December 23, 2020. Niki woke up at two in the morning, sweating and shaking. She just had a terrible nightmare. Her eyes were open but she couldn't move and there was a heavy presence on her chest that made her feel like she was sinking into her bed.

This terrible feeling was like the one she felt when Myles said she won't be coming back. Days before she told Andy and before he made the decision to move in. She woke up in her dark room, the curtains were drawn and the air was cold. Niki was used to sleeping in her room alone, pero kagabi, bago siya matulog, nanuod siya ng horror movie. And then, as she was falling asleep, she started imagining the ghost in the movie.

Sa ibang pagkakataon, Niki would have welcomed that kind of nightmare. But not when she was all alone.

Bumangon siya at dali-daling kinapa ang ilaw. It brought her a bit of relief when her room was finally flooded with light again. She turned off the air-conditioning next. Bumalik siya sa kama at humiga. She turned to her side so she wouldn't see the light directly. Pumikit siya at sinubukang matulog muli.

Her eyebrows furrowed as she concentrated on her sleep, pero hindi na siya dinalaw ng antok. Kapag maliwanag, gising siya. She needed complete darkness, but the darkness was terrifying.

Kinuha niya ang phone at saka siya lumabas ng kwarto. Binuksan niya ang TV para maghanap ng mapapanuod. All the suggestions were horror movies. Bumuntong-hininga siya. She didn't need any more reason to scare herself right now.

Tiningnan niya ang phone. It was almost 3AM. The so-called witching hour. Funny enough, malakas ang imagination ni Niki at naniniwala siya sa multo. Marami na siyang napanuod na horror movies and shows, enough to make her immune to the jumpscares and creepy ghosts in the background, but she also knew the main characters almost always overcome them.

She swiped up on the screen to unlock the phone. Tiningnan niya ang call logs. Andy said she could call him anytime. Kasama rin kaya doon ang oras ng pagtulog nito?

Niki exhaled sharply and pressed on his number. Inilapit niya iyon sa tenga saka siya naghintay. It rang and it kept ringing for a while. She put the phone down, after almost a minute. Ii-end na sana niya ang call nang makita niyang sumagot na ito.

"Hello?"

"Hel-lo?" Andy yawned. "Niki? What time is it?"

"Uh... almost 3AM," sagot niya. "Sorry, I woke you up."

"Napatawag ka? You okay?" Humikab itong muli. She heard shuffling on his end of the line. And then, a click. Bumangon siguro ito at binuksan ang ilaw.

"Sorry I woke you up."

"No, it's okay. Are you okay?"

"Yeah. I just had a nightmare," she admitted. "Ayaw kasi akong tabihan ni Ponkan."

She heard Andy laugh.

"He's sleeping in your room," she told him. "It must be your scent."

"Are you having nightmares every night?"

She shook her head. "No. Ngayon na lang uli. Nanuod kasi ako ng horror movie."

Andy clicked his tongue. "Sabi kasi sa 'yo sa umaga ka manuod ng horror."

"I'm just anxious because I'm all alone."

"Do you want me to go back to Manila?"

"No. I'll be fine. Sa umaga na lang ako matutulog siguro."

"Niki..."

"Sorry I woke you up. Kaya mo pa bang matulog? You still have a few hours before morning."

"Pa'no ka?"

"I'll just watch TV."

Nag-filter siya ng movies under a different genre. Animation. She likes cartoons and anime. She could watch those instead.

"Matulog ka na uli. Okay na 'ko," sabi niya kay Andy.

"Why don't you sleep in my room?" tanong nito maya-maya.

Ibinaba ni Niki ang remote. "Ha?"

"Kung ayaw kang tabihan ni Ponkan, e di sya na lang ang tabihan mo," he suggested. "Just try it and see if it helps you sleep. If not, then mag-binge ka ng movies tapos mamayang umaga ka na lang matulog."

"Okay lang sa 'yo?"

"Oo naman."

"Okay." She turned off the TV and walked towards his room. Nang buksan niya ang pinto ng kwarto, gumalaw si Ponkan na nasa ibabaw ng kama ni Andy. She turned on the light in the bedroom and the AC unit. Saka niya pinatay ang ilaw sa sala. "Sarap ng tulog ni Ponkan."

Andy chuckled.

"Can you stay on call with me? Siguro mga 30 minutes? Kapag gising pa rin ako, hindi na ako matutulog."

"Okay."

Ponkan got up and strutted on the bed when she sat down. Lumapit ito sa kanya para magpa-pet. She put the phone on speaker and on the pillow. Lumapit doon si Ponkan para amuyin iyon.

"Say hi to Ponkan," she told Andy.

"Hi, Pon."

Ponkan almost jumped in surprise. "Meow?" But soon, he was all over the phone when he heard Andy's voice again. Habang abala ang pusa sa pakikipag-usap kay Andy, binuksan naman ni Niki ang lampshade na nasa computer table ni Andy. She switched off the main light and got under the blanket.

"Nagpalit ka ng bedsheet bago umuwi?"

"Uh no. Kapapalit ko lang kasi nyan the week before kaya naisip ko pagbalik ko na lang papaltan. And I was leaving Ponkan so I thought it would be nice if he could smell me while I'm gone. Bakit? Amoy-pawis ba?"

"Hindi naman." Binuhat niya si Ponkan at niyakap.

"Meoow!"

She pulled the cat under the blanket and kissed his tiny, little head.

"I'll try to sleep now," she told Andy.

"Okay. Good night to you both."

Ponkan stopped resisting her after a while. Naramdaman siguro nitong masarap na may nakayakap dito habang natutulog ito. The blanket, bedsheet, and pillows also smell like Andy. Niki found it oddly comforting, like he was there at the moment.

The other line was still open and she could hear him breathing.

She has always liked how Andy smelled. Hindi ito naliligo sa pabango, pero malinis ito sa katawan. Nagkaroon pa nga ito ng cleanliness award noong highschool dahil malinis ito sa katawan at malinis ito sa paligid.

He would still sweat, of course. Minsan lalapit ito sa kanya nang puno ng pawis, pero hindi kumakapit ang amoy ng pawis sa damit nito. Probably because he does his laundry regularly, unlike most guys.

Ang sarap ding kayakap ni Ponkan. His purrs helped Niki relax. Lalo na nang gumalaw ito para mas sumiksik sa kanya. She could feel herself already drifting to sleep.

–

From: Andy

I ended the call after 30 minutes

Sana nakatulog ka nang maayos

Niki didn't even realize she fell asleep last night. Nalaman lang niyang nakatulog siya nang gisingin siya ni Ponkan nang mag-umaga. He was screaming on her face because he was already hungry. Thankfully, she didn't have any nightmares when she slept in Andy's room.

To: Andy

Yep. I did. Thank you 😚

After feeding Ponkan, Niki reheated the remainder of her dinner. After preparing her breakfast and coffee, she headed to the living room to watch a movie while she ate. Kakasimula pa lang ng movie na napili niya nang muling tumunog ang phone niya.

From: Andy

You can sleep in my room hanggang wala pa ako dyan.

Pero labhan mo yung bedsheet hehe

I think the smell helps with my sleep, she typed and almost sent, but decided against it. Instead, she replied with. Okie. Sure. Thanks!

Nang matapos si Ponkan sa pagkain, tumabi ito sa kanya. Ponkan started cleaning himself while Niki ate. The cat didn't really care about other people's business.

Tinaasan niya ito ng kilay nang tumingin ito sa kanya. Ponkan put his leg down without breaking their eye contact.

"Thank you," she told the cat, and continued eating. Maya-maya ay umalis uli ito sa tabi niya para bumalik sa kwarto ni Andy. Niki shook her head. Ponkan had been looking for Andy for days now. He didn't really understand why it had been days since he last saw Andy.

Madalas nitong tambayan ang likuran ng pintuan kapag pagod na itong matulog. He would sit there and stare at the door. Would meow until she scolded him. She was just Ponkan's spare human, and he wouldn't go to her if he could help it.

They were both missing Andy.

To: Jewel

Kelan na nga uuwi si PJ?

From: Jewel

Bukas.

Whyyy

Uuwi ka na??

To: Jewel

I'm thinking about it

But don't tell Andy yet

From: Jewel

Ooohhh a surprise!

I-level up mo girl

Sagutin mo na sya sa pasko kahit di naman nanliligaw

To: Jewel

HAHA sira!

–

"Hello!" bati ni Niki kay PJ at sa girlfriend nito nang makasakay siya sa backseat. She had Ponkan on a vest and inside a bag with mesh walls. It was his first time traveling, so she did her best to make him feel comfortable. Thankfully, the backseat was roomy.

"Hi!" Cathleen, PJ's girlfriend, greeted. "Oh, is this Ponkan?"

"Yes. I hope you don't mind."

"No, it's okay. I love cats!"

"And I love her so... I have no choice," natatawang sabi ni PJ. "Buti pala naisipan mong umuwi. Namumroblema si Andy e. Wala ka raw kasama sa pasko."

"Ah oo. Para maiba naman," dahilan niya.

She texted PJ yesterday para makasabay siya pag-uwi. Niki was still undecided yesterday, until she saw Andy's gift, which was inside the closet, like he told her. It was a big white square box with a red ribbon wrapped around it. He said she should open it on Christmas, but curiosity got the better of her, so she opened it and threw the ribbon to Ponkan so he had something to play with.

Inside the box were different skincare and makeup products. Niki recognized each brand because she had been using those same brands for years. When she became unemployed, buying those products became quite a luxury for her. May ilan na siyang gamit na paubos na at pinuproblema na nga niya kung paano siya makakabili ng refill. She didn't know Andy was taking notes of all the products she was using.

At that moment, she had this powerful urge to want to see Andy. She wanted to give him her gift and see his reaction to it on Christmas. So, ayun, madalian siyang nag-empake.

Mabuti na lang at okay kay PJ kahit marami siyang dala.

"So hindi alam ni Andy na uuwi ka?"

Niki shook her head.

"Saan pala kita ididiretso? Sa inyo or kina Andy?"

"Sa kanila."

"Ah."

"Hindi sa inyo?" kunot-noong tanong ni Cathleen sa kanya.

Nagkatinginan sila ni PJ sa rearview mirror.

"It's a long story," sagot na lamang niya.

–

The car ride was more fun than she expected. PJ and Cathleen literally finish each other's sentences. Nakakatuwang pakinggang magkwentuhan ang dalawa. And Ponkan was enjoying his first trip. Halos buong byaheng nakatuon ang front paws nito sa bintana at nanghahaba ang leeg sa pagtingin sa paligid.

Kagaya ng napag-usapan, inihatid siya ng dalawa sa bahay nina Andy. It has changed a lot since the last time she was there. Mas malaki na ang garden ni Tita Andrea. Iba na rin ang hitsura ng driiveway. Pero wala pa ring fence na nakapalibot sa bahay. Palakaibigan kasi ang buong pamilya ni Andy. They didn't want people to have the impression that they couldn't just approach their door and knock.

Pagkaparada ni PJ ay tinawagan nito si Andy.

"Delivery!" bungad nito. "Labas ka. Seryoso nga! Nandito nga ako."

May sumilip sa bintana. Tapos ay bumukas ang pinto. Lumabas si Andy na kunot ang noo. Nakadikit ang phone sa tenga.

PJ lowered his window. "Delivery nga, pare! Nasa backseat."

Andy looked so surprised to see her and Ponkan in the backseat when he opened the door.

"Surprise!" she said with a smile before Ponkan jumped on Andy.