An identification code; to activate specific modes, codes or functions on a transponder.

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"Good morning, (Y/N)," Elian, the man with too many hidden agendas, greets me with a non-suspicious but visibly real smile that reaches his warm and bright eyes. With him just a few inches away, lying right next to me. Half-naked. On bed.

Tangina... Anong kalokohan ito?!

I can also feel my entire face reddening at just the mere sight of exposed skin of lean and taut muscles. Not to mention that he is way too close, way calmer and way much more... captivating?

"B-Bakit..." I trail off, unsure how to process all of this.

"Bakit?" Elian asks as he draws closer that his breath tickles my cheek, igniting the heat on them much more. "Kailangan ko ba ng rason para gawin ito? Kahit na magkasintahan naman tayo?"

Anong pinagsasabi ng lalaking ito?!

I yelp when his lips press against the side of my neck. "O-Oo naman! Kailangan mo ng rason na—"

"Stop trying to tease me, (Y/N)," he whispers as his kisses trail lower down my collarbone.

There is no doubt that it is Elian's voice. No doubt as well that it is Elian, but this action, and...

I gasp, momentarily because of the affection and soft touches but very much in the view of the room. Gone are the cove ceiling, the calming beige color of the walls, the gray blackout curtains from where the cityscape can be viewed from sliding windows, and the modernized touches of the luxurious hotel room. Now it is a coffered ceiling from where a simple chandelier hung, the intricate tapestry covering the walls, the delicate and translucent lacework of curtains drawn to the side as it is lightly blown by the wind due to the opened barandilla and ventanilla, and the simple but opulent touches of a traditional colonial room. Now, I find the natural light shining through the capiz windows to be the culprit for the morning shine, and the audible chirps of birds and bustling side-street from the outside.

Where... Where on earth is this?

Elian's hands trail down my shoulders, arms and sides, as his lips slowly press open-mouthed kisses against every bare skin of mine.

I freeze. I am thankful not to catch myself totally nude in his presence when my mind is a series of uncertainties and unexplainable things as of now, and I try to push him away from me, muttering weakly, "T-Teka lang..."

And true, he stops. And yes, he got to be kidding me. O pinagloloko ko lang talaga ang sarili ko.

He presses his lips against mine, teasing me to open my mouth as he slips his tongue to deepen the kiss much more.

Putangina. Seryoso ba na hinahalikan ako ngayon ni Elian?

I tremble.

And he seems to realize it at once for him to pull away and ask, "May problema ba?"

"K-Kasi..." I gulp in hard.

He raises a curious eyebrow at me. "Kasi? Nagbago ba ang isip mo, o hindi ka pa rin makapaniwala sa nangyari kagabi?"

Kagabi? I almost blurt out in surprised. Nangyari kagabi? Anong nangyari kagabi?!

I can't remember falling asleep in this place, but I can swear that we indeed met last night, if ever this is a new day. I remember meeting him at the rooftop and he had been acting weird to tease me about his intention to give the company more reasons to assume that there is something going on between us when there isn't even any slightest relation at all. When I was about to return his coat, he walked away and I returned to my own room alone and... did I even fall asleep right there? And what is this?

Ano pa ba ang nangyari kagabi?

Did I even sleepwalk, and find myself here with Elian? Like, the fuck... is that the very reason why he is right here, lying down on the same bed as I do, watching me wake up all the while he is half-naked?! I mean, did we even... The probability for that is close to zero! I am not drunk to do something so stupid as such, and yet, even though I can say that I am perfectly clothed right now, I didn't remember having such a lacy nightgown!

The better question to ask than what happened last night is: Anong lugar ba ito?

Suddenly, Elian laughs.

Wait, what?

His eyes narrow with great mirth when he does, and he is beaming. It is a strange look for a man I've known to be so reserved with his expression; that even when his team won the championship back then, he wasn't seen this happy. However, seeing him laugh is refreshing, and my heart skips uncontrollably at the sight and the sound. He then leans his forehead against mine and says, "Walang nangyari sa atin, okay? Halatang-halata na kung ano-ano ang iniisip mo. Whatever the case was, rest assured that it didn't happen. Yet."

B-Bwiset talaga itong lalaking ito!

I unconsciously slap him on the shoulder that only makes him laugh much more, and for some reasons, the action is definitely one out of instinct. But even his reaction is weird, because knowing the man himself... such a man as Elian Basa will not even let me smack him at all.

He presses a soft and chaste kiss against my eyebrow. "Don't worry. You are to become my wife, after all. At talagang wala pang nangyayari, nagpropose pa lang ako sa iyo kagabi."

If that is meant to assure me, then he is seriously mistaken. Okay, knowing fully that I still have my virtue is an ideal concept concerning how weird all of this seems to be; but how much percent shall I be assured by the prospect that we are recently engaged? And fuck it all, I can't even remember what transpired last night for such.

As proof that he is saying the truth, a vintage yellow and white gold diamond hearts engagement ring is around my finger. Unassumingly there as if it had been always there; and yet, according to him, it had been only last night.

Pareho ba kaming baliw para maging engaged kaagad-agad? Tangina, (Y/N). Ano na naman itong pinasok mo?

"Sinong mag-aakala?" he whispers, an inquiry I am not sure if it is addressed to me or had been his self-reflection alone. "That someone as I, César Basa, would have the intention of settling down."

César Basa? Sino 'yon?

And I stare back at him with one question turning into hundreds then to thousands. Then, I take in my surroundings again and the entire situation on hand. The fact that this man appears very much like Elian, but is acting weirdly different from Elian...

Oh, I get it now. This is what a dream looks like. This is my first time seeing one.

The man snaps his head to the direction of the opened windows and then to the bedroom door, and before I can even ask what is going on, he presses a finger against his lips. In return, I instantly cover my mouth to follow his command of keeping quiet. And amidst the noise from outside, it seems evident that he senses something else.

Finally, whoever or whatever he earlier realized, makes their presence known. The call is audible amidst the rest of the sound, shouting, "César!"

This man isn't really Elian, isn't he? But another who shares the same face, physique and voice as him named César, right?

He sighs heavily as he closes his eyes and smiles, rather than be irritated for being called or whatsoever. "'Yong mga iyon talaga..."

"César!" another voice adds. "Tama na 'yan, 'oy! Maawa ka naman kay (Y/N)!"

"Tangina. Wala pang isang araw at nanggugulo na kaagad sila," he mutters under his breath. He then turns to me another time, kisses my cheek and moves out of the bed as he fumbles on some trousers and shirt. "'Wag ka magmadali mag-ayos para sa kanila. Ako lang naman talaga ang habol nila."

"P-Pero..." I stammer, looking on at the domestication that seeps through my mind; that things as this seems to be what is ordinary as called by this dream of mine.

César stops by the doorway and throwing me with another smile, here comes a warning. "Kung hindi ka pa mag-aayos, 'yong balabal." With that, he leaves me alone in the room, still trying to understand what just transpired.

I sigh heavily and close my eyes, wielding then myself to wake up. However, it isn't that easy as everything feels so real. At least, I get some explanation, and yet I wonder which place and era this is for a man as César to be in.

They say that dreams are a reflection of a person's desire, and appear mostly when you're in REM sleep, the phase leading to a deep sleep. Maybe it is because I've been a light sleeper that I didn't ever dream. Not once did I ever think, "I think I had a dream." And I think today will be the same, until it isn't... After all, considering all this a dream is the only option I have to explain all its peculiarity.

Yet, if it is true that dreams as this are a reflection of desires... did it equally mean that I envision this world, too? That I want this traditionalism; that I am still pinning over Elian now bearing a different name altogether? Is that how dreams and desire mirror one another? If we can't have something from reality, we tend to be delusional to give them another name and personality, yet the same physical aspect? Will that even mean that whatever affection I have towards Elian sprout all at once from that encounter in the rooftop, and I am just attached to him with his looks than his soul?

However, that short encounter with this man named César... I will be lying to say that I didn't feel something light and fluttering within me. Some sort of excitement rushes through my nerves as if I know him for so long and had been deeply in love with him.

I open my eyes, lift my hand and stare on the thin band that adorns a respective finger. I know that it is vintage, but it isn't like those rings with huge stones adorning it; and it is beautiful and classy, embedded with diamonds in a simple design than a heavy and huge stone set on the band.

Engaged na ako, I think. And it is laughable for it to happen in a dream, and to someone that I doubt existed at all. Tapos parang pinagloloko lang ako ng panaginip ko na ito... Na tangina naman na hindi ko alam kung ano bang pinag-iisip ko sa buhay para magkaroon ako ng panaginip na ganito...

I pull the blanket over my head and curl to a ball underneath the fabric. Everything is all so weird to the point that as I press my hands against my face, my fingers slowly move lower to my lips. Then, I am reminded again that I was kissed... And the first time that it happened is in a dream.

Ganoon ba ako ka-depressed?

I feel like crying in both embarrassment and frustration. Is it all really a fragment of my imagination that create a man such as César, molded from that of Elian, be the real and main interest of this dreamscape? To such a point of an engagement and a deep kiss? To a form of domestication that lived-in couples are accustomed with?

"Grabe ka talaga, César. Anong pinaggagawa mo kay (Y/N), ha?" I hear someone asked from the other side of the door. It seems like César had already attended to the guests that arrived. "Porket matagal-tagal din kayong hindi nagkita. Tsk... Kakaiba po pala talaga."

"Susmaryosep, Tonio," César remarks. "Kaaga-aga kung ano-ano na ang pumapasok sa isip mo."

"Tangina. Naghahanap lang ng damay 'yan. Mukhang hindi napagbigyan kagabi," another man replies with a suppressed laughter. "Kawawa naman... pagkatapos na matagal na hindi nagkasama. Pagkabalik mula Lahug, walang nangyari."

"Mukha talagang naghahanap ka ng away, ano, Geronimo?"

"Eh kayo na nga ang ma-swerte na nandito sa Maynila ang mga kasintahan niyo. Uwi na kaya ako ng Maniquis?"

"Hindi ka naman taga-Cabanatuan, ha? Taga-Laguna ka kaya."

"Argh! Ayaw ko na. Paki paalalahanan nga ulit ako bakit tayo magkakaibigan pa rin hanggang ngayon?"

"Ang masasabi ko lang ay ang pinakamasaya na nakabalik ulit ng Maynila ay si Manuel. Parang bitin pa 'yong ibinigay na honeymoon leave sa kanya noong isang buwan para kumaripas ng alis sa kampo kahapon pagkadating na pagkadating natin."

Kampo? Is this version of Elian—César—a soldier that I've conceptualized as? And it appears like the guests are César's friends or even squad mates. For them to be after him this morning, does it mean that we're actually within the premises of a base, if ever?

I instantly pull down the blanket and sit up on the bed. I can't see much beyond the view of the opened window except for rows of establishments of varying architectural designs I only attribute to be that of colonial and antique. But with the sound of the bustling street of conversing townspeople, the soft hum of passing vehicles and the clicking noise of the horses' hooves drawing carriages, there is no chance that it can be within a base.

"Siguro nalaman ni Clara na hindi ka ganoon kasaya kaya pinagkaitan ka kagabi," says César as the conversation from outside the bedroom continues on. "Tapos, ngayon, dinadamay mo ako."

"Mukha namang naging maayos ang gabi mo para manatili pa sa kwarto si (Y/N)."

My ears perk at the mention of my name, igniting then much my curiosity if I know the visitors, in this dream, too. But I am doubtful, as I know César as Elian and only learn a few minutes ago the difference between them. So, I hurriedly move out of the bed, almost tripping with the unusual choice of a silky nightgown; and, remembering what César mentioned earlier, I take the dark blue shawl from the backrest of a nearby chair to cover myself up to something decent, at least.

César is speaking by the time that I dare myself to leave the confines of the bedroom in my dreams, saying, "Kung alam niyo lang kung gaano kami kasaya kagabi, pero hindi sa kadahilanang pareho niyong iniisip, kayong mga madudumi ang isip. Ah!" He is also the first one to turn to me, apparently hearing my footsteps and the door. "(Y/N)."

The two guests that César is attending right now are seated at the sala; both of them in their crisp beige uniforms bearing shoulder boards, collar pins and wing badges, and their matching hats are placed on top of the coffee table. To add, the pair raise their hands in a wave, that with sheepish smiles, they greet me in unison, "Good morning, (Y/N)."

And I freeze on the spot, unable to take a step closer upon seeing who they are. Apparently, I know them just as I've encountered Elian out of César. There is no doubt that César's friends are also known pilots from the company: Captains Antonio Mondigo and Geronimo Aclan.

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A/N: Vote, comment and share! Whatever you do means a lot to me, and I am really wishing for some feedback! So... I've finally introduced my new victim, and along with a few friends~

A few list of notes to share!
1. Okay, so I finally made the switch and introduced César Basa himself! And not only him, as well as the mentions of Manuel Conde, Antonio Mondigo and Geronimo Aclan, who were on the same class of 1940 with César in their flying days and later on be part of the same squad. And since records had hinted that they are about the same ages, there is no doubt that they are not only squad mates, but also friends. Not to mention that according to researches, they all consider one another as more than just squad mates with respect to one another, but truly almost familial friendship.
2. The curses. Right. I am introducing you not only to the language of pilots, but as well as of the military. Don't be fooled with our flowery and beautiful voice announcements because within the circle, hell, yeah, it's an outburst of curses. They are just mere reactions amidst the seriousness; some sort of coping mechanism in the midst of the life-threatening idea of flight itself. However, records also mentioned that soldiers, especially during World War II, consider curses as a means to understand the gravity of a situation. Let's say that by the time one's commanding officer stop adding a curse to an order, they already know that it is urgent.

Chapter title: Squawk. As a pilot, I always correlate 'squawk' to an emergency, much more than an identifier. As we're flying under VFR (Visual Flight Rules) than IFR (Instrument Flight Rules), I spent most of my time having a transponder that reads "1200", which means VFR. For those flying under IFR and airlines who fly above 18,000 feet (Class A airspace, where VFR is not allowed), they're given an identifier number by the tower of departure. Anyway, as I've earlier stated, 'squawk', as for me, is always correlated to an emergency, too. We're to remember three important squawk numbers that shall be also avoided being inputted on the transponder unless necessary; 7500 (hijack), 7600 (lost communications, and 7700 (any other emergency). For this chapter, it is funny to think of the Reader wanting to escape wherever place she is right now with a 'squawk' being the closest aviation term I can think of.

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