Added Characters:

Krystal as Azelie Janinah Pineda

Lisa as Adrianna Leon

 

"Reunion? Nanaman?"

 

Avah only sighs as she checks her schedule, immediately lodging at least four or five hours upon the day that her friend had picked, because she knows that time with them would never be enough if it is only two or three hours.

 

"Bilis na! Tagal na din natin di nagkita ng buo, tsaka Andrea's in the Philippines at that date. Padespedida niyo na din sa akin." Elizabeth says, chuckling as Avah remembers how her friend is going to leave this year for good, the same date ten years ago when her other friend, Andrea, did the same.

 

"At kinuntsaba mo pa talaga si Andy para dito sa plano mo?" tanong ni Avah habang narinig niyang tumawa si Elizabeth sa kabilang linya.

 

"You can bring a date, promise hindi namin hahayaang maleft out yang date mo. I've been dying to meet that mystery girl you've been hiding from us for so long, Bakla." she says, the nickname from highschool sounding so familiar for Avah—certainly brings a lot of memories from her.

 

"Sus, di ka naman magkakaron ng date diyan sa pa-reunion mo if you weren't so marupok and decided to pursue Andrea again the day na she'd leave for SG." natatawang sabi ni Avah habang natawa ng mahina si Elizabeth, and Avah is happy that her friend is happy.

 

"Basta, punta ka ha! Magtatampo talaga ako sa'yo kapag hindi ka pumunta, tsaka parang padespedida niyo na din to sa akin since I'm coming with Andrea to who knows what country after that date. Bye, Avah Bakla!!" Elizabeth said, and Avah quickly says her goodbyes before the woman hung up, and she smiles as a quick stream of her memories run through her mind.

 

Both good and unpleasant ones, although she doesn't wince as hard as the former self of her the past years anymore.

 

This is the first time that she would not attend a reunion of theirs with a facade, she thought.

 

Dahil nandun si Asteria lagi, she felt like she had to put on a mask to hide all of her emotions, to hide any trace that her feelings of ten years are still here.

 

On the fifteenth year, somehow, her heart stopped beating for her.

 

Avah does not know if this is just her self justifying that she had already moved on or if she's still faking this, but she somehow knows in herself that this time, it would be different.

 

There would be no Queen of Lies.

 

No lies told over her, again.

 

But first, a date.

 

*

 

"HUY, GIRL ANG SOSYAL MO TIGNAN!" natatawang sabi ni Zylane habang dumiretso na si Avah from a meeting, still wearing a suit that she had gotten rid of the black jacket of, loosening her tie and rolling up the sleeves, a poor attempt to look casual.

 

"Sorry, nagtagal pa kasi yung meeting so hindi na ako nakapagbihis." Avah says, a smile upon her face as she fixed her incredibly short hair that only reached below her ears, looking so masculine in the ten years that had passed—she had always been more confident this way.

 

"Naku, okay lang yon. Hintayin lang natin yung iba, tas order na tayo ha." Sagot ni Zylane dahil silang dalawa pa lang ang nasa napag usapang meeting place, and they're yet to meet the other four friends that are coming here, including her.

 

"So how's life? Nga pala, did you bring a date like Eli's instructions? Di ko na nadala si Xavier, yun kinukwento ko sayo? Busy kasi siya eh." Madaming tanong ni Zylane like always, and Avah laughs as she slowly answers all the woman's questions.

 

"Life's fine, I'm going to Korea nga next weekend since dun talaga ako nakabase for my work—"

 

"KAYA PALA DI KITA NAKIKITA DITO!" biglang interrupt ni Zylane, at natawa na lang si Avah habang itinuloy na niya yung sasabihin niya.

 

"...and yes, I brought a date—although sinabihan ko siyang sumunod na lang dito since I know those people are going to be late, she said to text her if nandito na sila." Avah answers, and Zylane cheers for her friend after hearing that.

 

"Naks naman talaga, nakabingwit na ng isda si ate girl baks namin!" biglang interrupt ng isa pa nilang kaibigan, si Adrianna Leon na biglaang dumating na pala, probably hearing about their conversation.

 

"Nako, ikaw ba? Balita ko staying strong na kayo nung jowa mo ah." Pagtatanong ni Zylane sa kanya, and Avah zones out as she stares at the door while these two friends of hers are already quarrelling like always, and there she sees her.

 

Beautiful, as always, but unlike before, she only admires her beauty without malice.

 

Without feelings.

 

Asteria greets all of them with a smile as she sits in front of Avah, the woman greeting her with a smile as well habang nagpapatuloy na nag aaway itong katabi nilang dalawa.

 

Soon after a man comes inside the restaurant and sits next to Asteria, the woman slowly leaning upon the man as she sat down, and Avah instantly gets who this is—she's seen pictures of him when they were still in high school.

 

The man they got all angry with before; pinakapulang flag sa lahat, as Zylane had branded him, now open with shock as she saw him.

 

"Guys, this is James Natividad, my fiance." she says, a proud smile upon her face while that man James looked as nonchalant as ever, even unenthusiastic over his title.

 

But Avah did not care about that—if this was before, then she would have gotten angry, but no.

 

This time, it was different.

 

"Love?" a voice called out, and Avah finds a smile immediately settle upon her lips, the same loving smile she had always put on so effortlessly in the five years they had been together.

 

"Hi..." Avah says shyly, scooting over the seat and lets the woman sit down, and the others immediately smile as they notice their Avah, their youngest looking so genuinely happy for the first time in years.

 

Including Asteria, although there's something that tugs in her heart as she watches the scene unfold in front of her.

 

"This is Azelie Janinah Pineda, my girl." Avah proudly says, their hands intertwined under the table, and the others cheer for her while her girl gets red and shy at the noise of her friends, and Avah finds herself laughing while leaning upon the shoulder of her girl while Zylane had fallen down the chair because of her clumsiness.

 

"Hoy, may namiss ba kaming usapan niyo—AY, BAKLA! OMG, GOOD FOR YOU!" sigaw ni Elizabeth, and there again, Avah feels like she's truly home.

 

*

 

"Love, I'll go lang with Zylane and Elizabeth, ha. They said they wanted to talk to me at the CR or something." Azie, as Avah fondly calls her, says after they had picked up the bill after eating.

 

"Don't let them ask you questions, and most certainly don't let them tell you stories of me, okay?" natatawang sabi ni Avah habang tumango na lang si Azie at ngumiti, then placing a kiss upon the woman's cheek.

 

"Talk with her, you look like you need it. I'll be here after that talk, okay?" Azie adds, and Avah nods at that, then looking back at Asteria who is still seated with Andrea and Adrian while James is gone, probably smoking somewhere.

 

"I love you, Azie." Avah utters, holding the woman's hand tight before she lets her girl go with her other friends muna.

 

"Always." she utters, then moving back to their table, and she hears a fraction of the conversation that Andrea had already gotten going.

 

"...kala ko naman kung sino yung ipapakilala mo, yung James na yun lang pala. Kahit si Zy gulat na gulat ah." Andrea says in a hushed voice as she lets Avah sit next to her, the three of them seated in front of Asteria like they're questioning some criminal.

 

"He's changed, Andy. Wag ka mag alala, he's already changed for the better." sagot ni Asteria habang nakasandal na lang si Avah sa upuan and fiddling with her phone, zoning out while she doesn't have anything to say with Asteria even if her Azie had told her to talk to the woman—she just waits for her to come back from Zy and Eli's interrogations.

 

"What about you, Avie? Ano masasabi mo?" biglang tanong ni Adrian, at itinaas niya ang ulo niya from her phone to see the three of them looking intently at her, waiting for what she has to say.

 

"I say let her do what she wants. Cruel as it may be, she's already someone who can decide for her own; although if, and only if you find yourself wanting to split with him, here's my card." Avah says nonchalantly, at natawa naman sila Adrian at Andrea nang ilapag ni Avah yung business card niya sa harap ni Asteria, the woman sighing and taking that card with her unconsciously.

 

"Right... tama si Avah, ikaw na bahala diyan. Basta sa next hangout, be it in ten years again, I better see you happy with him, okay? Jusko ka, nagpapakaflagpole ka nanaman with him." Andrea says, and Asteria only smiles at that and stands up to walk away, but not in the direction outside where James might be, but in the mirror room nung restaurant.

 

"Avah, follow her." Sagot ni Andrea, at napabuntong hininga na lang si Avah at tumango, following the woman to the mirror room where she finds her staring at herself in the mirror.

 

"Asteria?" Avah calls out, and the woman turns back towards her, those eyes staring at her wildly like she has something to say—

 

"Is it too late?" Asteria asks, the question too vague for others, but Avah knew what she was pertaining to.

 

"Yes." she utters, sighing as she moved closer towards the woman, sitting down upon the chair provided there.

 

"You're five years too late." Avah says, and she sees the woman tighten her fist, looking down upon the tiled counter while she did not dare look upon her reflection again, like there's a monster waiting to take her there.

 

"Five years... I met James again, four years ago." She says, sighing as she turned back and faced Avah who waited for whatever this is that she's telling her.

 

"I realized that you might be the one at three, and then James proposed at two, and then threatened to leave me one year ago, because he knew about my untold feelings for you." she utters, too fast as her tears threatened to fall, but Avah only looks away.

 

"Four years... is this what you felt? Parang dinudurog yung puso ko, seeing you with her, knowing that I'm only with James because he was the one who was there." Asteria says, and this information would have hurt Avah five or six years ago, but not now.

 

Cruel enough, she feels nothing.

 

Like this is revenge for her—but she's not the one who's vengeful.

 

"Fifteen years, Asteria." Avah says, her tone full of hurt and anger, but she does not show it upon her face.

 

"I had loved you for fifteen years, since I was seventeen, and it ended when I was thirty-two. I watched you change your lovers while I was still there, stuck upon loving you from afar because I knew that you couldn't reciprocate—and I was content upon doing that, even if it was breaking me over and over again." she says, everything pent up and it hurt like a , again, but she didn't mind.

 

So this was what Azelie had said when she said Avah needed this.

 

Her final closure, though she only got it after twenty years.

 

"I'm thirty seven now, and you're thirty nine. We're too old for crushes, too old to be doing this." she says, like it's a fact that Asteria needs to understand—it is.

 

"I love her, Azelie. My Azie. My saving grace, the one who had embraced my thorns, the one who was there for me, and I feel that I've loved her more in those five years than how I've loved you in fifteen."

 

"Be happy with James, Asteria—that's my only wish for you. I won't attend your wedding, because that is the peace that I could give you now that you have feelings like this—"

 

"No." Asteria says, wiping her tears away, like it had never been there.

 

"You're invited, Avah. You and Azelie, I'd love for both of you to come to my wedding."

 

*

"Are you okay?"

 

Avah shifts upon the shotgun seat as Azelie had promised to drive, knowing that this woman would not be able to handle everything after she and the rest of their group of friends, excluding James, had heard their argument there.

 

"Better," Avah says, and finally, she finds peace, with this woman beside her that makes her feel like she could fight anything, like she could be her best self.

 

Azie had always been the one who had kept her safe, who had kept her peaceful.

 

Without regrets.

 

"Now that you're here, Azie."