“So, what’s the plan?” Lia asked while munching on her chips.

We were currently at Greenwich with my friends and my girlfriend’s friends. Hindi pa nga papayag itong si Miss President pero kinumbinsi naman siya ni Lia kaya ito siya ngayon, parang gusto na niyang umuwi. 

“How about going to Boracay this sem-break?” Giselle suggested.

“What about Cebu? It’s also beautiful there, right?” Ningning chimed in.

“Bohol is also nice, guys,” Hyunjin added with a smile.

Natatawa nalang talaga ako kapag nakikita ko itong si Hyunjin, kainis kasi bakit hindi halata na lalaki rin pala ang gusto nito.

“Baby, I want to go home now,” Miss President whispered to me.

I glanced at her, clearly seeing that she’s already feeling tired. She hasn’t had a chance to rest since earlier. That’s why she initially declined Lia’s invitation, but in the end, Lia managed to convince her, so she ended up joining us.

Hindi nga rin ako sasama, pero wala, magaling mangumbinsi si Lia, eh.

“Guys, can we leave now?” I asked my friends. They paused their conversation, shifting their attention towards us

“Ang KJ talaga nitong si Winter.” ani Ningning.

“Inaantok na si Miss President.” sabi ko rito.

“Payag ka niyan, Karina? Miss President ba naman tinawag sa’yo.” natatawang saad ni Lia.

Binalewala lang ng aking girlfriend ang sinabi ni Lia, dahil inaantok na talaga siya. Kanina pa ito naka-lean sa balikat ko.

“Oh, siya. Umuwi na tayong lahat. Tutal, napag-usapan na rin naman natin kung saan tayo this sem-break. So, kitakits nalang at goodluck sa ating examination next week.” wika ni Giselle, akala mo naman hindi na magkikita bukas, eh.

Tumayo naman agad aking girlfriend. Hindi naman siguro halata na uwing-uwi na siya nuh?

We bid each other farewell. Lia decided to accompany Hyunjin since he didn’t have a car with him. Meanwhile, Ningning and Giselle went their separate ways as they both had their own car.

“Let’s go na.” sabi ng aking girlfriend. 

We walked towards the exit and quickly made our way to the parking lot. I opened the door for Miss President and immediately took my place in the driver’s seat as she settled into the passenger seat.

“It’s almost 8 na pala,” I mentioned as I fastened my seatbelt.

“I told you we shouldn’t have come,” she said, sounding somewhat annoyed.

“Baby, your friend convinced you, not me,” I responded.

“Kahit na, you should have come up with reasons too.”

“Okay, I’m sorry,” I said. “Let’s go home, alright?” I added.

The journey was quiet, and I occasionally glanced at my girlfriend through the rearview mirror. It seemed like she had fallen asleep.

After a few minutes of driving, we arrived at Karina’s condo. I gently woke her up, and she seemed annoyed.

“Sorry, but you need to wake up, baby, we’re already here,” I told her.

I stepped out of the car and opened the door for her to exit. After she got out, I escorted her to her room. However, as we entered, she politely mentioned that she wanted to have a drink of water before settling in.

I went ahead to her room to prepare her bed. Seeing that it was already neat and tidy, I simply arranged the pillow and blanket. After a short while, my girlfriend entered the room.

“Go to sleep, baby. I know you’re tired,” I told her.

“Are you going home?” she asked, and I nodded in response.

“Okay, message me when you get home, alright?” she requested, giving me a kiss on the cheek.

“Yes, good night, hmm?” I replied. She nodded and embraced me tightly.

“Take care, okay?” I nodded back.

“I love you,” she said.

Hayy, ang sarap mabuhay kapag meron kang Karina Ivion Isacar sa buhay. 

“I love you more, baby,” I replied, feeling a sense of calm as she settled in to sleep.

“Una na ako, hmm?” I informed, “Maaga ako pupunta dito bukas.” 

“I’ll wait for you,” she said, giving me a beautiful smile.

Once again, I bid my girlfriend farewell and left her room. I made sure to lock the door before making my way back to the car.

Since malapit lang naman ang bahay namin, nakarating din agad ako. Medyo kinakabahan pa ako dahil gabi na at hindi ako nakapag paalam.

Dahil nakarating na ako, agad naman akong nag message sa aking girlfriend. After that, naisipan ko na ang pumasok. Nang makapasok na ako sa bahay namin ay may narinig akong nagtatalo. Alam kong si Mommy at Daddy ito dahil kami lang naman ang nakatira rito.

Hindi ko masyadong naririnig kung ano ang pinag-uusapan nila. Pupunta na sana ako sa kinaroroonan nila ng marinig kong parang may nag back out.

Nakita ko si Mommy na pumasok sa kanilang kwarto and she slammed the door so hard. Nakita ko naman si Daddy, parang namomroblema pa nga ito. Nilipatan ko siya at parang nagulat pa ito nang makita niya.

“What’s the matter, Dad?” tanong ko.

“Were you able to hear us?” Daddy asked, his voice trembling. I shook my head, as I truly couldn’t hear out what they were arguing about.

This was the first time in my entire life that I had witnessed or heard Mommy and Daddy fighting. It was really unusual.

I wonder what they were fighting about?

“Where have you been? We were worried because you haven’t come home yet,” Daddy said.

“Sorry, Dad. I forgot to message you,” I replied.

“It’s okay. Have you had dinner?” I nodded.

“Okay, go to your room now. I’ll be the one to talk to her about this, alright?” I nodded again.

Daddy stood up and began walking towards their room, where Mommy was.

...

Kinabukasan, maaga akong gumising dahil pupuntahan ko ang aking girlfriend. Habang kumakain kami ngayon, sobrang tahimik lang talaga.

Hindi rin ako kinakausap ni Mommy at iniiwasan niya rin si Daddy. Hindi ko talaga alam kung ano ang nangyayari. Kanina pa ako humihingi ng tawad dahil baka dahil doon kagabi, kaya bad mood si Mommy ngayon. Pero kanina, sinabi