It's been two days since Dos handed a bragging of changing Uno's sexual preference. Dalawang araw na rin ang lumipas magmula nang iwasan niya itong makita.

To avoid seeing her, he comes to the office as early as six in the morning, although his required time-in is eight. Off from work, he comes home at midnight. But as they say, fate befalls without choosing its victim because, after a half quarter of his day, his eyes landed on his vibrating phone, displaying Dos' name on it. She was calling.

It took him quite some time to decide whether he'd pick it up or not. Pero kalaunan ay napagdesisyunan niya na ring sagutin ito. He thought maybe Dos did something, and she needed rain of lessons.

"It's two in the afternoon, and it's implausible for you to call me in the middle of my work. So, be quick and tell me what you want from--"

"Will you pick me up? I don't know how to go home kasi..."

"What?! Where the hell did you go?!"

"I went back to SM Aura, eh, and bought the top I saw at Bershka the last time we went here. Then I didn't know na how to go home kasi my phone died. I can't book a grab na. And can you please refrain from shouting? Masakit kasi sa ears--"

"Oh my goodness! Of all the time of the day, Dos, ngayon pa talaga?! It's too hot outside! I wouldn't want my oh-so-precious skin to burn under the prickling heat of the sun!"

"Please...pretty Uno...? I bought some beauty products, ime-makeover kita later if you'll make sundo sa akin. Besides, we're not seeing each other for two days na kasi you'd been busy yata sa work, 'di ba?"

He suddenly felt super excited. Lahat ng inis niya rito ay nawala nang parang bula.

"I'm on my way."

"Take care, ha? Don't forget to furnish yourself with an umbrella. You're such a beauty pa naman."

He giggled, although being commended on his almost-perfect features was nothing but typical to him. It was just that that praise to be delivered by Dos sounded with an utter difference to his ears.

"I know, right."

With that, he cheerfully drove to SM Aura without forgetting an umbrella to shield his beauty with.

As promised by Dos, she'd be conferring him with a makeover for fetching her. However, he didn't know she'd decide what shouldn't and should be doing.

"I'd like to trim your hair, but I think your hair needs a new shade before that. And that should be an icy blonde shade like mine para you won't look dull." She held a bowl of the said hair color and a brush while standing in front of Uno, who had a white cloth over his body. He was seated at one of his mini bar's high bar stool, which Dos took to the living room without his permission.

"What?! No!" He shook his head, aggressively vacating his seat that crash-landed on the floor. "I'm not like a preppy college student who'd color his hair with that shade!"

"Come on, pretty Uno!" She stomped her feet on the ground like a child throwing a fit. "This will suit your beauty naman, eh!"

"There's no way I would let you do that! Besides, I need to portray professionalism at work, not just mentally and verbally, but also physically, so--holy fucking cow, Dosmer! What did you just do?!"

He nearly bawled his eyes out when Dos forbiddenly brushed his hair with the hair color she was holding. His grimacing face spelled a fit of pique. His fists foreboded a catfight, and him, taking steps closer to her, heralded the start of it.

"Desisyon ka, ghurl?!" He callously took the bowl from Dos' grasp. The content splattered on the floor along with the loud bang of the stainless bowl. "What will you do with my hair now?! It's effin' eleven in the evening, for pete's sake! Where will I buy a black hair color?!"

"Seven eleven?" she replied in an unshaken manner, like what she did wasn't worth getting into anyone's nerve.

"Sige," he nodded, "pumunta ka ngayong mag-isa!"

"Of course you will come with--"

"And why would I?!"

"Because I don't know how to get there?"

"Oh my gosh!" He disheveled and pulled the strands of his hair, darting her a glance of beyond belief. "Don't you know how to feel sorry? How to feel a sense of urgency? How to be sentient, huh, Dosmer?"

"Well, I can't see anything to be sorry for--"

"You're a hopeless case."

She stiffened for a little while before she shrugged and smiled. "Just sketch me a direction going to that convenience store so I could buy before we ran out of time."

"Are you out of your mind? You're going to go out alone at this hour?"

He knew he asked her to leave just moments ago, but he also knew it was just a statement of a spur-of-the-igniting fury in him. He felt sorry for being such an asshole. He shouldn't have said those.

"No. Yes." No hint of irresolution or even irritation could be evident on her face. The only available sight she was giving was her gleaming white smile that showed her concavities on both cheeks.

He heaved an exasperated sigh. "You told me you'd trim my hair, but you think I needed a shade first, right? But as you see...." he traveled his gazes on the scattered hair color on the floor then back at her, "the latter's off the list, so...you might just do the first mentioned...will you?"

Unbeknownst to Dos, Uno rarely offers regrets. His action now and him saying such, though in a roundabout way, could be considered one of the few instances when he does.

He wasn't so sure if she'd bite the bait of his apologies, judging by her unreadability, yet he still braved to weather it. 

"That's okay with you?" she asked, her mouth left gaping a fraction after.

He shrugged. "Well, I don't want to go to the office tomorrow with this icy blonde thingy on one portion of my head. I'd surely be a laughingstock to many for a single day if that happens."

She chuckled. "At your service, pretty Uno!"

The innocence in this woman, he mumbled in mind as he watched her take the tools she'd be needing to cut off the stains of the hair color on his hair and groom him.

"You know what, my Ate used to cut my hair," she said. "She loved to groom me kasi, eh. And even pick and buy fancy pastel-colored clothes for me, kasi favorite niya 'yon."

And that explained to Uno why she had to leave his pad alone just to buy the dress shirt at Bershka, barring her unfamiliarity in Manila.

Her voice sounded to Uno's ears as both sad and euphoric, but the antecedent was dominating as per his instinct.

He threw his head back to look at her and to ask why she sounded off, but her enthralling yet hurting expressive eyes, trying to non verbally tell him, 'please don't ask', prompted him to dismiss his supposed question. He opted to lighten the mood by saying something that caused her to reveal an amiable smile.

"Let's have our halted movie marathon of KathNiel movies this weekend, Dos."