We became official. Although there were hiccups in the form of our exes, her and her ex's mother, and a truckload of misunderstanding in between, but, we were able to smooth things out.
"Uy, Bren, end of the month pa ang quarterly financial meeting natin, ah, ang aga mo naman yata?" my business partner, Lambert, greeted me as we exchanged slaps on the back. "Good to see you, pero, bakit ka nandito? May problema ba?"
I laughed. "Kapag ba pumapasyal ako ng Banawe at may problema?"
"Baka kasi maisipan mo na namang umalis, mabuti nang maagapan."
"Hindi," I said. "Na-settle na natin 'yun. Besides, that was almost two years ago."
"Good. Speaking of...Dina was here last week."
"Ahh..."
"Yes, she's back from Cebu. Dinalhan nga kami ng mga pasalubong, eh, at hinahanap ka sa akin. Ang sabi ko ay madalang ka na lang pumupunta rito, tuwing business meetings na lang and most probably ay nasa Subic ka."
"Ikaw pala ang may kasalanan, eh, na muntikan na kaming mag-away ni Mrs. Moore," I kidded.
"Wait...Mrs. Moore?" Lambert sounded surprised. "You got married? Kailan pa? Kanino?"
I laughed again. "Ikakasal pa lang."
"Gaano kaseryoso itong relasyong 'to at ngayon ko lang narinig mula sa'yo, sa tinagal-tagal nating magkakilala, ang mga salitang Mrs. Moore?"
"S'ya na," I simply said.
Hindi ko nga lang alam kung ako rin ba ang sa tingin n'ya ay para sa kanya—pucha, bakit ba gan'un ang sinabi ko? What if she doesn't feel that way? What if ma-realize n'ya that she was just acting on impulse and she would rather discontinue the relationship? What if magkabalikan sila ng ex n'ya? What if—
"So, when can we meet her?" Lambert's question ended my gloomy reflections.
"Dadalhin ko rito minsan para makilala n'yo," I said as Wilson, another business partner, walked in.
"Kaninong Mustang 'yung nasa parking lot natin—Bren, you're here! Dina was just looking for you!" he cheerfully announced.
"Sinabi ko nga sa kanya. But, let's not mention Dina at muntik na raw silang mag-away ng misis n'ya dahil sa d'un—wait, is the Mustang yours, Bren?"
"Oo—"
"Teka," Wilson cut me off. "More than the new convertible, mas curious ako sa salitang misis. You got married and did not even tell us?" He sounded hurt. "Akala ko ba hindi lang basta-bastang business partners and turingan natin kundi magkaibigan din?"
"Ikakasal pa lang," I laughingly said. "I haven't even proposed."
"And yet he is certain that she's the one," Lambert said.
"How amazing is this woman at talagang kasal kaagad ang usapan? Ni hindi mo pa nga s'ya nadadala rito o nasasama sa mga gimmicks atin, ah."
"Mukhang tinamaan itong kaibigan natin, Wilson. Just look at him. Halatang in love, eh."
"Paano ba 'yan, eh, 'di, magluluksa ang mga exes mo n'yan?" Wilson jokingly said. "Balita ko pa man din balak ni Dina makipagbalikan sa'yo kaya s'ya bumalik. She heard about you and Maddie breaking up kaya nagkumahog daw na umuwi rito."
"Wala pa akong ex na binalikan," I simply said.
"But, Dina maintains that she's innocent, Bro. 'Yun nga ang usapan namin when she visited last week. Ang sabi n'ya ay gawa-gawa lang daw ni Ric 'yung sinabi n'ya sa'yo."
