Of Plastic Bags, Beer, and Clichés pt. 1

        PRETTY MUCH only Nio, Heidee, and Ma'am Val were left sober. Bumibirit na sina Yulo at Marv sa karaoke, 'yong "Breathless" pa ng The Corrs ang kinanta. Parang baliw nang sumasayaw at tumatalon sa gilid si Annie. Nagdala kasi ng strobe lights si Yulo. Pakiramdam ata ni Annie, nasa bar sila at walang nakakikita sa nakahihiya nitong pagsayaw.

        Heidee and Nio sat on the couch, chuckling at everyone's madness. Ma'am Val would crack a smile from time to time, too. When she could no longer help it, Heidee took her phone out. Tumatawa niyang kinunan ng video sina Annie, Marv, at Yulo.

        Thankfully, wala pang sumusuka.

        May carpet kasing nakalatag sa living room ng bahay. Babasagin iyong mesa sa gitna. On that table were a mix of drinks. There were bottles of soju and cans of beer. May pitsel din ng pinaghalong gin, juice, at Sprite. S'yempre, si Marv ang pasimunong nagtimpla at nagsindi niyon. Siya rin ang nagprisintang umubos.

        "Is it okay if I clock in?" mahinang pagpapaalam ni Ma'am Val kina Nio at Heids. Natigil ang pasimpleng paglalaro ni Nio sa kanang kamay niya. "Medyo naliliyo na kasi ako."

        Inilahad ni Heids ang kaliwang kamay, pinakakapit doon si Ma'am Val. "Hala. Nakakatayo pa po ba kayo, ma'am?"

        Ma'am Val stared at her. Parang na-offend pa ito sa tanong niya. "I'm okay. Kaya ko pa namang lumakad papunta sa kuwarto."

        Napalabi siya. "Okay po. Sigaw lang po kayo or chat kung may kailangan kayo," nakangiti niyang sabi.

        Sinubukang tumayo ni Ma'am Val. Kumapit ito sa sandalan ng sofa'ng inuupuan nila ni Nio. Upon realizing that Ma'am Val just didn't want to admit that her tolerance isn't what it used to be, Nio stood up. Walang sabi nitong inalalayan ang boss. Ikinawit nito ang kanang braso ni Ma'am Val sa batok.

        Nangingiting sumunod si Heids. She copied Nio and took Ma'am Val's other arm. Together, they carried her to one of the rooms. Siniguro na rin nilang kumportable ito. Kinumutan nila si Ma'am Val bago nila pinatay ang ilaw at tuluyang lumabas ng kuwarto.

        Pagbalik sa sala, sabay silang sumalampak ng upo sa sofa.

        Inabot ni Nio ang bote ng beer na hindi maubos-ubos. After that, he rested his chin on her right shoulder. "Hey, babe?"

        Heidee sipped her apple-flavored beer. "Hmm?"

        "Nothing, ha-ha."

        "Lasing ka na ba?"

        "No kaya," he denied. "Why are you so warm?"  bulong nito bago sumiksik sa leeg niya.

        "I think you're drunk," she mumbled. "Or inaantok ka na? Kung antok ka na, matulog ka na do'n."

        Nio sat up straight. He leaned towards her, batted his lashes, and pouted. "You ba? Are you coming with me ba?"

        Heidee found herself smiling. Lalo ring uminit ang pakiramdam niya. "Hoy, ano?" tumatawa niyang sabi. Nang pahabain pang lalo ni Nio ang nguso, tinulak niya ang noo nito gamit ang hintuturo. "You know we can't. 'Wag dito."

        Napamaang ito bago gumaya sa ngiti niya. "Oh, no. That wasn't what I meant kaya. I meant to sleep kasi. Are you coming with me ba. . . to sleep?"

        "I'm not yet sleepy," she mumbled, scrunching her nose. "Besides, 'di p'wedeng iwan nang ganito 'tong sala."

        "We can clean up tomorrow morning naman, e," he suggested before chugging his beer. "But if you really want to clean tonight, then okay. I'll stay with you na lang."

        "Thanks," Heidee said with a smile.

        They were silent again after that. Halos 'di rin naman kasi sila magkakarinigan kung mag-uusap sila. Kumakanta na kasi si Annie ng "Alone" ng bandang Heart. From time to time, she and Nio would break into laughter. Gayunpaman, nanatili itong nakahiga sa balikat niya kahit na umaalog iyon kada hahagikhik siya.

        Natigilan si Heidee sa pagtawa. Naramdaman niya kasi ang mainit na paghinga ni Nio sa batok niya. Nakagat niya ang pang-ibabang labi. Alam na kasi niya ang kasunod niyon. Bagaman hindi nakatingin sa kanila sina Marv, pinanatili niya ang seryosong mukha.

        "Fuck," Heidee muttered upon feeling Nio's lips on the side of her neck. He planted a wet kiss, making her inhale sharply. "Akala ko, tulog ka na, e."

        "I'm not even tipsy," he complained. "Are you tipsy na ba? You've been nursing your beer, e. You don't have to make ubos naman."

        She looked at him weirdly. Hindi niya alam kung matatawa siya o ano. Nio just had this duality. Kanina lang ay para itong bampirang uhaw na uhaw sa dugo niya tapos ngayon. . . para naman itong sanggol sa sobrang amo ng mukha.

        Dumiretso ito ng upo. "Babe, don't look at me like that." He stuck his tongue out after realizing that she was still staring. "Give me your beer na lang. I'll finish it for you."

        Heidee shook her head. "Akin 'to, e."

        Nio was about to grab the bottle when they heard Marvin curse. "Hala!" dramatic nitong sabi.

        Kaagad itong dinaluhan ni Nio. Nakaluhod kasi ito sa harap ng mesa, parang naguguluhan sa kung ano. "What is it?"

        Marv's brows furrowed even more. "Nio, mahal kita pero please. . . don't English me, hu-hu. Heids~"

        Umayos siya ng upo. Inalis niya ang pagkakadekuwatro ng mga binti. "Bakit?"

        Nakangiwing itinaas ni Marv ang isang babasaging bote. Nasinagan iyon ng strobe lights. Wala na iyong laman. "Ubos na beer natin. Buy kayo, please? Last na, promise. Mamatay man si. . . uhm. Joke, 'wag na pala patay. Padlock na lang, ta's tapon susi."

        Nag-aalangan siyang tumingin kay Nio. "Bili pa ba tayo?"

        Napahagod sa buhok ang boyfriend niya. "Let's buy five more and some coffee."

        "Five more? Tama ka na. Alak naman kasi tapos ka na sa yosi?"

        "No, I just thought you'd drink din, e," nakatawa nitong sagot. Bumaling ito kay Marv. "Do you think you can handle being alone for a bit?"

        "Oo naman," paninigurado nito. "Basta, bibili kayo, a?"

        After reassuring Marv that they'll be back, Nio stood in front of Heidee. Inilahad nito ang kamay. Nang 'di siya tuminag ay hinila siya nito patayo. Nagpatianod siya. Bahagya siyang nanginig nang lumapat ang mga talampakan niya sa malamig na tiles.

        She heard Nio click his tongue. "I told you you should've bought slippers." Before she could retort, he already took his leather jacket hanging by the door. Ipinatong nito iyon sa mga balikat niya.

        Heidee looked at him weirdly. "What?" Nanatili kasi ang mga kamay nito sa magkabila niyang balikat. "Bakit?"

        "Wear it properly so you don't get cold outside," he suggested.

        When she didn't budge, Nio took the jacket. Ito mismo ang nagpasok ng mga braso niya sa sleeves niyon. Humakbang ito ng isa paatras pagkatapos. Lalong nalukot ang noo ni Heidee sa ginawa nitong iyon. Saka lang siya naliwanagan nang masinagan ng strobe lights ang mukha ni Nio.

        He was smiling for some reason.

        May kislap sa mga mata nito habang nakatitig sa kanya. Hindi naman ganoon ang mga iyon noong tinititigan nila ang dagat sa labas kanina.

        Heidee began feeling a bit guilty. Malamang kasi ay iniisip pa rin nito iyong tanong na hindi niya matanong-tanong. Well, there wasn't any question, actually. Itatanong lang naman sana niya kung bakit nito kasama ang ex noong isang araw.

        Now that everything's cleared up, Heidee felt a little bit silly for making a big deal out of it. Gayunpaman, ayaw niyang ma-guilty. She was only trying to put herself first. Gusto niya lang naman na nasa tamang huwisyo siya sa oras na tanungin niya si Nio tungkol kay Angie. But again, now that her question was answered by Angie herself, all that's left for Heidee to do is express her feelings properly.

        "Let's go." She breathed in deeply. "Tapang ng pabango mo," natatawa niyang kumento.

        "Really ba? I don't believe you for a second," sabat nito habang binubuksan ang pinto. "You love how I smell kaya. It's why you stole my jacket, right?"

        Heidee faked a gasp. "Anong jacket ba? Sure kang 'di mo naiwan sa sasakyan ni T?" She knew exactly which jacket he was talking about.

        Iyon 'yong jacket na ipinangkumot nito sa kanya noong nakaidlip siya sa kuwarto nito. It's the one he wore on his birthday, the day he introduced her to his family.

        Nio scrunched his nose in response, looking annoyed. Quickly, she tiptoed and pecked his cheek. "'Di naman ako magnanakaw," she joked.

        It was true, of course. Nakalimutan lang niya iyong ibalik kay Nio. Baka nga ito pa ang dapat niyang tawaging magnanakaw, e. After all, he has been stealing something of hers for the past few weeks.

        Something irreplaceable and intangible.

#