"Niki!" Jewel almost body-slammed Niki in excitement. Pasado alas syete nang dumating ito sa bahay nina Andy. Kagaya ng napag-usapan, may kanya-kanyang dalang inumin at pagkain ang mga ito. Andy told them earlier to just bring drinks since marami namang pagkain sa bahay nito, pero nag-uubos din daw ng handa ang mga kaibigan nila kaya overflowing ang pagkain.

After Niki's talk with Andy's mom, she finally had the courage to get out of the room. She and Andy spent some time decorating the nipa hut and arguing which food would be best for their drinking session with their high school friends.

Antoneth volunteered to take care of the pets para hindi sila maabala.

Once they were done with the decorations, Niki finally took a bath. She opted to wear a tight cropped lilac shirt and Andy's old PE pants. It was too long for her that she had to fold the hems to be able to walk in them. But it was very roomy and comfy for her.

Just like back in high school, the first one to arrive was Angel, followed shortly after by PJ and Cathleen. Cathleen was not part of their friend group, pero kasama ito ni PJ pauwi. Alangan namang hindi nila isali sa inuman.

The men didn't forget to bring some drinks. Si Mike, dahil may tindahan, ay nagdala ng isang case ng beer. He also supplied the ice, na nasa cooler. Babylene brought different powdered juice sachets para sa chaser daw.

"Taray, may paunan pa," puna ni Jewel nang makita ang throw pillows na nakalatag sa mga uupuan.

"Para diretso tulog na kapag nalasing," biro ni Andy.

Halos mapuno ang ibabaw ng lamesa sa gitna nang ipatong nila ang lahat ng alak na dala ng mga kaibigan. There was barely any room for the food. Cathleen suggested that they put some of the drinks in the cooler first to make room for the other stuff that they brought.

As if on cue, Mike took out one of the board games that he brought. Shots and ladders. Inilabas naman ni Andy ang isang set ng shot glasses. May sampung maliliit na baso sa isang box. Binili talaga para sa inuman.

"So, pa'no natin lalaruin 'to?" tanong ni Babylene sa kanila.

Mike put the shot glasses on the designated places on the board. "First, we need to fill these shot glasses with drinks. Para masaya, lahat tayo maglalagay nang tig-iisang patak of our chosen drinks."

"Walwalan?" natatawang tanong ni Niki. "Sure kayo?"

"First few rounds lang naman 'to," sagot ni Mike. "Just to start the session."

"Okay."

Kanya-kanya silang kuha ng bote. Basa na agad ang board nang matapos silang maglagay ng alak. Nagkagulo kasi sila. Siksikan. But Mike didn't mind that his board was already ruined before they even started. He said it was part of the fun.

Binigyan sila ni Mike ng tig-iisang tako. Then, it was time to roll the dice. The host, Andy, was given the first spot. Unang ikot pa lang, napainom na ito kaagad. Niki laughed when Andy made an ugly face after drinking the shot. Inabutan niya ito ng pineapple juice.

"Oh, god. I'm scared for my turn!" bulalas ni Jewel.

"Next!" Iniabot ni PJ sa kanya ang dice. Pinagdaop ni Niki ang mga palad saka hinipan ang dice sa loob ng kamay bago iyon pinakawalan sa ibabaw ng lamesa.

"Truth or dare!" Pumapakpak si Babylene. "Dare!"

"Gaga. Hindi ikaw ang pipili."

Tumawa si Niki. "Okay. Sige. Dare."

"Kiss mo si Andy sa ilong!"

Pinandilatan ni Andy si Babylene. He looked at her with a frown, slightly shaking his head. Don't do it, he seemed to say.

"Kiss lang naman e. We're all mature adults here," panggagatong ni Jewel. "Saka sa ilong lang naman e."

"Di pa ako nakakainom. Pang lasing na agad yung dare nyo," natatawa niyang sabi. But she was okay with the dare. More than okay. She cupped Andy's chin with one hand and turned his head towards her. She puckered her lips and kissed the tip of his nose. Saka niya ito binitawan.

"There. Done!"

"See? It wasn't that hard!"

"O. Dapat game kayo sa lahat ah. Pag natapat sa truth or dare ah," paalala ni Angel sa lahat.

"Ang KJ, magdu-double shot!"

"Nakakatakot naman kayong kainuman," puna ni Cathleen. They just laughed at the remark.

–

Nakadalawang ikot na ang dice sa kanila. Mukhang minamalas si Andy dahil nakadalawang inom na rin siya ng alak. Umiikot ang tiyan niya kada inom. The taste of mixed alcohol was horrible. He had to down it with a lot of juice and snacks just to somehow get rid of the taste.

"O, san ka na naman pupunta?" tanong ni Mike nang tumayo siya.

"CR lang."

"Magdala ka na kaya ng arinola. Kanina ka pa tayo nang tayo e."

"Pa'no ang pangit ng lasa ng mga dala nyong alak. Napaparami tuloy ang chaser ko," paliwanag niya.

Niki pulled at his shirt before he could walk away. "Dala kang jacket," utos nito sa kanya.

Andy nodded. Saka ito bumitaw at ngumiti. Napansin nga niyang kanina pa nito hinahagod ang sariling braso. Medyo malamok pa naman sa kubo. That was why he insisted that she wear his sweatpants. Puro shorts pa naman ang dala nito.

Pagkatapos niya sa banyo ay agad siyang umakyat sa kwarto niya para kumuha ng jacket. It was his favorite varsity jacket. Paborito rin ni Niki iyon. Kung hindi pa niya kukunin sa closet nito ay hindi na nito iyon ibabalik.

He couldn't help but smile at the thought of her wearing his clothes. Dati pa naman nito iyon ginagawa, but somehow, this time, it was different.

Pagbalik niya sa kubo, agad niyang inilagay sa balikat nito ang jacket. Ibinigay din niya ang isang pares ng medyas para isuot nito. "Malamok," he told her when he gave her a questioning look.

"Alam nyo, mas sweet pa kayo sa magjowa na 'to." Itinuro ni Babylene sina PJ at Cathleen.

Niki slid her arms into the jacket sleeves. "Alam mo, Babylene, hindi ka pa lasing, kung ano-ano na yang pinagsasasabi mo."

Tumawa si Babylene. "Lasingin nyo pa ako dali! Marami akong ititsismis!"

–

After they got bored of the shots and ladder game, inilabas naman ni Mike ang Jenga. For each turn, magsa-shot muna bago kumuha ng tile from the tower. This put Niki to a disadvantage. Medyo matagal siyang malasing pero mabilis siyang mahilo. Sa shots and ladder pa lang, nahihilo na siya.

Kung sino ang makapagpatumba ng ladder, iinom ng isang mataas na baso ng beer. Niki hated the taste of beer. Saka nakaka-bloat. Masusuka siya panigurado. Muntik nang masira ang tore nang kumuha siya ng isang tile sa bandang gitna. Niki was holding her breath while she was pulling the tile. Thankfully, she still had some luck left on her side. The tower didn't fall.

"Okay ka pa?" tanong ni Andy sa kanya.

"Nahihilo na 'ko," pabulong niyang sagot.

She was hoping that the others would somehow fumble and bring the tower of tiles down during their turn. Muntik na si Jewel pero hindi nangyari. Babylene was quite dexterous with her fingers. In one swift motion, natanggal nito kaagad ang tile at nailagay sa ibabaw nang hindi iyon masyadong umuuga. PJ and Cathleen pulled out tiles without any problem.

Niki bit her lip. Lampas kalahati na ang nakakakuha ng tiles pero hindi pa bumabagsak ang Jenga tower. Next was Miike, but Mike was strategic. Sa ilalim pa ito kumuha, pero hindi natumba ang tore. Angel was also panicking like her, but she also managed to do her turn without losing.

Si Andy na lang ang pag-asa niya. He got up and checked the tower from every corner. Niki could see a few pieces that he could pull out without any problem, but Andy stooped down to get the lowest tile possible. And as expected, the Jenga tower fell.

Andy happily drank the whole glass of beer before they assembled the tower for another round.

–

"Nagpapatalo ka talaga e!" pang-aakusa ni Jewel nang pangatlong beses nang masira ang tore during Andy's turn.

Tinawanan niya ang kaibigan. "Paanong sinasadya? Sinasadya kong magpatalo? Do you have any evidence to support your claim, Attorney?" pang-aasar niya lalo.

"Teka, bago kayo mag-away..." Inilapag ni PJ ang isang bote ng tequila. "Next game na para walang gulo. Marami pa tayong iinumin."

Pick-up sticks naman ang naisipan nilang laruin. It was like Jenga, but in the form of small, neon-colored sticks. One would toss a bunch of sticks on the table and each of them would take turns picking one. Dapat nasa ibabaw ang unang makukuha o iyong nakahiwalay. Kapag may ibang nagalaw bukod sa kasalukuyang kinukuha ng naglalaro, iinom ito ng alak.

Dalawang oras na silang umiinom. He knew Niki was already close to her alcohol limit. Kanina pa ito nakahilig sa balikat niya kaya hindi siya makagalaw nang maayos.

They got tired of playing after a few rounds and just settled on taking turns telling stories. Niki could only nod and grunt because she was already drunk. Nakakalahati pa lang nila ang bote ng tequila.

"Hoy, Nicole, bawal matulog."

"I'm resting!"

Si Andy ang nag-volunteer na maging tanggero. Tuwing tagay ni Niki, ga-patak lang ng tequila ang nilalagay niya sa shot glass, saka niya iyon dinadagdagan ng tubig. His friends caught him the second time he did that. PJ and Mike just laughed and shook their heads. He had to shush the girls so that Niki wouldn't know.

He had been doing that since high school. Hindi kasi umaayaw si Niki sa tagay hanggat may iinumin pa. So he decided one day to dilute her drinks so she could last until all the alcohol was gone. Alam iyon ng mga kaibigan nila dating-dati pa. It was a miracle that nobody has told her about it yet.

"Tulog na yata si Niki."

Yumuko siya para tingnan ang mukha nito. They were right. It looked like she was already asleep.

"Akala ko talaga kayo na," sabi sa kanya ni Cathleen maya-maya. "It feels wrong na hindi pa kayo. Alam mo yun? You seem so... right for each other."

"Okay. Deep talks na. Gusto ko yan." Mike leaned forward and smiled. "Alam nyo ba–"

"Shh!" saway niya.

Mike snickered. "Okay lang, pare. Tulog na."

He looked at the women. He told the guys about his feelings for Niki, but he hasn't told everybody else yet.

"Oh please, Andy." Angel rolled her eyes. "Kahit hindi mo sabihin sa 'min, halata naman."

"You've been so attentive towards her all night. Tanga na lang ang hindi makaka-gets," dagdag ni Jewel.

"Yung tanga," sabi ni Babylene habang nakaturo kay Niki.

Nagtawanan ang mga ito. Andy just smiled. It was nice to have his feelings acknowledged by other people. It makes them more real. He gently patted Niki's head.

"She's not stupid. She just doesn't think I'm doing anything out of the ordinary."

"Hm. May point ka dun."

"So why not do something out of the ordinary?"

He let out a sigh. Doing something out of the ordinary would be crossing the line. Once he has crossed the line, yun na yun. Wala nang balikan. Wala nang bawian. What they would have from that point would determine what they would have moving forward.

Parang Jenga tower. Isang maling hugot ng tile, babagsak ang buong tore.