Chapter 20

No girl in their right mind would say yes to a guy she barely knows. Hindi ko sya kilala at ganoon din sya sa akin. 

We barely know each other pero sa hindi maipaliwanag na dahilan ay hindi ako natatakot sa kanya. Iba ang nakikita kong Ivo ngayon sa Ivo na nakita ko noong Charity Ball. 

This Ivo na kasama ko ngayon ay iba. He is the Ivo na kasayaw ko. The gentle Ivo with his lazy smile. The Ivo I'm with now is the Ivo na gusto ko pang makilala. 

Sa mga nakita ko noong Charity Ball ay alam ko na may ideya si Ivo kung sino ang nasa likod ng pamamaril at sa tono ng pananalita ni Polina noong gabing iyon ay sa tingin ko ay hinahabol nila ang taong yun. I want to ask him how much does he know but I'm afraid that he won't tell or he doesn't trust me enough to tell me. 

What happened to my unit also bothers me. Hindi ko alam kung ano ang motibo ng taong nag-iwan ng sunog na ulo ng tao sa unit ko. I'm also thinking of giving Detective Michaels a call sa tingin ko ay sya ang taong makakatulong sa akin ngayon. 

But I set all those thoughts aside and stare at the person next to me. I ended up saying yes to Ivo. I ended agreeing with him and here I am in his bed. Face to face and staring at each other shamelessly.

Kung nandito lang si Alexavia baka inulan na ako ng asar nun. Hindi ko muna iku-kuwento ito sa kanya as of now, gusto ko na ako muna ang nakaalam. I want to keep this to myself first. 

Ivo's room screams nothing but masculinity, everything about this room was rich and lavish; I'm also in awe of how clean this place is. 

"A penny for your thoughts?" I looked at Ivo and smiled shyly at him.

"I'm just amazed at how clean your place is.. si Anthony kasi medyo makalat sa kwarto nya" 

He arched his eyebrow, "Anthony?" 

"Sorry, he is my brother. Hindi man biological pero we have this brother and sister bond" I smiled at him, "Ikaw? Do you have any siblings?" 

"I had one," he said I almost didn't hear him but I did. He had one. Past tense. 

I didn't know what to say next. Hindi ko rin kasi alam ang pakiramdam ng may kapatid ka at ngayon wala na ito. 

Sure, Anthony and I treat each other like siblings pero I think sometimes pag-kadugo mo talaga the connection runs deep. It runs so deep that their absence will cut you forever. 

"She died 5 years ago." he closes his eyes for a second, when he opened them again he stared at the ceiling and clenched his jaw, "She was kidnapped at the age of 16." 

Napaawang ang bibig ko sa sinabi. And here I was thinking that maybe she died because she was sick or maybe she had an accident. The word 'kidnap' never crossed my mind. I had read and watched the news about kidnapping and some survivors shared their experiences on some documentaries. I don't know how old his sister was at that time but I can only imagine how scared she was. 

"We still haven't caught the culprit yet," Ivo's eyes are now so intense and I can see the hatred in his eyes. All his hatred and anger for the past years are showing, he looks scary but I'm not scared, "But I'm close to capturing them and when I do. I'll make them pay," he paused for a moment then he added, "She's probably around your age if she didn't die. I'm sure you two will get along." 

I smiled sadly at him. I don't know what it feels like to lose a sibling, but I'm sure it is similar to losing your parents. Kung buhay pa siguro ang kapatid ni Ivo ay nasa University na rin siya ngayon. Studying the degree of her choice, cramming for exams, having fun, and creating memories. 

She'd be 21 too like me, but she was gone too soon. 

This is another side of Ivo that I didn't know. Hate colors the soul. It can spread throughout the entire system of a person, shutting down all other feelings, and becomes the center of their universe. I don't know him well enough but as I can see his hatred hasn't swallowed him yet. Paano ko nasabi? Because he's gentle with me. I know it's not a good enough reason pero I know for sure that he's still kind. 

Ivo is now facing me again and he smiled, his lazy smile again. He's now back on his calm aura na parang walang nangyari, na parang hindi nya sinabi ang isa sa mga personal na bagay sa kanya, "Did I scare you?" 

"No. You gotta try harder than that to scare me." I smiled at him and he laughed. 

"Wanna go somewhere tomorrow?" there's a twinkle in his eyes. 

"I have a class tomorrow and san naman tayo pupunta if sasama ako?" 

"I'll bring you somewhere relaxing." 

I fakely glared at him, "I don't know you well enough Mr. And what's my assurance na dadalhin mo nga sa isang safe and relaxing place?" 

"Missy, if I have planned on hurting you I could have done it way sooner Why would I invite my victim to my home?" 

"Fair enough," I laughed, "I'll come but in one condition" 

He rolled his eyes, "Ugh, women and their conditions", hinampas ko ang braso nya, "Grabe ka, hindi naman ganoon kabigat ang hihingin kong kondisyon, no" ani ko sa kanya and I pouted. 

Ivo laughed again, I really like hearing him laugh mas bumabata kasi sya. "Sige, ano ba yun?" 

"We should be back by noon because I still have things to do in school" 

He touched his chin, kunyaring nag-iisip, "Hmm.. Okay, we have a deal." I smiled at him. Ilang beses na ba akong ngumite ngayon? Kung nandito si Alexavia talagang uulanin ako ng asar nun knowing her she'll probably wiggle her eyebrows at me. 

Tumayo si Ivo, "Oh? San ka pupunta?" I dumbly asked. 

"We should sleep. We'll leave early tomorrow kung gusto mo makabalik tayo sa city ng maaga," I nodded at him and watch him walk towards the door. 

"Ivo," he turned to me and I smiled genuinely at him, "Thank you for today. Thank you for keeping my worries away. It means a lot" 

He only smiled and left the room. I grabbed the nearest pillow next to me and screamed in delight. I was smiling ear to ear and then finally sleep came. 

            As I rose from my heavy slumber I am first aware of the coolness of the air and the smell of coffee with it. I noticed that the bedsheets are different and the room too, I almost asked myself where I was when I remembered what happened last night. 

"Haaay, Skyla.. baliw ka na?" I asked myself. 

I turned to my right and noticed a figure standing on the terrace. I stood up and walked towards the terrace. Ivo is standing there so tall and he has this faraway look on his face. 

I cleared my throat, "Good morning," I say and he seemed to snap out of his reverie. He smiled when he saw me. How can someone look this fresh at 6:30 am? Na-conscious naman ako sa itsura ko kaya bahagya kong inayos ang buhok ko gamit ang kamay ko. OMG! Baka may muta pa ako? 

I want to kick myself! Hindi man lang ako nag-hilamos at nagsuklay. Kung nandito si Alexavia for sure bulyaw ang abot ko sa kanya. Minus ganda points na ata ako agad kay Ivo. 

"Good morning," he said and smiled, ngumite rin ako sa kanya kahit na siguro na mukha akong timang sa itsura ko ngayon. As if reading my thoughts he said, "You're still beautiful. Don't worry too much" he chuckles. Bago pa man ako makasagot ay iniba nya na ang usapan. "Did you sleep well?" 

I nodded, "Yes, thank you" kinuha nya mug na nasa lamesa at binigay sa akin. 

"I didn't know your preference so I chose something that my sister used to drink. I hope you don't mind" 

I closed my eyes as I smelled the coffee, umiling ako sa kanya, "I don't mind. I like caffè mocha too, one of my favorites" I grinned at him. 

"That's good to know. Anyway, aalis na tayo in 30 minutes. You think you are ready by that time?", he teased. 

I pouted, "Hindi naman ako ganoon katagal mag-bihis at mag-ayos, no" 

Humalakhak sya, "Sure. Sabi mo eh. See you in 30 minutes?" I nodded and gave him a thumbs up. Umiling-iling sya sa akin habang nakangite saka umalis. I watched him leave and I'm still smiling like an idiot. 

Halos madaliin ko ang pag-kain sa agahan na inihanda ni Ivo. Call me a girl scout dahil lagi akong handa sa overnights. Back in my first year in Uni, madalas kami mag overnight ni Alexavia. I almost make sure na may extra akong undies sa bag in case of unplanned overnights.

I hurriedly gathered my things and went straight to the bathroom para mag-ayos. After taking a shower, sinuot ko ulit yung suot ko kahapon, my jeans and my red shirt with a cat print.

Hindi ba ako mukhang jejemon? Hindi naman siguro ako magmu-mukhang katiwala ni Ivo if I stand next to him, right? Errr, I'm hopeless. I wish Alexavia was here, for sure alam nya ang sasabihin sa akin sa mga sitwasyong ganito.

I grabbed my phone and I thought of calling Alexavia pero I stopped myself before I can press 'call'. How will I explain to her what happened? How will I explain to her everything? Binalik ko sa bag ko ang smartphone ko. I looked at myself at the mirror at tinapik-tapik ang mukha ko.

"Gather your wits, Skyla. Don't panic." I immediately went back to fixing myself. Applied some powder on my face and a gloss on my lips. 

Halos takbuhin ko ang pintuan palabas and Ivo was there. He was outside leaning on his car and he grinned at me, "You're almost late" 

"Almost. Almost lang" I say as I catch my breath, "but still on time" I smiled at him. 

He walked towards me and I'm still smiling like a crazy fangirl at him. He stopped in front of me, yumuko ng konti para magkasing-tangkad kami and he had a look on his face that I couldn't read. He leaned close and stared at my face. He looked very solemn. 

Why is he staring at me like this? May muta pa ba ako? Or baka naman I didn't wash my face enough at nakakita sya ng dumi? He leaned closer again and anytime soon I'm going to lose my mind if lalapit pa sya lalo. 

Klaro ba ang pores ko? Sana wala akong pores! Nakakahiya, my goodness. Sobrang flawless ng mukha ni Ivo. I'm really going to take Alexavia's advice on skincare. Heck, I might even follow her skincare day and night routine. 

We are staring at each other and he smiled at me, showing his pearly white teeth. He raised his right arm and touched my ponytailed hair and gently pulled my hair tie. My long hair fell back down my back, "Beautiful," he whispered and stepped back to me. 

He walked back to his car when I didn't follow he turned to me and said, "Come on, it's an hr drive," 

I only stared at him still confused about what happened. I touched my chest where my heart is, "Aatakihin ata ako ginawa mo Ivo," I whispered to myself and walked towards his car. 

The drive to the relaxing place he said wasn't awkward. Hindi ko rin alam ang gagawin at sasabihin ko sa kanya if ever naging awkward kami pero I'm glad dahil hindi. 

 I'm enjoying the view around me as we drive. Isa ito sa mga matagal ko ng gustong gawin ang pumunta sa country side. Mas peaceful kasi dito and less pollution compare sa city. Malayo sa traffic jams, noisy neighborhood and of course, responsibilities. 

I haven't checked my phone yet, pero kanina pa ito tumutunog so I turned it off. I know that the people I care about are probably worried about me but for now, I'll enjoy this and I'll explain to them later. 

"Wow," I said in awe as I stare at the ocean. Kailan ba ako huling nag-beach? Hindi ko na maalala but this is my first time for the longest time. I turned to Ivo and he's already smiling at me. 

When Ivo stopped the car, I immediately removed my seatbelt, opened the door and ran to the shore. I didn't care if my jeans get wet, I'm too happy to care. The ocean is blue as the morning sky, the sea breeze is refreshing and cold. 

I closed my eyes and breathe, I should have done this sooner. The ocean lapped at the white sand leaving its lacy foam to trail the waves as they retreated. When I opened my eyes I saw a starfish, kinuha ko iyon and turned to Ivo who is now standing next to me. 

It's a red starfish, I placed it at my right ear and said, "Ano, bagay ba?" 

Ivo smiled at me and nodded, I laughed at him, I kneeled on the sand and I set the starfish free. The ocean waves took it with them. I stood up and looked at Ivo, "Thank you so much," gusto kong maiyak pero I held myself together, "this really means a lot to me" I sniffed and smiled at him. 

Ivo has this unreadable expression again on his before he smiled at me, "You're welcome, Skyla" and before I knew it bigla nalang ako binuhat ni Ivo. 

"Hoy Ivo! What are you doing?" 

"This," he says and he ran to the ocean. We both laughed as I try to get out of his hold but Ivo is strong and kept me in his arms. The water is cold but it didn't bother us. We played like little kids na first-time sa beach. 

We were both smiling from ear to ear. I don't know how long we stayed at the ocean and played but when we got tired, we both sat on the shore and watch the ocean in front of us. 

Sitting next to each other, I leaned my head on his shoulder, "Ayoko ng umuwi", he laughed at me, I raised my head and looked at him, "What's funny?" 

"Nothing, you're cute. We can always come back" 

"Pinky swear?" I raised my pinky at him. Umiling-iling si Ivo as he smiled and raised his pinky finger and entwined it with mine, "I promise. Pinky swear," ani nya. 

We both smiled at each other and watched the ocean again. I'll forever remember this moment and I can't deny that this one will be surely one of my favorites. And I can't wait to come back again.

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