"Are you sure this is okay with you?" Niki asked for the fifth time that day. Andy just rolled two big luggages inside the condo.

He sighed exasperatedly. "Why do you keep asking if you're not gonna believe the answer?"

Niki pressed her lips together. "Because it sounds like a made-up excuse."

"Okay. Fine. If you don't want to believe me then I guess I'll just go back and beg the landlord to give me my room back." He started pulling the luggages towards the door. "And you're gonna lose your unit and my rent's gonna double. Great."

Andy opened the door and was about to walk out when Niki grabbed his arm to stop him. She pulled him back inside and even took the handle of the luggage from his hand. Nakangiti siyang sumunod papunta sa dating kwarto ni Myles. Niki had already started cleaning up the room. Wala nang bedsheet at pillowcases sa higaan. Nakasalansan sa isang sulok ang mga gamit ni Myles.

"Ayoko nang masyadong maingay, ha. Yung aircon, hindi pwedeng nakabukas maghapon. I have a budget for the electric bill. So kapag lumampas sa allocated amount, ikaw ang magsu-shoulder ng excess. I know you're not a slob so it's not gonna be a problem, but keep your room clean and help out cleaning the shared spaces."

She turned and pointed to him. "You'll do the cooking."

"I'll teach you," he offered.

Niki responded by scrunching her nose. Just as Andy expected. Kung may ibang magluluto, hindi ito magtututo. Maybe if it was a life and death situation, she would start learning it. Pero ayos na rin siguro iyon. Kapag nag-aral si Niki na magluto, siya lamang ang pipilitin nitong tumikim noon. And he was pretty sure nothing good would come out of it.

–

Andy spent a few hours cleaning the room and decorating it to make it more his style. Nag-set up na rin siya ng workstation para sa trabaho niya sa Monday. Tahimik ang kwarto kapag nakasarado ang pinto at bintana. May balcony sa unit ni Niki pero nasa kwarto lang nito. Walang tape residue sa pader. Ayaw ni Niki ng kung ano-anong nakadikit sa pader. There were several potted plants in the bedroom and he was thinking of putting them in the living room since he's not responsible enough to remember to water the plants.

After putting all his things in place, Andy went out to the kitchen to cook dinner. Niki was watching TV. Kumakain ito ng pancit canton. Isang malaking bowl ang hawak nito. Napailing siya. Mabubutas na ang bituka nito sa kaka-canton araw-araw.

Andy approached her and took the fork and bowl from her hands. Niki complained but he was already eating the noodles.

"Magluluto na 'ko. Wag kang magpakabusog masyado," sabi niya pagkalunok ng pagkain.

"That's my dinner!" Niki told him.

Andy greedily shoveled forkfuls of the stolen food and almost choked because he forgot to chew. Niki ran towards him and kicked him in the shin when she saw the empty bowl. Gustuhin man niyang tumawa, hindi niya magawa dahil masusuka siya. He quickly headed to the fridge to get himself a glass of water. Nang mawala na ang bara sa lalamunan, muli niyang hinarap ang kaibigan.

"What are you gonna cook?"

"Pasta."

Tumabi si Niki sa kanya nang mailatag niya ang ingredients na gagamitin sa pagluluto. It's a simple pinoy-style spaghetti. Nakita kasi niyang may pasta na kasama sa mga ayuda na nakuha ni Niki. May hotdog sa ref. Canned mushrooms at corned beef sa cupboard. She even has beef, albeit unground.

While the beef was thawing, he started peeling the plastic wrap from the hotdogs.

"Need some help?" Niki asked. Nakatukod ang mga kamay nito sa counter.

Tumaas ang kilay niya. "Seryoso yan?"

Niki beamed. "Of course not. Pumayag nga akong dito ka tumira para may tagaluto, tapos gagawin mo 'kong assistant?"

"But you'll wash the dishes, right?"

Nagkibit-balikat ito. "Depende sa mood ko mamaya. Kaya sarapan mo ang luto." After saying that, she returned to the living room to return to the show she was watching.

–

For the first few days, Andy and Niki treated their setup like the usual sleepover. Comfortable, but with the thought that he would eventually leave. Tapos isang umaga, biglang natigilan si Niki nang makita na nagva-vacuum. Naisip niya na, oo nga pala... nakatira na ito doon. It was a little weird. Kasi as friends na hindi naman araw-araw nagkikita, kapag nagkikita sila, ang dami nilang ginagawa. Kasi minsan lang silang magkita.

Pero ngayong magkasama na sila sa bahay at maya't maya silang nagkikita, parang ang daming oras na pwedeng sayangin. Minsan lumilipas ang kalahating araw na hindi sila nag-uusap. Busy ito sa pagtatrabaho. Busy siya pagtunganga.

Andy was the perfect roommate. He likes to cook so ito ang nagpaplano ng mga kakainin nila sa maghapon. Andy also thought that it was a perfect time to experiment with the recipes. Kung ano-ano ang mga sinusubukan nitong lutuin na nakita nila online.

Niki does most of the cleaning. Andy helps out dahil may kanya-kanya silang nakatokang gagawin, pero madalas itong nakakaiwan ng mga basura at hugasin. So she usually picks up after him.

Tuwing weekdays, nakakulong lang ito maghapon sa kwarto para magtrabaho. He would cook breakfast and lunch in the morning. Tapos dinner pagkatapos nitong magtrabaho. Minsan nakakalabas ito sa tanghali para makapagluto o kaya kahit nasa trabaho pa, basta tinatamad itong magtrabaho.

Andy would have his meetings every morning, and sometimes in the afternoon too.

Si Niki naman ay nagsawa nang magpasa ng resume dahil wala namang nangyayari. She had sent out hundreds of job applications. Most of her applications were rejected. Iyong mga natatanggap naman, hindi nauuwi sa job offer. Nitong nakaraan, medyo nagpahinga muna siya sa paghahanap ng trabaho.

She has already used up her separation pay to pay for the rent. Iyong ibinabayad ni Andy, pinanggagastos naman niya sa iba pang bayarin. It was a good thing that she has her savings. Pero hindi rin iyon tatagal kung matagal siyang mawawalan ng trabaho.

Salitan sila ni Andy sa paggu-grocery. He would list down all the needed ingredients for their meals for the week and she would do the inventory of other things that need to be bought for the house. Kapag maraming bibilhin, sumasama si Andy.

It was Niki's turn to do the grocery shopping that week. She took the shopping trolley she bought last week.

Noong mga unang linggo ng pandemic, inaabot siya ng dalawang oras sa paggu-grocery dahil sa mahabang pila. Kalkulado kasi ang pagpapapasok ng mga tao sa supermarket. Mag mga upuan na nakahanay sa lobby ng saradong mall at mabagal ang pag-usad ng pila. Paisa-isa rin ang pagpapasok sa supermarket. Tapos kakaunti lang ang open na cashier.

Ngayon, wala na ang mga upuan at pwede nang maglabas-masok ang mga bibili sa supermarket. Niki went through the list para maplano kung saan siya unang pupunta. They have experimented with the list a few times to learn how to make it comprehensive for the both of them. The first list they made was grouped by meals. Kapag si Niki ang nakatoka, isinusulat pa niya iyon ng panibago to group the related things together.

Minsan, hindi nasusunod yung mga pagkaing gustong lutuin ni Andy. Niki would sometimes request for fried stuff or they would just order in. Hindi maiwasan na may masayang na ingredients.

To resolve this issue, Andy would list all the pantry supplies that they could use in many kinds of meals. Kapag may gusto lamang itong lutuin na specific, saka lamang sila bibili ng specific na ingredients. And then, he would group it by related stuff so Niki would be able to grab everything she needed on specific aisles.

Sa dalas nilang mag-grocery, na-memorya na rin nila kung saang aisle makikita ang mga bibilhin nila. Sometimes, Andy would put the aisle number on the list so Niki could plot her route better.

Wala pang isang oras ang itinagal ni Niki sa loob ng grocery store. There were a few people outside, but it was a nice day. The sky was clear and unbelievably blue. Niki couldn't help but take out her phone to take a picture. The balding trees add texture to the blue sky. After getting enough pictures that she would post later, she started pulling the shopping trolley.

Nakakailang hakbang pa lamang siya nang makarinig ng meow ng kuting.

Frowning, Niki stopped to look around but she couldn't find the source of the noise. Nagpatuloy siya sa paglalakad habang patingin tingin sa mga nadadaanan niyang mga halaman. The kitten has a strong set of lungs. It kept making noise kaya patigil-tigil siya sa paglalakad.

She steadied the shopping trolley and looked inside it. Wala naman doon. Pagtingin niya sa gilid, may nakasabit na orange na kuting sa may gulong noon. Hindi ni Niki alam kung saan ito sumakay o kung saan ito nanggaling. Tinanggal niya iyon sa pagkakakapit sa trolley at saka itinaas para tingnang mabuti. It was a shaggy kitten with gunk on its eyes. Meow nang meow sa kanya. Gutom siguro.

Ibinaba niya iyon sa gilid ng kalsada. "Sorry. Allergic kasi si Andy sa pusa," sabi niya rito.

–

The kitten kept following Niki. Patigil-tigil siya sa paglalakad para tingnan kung nakasunod pa rin ito. Nasa stairs na siya sa entrance ng condo ay nakasunod pa rin ito. Sighing, Niki picked it up again and put it in the pocket of her sweatpants. Iniakyat niya ang shopping trolley sa hagdan at dali-daling pumunta sa elevator bago pa mapansin ng guard ang dala niyang kuting.

Pagkabukas niya ng pinto ng unit, nakasalubong agad si Andy para kunin ang trolley at tingnan ang mga ipinamili niya. The kitten inside her pocket was not making noise so Andy didn't notice it right away. Halfway through removing the stuff from the trolley, humatsing si Andy. Nangati ang ilong.

"Okay ka lang?" tanong niya rito.

"Yeah. I was just... ah–" He covered his mouth before sneezing. Suminghot ito. "I don't know why I keep sne—achoo!"

"Sorry!" Lumayo si Niki sa kaibigan. When there was a safe distance between them, she took the kitten out of her pocket. Nanlaki ang mga mata ni Andy. "He kept following me. Naawa ako kaya dinala ko na."

"Niki! You know I'm allergi–achoo! Get that thing out of here!"

"Itatago ko sya sa kwarto ko. Saka ibibili kita ng gamot!" pangako niya.

She immediately went inside her room before he could argue. Inilagay niya ito sa box ng bago niyang biling sapatos. "Dito ka muna ah," sabi niya sa pusa bago siya lumabas para kumustahin si Andy.

He was in the sink, washing his face. He took a tissue and blew his nose with it.

"Okay ka na? Gusto mo ng gamot?"

Kakalingon pa lamang ni Andy sa gawi niya nang bumahing na naman ito. Niki took a few steps back because he was reacting to the cat smell that was on her clothes.

"Magbibihis lang ako tapos ibibili kita ng gamot. Bibili na rin akong cat food."

"You're seriously not gonna–achoo!--keep that thing!"

She smiled sheepishly and patted him on the arm before sprinting out of the unit.

–

Andy's allergy calmed down after he took the medicine Niki bought. She bought quite a few because she was intending to keep the cat. Sa ilang oras niyang kasama ang pusa sa loob ng kwarto, nakapag-checkout na siya ng cat bed, catnip, cat litter, at kung ano-ano pang gamit ng pusa.

The cat fell asleep inside the box after being fed.

Hinayaan niya itong mag-ikot sa kwarto niya matapos niya itong paliguan kanina. She would take him to the vet one of these days. For now, she was hoping that the cat would stay healthy on its own.

She was so engrossed with researching stuff about cats when Andy knocked on the door of her bedroom. He only opened it slightly, enough to peek inside. "Ano gusto mong dinner?"

"Fried chicken, please."

He shook his head. "Hindi ako nakapag-marinade."

"Okay lang."

Umiling ito. "No. Iba na lang."

She grunted. "Sige. Tonkatsu?"

"It's too much work. Adobo na lang."

Niki rolled her eyes. "Thanks for asking," sarkastiko niyang sabi.

Andy grinned. Bumaba ang tingin nito sa natutulog na kuting sa sahig. "Are you really keeping him?"

"Yes. I already gave him a name."

"Let me guess... Garfield?"

"Oh please. That's so predictable. I named him Ponkan," she said, smiling, proud of herself for coming up with such a unique name.

Andy closed the door after giving her a disapproving head shake.