Wednesday (3 Days Before Housewarming Party)

7:30 am at Brooklyn

Winter's POV

"I will see you again on Friday same time. I'm gonna miss you, you look really pretty. Prends soin de toi or Fais attention à toi, jy vais!" I waved at her one more time bago ako umalis at nag lakad palayo.

It is my free day but there's a lot of things to accomplish so I'm gonna have to go out today. I also need a quick run to the bodega because I plan to cook for Chaewon. I'm gonna bring it to her apartment so we can have breakfast together.

Kaninang 5:00am pa ako gising because I finished some papers for school and I had to prepare for my job interview later this afternoon. Medyo nagdadalawang isip na ako with the job offer at the cafe because my schedule will be hectic, alam ko na hindi ko na talaga kakayanin.  Although these are part time jobs it might reach to a point that it would affect my course meetings and I can't sacrifice my school obligations because of work.

I immediately went back to the apartment after I got all the ingredients I need. I want to make some healthy meals for Chaewon because she's been so busy these past few days and I bet that she's not eating right. We were supposed to meet yesterday after my class but we had to resched because she couldn't leave the studio. According to her there are tons of meetings that she had to attend to as they plan to create new EPs in the first quarter of next year. She also mentioned that they are choosing a release date that's just right in time for the EDM tour in Europe. When she was trying to explain it to me on the phone last night, sa totoo lang hindi ko na-gets yung ibang sinabi niya kaya puro "oohh, really? and then what?" lang yung mga pinagsasabi ko.

10:00 am at The Bellslip

Quarter to ten na nung dumating ako dito sa apartment ni Chaewon. Naayos ko na yung mga dala dala kong pagkain that took me about two hours to prepare. Nakalagay dun sa recipe 10-15 minutes meal, tatlong breakfast dishes yung ginawa ko kaya yung fifteen minutes naging times three, add to it the trial and error I did with the pancake batter kaya inabot tuloy ng almost two hours. Ang kalat ng kitchen pero mamaya ko nalang babalikan yun after my job interview. Kung kasama ko lang yung giant baby ko tapos nadatnan niya yung ganun kalat, all hell will break loose. Puro sermon yung aabutin ko hanggang kinabukasan.

"Care to explain all these dishes chef?" sinundo ko na si Chaewon sa kwarto at pinaupo ko na dito sa dining. Kung hindi ko siya tinawag malamang aabutin nanaman siya ng siyam siyam sa yoga routine niya."Put down your phone please" kinuha ko yung phone niya at nilapag ko muna sa counter "Start eating, you are getting thinner. Try mo lahat to, I made all of these." I got an avocado toast to put on her plate, inabot ko na din yung coffee niya na binili ko kanina along the way. "These look amazing Winter, explain them to me." nag start na akong kumain dahil delayed na yung usual time ng breakfast ko and I am not used to it."I made you avocado toast, pancakes with cinammon apples and there inside the bowl, I also cooked hash. Wait lagyan kita, handle me your plate." kinuha ko yung malaking bowl at nilagyan ko siya sa plato niya, dinamihan ko para mapilitan siyang kumain ng madami. "Did you say kush in a bowl?" she asked after taking a bite of the toast. "Anong kush? That's not allowed here, it's a potato hash with eggs try it."

We became silent for a while nung nag start na kaming kumain. Grabe I nailed the pancake with the apple cinnamon on top. Kung mattry lang ni Rina yung niluto ko ngayon I'm sure she's going to be proud of me. I hope we still get the chance na magkita in the future tapos maging okay na lahat, I really miss spending my mornings with her. Hay, kailan ko kaya ulit makikita at makakasama yung giant baby ko.

"Winter these are delicious, I didn't know that you can cook."

"Hindi kasi ako nagluluto nung sa island eh. I learned through Rina, I always help her kaya nagets ko na. Kumain ka lang, you've been eating protein salad without carbs lately. Bakit ka ba kasi nag ddiet ngayon?"

"I am preparing for something, bawal pa sabihin I can get sued. This pancake is really good, the one on top did you also make it?"

"That's an apple with butter and cinnamon yeah I made it. Wait, kahit sakin bawal mo sabihin? hindi ko naman ipagkakalat eh. Come on spill!" she shooked her head and continued eating. I got up from my seat because I'm feeling thirsty. "I'll excuse myself. Makikialam na ako sa fridge ha." I asked permission before I got myself a water bottle. "Speaking of, I need to tell you something important."

"Don't ask permission, you can take anything you want from the fridge. What are you gonna tell me?" bumalik na ako sa upuan ko bago nagpatuloy sa kailangan kong sabihin sakanya. "Look Chae, remember when you dropped by our school like two weeks ago? Listen, I don't mean to sound offending but okay lang ba kung wag ka na ulit pupunta dun? like kung dadaanan mo ako or susunduin, you can just park in another block and I'll be the one to come to you."

"Why?"

"I'll explain it later, I just said it now because I don't want you taking it the wrong way. Kumain ka nalang muna. Eat the apples with the pancake they compliment each other, bagay din sa coffee."

"Yeah I'm enjoying it can't you see how delighted I am? these are so good. Thanks again Winter."

"You don't have to thank me, but you're welcome."

10:30 am

After we tidy up the table and put all the dishes in the dishwasher, nag stay muna kami dito sa dining at pinakita ko sakanya yung overnight oats na dala ko. I made these for her so she could still eat something healthy before she goes to work or attend a meeting.

"Hey makinig ka nga," I called her attention dahil hindi niya sinseryoso yung sinasabi ko. "this jar it has oats, berries, yogurt and chia, the other one chia almonds yogurt and coconut and the last one yogurt, oats and flax. These are good for you plus the yogurt is almond based. Lagyan mo nalang ng honey or something." I stood up para ilagay sa fridge yung three jars of oats na ginawa ko. "You know what's funny Winter?" she started, "even the food you're making now, your food choices, you being health conscious. That's a testament that you have totally adjusted, you're one of those people now."

"Those people, who are they?"

"You know those type of people who have very long and complicated orders at Starbucks? I think you are becoming one of them. I wnna know, who are you hanging out with? Where is my little , what did you do to her?" 

"Hahaha what the hell are you saying? Okay kasi yung overnight oats, it's a quick and complete breakfast when I go to school. By the way you were asking about my course schedule, there I've sent it to you." kinuha ni Chaewon yung phone niya at nagsimula na siyang basahin yung adjusted schedule na snend ko, she was asking for this last week pa pero lagi ko nakakalimutan kaya ngayon ko lang naipakita sakanya. "This is your weekly schedule? Oh god I'm glad I have dropped out of school, how about your part-time Winter, it's gonna fall on what day?"

"I'll be having an interview later at 3pm, uhm the schedule they might give me will depend on my free days so I guess Wednesday and Saturday ten to six, I'm also thinking to squeeze in Friday. I'm not gonna go for the cafe job hindi ko na kaya, I've got so much modules and I couldn't sacrifice the midterms."

"You even have night classes. Kaya mo ba to Winter? this looks so stressful baka mag seizure ka."

"Of course kaya ko, tsaka ganyan talaga eh. I just need to maximize my time."

"When I was checking this before I thought you have so much free time, hell I was wrong. 

"You were reading based on the courses kasi, hindi talaga yun yung final. Tuesday and Thursday yung night classes. May mga unnecessary courses kasi during freshmen year that's why a lot of them hate the program. But I have no choice, all of us have to take it pati nga yung Design Communication student na kakilala ko she's taking Space Materiality."

"You have nine courses this sem oh my gosh. Are you talking about your friend, the french girl?"

"How did you know that, na-mention ko ba? Yes there's an acquaintance of mine from school, she came from Paris ewan ko nga bakit sa New York pa siya nag enroll for fashion design may Parsons naman dun."

"White?"

"Nope, Asian. But I wouldn't call her a friend, yet. She is an upperclassman, a junior. Pero nagiging ka-close na din namin siya. The three of us attend design talks together and we go to museums. You've met my friend/classmate na dba?"

"Yeah I did, the Olivia Jade of Parsons." binato ko siya nung tissue na pinaglalaruan ko nung narinig ko yung sinabi niya. Lagi niya pinagttripan pag knkwento ko sakanya yung classmate ko na ka-close ko na ngayon. "Stop calling her names nga, don't be mean she is a nice girl." nasalo niya yung tissue at tumatawa pa din siya. We're talking about Chaehyun siya yung classmate ko na na-meet niya during my first month at school. There was a time that she picked me up from school after class kaya nakita niya yung kasama ko and I introduced them. "Is she the reason why you're becoming unintentionally posh?" 

"Chae can you please stop calling her names? I mean it and being posh. Na-stereotype lang siya kasi with her family background and all. Nakapasok siya sa Parsons with the same process that I had to go through walang daya yun, pinaghirapan niya. People can sometimes be overbearing and it's really annoying. She's being misunderstood, they don't even know who she is. That's how it is in our school, the freshies act like they are trying to portray an image and I find it silly."

"I'm sorry I'm just messing with you. Winter, you're in a diversed art school,