ANAIS

Mom and I were out shopping for the things for the baby. My belly was as huge as a basketball now and the baby was almost ready to come out. Dad had the room next to mine renovated. The Cordovas got a wooden crib for the baby and a beautiful rocking chair for me, they had it customized and shipped from Italy.

Ramdam ko na ang nalalapit na pagdating niya. I was scared but excited at the same time. I didn't know if I'd do a good job being a good mom. I'd been taking prenatal classes to prepare myself for giving birth and for taking care of the baby. Mom and I actually just got out of my prenatal yoga class. So that's what's keeping me busy now.

"Anais?" I heard a familiar voice from behind me and I instinctively turned around. Steve was standing right in front of me. "Hi!"

"H—hello." I said.

"I... how are you?" He asked with a wide smile. "It's been so long since the last time I saw you. Lumipat ka ba ng school?"

"Um, no." I shook my head and clutched onto my stomach. "I stopped."

His gaze lowered. "You're... pregnant?"

I nodded my head.

He looked at me confused. "Akala ko ba wala kang boyfriend? I thought you never had one."

"I never did." I said.

"But who's the father?" He asked.

"Hey..." I felt a hand grip my waist. I turned my head to see Coco towering next to me. He pulled me against him and gave me a kiss on the side of my head. "Sorry, I couldn't make it to your yoga class. Kalalabas ko lang sa school."

"I understand." I quietly said. Minsan kasi si Coco ang sumasama sa akin sa mga class ko. Lalo na kapag ang time ay natatapat sa uwian nila Bryce sa school. Mom had to pick her up so Coco would go with me. Coco even enrolled with me in my parenting class. Tinuturuan kami doon kung paanong maghandle at mag-alaga ng baby. How you should hold the baby, bathe the baby, feed the baby and things like that. We both needed it.

"How's my little boy?" His hand lowered to my eight month old belly. "Makulit pa din ba ha?"

"Um Coco, si Steve..." I said.

He turned his head to him. "What do you want from Anais?"

"I can't believe you're dating this guy." Steve shook his head.

"We're not dating..." I answered. "What happened was a... mistake but we've never dated."

Steve sighed. "You know I really liked you. Seryoso ako sa'yo sa panliligaw ko, Anais."

"You fucking moron, she's about to give birth with my child and you're telling her this in front of me?" Coco snarled.

"It was a mistake." Steve's lips lifted into a sarcastic smile. "You are just a mistake to her."

"O, Coco! Nandyan ka na pala!" Mom walked towards us and then she looked at Steve. "Oh, you have a friend with you?"

"He's not my friend." Coco shrugged, his voice low.

"Mom, this is Steve. Kasama ko siya dati sa theatre club." I introduced.

"Oh, I see. Nice to meet you." Mom smiled at him.

"Nice to meet you too. I need to go na po. We just bumped into each other." He politely said goodbye to Mom and me and went on his way.

"Kanina ka pa ba nandito?" Tanong ni Mommy kay Coco.

"No, I actually just got here, Tita." He answered. 

"Oh well." Nagkibit-balikat si Mommy. "You got here just in time. Marami pa tayong gamit na bibilhin for the baby. We need help carrying those."

"Sure, Tita. I'm always happy to help." He said.

Nagpatuloy si Mommy sa pagtingin-tingin ng mga things para sa baby. Naiwan kaming dalawa ni Coco. I noticed how quiet and aloof he was when we were left alone. I knew it had something to do with what I told Steve. I just didn't know what to say. Hindi ko kasi alam kung paano ko ipaliliwanag sa kanya ang relasyon namin ni Coco. 

"Coco?" I broke the silence.

"A mistake, Anais?" He blurted out. "Palagi pala tayong nagkakamali? You enjoyed every mistake we made."

"I'm sorry... Hindi ko lang kasi alam kung paano ipaliliwanag sa kanya." I quietly said. "Ano'ng gusto mong sabihin ko? I've been regularly fucking my bestfriend and got pregnant?"

"Huwag mo sabihin may gusto ka pa din sa Steve na yun?" His eyes narrowed at me.

Kinapa ko ang nararamdaman ko. I'd never thought of him the past few months we didn't see each other. Alot of things had happened in those months and I'd be a mother soon. Now that I'd seen him, I could say that I still felt the same for him.

"I don't know." I lowered my head. 

Coco never spoke a word until Mom decided to go home. Nakabili kami ng clothes para sa baby, bottles for his milk, and Coco bought him a baby tub. I waited for his call when I got home but I waited for nothing.

"Coco." I was the one who called him this time. 

"Yeah?" Parang tinatamad na sagot niya. It sounded as if he didn't even want to talk to me.

"Miss ka na ni baby..." I quietly said as I stroked my tummy. "Nagtatampo ka pa rin ba sa akin?"

He just answered with a sigh. "How's the baby?"

"Coco, oh! Gumagalaw si baby. Listen..." Tinapat ko ang phone sa tiyan ko. The baby was really moving in my tummy.  He was an active baby. Kahit sa gabi, mahilig siyang mambulabog. Sometimes I'd even see his hand or feet when he'd push against my skin. Coco's face would light up everytime he sees that. Kahit ilang beses niya na makita iyon, it always seemed like he was seeing it for the first time. "Narinig mo yun?"

There was no response on the other line.

"Coco? Coco?"

Was he really that mad at me? Biglang bumukas ang bintana ko at pumasok si Coco sa loob. He climbed to my bed and just cuddled next to me, his head resting on my huge belly.

"Hey, baby. Daddy missed you." He said.

I could feel the baby moving inside of me. Mas lalo siyang malikot kapag alam niyang kinakausap siya. He'd twist, turn, and kick. He knew his Daddy's voice too. His favorite was his Daddy's voice and his annoying Tita Bryce. He likes it when his Tita Bryce sings him an out of tune twinkle, twinkle little stars. He likes it when the cookie-nutella-cookie butter sandwich I invented. I'd lived off of it the whole second trimester of my pregnancy. It became his favorite. Malalaman mo sa galaw ng baby dahil mas malikot siya when I do the things or eat the food he wants.

"Coco, are you still mad?" I brushed my fingers through his hair. 

He kissed my tummy and looked up at me. "I just didn't like what you said about the baby being a mistake. We didn't plan this and we're young, I know. But our baby isn't and will never be a mistake."

"You know that's not what I meant." I silently said. "Mahal ko din ang baby natin. I never thought of him as a mistake."

"Anais, I'm sorry for overreacting earlier." He sighed and scooted up to level with me. He kissed me on he forehead and pulled me against his body. "I want you to be happy. I don't want you being restricted to doing what you want just because you're already a mother. Gusto ko pa rin ma-enjoy mo ang pagiging teenager mo. Go back to school after you give birth to our son, okay?"

I nodded my head.

"And maybe... you'd finally find the right guy for you. Maybe you'd start dating..." His eyes suddenly averted away from my gaze. 

I didn't know why my heart felt like it was being squeezed. "Yeah, maybe... but do you think a guy would still like me when they find out that I already have a baby?"

"You're beautiful, Anais. You're smart, charming, a little bratty but tolerable." He chuckled. "I don't see any reason why they wouldn't."

I wrapped my arms around him and just cuddled with him. He stroked my hair. 

"I want you to live a normal life. I want you to still hangout with your friends and go to parties. I want you to start dating. I don't want you to think that just because we have a baby, you're only going to be a mother now. I don't want you to look back someday and regret not doing the things you wanted to do. Don't worry about the baby okay? Magtutulungan tayo sa pagpapalaki sa kanya. We're surrounded by people who loves and cares and is willing to help us."

I swallowed when I felt a lump forming in my throat. 

"You're going to be great Mom, that's for sure. We're going to be great parents. Pero ayaw kong kalimutan mo ang sarili mo. You're not just a mother now. You are everything else and a mother." He sighed as if trying to get rid of something heavy in his chest.  

He touched my cheek with the back of his finger. "Will you promise to do all those things?"

"Yeah..." I forced a smile.

COCO

I sighed as I watched her sleep. She was beautiful. Anais had always been a passionate soul. She was a woman with many needs and desires, dreams and ambitions. I didn't want her to be contained into being a mother. Giving birth to a life doesn't mean it should stop her from living a normal teenage life.

Ayaw kong dumating ang araw na pagsisihan niya na hindi niya nagawa ang mga gusto niya dahil maaga siyang naging ina. I got her pregnant when her life had barely even started. I'd thought about what happened earlier. She would be a mother soon but it doesn't change the fact that she was still a teenager. I could still see the naivety in her. I could see the twinkle in her eyes when I saw her talking to Steve, she was looking at her like how a teenage girl would look at her crush. I could even imagine her internal squeals. 

I felt a sudden heaviness in my chest. She never looks at me like that.

She deserved a normal teenage life. The one I took away from her. I wanted her to have that. I wanted her to explore and discover the many options life had in store for her. And for someone like Anais, I knew there would be alot for her.

I kissed her on the forehead. 

ANAIS

"When is the baby gonna get out?" Bryce asked as I braided her hair while she played with her Barbie dolls. We'd still annoy each other from time to time but we developed a special bond because of the baby. She was fascinated with my huge belly. It baffles her how a baby could possibly live inside a tummy.

Umaga pa lang tatakbo na yan sa kwarto ko para mag good morning sa pamangkin niya. She liked how the baby reacts when he hears her voice. Saka hindi na din ako halos lumalabas noong third trimester, it was hard going around with a huge belly. But I still do light cardio to keep myself in shape. But most of the time, Bryce and I would hang out in my room. We'd watch her dumb Barbie and Disney movies over and over. It was fun. It was like going back to my childhood. 

She'd sing for the baby and talk to him. 

"Soon. When he's ready." I answered.

"How long will he be ready? Pwede ko ba siyang hawakan?"

"Pwede naman. But you have to be careful."

"Ronnie can't wait to see your baby too. Sabi niya, it's her nephew too because it's also kuya Coco's baby." She said.

"Yes, it's our baby." I said and then I felt a weird sharp pain in my stomach. I gasped.

"Ow! You're pulling my hair too hard!" She complained.

I felt another surge of pain, this time it hit me harder. Napahawak ako sa tiyan ko. It kind of felt like the stomach cramps I used to have when I get my period. By instict, I knew the baby already wanted to come out.

"Call Mom and Dad..." I breathed heavily as I clutched my stomach.

"What happened?" She turned her head to look at me.

"The baby... I think he's ready." I bit my lower lip as the pain became even more intense.

"It's going to come out?"

"Yeah..." I winced. "Call Mom and Dad!"

"Oh my god!" She jumped out of my bed. "MOOOOM! DAAAAAAD!!!"