Short update.

—

Vince invited everyone is his family, except for his father and Henrietta. Ang sabi niya sa mga imbitado ay may kaunting salu-salo sa bahay. And Moira had been panicking since Thursday.

Maaga itong umalis noong umaga ng Sabado dahil may nakalimutan daw itong bilhin. He told her that she could just let the maid do the cooking, but she won't hear any of it. When they arrived from the market, nagsimula na kaagad itong magluto.

She was stewing something while roasting something while baking something... Sa dami nitong ginagawa ay hindi niya alam kung alam ba nitong iilang tao lamang ang darating at hindi isang baranggay.

"What are you baking?" he asked.

"Cake," she replied curtly. "It's not too much, is it?"

He wanted to answer yes, but seeing her work so hard made him hold his tongue.

"Ilang putahe ang niluto mo?"

"Tatlo lang. Kaya nga dinagdagan ko ng cake. And I also made a salad."

"That's more than enough. Can I help you with anything?"

Tumango ito at itinuro ang sink na puno ng pinaglutuan nito. Pumunta siya roon para hugasan ang mga iyon. Kelvin helped as well. Silang tatlo ang nag-iintindi sa kusina habang naglilinis ng bahay ang katulong.

With only two hours before lunch, Moira had finally finished cooking. Mabuti na lamang at dalawa ang banyo niya. Isa sa kwarto niya at isang nasa ibaba. He let Kelvin use his bathroom habang si Moira naman ay doon sa isa naligo.

Dressing Kelvin up was a struggle. Nakailang palit na rito ng damit si Moira, still contemplating on what he should be wearing. Kaya naman hindi ito nakapag-ayos agad.

"I'll dress him up. Mag-ayos ka na," sabi niya.

"But—"

Inilayo niya ito sa anak. "Come on. Ako na ang bahala."

Napilitan itong sumunod. Nang maiwan sila sa kwarto ni Kelvin ay tinanggal nito ang damit na kasusuot ni Moira kanina.

"What do you want to wear?" he asked.

"My Naruto shirt," sagot nito.

"Your mom will flip out if she sees you wearing that thing."

It's not a simple shirt. Parang ito iyong palaging suot ni Naruto during the first few seasons of the anime. It was orange and complete with the details on the back and the sleeves. Ang kaibahan nga lamang ay t-shirt iyon at hindi long sleeves. And of course, Kelvin would insist on wearing the pants, na katerno noon.

Moira would flip out. Gusto pa naman nitong maging presentable ang anak. Siguro ay dala na rin ng pressure na unang beses itong makikita ng mga kapatid niya.

"How about this one?" Kumuha siya ng isang simpleng polo shirt na kulay maroon. Then he pulled a pair of black jeans para iterno roon.

"Are we going to the church?" Kelvin asked.

Ngumiti siya. "No, but we'll have visitors later. Your mom would want you to wear this."

"Okay." Isinuot nito ang binigay niyang damit. Saka niya inayos ang buhok nito.

"Now, go downstairs and wait. You can watch TV if you want. I'll just take a shower."

—

Kelvin looked out the window when he heard the sound of arriving cars outside. Si Moira naman ay huminga ng malalim, but even Vince's hand on her shoulder could not keep her calm. This will make or break it for her and Kelvin. Sana lamang ay magustuhan ng mga ito ang anak nila ni Vince.

"Relax. It's going to be all right," Vince whispered.

"What if they don't like him?"

"They'll love him," he insisted. It sounded like a promise.

Unang dumating sina Ariesa at Ela. They were surprised to see her there, as she expected. Hinintay muna nila sina Red bago sila magpaliwanag. The five of them were eyeing Kelvin curiously, lalo na si Kylie na hindi humihiwalay ng tingin dito.

"Nandito ka rin pala, Carlene," puna ni Red.

Ngumiti lamang siya at inaya ang mga ito patungong kusina. Naupo ang mga ito habang siya naman ay tinulungan ang katulong sa pagsi-serve ng pagkain.

"Who's the kid?" asked Troy.

"Oo nga, kuya," sabat naman ni Ariesa. "Kanina pa sya rito. Aren't you going to introduce him to us?"

Muntik na niyang mabitawan ang tray ng roasted chicken nang marinig ang tanong ng mga ito. Huminga siya ng malalim saka inilapag ang pagkain sa lamesa. She can's stall them any more.

"He's my son," Vince answered.

Napanganga ang mga ito sa sinabi ni Vince. Si Kelvin naman ay tahimik pa rin, mukhang naghihintay ng signal kung kailan pwede na itong magsalita.

"Hindi nga?"

"Who's the mom? Don't tell me—"

Napatingin ang mga ito sa kanya.

"I don't understand. How could this happen? Kakikita nyo pa lang a few months ago, di ba? And as far as I can remember, you didn't like Moira back then."

"I can't discuss the details over lunch. Mamaya na lang. Let's eat first," Vince told them.

Naupo siya sa tabi ni Kelvin at saka hinainan ang anak. It took a while for the others to recover from the shock, but they eventually let go nang mapansin ng mga itong hindi nga magpapaliwanag si Vince. They ate in silence, pwera sa ilang blabbers ni Kylie.

Kelvin would often smile at his cousin whenever she speaks or snort. And Kylie would smile back. Kylie was the first one in the room to accept Kelvin.

—

"Can I have the recipe for this cake?" Red asked Moira, finally breaking the silence. Pagkatapos ng pananghalian ay nagtungo sila sa sala para mag-usap-usap. Inihain niya ang cake for dessert. Sina Kelvin at Kylie naman ay kasama ng katulong sa hindi kalayuan. Magkasundo na kaagad ang dalawang bata.

"Why? You can't bake," kumento ni Troy.

Ela laughed. "Kuya, gusto mong sa couch ka matulog mamaya?"

"Totoo naman kasi."

"Kapag ako nakapag-bake nito, huwag kang kakain," Red said sternly.

"High blood ka na naman." Troy kissed her cheek. "I was just kidding. Carlene, can we have the recipe, please?"

"Sure," sagot niya. "I'll give it to you later."

"So, paano at kailan pa kayo nagkaanak?" tanong ni Ariesa sa kanila.

Nagkatinginan sila ni Vince. Hindi niya alam kung ito ba ang dapat sumagot o siya. But he nodded, signalling her to talk.

"It was back in college—"

"I knew it!" Red exclaimed. "So that's why hindi ka na nagtuloy ng third year!"

Tumango siya. "My parents flew me to the states para doon ako makapanganak."

"So hindi agad nalaman ni Vince na may anak kayo?"

"Recently ko lang nalaman," sagot ni Vince. "Just a few months ago."

"Is that why you're here, Carlene?" asked Red. "Dito na ba kayo nakatira ni Kelvin?"

"Partly. Ikakasal na kasi yung pinsan ko, so kailangan na naming bumukod."

"So you're living in together."

She shook her head. "I'm renting a room here."

Her answer made their eyebrows arch.

"You're renting?" asked Troy. Binalingan nito si Vince. "Is that really necessary?"

"That's what she wants," sagot nito.

"Teka, nagli-live in na kayo tapos nagri-rent ka pa ng room, ate?" litong  tanong ni Ariesa.

"Hindi kami nagli-live in."

"This is technically living in," Ela insisted.

"But it's not," pilit niya.

Red sighed. "Call it whatever you like, you're under the same roof, so you're living in. At ano naman ang masama? You like each other, don't you? If you want to move in together, it's fine. I think it's too soon, but it's fine. Matatanda na naman kayo. You both know what you're doing."

"I know it's too soon," she admitted. "Hanggang ngayon, hindi pa rin ako kumportable na sa iisang bahay kami nakatira. But I'm doing this for Kelvin. Saka hassle kasi kung hihiwalay pa ako. Hindi ko rin mababantayan ang anak ko."

"Saka I'm sure, pabor naman kay kuya na dito ka nakatira, ate," nakangiting sabi ni Ela.

"Shut up."

Dinala ni Kelvin si Kylie papunta kay Red. Puro amos ang mukha nito.

"Yung totoo, Kylie, kinain mo ba yung cake o ipinanghilamos mo lang?" natatawang tanong ni Red sa anak.

"She keeps on missing her mouth," Kelvin explained, grinning.

Bumaling sa kanya ang anak na hindi pa rin mapalis ang ngiti. He clearly enjoyed Kylie's company. Si Red naman ay pilit na pinupunasan ang mukha ni Kylie habang nakikiagaw ito sa cake niya.

"Mommy, I want one," bulong ni Kelvin sa kanya.

"You want more cake?"

He shook his head. "I want a baby sister."

She heard Vince cough. Mukhang nabilaukan yata ito ng cake na kinakain nito. Siya naman ay hindi alam ang isasagot.