30 Days with Fina by JellOfAllTrades

Chapter 16

I came out of the shower still feeling sticky and weird. My last meeting with Mayor Luisito Entienza went well and the transaction for the transfer of titles is done.

Unfortunately, when I entered my room I found my dear old grandmother sitting on my bed, looking at my discarded dress.

"Bagay siya sayo," Mamita said. "Although I would have preferred if it wasn't that revealing."

"I got that for somebody else," I confessed. "Hindi ko dapat yan susuotin kung hindi ko kailangan."

Mamita gave me a somber look and she seems to be struggling with herself to tell me something. I just stood there, clutching the towel to my chest, waiting for her to say something.

After what felt like an hour, she closed her eyes and finally shook her head. "Sige na, Jellane. Magbihis ka na. May pupuntahan ka ba?"

I thought for a moment about going to the seaside playground to see Fina and stopped myself from smiling. "Seawall lang," I casually shrugged, trying to suppress the sudden urge of happiness.

Mamita stood up from my bed and passed me by the door. I stopped and took the envelope containing the contracts and titles from the bedside table and followed after Mamita.

"Mamita?" I called after her.

She swung her ancient cane and looked back at me. "Jell?"

"For you," I gave her the envelope and went back to my room.

Later after getting dressed and rejecting yet another call from Jaime (he saw the new pictures my brothers and cousins has posted online), I just found myself walking the length of the seawall from the letter C where I first met Fina to the seaside playground where we always see each other.

The soft crashing of waves on the seawall was calming to the nerves and the sea breeze made me think yet again, about Fina.

She makes me feel so comfortable despite our obvious differences. She's the kind of person that can make me talk about all my problems without even worrying if she'll babble to other people, she doesn't even interrupt me when I'm talking and she of all people manages to say to me the right things, the right words that I want to hear. And all of these make me want to spend more and more time with her.

I wonder if she'll be coming to the playground later. Maybe I should text her? Better yet, I should call her.

Slipping my phone out from my pocket, I dialed her number and hoped she would pick it up and not her mother.

After a few rings, the call went through.

"Hello?"

"Fina!"

"Jell, bakit, may problema ba?"

"Wala naman," I grinned, feeling oddly afloat upon hearing her voice.

"Nako naman, ilang beses na ba kitang sinabihan na wag akong tatawagan unless emergency?"

"Emergency atang nami-miss kita eh," I joked.

"Korni mo, Jell."

"Anong oras ka pupunta ng playground?" I inquired.

There were a few seconds of silence as Fina collected her thoughts. She let out a deep sigh. "Sorry, Jell. Bawal ako ngayon eh."

"Bawal?" I muttered, frowning. "Panong bawal?"

"Wala kasing magbabantay ng bahay kaya ayun, pinagbawalan muna ako nila mama na lumabas. Saka isa pa, may gagawin pa ako eh."

I felt disappointed at that. "Ganon ba?"

"Sorry talaga, Jell. Bawi nalang ako sayo bukas."

"Bukas ha?"

"Promise."

I smiled, already looking forward to seeing her tomorrow. "Okay, then. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Bye, Jell."

"Bye."

She ended the call and all I could do is stare at my cellphone screen where her lovely name is written. A basketball bouncing towards me and a sweaty player barrelling after it made me stop in my tracks. I caught the ball in my hand and sidestepped when the player obviously was about to hit me, having problems slowing down.

"Sorry, miss." He apologized, scratching the back of his head.

I just threw him the basketball and said with obvious disgust, "Ingat din kasi minsan."

He was sweaty and even with my distance, I can feel the heat he's radiating. He eyed me from head to toe and I immediately knew what he was thinking, before he can say anything else, I turned to leave.

A slippery hand held my right forearm, stopping me from walking away.

"Teka lang, miss, baka pwedeng malaman pangalan mo?" He asked with a perverted smirk.

I faked a smile but immediately changed my expression with a menacing one. I took my arm back and wiped his sweat off. I didn't even bother to hide my disgust. "Wala ka nang pakialam."

His teammates are beginning to gather around us so I turned to leave before I could get myself into trouble.

I promised Fina I would avoid trouble as much as possible. But then again, maybe trouble really loves me because another cry made me stop in my tracks.

"Jell?"

I turned around to see the girl my cousins introduced to me a couple of weeks ago. Damn, why does that feel like a lifetime ago?

"Hi," I managed to say. My eyes darting back and forth between her and the basketball guys. They seem to know each other as the sweaty guys are starting to whisper, laugh and point at us, I even saw them hitting the guy who approached me earlier and say, "Dude, chicks din hanap eh!"

"Jell, andito ka pa pala sa Calauag?" The girl said to me conversationally. I frowned, trying to remember her name. Damn it, has it really been that long already?

Andrea is definitely not her name, that's one of my flings back in Manila.

Andy? Nope, not that either.

Alessa? I think that's one of my earlier flings, so nope.

"Yeah, di pa bumabalik ng Manila eh," I said, hiding the fact that I really can't remember her name. No matter, I've been to such situation before, I'll just wait for the right opportunity to ask her.

"Ashley, kaibigan mo? Pakilala mo naman samin!" One of the basketball guys shouted at the girl. Bingo! Ashley's her name.

"CHE!" Ashley spat at the guys and then held my arm to drag me away from the boys. "Pasensya ka na sa kanila ha? Mga bastos talaga yung mga yun eh."

"Okay lang, paalis na din naman na ako eh." I just said, pulling my arm back.

Ashley stopped and faced me. "Since magkasama na tayo, gusto mo bang magmerienda muna?"

I frowned, is that the provincial equivalent of asking me out for coffee?

"Err, no thanks. Busog pa ako eh." I gulped, seeing her cleavage. Wow, this girl knows how to dress on a hot summer day!

Her eyebrow rose when she saw where I was looking, "Talaga?"

"Y-yeah." I forced myself to meet her eyes. "Kakakain ko lang eh."

"Eh di kung ayaw mo kumain, pwede naman tayong pumunta sa kung saan." She played with my shirt collar and then playfully winked at me.

Okay, calm down. I got this.

I slightly pushed her hands away from my cheek where she was starting to caress it. Does this girl even know the meaning of Public Display of Arousal?! I made a quick peek of the people around us and figured they're too busy to notice us.

"Teka lang, Ashley..."

"Pwede tayo sa bahay ko kung gusto mo," She winked again, rubbing my arm affectionately, sending my alarm bells in a panic.

My eyes widened at her offer. Now that was straight to the point!

I looked again around us and figured that nobody's watching. I returned my look at Ashley and saw her smiling seductively at me. I've been two weeks dry, stuck here in this hell hole called Calauag, Quezon and with my recent achievement with the school expansion, I think I can get away with this one.

"Tara."

Ashley held my hand and lead me to a small two-story green house, just a few blocks away from Kelly's Karaoke. As she opened the gates, I cautiously looked around, my heart thumping fast for the fear of being caught by someone my parents know.

"May hinahanap ka ba?" Ashley called out.

"Wala." I followed her inside the house.

As soon as the door closed behind me, Ashley wrapped her arms around my neck. "Matanong nga muna kita, bakit mo ko tinakbuhan noon sa karaoke?"

I pushed a lock of hair away from her pretty face. "Madami kasi akong iniisip nung gabing yun. Baka di ka mag-enjoy sakin. I hate disappointing my ladies."

Ashley smirked at me and then kissed me playfully. My hands, which were resting on her waist made its way down to her butt. She slapped my hand away when I squeezed it.

"What?" I complained, not breaking from the kiss.

"Kalma," She grinned, her hands traveling from under my shirt's hem going to my stomach.

"Mahirap kumalma kung ganyan ka," I breathed on her neck. "Ano, san mo gusto? Sofa, center table o sahig?"

Ashley chuckled and pulled my shirt off. "Dito sa pader, kaya mo?"

"Hinahamon mo ba ako?" I moved to pin her by the wall just beside the door.

"Hindi naman," She slipped her shirt off from her head and resumed kissing me. I felt her leg cling on me and I smirked with an idea.

"Hold on," I muttered to her ear, bringing her other leg up so that she was practically clinging on to me like a koala hugging a eucalyptus tree. I made sure her back was leaning against the wall so it could help me carry her weight. Ashley is basically squished between me and the wall.

"Lakas mo ah?" She whispered seductively on my ear. All the hairs on the back of my neck stood up.

I smirked and pulled back to get a better look at her face. There's no better way to get your confidence high than to see a satisfied customer before you even serve her.

But I almost dropped her just then and there when I saw a rather shocking hallucination.

She moved to kiss me but I pulled back, shaking my head, trying to forget the image.

"Bakit?" Ashley asked.

I tried to catch my breath, still shocked by the image I saw.

"Hoy, okay ka lang?"

Why the fuck would I suddenly see Fina's smiling face just now?

I blinked several times, looking at Ashley's pretty face but somehow, Fina's face was burned in the back of my eyelids. I can't just forget I saw her smile a moment ago.

Ashley seemed to sense my sudden discomfort because she unhinged herself from me.

"Hoy, okay ka lang beh?" She asked again.

This has never happened to me before. The lust that I had just now for Ashley quickly faded and I realized how big the consequences there are for what I'm doing. This girl, Ashley, despite having a big rack and a pretty face is not worth me losing my silver Volvo and my parents (and possibly even my grandmother's) getting angry.

I stepped away from Ashley and scooped up my shirt from the floor not far away.

"Hoy, san ka pupunta?" Ashley demanded as I pulled my shirt on and opened the door.

I looked back at Ashley and gave her my panty-dropping smile. "Sorry, babe. I gotta go."

Before Ashley could catch up to me, I ran to the nearest major road and hailed a tricycle back to our ancestral house.

I immediately went to my room and locked the door. Facing the mirror, I stared at my shocked face.

What the fuck happened back there? I haven't run away like that from a girl before. Not when I already have them curled up on my finger.

Fina. Yes, the sudden flash of her image as I was kissing Ashley has something to do with this. Fina Romulo, what have you done to me?!

I slipped out my phone and dialed Jaime's number. If there's someone that can help me, it's going to be him, my best friend, my wingman.

As the phone rang, I thought about what I'm going to tell him and realized that he's just going to laugh at me.

"The notorious Jellane Folloso-Ramos backing out from a girl?! Dude, that's a first!" I imagined him saying from the line.

Decided that I don't want to be humiliated, I ended the call before Jaime could pick up.

So, now I have no one to talk to. Jaime's my best friend and I knew deep inside he's just going to laugh at me and tell me that that was the dumbest move I've ever done since I was born. I knew he's just going to tease me that I'm losing my touch just being here in Quezon and I can't take that. My ego has suffered enough already.

Well, actually, I have one more person to talk to. But how can I talk to her if my problem itself is her?!

Oh, Fina Romulo, what have you done to Manila's great Jellane Ramos?