LOVE-NAT, isang makulit na lovestory!

Sara Louisa Dela Rama was watching through her window habang papaalis na sila Ken, Jill at Japo. She didn’t even bother to walk them out her house. Pero biglang bumukas yung pinto ng kwarto niya and Borge came in. Hindi man lang lumingon si Sara. They just stood on their places as silence befell upon them.

“Asan na si Ellie?” Sara then asked, her voice was barely a whisper.

“Umalis na, kasama si Sef.” Borge answered. Yung tono ng boses niya parang sinasabing, as if you care. “Ellie doesn’t deserve what you did.”

“I know Borge,” Sara said, still looking out the window.“I was just...”She sounded confused. “I... was just...”
“You were what?” Borge scoffed. “Wag mong sabihing nagseselos ka?”

Sara remained standing before the window. She didn’t utter any reply.

Borge took a step towards the sofa. “You like him don’t you?” Sa tanong ni Borge, biglang napalingon si Sara sakanya. “I mean, Max. You like him right?”

Sara didn’t answer. She sat down at the edge of her bed before saying,“Aalis na nga pala ako tonight, papuntang Australia.” Borge was simply looking at her friend. “Dun muna kami until New Year.” Patuloy lang sa pakikinig si Borge ng biglang siningit ni Sara. “Could you tell Ellie that I’m sorry?”

She was truly sorry. Naunahan kasi siya ng selos... at ng inggit? Haha. Funny isn’t? A girl like her who has everything was feeling all these towards her friend. At hindi lang basta friend. Dahil si Eleonor Malicsi Dimaculangan lang yun. Oo. Si Ellie lang.

Borge shook her head in disagreement. “No,” Borge reached out for the door. “You should tell her that yourself.”With that, Borge walked out her room.

Sara Louisa Dela Rama grew up thinking she could have everything. Tama nga siguro si Darren nung tinawag siya nitong spoiled brat. Nasanay kasi si Sara na nakukuha ang lahat ng gusto niya... but right now, she couldn’t seem to have that one guy she liked so much: si Darren Max Sanchez.

---

Eleonor Malicsi Dimaculangan

“Ellie!” Sef was trying to get my attention as he parked before a restaurant. The first thing that came across my mind was that, lilibre ulit ako ni Sef. Hindi naman ako ganun ka slow para hindi maisip agad yun. Hindi man lang nga ako nakakain kila Sara ee. Kung sa bagay, mas matagal pa nga ata yung binyahe ko papunta sa bahay nila kesa sa tinagal ko dun. “Wag mong sabihing aayaw ka sa libre?”

He already stepped out the car, pero ako nakaupo pa din dun. Oo, alam ko, given na yung katotohanan na mukha akong libre. Pero... hindi ba parang mali na toh? I mean, baka kasi... MASANAY ako masyado na nililibre ako ni Sef? Na... hinahatid niya ko? And that was the last thing I wanted to happen. Ang masanay ako.

Lumabas ako nung kotse and looked around, maganda yung lugar na pinuntahan namin. Simple lang siya na commercialized building. Para siyang square na tabi-tabi yung restaurants. “Oh, san mo ba gustong kumain?”

I wasn’t listening to him as I walked towards the bench na nasa gitna mismo nung square. Meron pa ngang mga fountains ee. Nakakatuwa naman ang ambiance dito.“Oi Ellie.” I heard Sef walking after me. Iniwan ko kasi siya bago pa siya pumasok nung resto. Akala niya kasunod niya siguro ako. Haha.

Sa totoo lang, hindi naman sa ayokong magpalibre.... wala lang din kasi ako sa mood kumain. Alam niyo, ang isang Dimaculangan na katulad ko ee meron din namang mga prinsipyo sa buhay at isa na dun ay: Magalit na saken ang buong mundo, wag lang ang mga taong mahal ko. Oo, ako yung tipong walang pakialam sa kung anong iniisip ng ibang tao. Pero, hindi ibang tao si Sara saken. Kaibigan ko siya. That’s why I am bothered this much.

Pero nawala sa isip ko ang galit ni Sara ng bigla ba namang inakbayan ako ni Miguel Josef Uy Monteverde. Aaawwww. Parang gusto sanang sabihin sakanya, Pwede, hug na lang? Wahahahaha. Asa ka naman Eleonor!!

“Ako ba nasa isip mo?” As usual, he sounded so sure of himself. Kainis naman toh, nagtatanong pa! Hindi pa ba obvious yung sagot? Haha.

I stopped walking, syempre napatigil din si Sef. Sa tangkad niya, he was looking down at me at ako naman nakatingin pataas sakanya. I crossed my arms as I looked teasingly at him. “So, naka-chansing ka niyan?”

He withdrew his arm that was wrapped around my shoulders. “Ikaw? Not in a thousand years!”

Hindi ko alam, I was giving Sef one naughty smile. “Ee kung ikaw tiyansingan ko, papayag ka?”

With that, parang nag-echo sa buong square yung malakas na tawa ni Miguel Josef Uy Monteverde.

Grabe naman makatawa toh, parang wala ng bukas aa? Pero infairness, nakakahawa siya... kasi naka-smile ako habang pinapanuod siya. Haiii... ganito ba talaga dapat? Parang nabubusog na ko sa sarap ng tawa niya. Hahaha.

God, I really love the way he laughs.

---

Miguel Josef Uy Monteverde was having so much fun sa munting kwentuhan nila ni Ellie. Yeah, they’ve been talking for hours now. At hindi nauubusan ng ikikwento ang dalaga. She was telling him about her siblings, si Eddy at si Em-Em. About the funny moments she had with Japo and Borge. And she would throw funny lines and would joke once in a while.

It was really unusual for someone like Sef to spend hours talking and listening to a girl just tell random stories. He found himself laughing and smiling every now and then. Napaka priceless ng mga facial expression ng dalagang nakaupo sa tabi niya ngayon.

Miguel Josef Uy Monteverde spent his life dating different girls every other night. Girls who found him too irresistible and charming. Girls who would do anything just to go out with him. Pero ni isa walang may gusto na talagang KILALANIN siya and most of all, no one would waste time telling their own life to him – unlike Ellie.

When Sef is dating a girl, he would usually bring her to a luxurious restaurant, or bring her to one of the most expensive bars and they would drink champaign all throughout the evening. Isang buong araw silang magkasama, but by the end of the night... automatic na mawawala na yung magic. Pagsikat na pagsikat ng araw hindi na kilala ni Sef ang babaeng kasama niyang natulog sa isang five star hotel. Haha. And just like that, parang routine lang every day & every night. Ganito naging social life ni Sef right after Lianne broke up with him. Sobrang nasabog ang binata.

But right now... he couldn’t believe it. Hindi isang kagaya ni Eleonor Malicsi Dimaculangan ang makakapag-pabago ng routine niyang yun. IMPOSIBLE. Not this girl.

“Waaaah!”biglang nabulalas ni Ellie. She was pointing the old man na naglalako ng dirty ice cream. “ICE CREAM!! Teka lang, jan ka lang...” She was saying. “Hawakan mo muna toh Sef.” She handed him her cellphone na kanina pa niya hawak-hawak. “Umupo ka lang, lilibre kita!! Haha.” With that, she went running towards the ice cream vendor.

Nagtatakang napatingin ang binata sa cellphone ni Ellie. NOKIA ang tatak. But he wasn’t familiar with it. Walang camera. As in simpleng cellphone lang. And all of a sudden, nagvibrate ang cellphone ng dalaga and the words, 154 new messages flashed on the screen.

Grabeeh, ibang klase!! Nag-cellphone pa ee hindi naman pala nagbabasa ng text messages. Curiously, he unlocked it and opened Ellie’s inbox. Mas lumalim tuloy ang kunot sa noo ni Sef ng makita niya mga pangalan ng mga nagttxt kay Ellie. Yung recent txter was named “Yakap-sul”. He scrolled down at meron pang name na Pusang-gala, Dudes muah... at kung anu-ano pang nakakalokang pangalan.

Ellie then came running with two ice creams at each hand.“Oh,” she said, inaabot niya yung isa kay Sef. Bigla niyang napansin na pinakialaman ni Sef yung phone niya. “Sabi ko hawakan mo lang yan.” Hinablot niya ito bigla.

“You’re unbelievable. Tapon mo lang kaya yang phone mo. Ano pang silbi niyan kung hindi ka naman nagbabasa ng txt?”

She glared at him. “Aba, ee NAGTITIPID AKO. Bakit ba?”

“Nagtitipid? Anong koneksyon nun?”

“Ang hina mo talaga ee. Pano kung importante yung txt? Ee di mapipilitan pa kong magpa-load para lang mag-reply!! Mabuti ng hindi ko binabasa, wala akong obligasyon na mag-txt back. Oh diba? Haha.”

Sef amusingly smiled at her. Umiiling. “Ibang klase.” He tasted his ice cream. “Chaka, bakit ganyan mga pangalan sa phonebook mo?”

“Lam mo? Magkaibigan talaga kayo ni Japo ano? Pareho kayong pakialamero.” She teased. “Kaya iba mga pangalan jan ee para proteksyon na din sa mga chismosong katulad mo. Wala ka tuloy idea who’s who.”
A minute or so, biglang napatahimik si Ellie as she was looking and pressing her phone. She was reading the txt message from Yakap-sul.

“Well.” Sef said, “It’s getting late. Gusto mo ng umuwi?”

Instead of saying Yes. She rather called his name. “Sef...” Ellie just looked at him, her eyes a bit serious. Para siyang nagaalangan. Nagulat tuloy ang binata. “Pwede mo ba kong samahan bukas?”
“Samahan? Saan?” But then again... how can he say NO to that? Sef has no idea why he was filled with excitement at the thought na aalis sila ni Ellie bukas lalo na at hindi pa naman Sabado.
“Bastaaaa...” She whined. “Pwede ka ba?”

“Naaadik ka na talaga saken ano?”

Namula ang muka ni Ellie. “HAY NAKU!! WAG NA NGA!!”Biglang tumayo ang dalaga at naglakad na papalayo.

“Oi, Ellie!” Sef called, walking after her. “Ellie! Sandali lang. Oo na nga. Sige na sasamahan na kita!”

"WAG NA!!"She shouted. "NAGBAGO NA ISIP KO!! KAY MAX NA LANG AKO MAGPAPASAMA!!"

By the mention of Max's name something immediately erupted inside Sef. Something unexplainable. "Darn it." he muttered as he caught Ellie by the arm. He pulled her so as to face him. Ellie was a bit surprised dahil muka agad ni Sef ang bumulaga sa kanya. "Sabi ko, I'll go with you." His eyes were set solely on her. He was dead serious kaya kinabahan tuloy bigla ang dalaga.

"S-sure ka?"She asked softly. She was conscious with his stare, na kala mo lalamunin siya ng buo. "Hindi ka pwedeng magdala ng kotse."

He let go of her arm. His brows furrowed to a serious knot. "I can't bring my car." He repeated more to himself. He threw one last glance at her before saying. "Okay. Fine by me."

"Sure ka?" Mapang-asar na tanong ni Ellie.

He smirked. "Definitely." He then moved forward, his face just an inch away from hers. He caught her completely off guard kaya namula tuloy ang muka ng dalaga. "Kahit ano pa kondisyon. Basta ba ikaw kasama ko."

AT KINILIG NAMAN ANG LOLA NIYO!!! WAHAHAHAHA.

To be continued.