Days passed, Austin and I were getting more comfortable with each other, especially when we were alone together. No one still in the house knew what was going on between us. We decided to keep it down low for now since he was navigating his new side of his life where he was trying to be more confident of how he identified himself and I was there to guide him.

 "How long has it been going between the two of you? Tell me, what do you really feel for him?" Douglas asked, Cory left to go to the bathroom for a quick moment and he took her phone to talk to me.

He was on their bed, lying against the headboard with his shirt off, biting off his classic gold chain necklace. I didn't notice it before, it must be new or Cory's gift to him since his birthday is coming soon already.

"To tell you honestly, he wasn't that bad, I mean, he was gorgeous for me." And thinking of him, I feel like I was dripping drool off my mouth. "He was nice to me. He was sweet and very caring. I think if you would meet him, you won't feel any bad energy from him. Well, you're a guy and you could easily get along with him, but it took for us to do that. But we're here now. . ."

"Nice, I would love to meet him personally or even talk via video call sometime."

"I'll set that up sometime," I said to him. "He surely wants to meet you guys as well, as I've been talking about you because they know I was supposed to be in Palawan and not in Siargao."

"Well, lucky you. . . You went to Siargao and me him." Ngisi pa nito. Douglas was very charismatic. Simpleng ngiti lang talaga nitong mokong na 'to ay makalaglag panty na. No wonder why Cory didn't let him go once again. 

"Lucky me," I said, agreeing to his statement.

"Anyway, I would just like to ask. . ." Kumunot ang noo dahil biglang naging seryoso ang mukha ni Douglas. "Did you guys already do it?"

And then I heard Cory on the other line calling him out. "Hoy? Ano 'yang tanong mo, ha?"

Narinig ko na lamang na natatawa si Douglas saka nito inagaw ang phone sa boyfriend. Magkasalubong naman ang kilay nang iharap ni Cory ang phone sa mukha niya. Nakataklob ng unan si Douglas habang iritado ito.

"'Wag mong pansinin 'yong sinabi nitong mokong na 'to," aniya, mukhang iritado.

Natawa rin naman ako. "I don't think I'll be answering that question as well. Pero try niyo kaya bumisita rito? Kayo na lang ang punta rito since malapit na rin naman birthday ni Douglas?"

"I would love to!" sagot ni Douglas sa kabilang linya.

"Gusto na niya mauna, bahala siya riyan," masungit pa rin nitong utas. "Gusto ko rin naman, sis. Hindi pa ako nakapupunta riyan so balak din namin ni bumista riyan, but are you sure you're going to stay there? Alam mo na. . . Ibang-iba pa ang life sa city at sa isla. Coming from me, I can attest to that."

"She already get used to it, though," sabat na naman ni Douglas. "Do what you love, Dan!"

"O, narinig mo 'yon?" aniya saka ako napatango. "Kulang lang 'yan sa pansin today dahil nag-off siya sa duty niya today. But anyway, going back to you. I'm so happy naman for you and what you were doing in Siagao. . . Happy that you finally set yourself free from L, so I am so proud of you. I wish I was there to witness it. . . Ayaw lang din naman kita makitang masaktan ulit kaya ko lang naman natanong. . ."

Napabitaw ako nang malalim na hininga. That kind of breath that was shallow and with lots of anxiety and frustrations.

"I agree, that's why I'm also hesitating to open up much more to Austin. . . I don't want to lead him up to something na baka mamaya hindi ko kaya. Kaya ko na ba ulit mag-commit ngayon? Oo nga, wala na kami ni Lukas. We ended it on a good note. At kung bubuksan ko naman ang sarili ko for him, I think I can. . . Gaya nga rin ng sabi mo, takot lang din akong masaktan ulit."

"Don't rush in deciding things, sis. 'Yon na lang siguro ang mai-a-advise ko for now. Pero from what you've been telling naman, I think super nice naman si Austin."

Hindi ko mapigilang mapangiti at mapahagikgik sa binanggit ito. "Ito naman, sis. Super bait niya. Akala ko lang talaga masungit siya sa umpisa."

Mayamaya lamang ay may kumatok sa pinto at nakita ko si Austin na pumasok. He showed a half smile on his face. Dahil naka-video call ako kina Cory at Douglas ay ipinakilala ko na sila kay Austin.

"Austin, these are my friends. . . Cory and Douglas!" Iniharap ko sa kanya ang screen ng phone.

"Hello, guys!" Kaway pa nito pero pansin ko ang pagkatamlay niya. "I'm Austin. . . Nice to mee you."

"Nice to meet you, too! Happy to talk to you!" dagdag pa ni Cory.

Austin then mouthed to me that he will just take a rest so I let him be. Hinayaan ko naman siyang pumunta sa kama niya habang bumalik ako sa side ng kama ko. Napansin din naman nina Cory na parang walang gana nang makausap nila si Austin kaya naman ibinaba ko muna ang tawag ko saka ko nilapitan ito sa Austin na nakahiga. 

When I made him turned to me, sapilitan pa dahil ang bigat-bigat niya. Nang maiharap ko siya sa akin ay mabilis kong napansin ang ilang namumulang mantal sa kanyang leeg maging sa braso. Nang iangat ko ang kanyang t-shirt ay mas maraming pantal ang nakita ko. Bigla akong naalarma dahil namumula ang mga pantal niya saka panay ang kamot niya sa mga ito. Pinipigilan ko naman siyang kamutin pa dahil baka lumala. Agad ko namang tinawag sina Marina sa ibaba at inanunsyo ang kondisyon ni Austin.

Naalarma rin sila nang makita si Austin. Agad na nagtawag ng tricycle si Keegan sa labas para maidala namin si Austin sa medical center. Nang ibangon pa nga namin ito halos masuka-suka pa ito pero wala naman siyang inilalabas. Inalalayan ni Xander at Bradley na makababa si Austin ng hagdan saka makalabas ng bahay at matungo ang naghihintay na tricycle sa ilabas. Si Keegan at Marina ang sumama kay Austin paalis habang naiwan naman kami sa bahay. Napakapit na lamang ako kay Kady dahil sa sobrang takot at pangamba para sa kanya.

"What happened to him?" Xander asked. "He was all red itchy."

"He must've been eaten something that caused his allergy. . . Remember he has a seafood allergy, right?" Tumango naman sila at sa akin tumapon ang tingin ni Kady. "Danny, where have you guys been before coming back?"

"We just went to the wet market. . . I'm not sure if he ate something there, but there were a lot of people there making us taste some food. I think he did?" aniko. Hindi pa ako sigurado dahil hindi nman ako tumikim sa mga pira-pirasong free taste nila ro'n. I wrapped my arms around me as I felt goosebumps all over me. "I'm sorry. . ."

"No, don't be sorry," Kady said, rubbing me on my shoulder. "You didn't know, and Austin could possibly didn't know it either. No one's at fault. Let's just go and catch them up to the medical center."

Mabilis kaming nag-ayos. Kinuha ko lang ang phone ko at inabangan ko silang lahat sa pinto. I even texted Cory to tell her na tama ang hinuha niya kay Austin. Nag-alala rin naman siya sa kondisyon nito. I'll just tell her his condition once he everything was fine.

Puno ng kaba ang dibdib ko habang lulan ako ng motor. Si Xander ang nagmamaneho ng motor habang si Kady at Bradley naman ang magkasama. Lahat kami ay nag-aalala kay Austin dahil namumutla na siya kanina at halos balisa na sa kakamot-kamot ng mga pantal na lumalabas sa balat niya. I was so scared for him and I hate myself for not noticing it first.

Hindi nagtagal ay narating namin ang medical center. Nang makapasok kami sa loob ay agad naman naming nahanap sina Marina at Keegan. Marina's head was resting on Keegan's shoulder while his arms wrapped around her. They told us that Austin was already in the emergency room to check his condition.

"They told us that it could be an allergy," Marina said. "Austin just had hives all over his body. It was red and he said was itchy. Danny, did Austin eat anything seafood because you know he shouldn't be eating something like that."

Umiling naman ako. Wala akong ideya. Hindi ko naman napansin. I was too busy at that time. Basta masaya ako na kasama ko si Austin no'ng time na 'yon.

"I don't know. . . I don't have any idea, but he probably did because there were stalls there giving free samples of their products. Austin might've mistaken something and eaten a seafood."

"That could be it," Kady said. "Let's just hope he'll be fine. . ."

After a while, I think it was about twenty minutes when someone called us all in. Nang tumungo kami sa emergency room para tingnan ang kondisyon ni Austin ay bumubuti-buti na rin naman ito. Nakangingiti na sa amin at nagbibiro na.

"How are you now?" Kady asked.

"Jokes aside, I'm feeling a little bit better now," he said, showing us his arms with still hives on them. "It was still itchy and they told me not to scratch them, but I couldn't help myself. They gave me a medication. . . Something like they called, I'm not sure if it was correct, but sounded like Epinephrine. . . Epiphany. . . I don't know. But those two."

"Will you be able to go home?" Marina asked.

Austin nodded. "Yes, I would be able to. I just have to stay for a few hours as they will continue to observe me and when everything is good, I can go home then."

"I can stay with you here," pagboluntaryo ko. Tumingin naman silang lahat sa akin. "I've got nothing else to do. . . So I'm just gonna look after my roommate."

"Yeah, no worries, Danny," Keegan said. 

"I don't have any money here. . . I don't know how to pay the bill. . ." Austin said.

"I got my wallet with me, so don't worry about it," Marina said. "We'll go and settle the bill first. Take a rest for now."

"Alright, thanks, Mar. I appreciate it a lot."

Marina winked at Austin. Keegan went with Marina as they left the emergency room to pay for the bill while Xander, Brad, and Kady were hounding Austin because he made the house panic for the day. All he could was laugh and apologize for it. Later on, when we asked how it happened, he said there was a young kid at the wet market who offered him what he thought was a salty candy. He was able to take a bite and digested some until he realized it was probably seafood he had eaten.

Sisisihin pa namin siya dahil hindi siya nagsabi sa amin. Hindi niya raw alam din kung anong sasabihin dahil hindi na maayos ang pakiramdam niya. Kung hindi ko pa pala napansin din, hindi namin malalaman.

Nang bumalik sina Marina at Keegan ay nagsabi ito na uuwi na muna sila at i-text na lang kung may update pa ba kay Austin, in case need ng another medication. Sumunod din namang umalis sina Kady, Xander, at Brad. Naiwan na lamang ako sa tabi ni Austin kaya ng pagboboluntaryo ko kanina.

"Don't worry, we won't take too long here," he said, looking at me with a smile on his face. Matamlay pa rin ang mata niya, but he was better than ever was before. "Are you okay?"

Kumusot ang mukha ko sa tanong niya. "Why would you ask me if I was okay? I should be the one asking you that question."

"Well, you were the one who saw me having an allergic reaction all over my body earlier. I hope I didn't make you feel bad about anything. . ."

I shook my head. "No, you didn't. I was glad I was able to notice that when Cory mentioned."

"Uh, yeah. . . I wasn't able to talk to them longer. Maybe we'll do it next time."

"Yes, they wish to speak with you soon! Let's do that soon." Ngiti ko pa sa kanya. "Sure are you okay, now?"

Muli siyang tumango sa akin na may kasamang ngiti. This time, he grabbed my hand and put it on his crotch area. Babawiin ko pa naman sana agad ang kamay ko pero pinigilan niyang gawin ko iyon. I let my hand placed on his crotch and then he started moving my hand like he was rubbing himself."

"Huy! Stop doing that. . . We're on E.R.," pabulong ko pang paninita sa kanya. Halos kurtina lang din kasi ang pagitan sa ibang katabi na pasyente sa E.R. at ang unahan ay medyo open dahil may uwang ang kurtina. "Austin. . . You need to rest. . ."

"Yeah, I need to rest after you jerk me off. . ."

Nanlaki ang mata ko. "Austin!" I gritted my teeth dahil nahihiya na ako. Feeling ko nag-iinit ang mukha ko dahil ramdam na ramdam ko ang tainga ko na parang sinabuyan ng apoy.

The next thing he did was put my hand under the blanket and place it directly on his crotch where I could feel him getting hard. He gave me a smile that meant something. He removed his hand under the cover and put it behind his head while my hand was still on his crotch. As he was looking intently at me, I did what those stares made me do. I put my hand inside his shorts and started rubbing his hardened cock.

He bit his lower lip, and even raised his head up as my hand kept jerking him off. Pnong-puno naman ng kaba ang dibdib ko dahil hindi ko alam ang gagawin ko kapag nahuli kami sa ganitong posisyon. The movement of my hand under the cover was very noticeable and who would came to see us will notice it immediately.

"Ugh. . ." he moaned so low he didn't want the next bed to hear him. "Fuck, that's quick. . . I'm close, Danny. . ."

"Huh? What should I go?" I asked him.

But then he just put my head under the cover and there I saw his cock that I was holding. Galit na galit ito at nang may sumirit ay agad kong sinubo ang kanyang ari at halos mapuno ang bibig ko ng likido niya. He was panting as he reached his climax. I even liked the drops of his cum that whiffed out before I could put it in my mouth. I pulled his shorts up and got back up from it. 

"How was it?" I asked him.

He giggled and he put his hand on my hair and messed it up. "Thanks. . . That was fantastic."

Natigilan na lang din kami nang biglang may pumasok na nurse para muling i-check si Austin. Napaayos ako sa pagkauupo ko at gusto ko na lamang maglaho. Mabuti na lang ay hindi niya kami naabutan sa gano'ng sitwasyon. But I could see the smirk on Austin's face. I couldn't even speak because it seemed like my breath would smell like him so I just smiled to the nurse who was telling us that after an hour, Austin can finally go.

When she left, sinimangutan ko si Austin at pasimpleng hinampas sa braso niya.

"What?" he asked, laughing.

"I swallowed it all."

He smirked. "Taste good, right? You've got my babies now."

I rolled my eyes at him. "Good for you, you were so addictive."

He giggled. "I know you couldn't resist me. But that was hot. . . Never had done it. I liked it."

"Well, I wouldn't do it again."

"Are you sure?" He grinned as if he had another plan in mind. Hindi naman ako sumagot. "See. . . You loved it."

"Only it was you," bulong ko pa. "Anyway, take a rest for now. . . You need that."

"I don't think I can after that. . ." He chuckled. "You kept me awake. . . And I guess, still down there."

"Austin?" I retorted. "Stop it. If only you didn't eat that seafood, you wouldn't even be here."

"Then you wouldn't even have your meal of the day," he answered back. Napahugot na lamang ako nang malalim na hininga. "Come on, lay down here with me. . . I don't mind you squeezing here with me. Come on. . ."

Umiling ako, pero in the end ay pinilit niya ako at napahiga niya ako sa tabi niya. He put his arm behind my head while I rest it on his shoulder. We were like that for the next hour until the nurse came back and saw us at the position we had. Napangiti na lang din naman ito at inanusyong pwede na umalis na si Austin since paid na rin naman ang bill.

When we're preparing to leave, may naisip na naman si Austin na may pupuntahan daw kami na lugar at baka raw magustuhan ko. I know I would love it, but I also needed him to rest for now. Tumanggi na muna ako at sinabi ko na gawin na lang namin sa susunod na araw. Umuwi kaming dalawa sa bahay at sinalubong si Austin nina Kady, Xander, Brad, Marina, at Keegan. They even used a confetti popper to welcome him after what happened to him earlier.

At the back of my mind, seeing all these people care for each other was indescribable. Even though they've come from different walks of life, they all just come together and make this like a happy family. . . And then they made me feel like I belonged to it.

What could I ask for more?

I'll be on the island for one month tomorrow and when I said I'll be back soon to the city I grew up to, I feel like I don't really miss my life there. The island life opened my eyes to new wonders, in every way, so I guess I have to make a decision.

Once and for all, this is about my peace and happiness and I chose. . .

***