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SCOUT

THE BROOKLYN BRIDGE IS A WORK of art! Sobrang manghang-mangha ako nang pumunta kami doon ni Stella kagabi. At tama nga ang sinabi niya na magandang pumunta doon ng gabi dahil sobrang liwanag nito. The bridge is beautifully illuminated all the way from Brooklyn to Manhattan. At mabuti nalang at pumayag akong sumama sakaniya dahil sobrang ganda talaga doon. I actually regret not visiting the Brooklyn Bridge before when I first came to New York. I had no idea how much I had been missing by not coming to Brooklyn.

Ayaw ko mang aminin, pero sobrang nag-enjoy ako sa ginawa naming paggagala sa Brooklyn ni Stella. She's fun to be with. She's daring, charming, and lovely all at the same time. She's nice and thoughtful in her own way. At napansin ko rin na hindi siya nauubusan nang kuwento, at gustong-gusto ko 'yon dahil gano'n din ako, hindi nauubusan ng kuwento.

I'd want to learn more about Stella. And I'm going to take things slowly, very carefully, because I don't want to blow this possibility. The possibility of stop fooling around and be in a serious relationship, to become someone's boyfriend. Or maybe because I'm at the age where most of my friends have their own families now, or they're engaged to someone they love. Maybe, somehow, at the back of my mind, I'm ready to be in that kind of relationship.

Pero gusto kong pag-planuhang mabuti lahat bago ako pumasok sa gano'n relasyon. Dahil ayaw kong maging kagaya ni Dad na lahat nalang minamadali. Walang kaplano-plano. Halos lahat ng babaeng nakikilala niya at nagugustuhan niya ay pinapakasalan at inaanakan niya agad. I don't want to be like him. I don't want to end up like him and become a four-time divorced man with eight children from four different women.

I want to have a small and complete family.

Ayaw kong iparanas sa mga magiging anak ko na hindi sila importante sa buhay ko. Ayaw kong iparanas sakanila na hindi sila mahalaga dahil napapabayaan ko na sila. Ayaw kong iparamdam sakanila na hindi ko ginustong maging anak sila. I don't want my children to experience what I experienced.

When people think of child abuse, they often think of physical abuse. But... neglect is also a form of abuse. And I don't want my children to feel neglected, because, trust me, feeling neglected is one of the worst feeling in the world.

"You're better than him," I enchanted to myself before shaking away my thoughts about my dad. I need to enjoy this vacation. Minsan lang kami magkaroon ng ganitong pagkakataon kaya kailangan namin sulitin 'to.

My phone pinged and I grabbed it from the nightstand. It was from my friend Blaise. He just reminded me to buy him the souvenirs from New York that I promised him. I chuckled when I remembered the incident that happened before I left Manila.

Madalas talaga sa'min ang biglaang lipad kaya madalas may nakahanda na akong bagahe para in case na tawagan ako. Pero nagkataon na tinanggal ko lahat 'yong laman ng luggage bag ko dahil balak ko 'tong ayusin, pero minsan mas gusto kong humilata sa bahay kaya nakalimutan ko nang ayusin uit. Tapos nagkataon na nakatanggap ako nang tawag dalawang oras bago ang biyahe namin papunta New York, at sa sobrang pagmamadali ko ay nakalimutan kong mag-pack ng briefs sa luggage bag ko, at naalala ko nalang noong nasa airport na ako kaya humingi ako ng pabor kay Blaise para bilhan ako ng brief sa mall bago ako umalis.

Me: Noted 'yan Bhosx Blaise! See you in a week!

Blaise: Ingat ka diyan sa NY Kuys!

Blaise: Baka naman gumaya ka kay Sir Ty na may baby na pagbalik ng pinas ha! h3h3h3!

Napapailing nalang ako sa mga reply ni Blaise. Puro talaga kalokohan 'yong batang 'yon.

Pagkatapos kong makipag-chat kay Blaise ay naligo na ako. I'm planning to ask Stella to lunch today because of the effort she put in last night. I texted her before I took a bath, but she hadn't responded yet, so I went to her room to speak with her instead, but I was interrupted when I spotted Captain Mendez in the hallway.

"Cap!" I greeted Captain Mendez. "Nakapag-gala na ba kayo? Ang ganda sa Brooklyn lalo na 'yong bridge do'n!"

"Ngayon lang ako lumabas sa kuwarto ko simula nang dumating tayo dito," tumatawang sagot niya at napailing nalang ako. "Nag-lunch ka na? Tara samahan mo 'ko." pag-aya niya. Napakamot ako sa batok ko at tumingin sa pintuan ng kuwarto ni Stella habang nag-iisip ng isasagot kay Cap kung sasama ba ako o hindi, at eksatong bumukas 'yong pintuan ni Stella rason para mapalingon si Captain Mendez at nakita namin si Stella na nakangiting lumabas.

Marahan akong tinapik ni Captain Mendez. "Maybe next time then," sabi niya. "Have fun with your girl," he added with a wink. He waved at Stella before walking away, leaving me alone with Stella.

"Hi," I greeted her, smiling. It looks like she just took a shower because she smells like candy, and I want to bury my face on her neck.

"Hi," she said, smiling back at me. "You texted me,"

"I did. I want to have lunch with you, pambawi man lang sa pagdala mo sa'kin kagabi sa Brooklyn."

"Wala naman akong hinihinging kapalit."

"Alam ko, pero gusto pa rin kitang yayain mag-lunch." mas lalong lumawak 'yong ngiti sa labi niya, "Magtatampo ako kapag hindi ka pumayag." dagdag ko at natawa siya agad.

"So tama nga ang naririnig ko na matampuhin daw si First Officer Scout Wilder Fernandez," Stella smiled at me seductively while caressing my arm sexily, making me hard. My breathing became rougher. Damn, she is sexy. "Pwede ka namang bumawi sa ibang paraan, Officer Fernandez."

"I'm listening," My pants are getting tighter every second. Baka hindi na kami makapag-lunch nito. Dahan-dahang lumapit si Stella sa'kin hanggang sa katapat na ng bibig niya ang tainga ko. Her chest was pressing against my left arm. Mabuti nalang at walang tao sa hallway at walang nakakakita sa'ming dalawa.

"Well, we can just stay at your room all day and call for room service instead," she whispers. Her smooth breathing on my ear and her sweet scent sent a tingling sensation straight to my throbbing cock.

"I would love to do that, babe, but you deserve a decent meal with an amazing view." I replied, pressing a soft kiss on her forehead. Kahit na mahirap at masakit dahil sa sikip ng pantalon ko ay gusto ko pa rin ilibre ng lunch si Stella. At balak ko ring bumalik kami sa Brooklyn. Gabi na nang magpunta kami roon kaya balak kong gumala naman doon nang umaga pa.

"Okay, let's do that then!" She agrees.

I stared at her pretty face, searching for a hint of disappointment, and I couldn't see any, but I still added. "Puwede naman tayong magkulong mamayang gabi sa kuwarto ko," she let out a soft chuckle and nodded her head.

We went to the restaurant I found online with an amazing view of the city, plus it is not far from our place, so we got there early. Stella ordered a salad, and I ordered a ribeye steak and got us a red wine for drink. Minsan lang naman ako makakain sa ganitong restaurant kaya sinusulit ko na.

"I almost forgot pala," Stella interrupted before taking a sip of her wine. "I have a cousin who lives in Brooklyn, and he saw my Instagram post last night and wanted to meet up. I haven't seen him in a very long time!"

I paused for a second before cutting a piece from my steak. Alam kong masyado pang maaga at mabilis, pero pinsan lang naman ni Stella 'yong kikitain namin at hindi naman kapatid o magulang niya. Besides, ang tagal na simula nang huli silang magkita. "O-okay," I replied hesitantly, dropping my fork and sipping my wine. Napansin ko ang bahagyang pagkunot ng noo ni Stella. "Balak ko ring bumalik sa Brooklyn mamaya," dagdag ko.

"That's great! I will message him and tell him we could meet up with him later." Ngumiti lang ako nang tipid at nagpatuloy sa pagkain. Pilit kong pinakakalma 'yong sarili ko at iniisip na wala namang masama kung ipakilala ako agad ni Stella sa kamag-anak niya kahit na more than 24 hours palang kaming magkakilala. Iniisip ko nalang na parte 'to ng plano ko na dahan-dahanin ang lahat.

"My cousin just replied!" Stella exclaims. "He said he's available to meet later!" my heart begins to race once again.

"T-that's great," I respond, feigning a grin to match her enthusiasm, but damn, I'm not a very good liar. I kept looking away from her. Mabuti nalang at busy siya sa pag-reply sa pinsan niya.

Nagdesisyon muna kaming mag-ikot-ikot nalang muna sa New York Times Square dahil mamaya pa kami babalik sa Brooklyn para makipagkita sa pinsan niya. Stella bought a lot of souvenirs, and so did I. I also bought some gifts for my nephew as well. He's still a baby, but he can play with these toys when he gets older.

"Kanina ka pa tahimik," Stella said. "May problema ba, Scout?"

"H-ha? Wala naman," pilit akong tumawa.

"Are you sure? You know, you can just tell me if you're tired from walking around and shopping," she chuckles.

I put my arm around her, pulling her closer to me and pressing a soft kiss on the side of her head. "I'm good, " I replied.

Mabuti nalang hindi na nangulit pa si Stella. May 30 minutes nalang kami bago kami pumunta sa Brooklyn para i-meet-up 'yong pinsan niya, at kanina pa rin ako tingin nang tingin sa orasan.

I tried to be calm, but I couldn't! I'm literally freaking out about meeting her cousin. I don't want to ruin our day, but I don't think I can enjoy it with her any longer. I'm not sure I can accompany her to meet her cousin. Gusto kong kilalanin muna nang lubos si Stella bago namin ipakilala ang isa't isa sa kahit sinong kamag-anak namin. I want to take things slowly and seeing her cousin after having sex with her on the plane and going on two dates is clearly not part of that.

"I'll just go to washroom," paalam ko kay Stella, hindi ko na siya hinintay pang sumagot at halos patakbo akong pumunta sa pinakamalapit na public washroom. Pagpasok ko sa loob ay agad kong tinawagan si Captain Mendez.

"Cap! Kailangan ko ng tulong mo," agad na sabi ko nang sagutin niya ang tawag ko.

"Anong problema, Scout?" tanong ni Captain Mendez.

"Mahabang kuwento Cap, pero pwede mo ba akong tawagan after 10 minutes?"

"Okay, pero kailangan mong magpaliwanag sa'kin mamaya."

"Opo, Cap! Maraming salamat. Kailangan ko lang talaga nang tulong mo ngayon," Nagpasalamat ako nang maraming beses kay Captain Mendez bago ako bumalik kung nasaan si Stella. Busy pa rin siya sa pamimili sa loob ng souvenir store. Ang dami niyang bitbit na mga ref magnets kaya kinuha ko 'yon sakaniya para tulungan siya.

After 10 minutes, Captain Mendez called me.

"Hindi ko alam kung ano 'tong pinapagawa mo sa'kin, pero pasalamat ka at malakas ka sa'kin," I bit the inside of my cheeks to stop myself from laughing. Stella was watching me as I answered the phone, so I put on a serious expression.

"Now? Wala bang ibang piloto na puwedeng bumyahe mamayang gabi? May lakad kasi ako e," Kinunot ko pa 'yong noo ko para hindi mahalata ni Stella na nagpapanggap lang ako.

"Anong pinagsasasabi mong bata ka?" sabi ni Captain Mendez sakabilang linya.

I sighed deeply. I saw Stella's brows furrowed in confusion. "Okay po, copy boss," I said before ending the call.

"Sino 'yon?" agad na tanong ni Stella. Bumuntong hininga ako kahit na ang totoo ay natatawa ako dahil minumura ako ni Captain Mendez bago ko ibaba ang tawag. I scratched the back of my head, pretending to be frustrated.

"May biglaang biyahe ako mamayang gabi pabalik ng Manila,"

"What? Are you serious?" Stella asked. I nodded my head. "Kailan ang balik mo?"

"Sa susunod na araw, pero ang sabi pwede akong mag-extend ng pag-stay ko dito sa New York kapalit nang biglaang biyahe." sagot ko. Hindi na nagtanong si Stella pero bakas na ang kalungkutan sa mukha niya. Mag-sesend nalang siguro ako kay Stella ng selfie ko mamaya nang naka-uniform para hindi siya magduda at tatawagan ko nalang din si Captain Mendez para ipaliwanag sakaniya ang lahat.

"Call me, okay?" Stella said.

"I will." I smiled at her, feeling bad for lying to her. "See you when I get back," I replied, kissing her cheeks as she climbed into the cab and drove away to Brooklyn.

Now I just have to figure out where I'm going to hide from Stella over the next several days.

W H A T Y A S E Y