Loving My Ex Again

Chris lowered his head and kissed Alison passionately on her lips. She kissed him back and hugged him tightly so she could feel his warm body against her. She tasted the sweet wine they had just consumed over dinner. Chris cupped her bottom and immediately felt her body tensed. She felt the wall against her back as Chris pressed his body to her.  He thrust his tongue deeper and explored every corner of Alison’s mouth.  She couldn’t hold it any longer. She worked her way to his belt and unbuckled it hurriedly. But Chris suddenly held her hand and stopped her.  Alison was about to protest but Chris quickly covered her mouth with his hand. KRIIING! KRIIING! (Sound of 6:00 AM alarm) Biglang nagising si Alison dahil sa tunog ng alarm clock. Huh, wala akong makita. Buong unan ang nakatakip sa mukha ni Alison at yakap yakap niya ito kaya wala siyang makita. When she realized that it was her pillow covering her face, biglang naihagis ni Alison ang unan sa inis. “Aahrg! Bwisit kang unan ka! Akala ko si Chris na ang kayakap ko!” Isinigaw na lang ni Alison sa hangin ang pagkadismaya niya. Sa panaginip niya, malinaw na nakita niyang very intimate sila ni Chris. Isa lang ang ibig sabihin noon…hindi pa talaga nakaka-move-on si Alison sa break-up nila ni Chris. Limang buwan na ang nakalipas pero palagi pa ding sumasagi sa isip niya si Chris. Si Chris Villamayor ay ang ex-boyfriend ni Alison and they had been together for 5 years, since their freshman year in college, 17 years old sila noon. 7:45 AM. One last look. Alison stepped backward and eyed her reflection in the full-length mirror then checked her outfit of the day (OOTD) -- peach-colored blouse tucked in a black skirt hugging her voluptuous hips and showing her smooth legs. Good.  Then she looked closer and checked her make-up --light eye make-up emphasizing her almond-shaped eyes, nude cheeks and lip tint, neatly brushed eyebrows, and mascara that made her lashes look longer. Perfect. Alison was working as an Assistant Manager in a Real Estate Company. She wanted so hard to get a promotion the reason why she didn't want to be late for work. At 22, she was the youngest officer in their company and she really wanted to become a manager soon. Kaya pinagbubutihan niya ang trabaho niya. This was one of the reasons kung bakit nag-break sila ni Chris because of lack of quality time for each other. As soon as Alison alighted from the taxi, she ran towards the building entrance and checked the wall clock in the lobby. 8:55 AM. Kaya pa, 5 minutes.   “Up, up, wait, wait!” Alison was running towards the elevator and was frantically waving at the man standing inside. “Thank you, thank you so much.”  Pagkapasok ay yumukod pang bahagya si Alison para magpasalamat. Sa isang sipat lang ay nakilatis na agad ni Alison ang nag-iisang lalaking sakay ng elevator. 5’8” ang height, around 70 kg. ang weight, blue suit matches his bluish eyes, neatly combed thick, dark hair. All checked. 30 years old? Hmmm, mukhang yummy. Kumusta naman kaya ang abs. May pa-abs kaya si Daddy Yummy? “Miss…what floor please?” It was actually the third time that Gerald Garcia asked Alison. Obviously, Alison was staring at him, eyeing him from head to foot. “What floor, miss?” Medyo iritable na si Gerald. “Huh? Ahh…floor? Right, floor…” Halatang nataranta si Alison nang mapansin na nahuli siyang nakatitig ng lalaki and she felt her face turn red. She glanced quickly at the buttons and saw that 38th was lighted. “Uh, same, Sir, 38th.” She smiled sheepishly and stayed silent until they reached 38th floor. Umayos ka, Alison. Nakakahiya ka, ang aga aga. Kung makakilatis ka para ka namang sabik na sabik. The whole morning, Alison tried to focus on her work. She was assigned to the PR and Marketing Department of Diamond Holdings, one of the top Real Estate companies in the country. As soon as she finished the draft she was writing for their newest condominium project, Mariz, the boss’ secretary, called her, signaling that their boss wanted to see her. Tumayo naman agad si Alison at nagpasalamat kay Mariz when she passed by her table. “Good morning, Sir.” Alison greeted Mr. Alvin Reyes, the Department Manager. Then she looked at the other man sitting across Mr. Reyes, and bowed her head. Then stopped midway and looked up again to check if she was seeing the right man. Wow, small world, dito pala ang punta ni Daddy Yummy. “Good morning, Sir.” Bati ni Alison sabay ngumiti nang matamis. “Alison, I want you to meet Mr. Gerald Garcia. Siya ang bago nating VP for PR and Marketing, appointed by the Head Office.” Mr. Reyes introduced Alison to Gerald. Bahagya lang na tumango si Gerald at tiningnan si Alison mula ulo hanggang paa. Ni wala man lang kahit isang ngiti sa labi. “Oh, hi, Mr. Yummy…ay, este…Mr. Garcia.” Nagkanda-utal-utal sa pagbati si Alison. “Welcome to our Department, Sir.” Alison finished her greetings.  Their eyes met and she felt right away na mukhang mahihirapan siya sa bagong VP. “Gerald, Alison here is my Assistant. She’s actually good at writing PR materials so I assigned all the major articles under her care. Minor ones like photo releases are done by her staff. Right now, she’s working on a feature story for our newest condominium project and it’s expected to be published this weekend at the business section of all major broadsheets.” Mr. Reyes was proud of Alison because aside from being smart and efficient, she’s beautiful and is oftentimes called the muse of their department. Muli, tumango lang si Gerald and turned to Mr. Reyes. “That’s good. Since I will be pushing for the rebranding of our company, we have to come up with really good PR material. I expect an excellent job from your team.” Dumiretso ang tingin niya kay Alison pagkasabi nito. Juice colored, bakit parang nanginig pati  t*mbong ko sa sinabi niya. Hmm…mukhang mahihirapan ako kay Daddy Yummy, ah. At grabe pa makatingin.Tsk. Alison was talking to herself and was caught off-guard nang mapansin ni Gerald na kumunot ang noo niya. “May problema ba, Alison?” Gerald asked Alison who was startled upon hearing his voice. “Huh…wala, Sir, wala po. Everyting is clear. Singlinaw po ng kalangitan ngayon.” Sabay itinuro pa ni Alison ang ulap na kitang kita mula sa kinatatayuan nila sa opisina ni Mr. Reyes. Floor to ceiling glass wall ang nakapalibot sa opisina ni Mr. Reyes kaya kitang kita ang ulap at kung titingin ka naman sa ibaba ay kita ang iba’t ibang taas ng mga building. Agad ding natapos ang meeting at bumalik na si Alison sa puwesto niya. DURING lunchbreak, Mariz and Alison were talking about the new VP. “Talaga ba? OMG, palagi na pala natin siyang makikita?” Mariz was excited upon hearing from Alison that Gerald is the new VP in their department. “Well, masaya nga sana, nakaka-GV kaya ang makakita palagi ng guwapo. Kaya lang, mukhang suplado.” “Bakit mo naman nasabi? Ilang oras pa lang naman kayong nagkakausap.” Nagtataka naman si Mariz. “Feeling ko lang. Kasi parang nagbibenta ng ngiti.” Alison laughed and natawa na din si Mariz. “Ah, so mahal ang ngiti? Kailangan pa nating magbayad?” Mariz asked laughing. “Korek, girl. Buti sana kung kasama sa package ang katawan, haist papakyawin ko na!” Alison was joking and they both laughed heartily. THE NEXT MORNING, Alison made sure that she won’t be late. She woke up earlier than usual and managed to get to the office 30 minutes early. She went straight to the pantry and prepared a cup of coffee.  While pouring water on her cup, bigla na lang pumasok si Gerald at nagulat si Alison. Hindi niya namalayan na sa kamay na niya nabuhos ang tubig na dapat ay sa tasa. “Ouch!” Alison cried feeling the hot water on her skin. Mabilis namang nakalapit si Gerald at hinawakan agad ang kamay niya. “Ok ka lang ba? Masakit ba?” Gerald was so concerned that Alison was actually more surprised with his expression rather than her minor burn that she temporarily forgot the pain. “Ah, Sir, ok lang po ako. Buti hindi naman po bagong kulo ang tubig…medyo mild na paso lang po.” Then Alison tried to pull her hand but Gerald kept on holding it at hinihimas himas pa ang parteng napaso. “No, we’ll go to the clinic. I’m sure they have ointment for minor burns.” Gerald continuously showed his concern. Ay, ang sweet naman pala ni Daddy Yummy. Alison was flustered with Gerald’s gesture kaya hinayaan na lang niya na akayin siya nito papunta sa clinic. Going to the elevator, Gerald was still holding Alison’s hand and their officemates were all looking at them with curious stares as they passed by the cubicles. Ang iba naman ay humanga sa kanila dahil bagay na bagay sila at mapagkakamalang celebrity couple. Aside from the pantry incident in the morning, Alison’s day went on smoothly throughout the day. At 5:00 PM, one hour before the end of office hours, everyone in their department received a message in their group chat. Mr. Reyes: We will have a company dinner later to welcome our new VP, attendance is a must. I reserved a VIP room in Savvy’s Bar Café at 7:00 PM. After reading the message, Alison replied by sending ‘like’. Then everyone else has also sent ‘like’ reactions. THE VIP ROOM can accommodate a maximum of 20 pax. Late ng 30 minutes sina Alison at Mariz dahil nahirapan silang kumuha ng taxi sa labas ng office kanina. At dahil sila nalang ang hinihintay, may dalawang reserved seats na para sa kanilang dalawa. Magkatapat ang dalawang bakanteng upuan, ang isa ay sa tabi ni Gerald while the other one is beside Mr. Reyes. Nakipag-unahan talaga si Alison kay Mariz at mabilis na naupo sa tabi ni Mr. Reyes. Sa tapat niya napaupo si Mariz, na ang katabi ay si Gerald. Masaya ang lahat na nagkainan at nag-inuman. Ipinakilala ni Mr. Reyes si Gerald bilang bagong VP. Natuwa naman ang lahat dahil bukod sa guwapo ng bagong VP ay malakas ang karisma nito. Ibang iba sa nakilala ni Alison na halos ayaw ngumiti. Nang gabing iyon ay madalas na nakangiti si Gerald at masayang nakikipagkuwentuhan sa mga kasama nila sa mahabang mesa. Si Alison naman ay tahimik na nag-i-enjoy sa pakikinig at sa pag-inom. Namumula na siya at medyo tipsy na. Mayamaya ay nag-excuse si Alison to go to the restroom. She tried hard to walk straight kahit parang nahihilo na siya. But she managed to go to the restroom, which is located outside the VIP room at naglakad siya up to the far end of the bar. On her way to the restroom, napadaan siya sa isang table na pang-waluhan. Masaya ding nag-iinuman ang mga nakaupo doon at maiingay na din dahil mukhang madami nang nainom. Pagdaan niya sa tapat ng mesang iyon ay biglang may tumayo at muntik na siyang tamaan mabuti na lang ay naka-atras siya kaagad. Mabilis ang hakbang niya paatras at muntik na din siyang matumba, kung hindi siya nasalo ng lalaki na nakatayo sa likuran niya. Alison was more shocked seeing the man who almost bumped into her. Kung nagulat siya sa mga kamay na sumalo sa kanya, mas nagulat siya sa lalaking nakabangga sa kanya. Tama ba ang nakikita ko? O lasing na siguro talaga ako? Ang lalaki ay walang iba kundi si Chris. Parang nawala ang pagka-tipsy ni Alison. Bigla siyang tumayo nang tuwid at yumukod ng bahagya kay Chris. “Naku, sorry, ‘di ko sinasadya.” Sabi agad ni Alison kay Chris. Si Chris naman ay ngumiti din at hinawakan pa sa balikat si Alison. “It’s okay, Ali, it was not your fault. Di ko din sinasadya na matamaan kita pag tayo ko.” Pagkasabi nito ay sabay binalingan ni Chris ang lalaki sa likuran ni Alison na noon lang din naalala ni Alison na may sumalo nga pala sa muntik na niyang pagkakatumba kanina. “Bro, how are you?” Chris extended his hand to Gerald. “Hi Chris, I’m good. Musta bro?” Agad na sagot ni Gerald at nakipagkamay kay Chris. Si Alison naman ay biglang napalingon at nagulat nang makita si Gerald. “Naku, Sir, sorry, ikaw pala ang nasa likuran ko. Thank you, Sir, thanks po sa pagsalo sa akin.” Alison was looking at Gerald’s face and saw the coldness in his eyes when he replied. “I had no choice, anyway, Alison. Kung di kita sinalo matatapakan mo ako.” Was Gerald’s brief reply. Hindi na kumibo si Alison at nagpaalam na kaagad sa kanila. Pag dating sa restroom, napahinga nang malalim si Alison while looking at her reflection in the mirror. Hindi niya maintindihan ang nararamdaman niya. Excited ba siya dahil sa pagkakakita kay Chris? O galit ba siya dahil sa inasal ng boss niya? So damn rude. Pwede namang mag-acknowledge na lang sa pasasalamat ko. Hmp. Alison thought that Gerald was so arrogant and she didn’t have the courage to talk back because, first, he is her boss. Second, andun si Chris, mahihiya siyang gumawa ng eksena. Hmm…ang guwapo pa din ni Chris. Di ko man lang nahingi  ang bagong number niya. Minsan na kasing nag-attempt si Alison na makipag-ayos kay Chris through text pero hindi na iyon ang number ni Chris. Hindi na din niya ito friend sa social media. Completely out of touch na ang peg nilang dalawa right after their break-up. Pero kilala pala siya ni Sir Gerald. Sa kanya kaya ako humingi ng number ni Chris? Pagka-isip niyon ay nangiti lang si Alison at tatango-tango.