Chapter 40

Today was December 20. The classes started 19 days ago. Today was the third day of Christmas break. At the first day of the break, I looked at my calendar. Babalik ako sa school on the third of January. I had 16 days of vacation. In every subject, there was an assignment given. I decided to finish all of the assignment during the first two days of the vacation. It was mostly research and exercises. Hindi ako lumabas ng bahay kaya naman natapos ko na sila buong weekend.

"Ano'ng oras nga aalis tayo?" Kuya Robert asked.

"1:15PM iyong schedule ng arrival," I replied.

"Alis na tayo ng 12," he said and I nodded.

Ate Gina asked before kung uuwi ba si Austin Archangel, so I told her that he was scheduled to go home ng December 20. Ate Gina suggested that I pick Austin Archangel from the airport dahil nitong nakaraang linggo ay hindi kami nakapag-usap. Start na ng league sa Japan. He was much busier. Hindi na nagtatagpo ang oras namin. I asked Austin Archangel kung gusto niya na sunduin ko siya sa airport dahil baka susunduin siya ng pamilya niya. He immediately agreed.

"Is that really necessary?" I asked while Ate Gina and I were doing signage. It was a 24 by 24 inches poster na mayroong naka-lagay na Welcome home, Austin Archangel and it was written using glitters. It was wise to say na puno ng glitters iyong receiving area dahil doon kami gumagawa ngayon.

"Hindi naman, pero masaya naman gawin!" sabi ni Ate Gina.

I shrugged and just continued putting design on the placard. Nang matapos kami roon ay pina-tuyo namin. I washed my hands at saka ko pinuntahan si Blue sa labas habang naglilinis si Ate Gina sa sala dahil baka makain ni Blue iyong glitters. Blue was just walking around the garden while I was scrolling through Instagram. Dominic was in the US for the vacation, pero kahit na nasa US siya ay puro basketball pa rin ang laman ng IG stories niya.

'Boarding,' Austin Archangel texted.

'Have a safe flight.'

'Thank you. Can't wait to see you.'

Nang sabihin ni Ate Gina na tapos na siyang maglinis ay binuksan ko na iyong sliding door. Naka-sunod sa akin si Blue nang pumasok ako pabalik sa bahay. I went back to my room. I was already done with all of my requirements for school. I wanted to write, but my mind was still tired from all the reading and the writing exercises that I did. Instead, I chose to watch some of the movies that Austin Archangel and I failed to watch before because we chose to makeout instead.

Choosing what to watch was hard.

Tumingin ako sa oras at 35 minutes na lang ay 12 na. Kakain pa ako. Mas mabuti na 'wag na lang akong manood dahil hindi ko rin naman matatapos. I would just watch the movie with Austin Archangel.

I scrolled through IG again. I clicked George's story and saw a video of one of the locations we scouted. After the first video was the second video wherein the members of the productions were preparing the shoot.

'I thought this was for after the break?' I replied to the story. George was very organized. She sent me a list of the things I was required to do and I did all of them... and then told her na hindi ako makaka-tulong nung nakaraang linggo dahil kinailangan ko na magfocus sa Math subject ko dahil baka bumagsak ako. But I was already well-adjusted. Sasama ako sa school after break. It was my script. I wanted to watch the actors bring it to life.

'Schedule was adjusted due to unforeseeable circumstances.'

'Why was I not informed?'

'You have other priorities.'

'I still want to be informed.'

'Consider yourself informed now.'

My forehead was creased as I read her reply.

'You can still come if you want.'

Biglang kumatok si Ate Gina sa pintuan ko para sabihin na kakain na kami para makaalis na kami. Sinabi ko na bababa na ako. I stared at my phone was again.

'I can't right now. May shooting pa ba bukas?'

'Just today. Will send you an update via email. Thanks.'

* * *

Tahimik lang ako habang naka-sakay sa sasakyan. I was just quietly watching the IG stories of the other members of the production team. Nakita ko rin iyong IG stories nung dalawang gaganap na bida sa script ko.

I wanted to be there.

But I needed to pick Austin Archangel from the airport because I was the one who volunteered.

Pagdating namin sa airport ay nagpark si Kuya Robert. I walked towards the arrival area. I bought bottled water and sat on the chair outside the convenience store. There were no more IG story. Nagsisimula na siguro iyong shooting. I was curious. What was happening?

"Hey."

Pagtingin ko ay nakita ko si Austin Archangel na naka-tayo sa harapan ko. He was carrying a black Nike duffel bag on his shoulder. I looked behind him at iyon lang ang dala niya.

Agad akong napa-tayo at ipinakita sa kanya iyong signage na dala-dala ko. He chuckled.

"Welcome home to me," he said. "Can I get a hug?" he asked.

"Okay," I replied and he quickly enveloped me inside his arms. I felt him sighing as he hugged me tighter. His head was resting on top of mine.

"Kanina ka pa?" he asked while still hugging me.

"Arrived here kaninang 12:34PM."

"Sorry, the flight was delayed," he said because it was already 2:30PM."

"It's not your fault," I replied. And I knew I'd still have to wait longer because he still had to go through customs. It's December at maraming uuwi. The line might be long.

'Dinner later?' Austin Archangel texted kahit na nasa iisang sasakyan lang naman kami. Nasa harapan siya katabi ni Kuya Robert at nasa likod naman ako.

'I can't.'

'Tomorrow?'

'Will tell you later.'

Nakita ko na kumunot ang noo niya. I told him last week na free ako ngayon at bukas... His family also had their own tradition. They were scheduled to go to Madrid for Christmas. Austin Archangel was supposed to go from Japan to Madrid, but he insisted na umuwi muna dito para magkasama kami.

'Dinner later.'

I already promised him na free ako ngayon at bukas. I should just watch the production after the Christmas break. I already gave Austin Archangel my word, and it's not nice to go back on them.

'And why are you texting? We're in the same car.'

'Kuya Robert is here.'

'So?'

'Shy.'

'Why?'

'Basta.'

And then we were in front of his house. Austin Archangel thanked Kuya Robert tapos ay lumabas na siya. He knocked on the window and I rolled it down.

"Thank you for picking me up."

"No problem," I said.

"What time will I pick you up later?"

"Kahit ano'ng oras."

"6PM?"

"Okay."

He smiled. "Will keep this," sabi niya sabay pakita sa akin nung signage. Nagpasalamat ulit siya kay Kuya Robert bago siya naglakad papunta sa bahay nila.

"Ang galang nung batang 'yun," sabi ni Kuya Robert nang bumaba ako sa sasakyan at saka lumipat sa harapan. Pagbalik namin sa bahay ay pumunta ako sa kwarto. I browsed through Netflix and when I could not decide kung ano ang papanoorin ko ay nagrandom selector na lang ako.

But I was not that interested in the movie. I scrolled through Instagram again and saw a behind the scene photo of the shoot. The leads are in the pool. They're shooting the pool scene. I wanted to watch it. I stalked the accounts of the other people who were members of the production, pero wala na akong makita na posts.

I really wanted to be there.

I sighed and just chose to sleep.

But I could not sleep.

'Ngayon lang ba iyong shoot ng pool scene?'

'Yes. We're just waiting for the sun to set for the evening scenes.'

I sighed again.

'You can come if you want.'

'I already promised someone that I'll have dinner with him.'

'Okay.'

I wanted to back out on the dinner with Austin Archangel to watch the shoot.

'Can I bring someone with me sa shoot?'

'Kung hindi maingay, sure.'

'Hindi siya maingay. Will go there in a while.'

I sat on the bed. Nagtext ako kay Austin Archangel, telling him if it was possible for us to change our schedule. He did not reply. Habang hindi pa siya nagrereply ay inayos ko na iyong mga gamit ko. Inilagay ko iyong notebooks at iPad ko sa tote bag ko.

I normally would not call someone, but this was time sensitive. It was already 4PM. Baka traffic. Manila traffic is unpredictable.

"Hi..." Austin Archangel said when he answered the call.

"Hi. Have you read my text?"

I heard him yawn. "No," he said. "I was sleeping."

"I'm sorry."

"It's okay," he said. "Oh... You wanna go to the shooting?"

"Yes, if it's okay with you."

He did not answer for four seconds.

"Sure," he replied. "What time will we leave?"

"Now," sabi ko sa kanya. "But if you wanna sleep, si Kuya Robert na lang ang sasama sa akin."

"No, it's fine," he replied. "Let me just fix some things and I'll be leaving in a few minutes."

"Okay," I replied before the call was ended. Agad akong bumaba. Naabutan ko roon si Kuya Robert na nagkakape.

"Alis ka?"

"Manonood kami ng shooting."

"Saan? Nagsabi ka sa Mama mo?"

"Nagtext ako."

"Saan 'yan?"

"Rizal," I replied.

"Hatid ko na kayo."

"Si Austin Archangel magda-drive."

"Baka maaksidente pa kayo—mukhang kulang sa tulog kanina," Kuya Robert said.

"Talaga?" I asked dahil hindi ko napansin.

"Lalim kaya ng eyebags. Natutulog pa ba 'yun?"

I shrugged because I did not know of his sleeping schedule. Kuya Robert insisted na ihahatid niya kami o kung hindi siya, magsama kami ng driver dahil mukhang inaantok si Austin Archangel. After 32 minutes, I heard the doorbell. Pagbukas ko ng gate ay nakita ko si Austin Archangel. He was wearing a maong pants, Off-White shirt, and white Nike Air Force 1 sneakers.

"Ihahatid daw tayo ni Kuya Robert," I said.

Kumunot ang noo niya. "Why?"

"Baka raw maaksidente tayo kasi inaantok ka pa."

"I just napped."

I stared at his face. Hindi ko siya masyadong natignan kanina dahil nang magkita kami ay agad niya akong niyakap. Tapos nung nasa sasakyan naman kami ay imbes na kausapin niya ako ay nagtext lang siya.

"You have dark circles under your eyes," I stated.

"Jetlag," he replied. "Where are we going?"

"Rizal," I said.

"Okay..." sabi niya tapos ay naghi siya kina Ate Gina at nagbigay ng paperbag na pasalubong niya. Tuwang-tuwa si Ate Gina.

The car ride was quiet and the only sound was the one coming from the radio. We reached the destination before sunset. Agad akong bumaba at saka lumapit sa production. I said hi to everyone tapos ay lumapit kay George.

"Am I late?" I asked because I really wanted to watch the pool scene.

"No, we're just starting," she replied.

In 20 minutes, the shooting started. I watched in awe. I felt the... chills in my system as I watched the actors enact the words I wrote. It was exactly how I imagined it—if not better. Kaleigh was right—George was a good director. She knew how to make the words I wrote come to life. She was also good at giving instructions to the actors.

The pool scene was taken in different angles. We arrived at 6PM. By 10PM ay hindi pa tapos. George wanted everything to be perfect. She wanted different shots and different angles. She was a perfectionist.

Nang bumalik ako sa pwesto ay nakita ko si Austin Archangel na natutulog. Bumalik ako kay George and asked her kung hanggang ano'ng oras dito and she said na hanggang hindi pa sumi-sikat ang araw.

Pinuntahan ko si Kuya Robert.

"Hanggang bukas pa raw sila. Dito na lang ako. Sasabay ako sa kanila pauwi," sabi ko sa kanya. Naka-tulog na rin si Kuya Robert sa sasakyan habang naka-bukas ang bintana.

"Ano'ng oras na bukas? Sunduin ka na lang."

"Hindi ko sigurado."

"Si Austin? Uwi na rin?"

"I'll ask him," sabi ko tapos ay bumalik ako sa pwesto at nakita ko na natutulog pa rin siya. He was sitting on the monoblock chair. His legs were straightened in front. His arms were crossed against his chest. His head was on an uncomfortable position, bent to the right.

I waited for a minute para magising siya. But he was not waking up, so I poked his arm against my will. He opened his eyes and immediately yawned.

"Are you done?" he asked.

"No," I replied. "Do you wanna go home?"

Tumayo siya while nodding. "Yeah..."

"Okay. Sabay na kayo ni Kuya Robert."

Kumunot ang noo niya. "You?" he asked.

"I'll stay. Have a good sleep," sabi ko para mabawasan iyong dark circles niya. "See you tomorrow," I continued before I walked back to watch the shooting.

**
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