#WretchedChoicesWP

Chapter 10
Tonkatsu

I played with some petals of the roses which Zymond gave me as I was seated comfortably on his expensive car's passenger seat. I couldn't stop myself from smiling and feeling good because of the satisfaction I felt from what happened earlier.

As expected, going out with a popular individual would create a huge reaction. Zymond even helped me with my plan when he escalated everything by drawing in watchers and prepared a bouquet for me which seemed so romantic.

I'm sure if others would experience the same thing I did, they would go crazy and fall head over heels with this playboy. But no... Not me.

"You seem to love the roses..." he suddenly spoke after being so quiet. "I have no idea what kind of flower you like, but I chose that because it's popular with girls. I hope you like roses."

No, I don't like roses since it's too mainstream and overrated. I love peonies, but because I need to flatter him, let's go accordingly to his expectation.

I turned to him with a bright smile on my face. "Of course! I love roses."

His face lit up even more. "I'm glad you love it."

Habang suot-suot pa rin ang aking ngiti ng tagumpay, inilihis ko ang aking tingin mula sa kanya at ibinaba sa mga mapupulang rosas.

"Thank you..." I sweetly thanked him. "To be honest, I wasn't expecting you'd prepare flowers."

"Really?"

Ang tuwa sa kanyang boses ay umaalingawngaw sa aking pandinig.

Who would've thought that he'd be this shallow?

I thought it would be a challenging game since he's one of the players, but I guess it'll be a boring game once again.

"Perhaps... Am I the first guy who gave you flowers?" He sounded so hopeful, but I need to be honest on this one.

"I've been in a few relationships so, no..." I honestly answered for the first time since I met him earlier.

His eyebrows shot up and glanced at me, while he's still trying to focus on driving. "Few relationships, huh?" He caught those keywords. "Marami ka nang naging boyfriend?"

"Just three..." I said, which was partly true.

Sa lahat ng mga naging ka-relasyon ko, tatlo lang naman ang sineryoso ko, pero niloko nga ako. The rest were all victims to my sweet revenge plan.

"What happened?" he asked curiously.

I smiled, bitterly. "They cheated on me."

His eyes widened a bit from shock. "All three of them?"

Quietly, I nodded and turned away. "I guess I really have a bad luck when it comes to relationships."

"It's not that you have bad luck. Maybe you just haven't found your luck yet..."

I resisted so hard to react and raise my eyebrows. Why do I feel like some cringey lines will follow those words?

"I hope I can give you luck this time like how you've proven to me that I still have luck when you agreed to meet me."

And he's done it...

A tongue of a playboy. Really. You'd really know if he's being sincere or if he just wanted to make a fool out of you.

I bit my lower lip and narrowed my eyes as I look at him. "I was actually having second thoughts when you asked me out..." I said to scare him a little. "You've got a bad history with your past girlfriends, especially your relationship with two volleyball players which you dated... at the same time."

I made sure that I put emphasis on my last killer phrase.

Mukhang hindi niya inaasahan na sasabihin ko 'yon. He suddenly looked uneasy as his grip on the steering wheel tightened. Balisa siyang tumawa at saka ngumiti sa akin.

"I've learned from my mistakes..." he reasoned out. "I won't try and make excuses, but you know, people change and so do I."

Here we go again with those overused words. What's next? The famous line of a playboy?

"Hindi na ako katulad ng mga naging karelasyon mo," seryosong panimula niya. "Nagbago na ako. If ever you'd give me a chance to take our relationship to the next level, I promise you that I won't hurt you. I won't be like them."

Gusto kong matawa. Parang joke sa pandinig ko ang mga salitang lumalabas sa bibig niya lalo na't sawang-sawa na akong madinig ang mga linya na 'yan. These playboys should start writing new lines to woo girls. Walang-wala na itong bisa.

If I was a newbie to this game, I'd be the loser right from the start 'cause his words would be enough to make me tremble and fall, but luckily, I knew better. He's only a player, while I play this game as an administrator. I'd be the one to control everything.

"I don't know..." I played hard to get. "For now, I just want to get to know you more. You know... Apart from what those tv and magazine interviews say about you."

"Then, I would also like to know you more," he said with high expectations.

"Good to know that we're right on the same page," I just said to give him any response.

We didn't travel that far from our campus. He parked the car on an elegant-looking Japanese restaurant.

"I already made some reservation last night when you accepted my invitation," he told me after unbuckling his seatbelt. "I hope you'll like it. This restaurant has the best Japanese food here in the Metro."

I lightly shrugged my shoulders. "I'm not picky when it comes to food so, I don't really mind."

"Let's go, then."

Acting like a sweet gentleman, Zymond opened the door for me and even offered his hand as we went upstairs. From the entrance, we were already ushered by a staff to the private room he reserved.

It was exactly how I saw it in some Japanese movies and dramas where they held secret rendezvous.

"Here's the menu po. I'll be back in five to take your orders. Arigatou!" That's what the waitress said before she left us for privacy as we decide what food to eat from the menu.

I was actually feeling slightly uncomfortable sitting on the floor with only a cushion to support my bottom. Wala rin itong sandalan. It was slightly traditional. Siguro ay masasanay rin ako kapag tumagal-tagal.

"You should try their tonkatsu," Zymond suddenly blurted while he's focusing on picking foods. "It's their best-seller. Also, ichiran ramen!"

Looking at him right now, he looks like a Japanese food enthusiast. The cool aura he showed earlier has submerged into something different.

Nang mapansing nakatingin ako sa kanya ay nag-angat siya ng tingin sa akin. Hindi rin mawala sa kanyang ekspresyon ang medyo pagkagulat.

"Is there something wrong?" he asked.

Ngumit naman ako at saka umiling. "Natutuwa lang ako," sabi ko. "Mukhang paborito mong kainan ito."

The confused look on his face was finally gone. He smiled and nodded. "I have a thing for Japanese foods," he said. "This is really my most favorite Japanese restaurant. I'm always craving for their food."

"I'll trust you, then," I decided. "Ikaw na ang bahalang mag-order ng pagkain natin."

Mas lalo naman siyang natuwa sa aking naging desisyon. Pagkabalik ng waitress ay sinabi na niya ang aming mga order. Pagkatapos ay nagpaalam siyang pupunta saglit sa banyo.

Ginamit ko ang oras na 'yon para tingnan ang aking cellphone. I found a recent message from my second-degree cousin who happened to be a friend of one of his ex since they were both in the same volleyball team.

If you think I came to this fight empty handed then, you're wrong. I'm currently allied to his ex with the help of my cousin. Good thing that his ex was still filled with hatred and bitterness from being cheated on. She's very willing to cooperate with my plan.

From: Aliyah
Keia, kasama mo na ba si Zymond?

I replied as soon as I read the message.

To: Aliyah
Yes. Ano ang sabi ni Selene?

Fortunately, Aliyah replied sooner as expected. Looks like she's waiting for my reply when she texted earlier.

From: Aliyah
She's asking if Zymond brought you to his favorite Japanese restaurant.

Napataas ako ng kilay. Mukhang gawain na ni Zymond dalhin dito ang mga babaeng nakakadate niya. Naging interesado tuloy ako sa sasabihin ni Selene.

To: Aliyah
Yes... What's up with this restaurant?

Mabilis ang naging pagreply ni Aliyah kahit na medyo mahaba ang kanyang sinabi.

From: Aliyah
Apparently, that's where he usually brings his girls. Sabi ni Selene ay ilang beses na rin daw silang nagdate riyan noong sila pa. That's also where she caught him cheating on her with some other girl.

Bahagya akong natawa sa nabasa. Not only that his words were overused, even his style and ways to please a girl didn't change.

I was about to type in my reply when Zymond return from the restroom. I quickly opened my Twitter app to check the trending topics.

A ghostly smile escaped my lips when I saw Zymond's name on the trending list. Even if it's only rank 19, it's still trending. My timeline is also flooded with tweets about us. He's that relevant, huh?

"You're currently trending on Twitter," bungad ko sa kanya nang bumalik siya sa kanyang upuan sa aking harapan. "Siguro ay nang dahil 'to sa pagsundo mo sa akin sa school kanina. I should've just asked you to meet me somewhere secluded. I'm sorry."

His forehead suddenly creased. "Why are you saying sorry?" he asked. "It doesn't matter to me. Sanay na ako. I'm actually more worried about you."

"Me?" I innocently asked.

He nodded. "You look like someone who doesn't want to be a center of attraction. You look more reserved."

I really don't, but it's needed in order for my plan to succeed. Kung tahimik lang kaming magda-date ay walang ingay na magaganap. I shouldn't have wasted my time dating him if that's the case. Pero dahil umaayon ang lahat sa plano ko, ayos lang sa akin. This wouldn't last anyway. Ilang araw lang ang bibilangin ko.

"Well... You can say that," sabi ko na lang. "Pero ayos lang sa akin. Mukhang hindi naman mapipigilan."

"I can still try telling my followers not to invade our privacy, especially yours. If you're uncomfortable, just tell me," he told me something so promising.

I smiled. "That's so sweet of you. Thank you."

"Anything for you," he said another cliché line.

Mabuti na lang at hindi rin nagtagal ay dumating na ang pagkain namin. Tinatamad na akong makipag-usap sa kanya kaya pagkatapos kong puriin ang lasa ng pagkain ay nagseryoso na ako sa pagkain.

I never imagined that this would be a boring date. Or maybe, I just really got used to dating boys that it doesn't excite me anymore.

My treacherous mind suddenly reminded me of the time I spent with Archer last Saturday. Kapag siya ang kasama ko ay hindi ako nabo-bored. He could easily manage to bring out different emotions from me.

"Are you done eating?"

Nag-angat ako ng tingin kay Zymond at saka tumango. "Ang dami mong inorder. Hindi ko na maubos."

He quickly scanned the table for my leftover food.

I was only able to eat one-fourth portion of the huge tokatsu because the serving of ichiran ramen was plenty enough to fill my stomach. If I was hungry, I could finish it all. However, I was also not feeling the atmosphere.

"If you want, we can ask the waitress to wrap it so that you can take it home," he suggested.

And since my grandmother always tells me not to waste food, I agreed to his suggestion. I'll just take home the remaining tonkatsu on my plate.

After Zymond settled the bill, we went back to his car and he started the engine without further ado.

"Saan ka nga pala nakatira?" tanong niya sa akin habang nagmamaneobra palabas ng parking lot. "Ihahatid na kita."

Umiling naman ako at ngumiti. "Just drive me back to school."

Mukhang hindi niya inaasahan ang sagot ko at natigil siya upang tumingin sa akin nang mabuti. Hindi ko na siya hinayaang magtanong pa at sinabi ko na ang aking dahilan.

"I brought my car earlier to school," I reasoned out.

"Oh..." He suddenly looked kinda disappointed. "Next time, then."

Muntik-muntikan ko nang mataasan ng kilay si Zymond. Mabuti na lang at agad kong napigilan ang sarili ko.

He's looking forward to next time, huh?

Let's see...

If I wouldn't be able to break a layer of that man yet, guess I have to continue this little game to keep me busy. But I hope that next time wouldn't be as boring as what we had earlier.

Kung saan niya ako sinundo kanina ay roon niya rin ako binaba. He told me to text him once I get home, but I think I would forget it by then.

Habang naglalakad ako patungo sa parking area ng campus ay may iilang mga babaeng napapadoble ng lingon sa akin. I just walked confidently and stayed unbothered while they were paying a lot of attention to me. Mabuti na lang at hindi ganoong kalayo sa Gate 3 ang parking area. Hindi rin naging mahirap ang biyahe pauwi dahil himala at wala masyadong traffic.

Pagkarating sa bahay ay agad akong tumungo sa kusina upang ilagay sa ref ang uwi-uwi kong take-out na tonkatsu. Hindi ko naman inaasahan na mayroon akong ibang nilalang na madadatnan.

Archer was having a fun conversation with my mother, but once he spotted me entering the dining, he stopped and stared at me like I did something wrong. Napalingon din tuloy sa akin si Mommy.

"You're home," she said, and I went closer to kiss her cheek as a form of greeting. "Kanina ka pa hinihintay ni Archer dito sa bahay."

Pagkatapos kong humalik kay Mommy ay nilipat ko ulit kay Archer ang tingin ko. Nilapag ko sa lamesa ang dala kong paper bag kung saan nakalagay ang tonkatsu at kita kong sinundan iyon ng tingin ni Archer.

"Maiwan ko na muna kayo," biglang sabi ni Mommy at nagmamadaling lumabas ng kusina upang maiwanan kaming dalawa ni Archer.

I kept my stoic expression while deep inside me, I was already celebrating 'cause my plan seemed to reach him.

Tingnan natin ngayon kung hanggang saan ka pa magmamatigas, Archer.