng babae.
Kyza hissed. "Really?" â She sarcastically said with her left brow raised.
Lander spoke. "That could be possible."
Kyza cursed. "Ikaw din ba, Lander? Sino ba talaga ang kaibigan mo? Si Shy o si Pietro?" - Galit na tanong ni Kyza but her voice remained trying to be calm.
"Of course, I am definitely Shy's friend but I could say that both are possible. He could be behind it or he's also a victim." - Lander.
"Victim, my ass! I called him that day but he was out of reach, so I left him a message. There's no way for him not to know. I could say that he's a really dickhead!" - walang mapaglagyan ang galit ni Kyza.
Jeva agreed to Kyza. "Two years is too long for him to ask us for help or ask about Shy's whereabouts but, I will agree that he's a real dipshit because he didn't do anything. Masaya pa siya sa mga interviews niya, ni hindi man lang nakitaan ng lungkot ng biglang pagkawala ng asawa niya."
When Shy was taken by her parents and it was an urgent dahil muntik ng mawala nun si Shy kaya agad na nagdesisyon ang magulang niya na iuwi siya sa Spain. They waited for Pietro to come but he didn't come so they left. Their daughter's life is more important than waiting for that asshole.
"Wasn't it our fault too?" - Jeva and Kyza glared at Mari. "I mean, we are also responsible for it. Her parents left her with us but we didn't even know what the heck happened to her." - Mari's word hit them hard.
But, they flinched in horror when a fist-bumped on the table. It was Dane.
"Maybe we lack on something but isn't that bastard has more responsibility than us. He's the husband. How could he let those things happen to his wife." - Dane said. Dane is really protective of them. He doesn't want his friends to be hurt especially because of a man.
"Just don't let him show his face in front of me just after abandoning her for almost two years."
"That video... It wasn't Shy." â Jeva said out of nowhere.
"I saw that too. Maybe Pietro saw that video and thought that it was Shy. That may be the reason why he 'maltreated' her if your accusations are true." â Mari said.
Kyza threw her a dagger look. "The fuck?! Nalaman nga nating hindi si Shylane 'yon. Siya ang isa sa mga pinakaunang mga tao na makakakilala sa katawan ng asawa niya. Hindi naman siguro siya bobo para hindi malaman 'yon. And, for 4 years being married 'di ako naniniwalang 'di niya nakita ang katawan ng kaibigan natin."
Everyone became silent. They choose not to speak but all of them have different feelings and their eyes speak a lot.
That happened before Dane made a scene in the party. She wipes her face with clean towel and shook her head. She erased the thought in her mind. You might be wondering kung bakit wala si Gwyn sa usapan namin, tingin ko nilamon na siya ng bowl sa restroom dahil sa tagal niya dun. Hindi ko alam kung anong ginagawa niya ron. Baka nagpractice ng role niya sa eroplano.
Today's Monday and she also have class but mamaya pang 1pm magstart kaya, naisipan niyang gumawa muna ng cookies. She bakes cookies three times a week 'yon kasi ang ginagawa niyang agahan. Tapos nilalagay niya ito sa isang malaking jar kapag malamig na. Noon twice a week lang siyang gumagawa ng cookies pero ngayon, tatlo o apat na beses na. Hindi niya alam kung malakas lang ba talaga siyang kumain ngayon dahil nag-stress eating siya o hindi kaya, may ibang kumakain nito.
She mentally face-palmed. Who the heck would eat my cookies aside from me? She panicked. What if there's a ghost here who eats my cookies? What if...
She stopped questioning herself with what if's when a man came into the kitchen.
Did he eat my cookies too? Siningkit niya ang kaniya mga mata habang nakatingin sa lalaki na halatang inaantok pa. Dumeretso ito sa ref at kumuha ng tubig.
The man noticed her watching him. He raised his brows with a questioning look. She just shrugged her shoulder and pick up all the ingredients:
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup coarsely chopped nuts
He places the tumbler back in the refrigerator after adding water to it and sits on the nearest chair. "What are you doing, you duck?" Champ asked her.
She looked at him and raises her brow. "Ano ba sa tingin mo ang gagawin ko? Magluluto ng tortang talong? Malamang mabebake ng cookies. Tinatanong pa, obvious naman. Napakawalang-kwenta mo namang magtanong, lamang-lupa ka." - She sarcastically said to him. She grinned at him, teasing him. "Baka kasi gusto mo lang pansinin kita pumaparaan ka pa. Wag kang mag-alala..."
She walks toward him and leans forward. Malapit na malapit ang mukha nila sa isa't isa. Champ's stunned because he's hearing her heartbeats. Was it hers?
She grinned while saying, "Don't worry. I am yours." She licked her lips which made her look so hot. "All yours, my attention, my heart, my lips, my..." - she stops talking and smirks while her eyes move to her lower part.
"Dammit!" - Mabilis na napatayo si Champ at dali-daling umalis sa kusina.
His heart is beating so fast. It wasn't Jeva's heart that he heard a while ago it was his. He's breathing so hard. Jeva is really a living temptation for him.
He stops walking when he heard Jeva's laugh.
So annoying! It was making him so mad. He's thinking that Jeva is playing games on him and was trying to annoy him, and if she is. She's doing it right. Champ is really annoyed.
WHILE on the other hand, Jeva can't stop herself from laughing while making cookies.
After a couple of minutes, the cookies were already cooked. She just waited for it to cool down and put it in a big glass jar.
She decided to take a bath when she saw Champ come out of his room fully dressed. May hawak pa itong black face masks sa kaliwang kamay while fixing his sleeves on the other arm.
Jeva walks towards him. Nagulat pa ito dahil sa biglang paglapit ng babae. Right after she finished fixing his sleeves she looked at him with a smile sweetly that made him lose his senses.
"Hey, talong. Are you going already?" - Napakurap ang lalaki dahil sa biglaang pagtanong nito.
"Yes, I'll be gone for a week. I won't be going home sa condo muna ako mag-stay. Mas malapit 'yon sa shooting site." - Jeva lowered her head upon hearing those words from him. But, she thinks that it'll be fine because she'll be busy this week.
Champ was about to leave when she stopped him. "Wait here. I'll get you something. Diyan ka lang muna wag kang aalis tatamaan ka sakin. Umayos ka kung ayaw mong tuluyang maging talong." - Champ laugh at her silliness.
Tumakbo siya papuntang kusina. She transfers some cookies from the glass jar to a canister after that she put the canister in a small paper bag at agad na bumalik sa lalaki.
"Here." - She handed it with her two hands while biting her lips. Medyo nahihiya siya sa lalaki pero medyo lang naman.
It's the first that she will give this man a food. Palagi kasi itong maagang umalis at gabi na rin bumabalik. Never pa itong kumain na kasama siya. Weird, right? They're living together for almost two years pero mukhang walang progress. Kaya nga minsan kinukwestiyon niya ang sarili kung bakit nahulog siya sa lalaking ito.
At hindi niya rin alam kung magiging successful ang operation niya gayong hindi naman sila gaanong nagkikita at nagcocommunicate.
"Thanks." - He said to her. She smiled playfully when he accepted it at lumakad paalis ng bahay.
"Bye, kuto! Take care! Don't miss me too much!" - She shouted at him while chuckling. The latter shook his said head and bit his inside cheeks to refrain him from smiling.
She's now acting like a good wife to her husband. She has an operation to make her husband fall for her, right? So, she must strive even harder. Little did she know that the latter was already ecstatic with her small gestures. Nawala na rin sa isip nito ang taong tinawag na love sa cellphone.
Jeva is jumping with joy dahil hindi tinanggihan ng lalaki ang simpleng pabaon niya rito.
"Sana pala nilagyan ko 'yon ng gayuma, ano? Para mahulog siya sa akin." - Parang tangang kinakausap ang sarili. "Well..." she held her chin. "I was actually thinking about doing that but, I trust my beauty and body most especially my butt so much, that's my best asset. So yeah, I won't do that. He'll be soon wrapped in my little fingers." - She laughed like a witch after talking nonsense to herself.
Fudge! Ginulo niya ang kaniyang buhok when she realized what she's doing.
She rushed to her room and go straight to the bathroom. Kailangan niyang magmadali traffic pa naman sa mga oras na to hindi siya dapat ma late sa pagpasok.
After doing her routine she took three pieces of cookies and placed them in plastic cellophane and sealed it before putting them inside her bag.
She grabs her helmet because she'll be using her red Honda Supra GTR 150. Motor ang gagamitin niya para mas mabilis.
She always loves riding a motorcycle. She even joined motor-racing before but now, most of the time she's using a car because she always wear a skirt. Nag-iba na ang fashion style niya simula nung nag-asawa siya. Noon kasi mahilig siya sa shorts at cargo pants na pinapartner sa crop tops or kahit anong sexy na pang-itaas.
Iniisip niya kasi na baka darating 'yong panahon na papatulan siya ng asawa niya at maglaway sa katawan niya, may easy access na dahil naka skirt lang siya. Call her a whore or anything, she wouldn't care because she knew that she's only her husband's whore.
She busied herself in studying to stop her from missing her husband. Actually, at first she doesn't want to accept in herself that she's in love with that man pero lahat ng signs ng isang in love na tao na nababasa siya sa internet ay naranasan niya na and she's also afraid of losing her husband kaya nga nanatili pa rin siya sa tabi nito kahit ayaw nitong ipakilala siya sa buong mundo. She would rather want to be hidden than to lose him. Nagseselos siya sa mga naging ka loveteam nito gusto niyang sampalin at kalbuhin pero alam niyang trabaho lang iyon ng asawa niya and siya pa rin naman ang inuuwian nito.
And because of that, she feels at ease.
AFTER taking lots of takes in different scenes the director announced that they will be having a ten minutes break. Champ immediately goes back to his star van and gets the paper bag that Jeva gave him a while ago. He went back to his tent and placed the paper bag on the table.
He smirked when he saw a canister full of cookies. Hmm, I guess I don't have to sneak out now. It's not really that he is sneaking out just to eat Jeva's cookies, it's just that when he wants to eat the woman is not around or it's already dawn and the latter is already sleeping.
Noong una hindi alam ni Champ na home-baked cookies 'yon, akala niya binibili lamang ito na babae at inililipat sa ibang lalagyan. Not until he saw her baking in the middle of the night. Weird, isn't it? Who the hell would want to bake cookies at midnight? 'Yong babaeng 'yon lang ata.
Someone tapped his back. "Hey, bro. What's up?" - Hindi na siya hinintay ni Jaxxon na makasagot dahil nagtanong ulit ito. "What's this? Oh... cookies. I'll take one." - Agad niyang tinapik ang kamay ni Jaxxon na bubuksan sana ang canister.
"What are you doing here?" - Seryoso niya tanong sa kaibigan. Jaxxon is not supposed to be there he's a singer and not an actor. Well, singer can also be an actor pero wala 'yon sa isipan ng kaibigan niya kaya nagtataka siya kung bakit ito napadpad dito.
"My recording studio is just there..." - he said while waving his hand somewhere. "...and I heard that you're here so, I came." - Napangiwi siya sa kaibigan niya.
Champ wrinkles his brows. "Are you gay, Jaxxon?"
"What?! Jesus! No! Yuck! So, gross!" - he spat sounding so defensive. He exhaled. "Am I not allowed to visit my friend?" - He smirked at Champ.
Ang akala niya ang lulubayan na nito ang cookies na ibinigay sa kaniya ng asawa niya. Nang biglang buksan ito ang canister at kumuha ng isa saka diretsong inilagay sa bibig.
Champ's eyes grew bigger and his jaw dropped because of what his friend did.
Kaagad niya itong nilapitan at hinampas ang likod, pinipilit ito na iluwa 'yon ng kaibigan.
"What is wrong with you?!" - gulat na tanong ni Jaxxon sa kaibigan.
"No one's gonna eat those cookies except me!" - He doesn't want to share his wife's cookies. It's just for him. Only for him.
"It's just a cookie, man. What's the big deal? Hindi ka naman madamot." - Right! He is very thoughtful but not when it comes to his wife's cookies. It's mine!
"Yeah, I know but not with these cookies! It's mine!"
Jaxxon positioned his hands in front to stop him. "Goodness! What's so special about these cookies? They're just cookies."
It's my wife's cookies and you're not allowed to eat that! He wanted to tell him that but he just can't. Although Jaxxon is his friend he can't tell him about his wife. It's not that he doesn't trust him, it's just that, alam niyang friendly sa mga babae si Jaxxon at natatakot siya na baka maging close ang dalawa at mahulog pa rito ang asawa niya.
He exhaled. "They're not just cookies, okay?" - It's my wife's.
"Is it from your fans? Hindi ka naman nagdadamot sa mga binibigay ng fans mo basta pagkain." - Jaxxon tries to interrogate him.
He may share the food that came from his fans but he keeps the things. He treasured them.
"This is not from any of my fans." - It's from my wife.
The latter smirked at him. "Oh? I guess it's from a special someone."
Hindi siya sumagot rito. Of course, it's from a special someone. From his wife. How could she not be special to him? He rolled his eyes.
"Okay, I conclude it's from a special someone." - His friend teased him. "Is it from Suella?"
"What the fuck?! NO!" He hissed. Suella is his rumored ex-girlfriend. Naging ka love-team niya ito sa maraming dramas niya. So, people think they have a thing but the truth is, they don't have any. They're just friends.
And, he can't imagine himself being with someone except to his wife.
Fuck! Am I really only attracted to her? Why does he keep on saying 'my wife'? Why can't he stop thinking about her? He erases that thought in his head.
"Then, who is it?" - inaalog pa siya ni Jaxxon.
"Stop it!" - nahihilo na siya sa ginagawa ng kaibigan.
Jaxxon paused a bit at inalog ulit siya nito. "Who is it?"
Paulit-ulit siyang tinatanong nitong "who is it?" at naaalog na ang utak niya papuntang ibang planeta. He felt dizzy.
"It's from my wife!" Uh-oh! He is not supposed to say that.
Naestatwa si Jaxxon sa narinig mula sa kaibigan. He even stopped breathing. Champ look around. Tiningnan niya kung may ibang nakarinig ba o wala. And he saw, no one. So, he grabbed the paper bag at naglakad papunta sa star-van niya at doon na lang niya kakainin ang cookie.
Iniwan niya ang kaibigan niyang naestatwa doon dahil sa gulat.
Hindi nagtagal, tumatakbong sumugod sa kaniya si Jaxxon.
"YOU OWE ME AN EXPLANATION, MAN!"
Oh, fuck!