Bab 13: Track 11 - Simple by Florida Georgia Line
I'm filing for annulment. I must, on the grounds that I cheated on him last night. Or maybe because he has been M.I.A. Not even a single text, or a wrong message, nothing!
Am I supposed to just wait for him until he feels like coming home? I'm not his mistress, I'm his wife. This is another side of Blue I never knew. Or is this really the life of a politicians wife?
I shake my head. I look again at my phone messages and I see Blue's last message that he's on the way to pick me up with his Ferrari last Saturday, just three letters - OTW.
I'm now sitting at a coffee shop here at the airport, in front of me is RJ bugging mom like dad did in one of the videos. Lately, RJ has a new thing of copying dad. Mom is not as annoyed as he was of dad tho, I mean, RJ can be irrititatingly annoying as himself, but this new thing he has, he's too adorable to handle. I'm genuinely smiling looking at them.
The next schedule to this hectic long weekend is my uncle Juando's wedding with his seven years boyfriend, uncle Brian. Uncle Juando is the adopted son of Lolo J, he was the son of Lolo J's nanny since birth but died giving birth to uncle Juando. He bears the Herher family name but he's only legally adopted by Lolo J, not by Emily.
He's the same age as uncle Forth, they grew up together. But he moved here in the Philippines eleven years ago, now he's the Director of the Science Department in my high school. He was very close to dad, so when we moved back here, he became like a father to me too. I'm excited for his wedding.
Albert returns to our table bringing our orders of coffee and a frapuccino for RJ. We don't really let RJ have this much of sugar because he's already too active without it. But this morning is an exception, we had to wake up very early because we're coming from Tagaytay to the airport, about two hours drive, plus there is the weekday morning peak hours.
In the craziest of circumstances, Albert is also invited in another family event of mine. Uncle Juando started as a teacher in my high school the same time as Albert, and they grew close as good friends and colleagues. Mr. Severus and sir Yap are also attending the wedding but they already flew in yesterday.
At the pub two nights ago, uncle Bob was surprised when Albert shared that he's attending the wedding of Juando Miguelito Herher, his brother-in-law. So my carefree of an uncle thought it would be just right that he invited him too to his birthday, and then we can all go together from the B&B since we have the same flights.
It was pretty useless tho, because we had to drive in two different cars, for awhile I thought Albert got lost in traffic.
Now, after last night, life is too awkward to live. Albert and I didn't see each other during breakfast, the first time we see eye to eye again is here at the airport coffee shop. In half an hour, we'll be flying to Masbate, the Herhers' origin, where the Herher Brahman's Ranch is located, the place where I was made.
Our travel to the ranch was smoother than expected, the flight was on time and we arrived five hours before the ceremony. We had lunch, a short nap, then we get ready.
The wedding has a vintage-southern-country theme. So everyone looks like they came from the 1920s. I'm wearing a mint green vintage one-piece dress with collars and cowgirl accents on top then ruffled skirt that falls below my knees. I accessorised it with blue-green beaded necklace, wooden dangling earings, red leather bracelets, an apple red small-size cowgirl hat, and a red lipstick; mom convinced me well that red is good on my outfit. The wedding hairstylist fixed my hair earlier with distinct vintage curls and showered me with an insane amount of hairspray to set it. Then, of course, I'm wearing my favorite dark green cowgirl boots. This is probably the best OOTD I've ever had.
"Mercy. It's been too long," an elite looking man walks towards us in the hallway of this old-fashioned country house to kiss my mom a greeting. I recognise him a second later, he's uncle Enrico, dad's younger brother.
It's been too long, indeed.
"You still look as handsome, Enrico," mom greets back.
Enrico smiles sincerely. "And you never age, Mercy."
The man who looks like he was the richest person on the RMS Titanic turns his head at me and examines me. "Mecky?" his brows arches.
"Uncle Enrico," I press a smile, shy.
He sweeps me from head to toe, awed, then reminiscent. "Blessed heaven! You're a woman. It was only yesterday, you are this little cowgirl with hats bigger than you." He steps closer to hug and kiss me, in which I oblige.
Then he jerks his head towards my back. RJ is hiding behind me. He knows about the people in Tennessee but he'd never met any of them, or even talked to. I turn my head down to RJ and I step a little out of the way to show him. His face is smug, adorably smug. I look at uncle Enrico again and his face is almost indescribable, like he saw an impossible thing comes into a reality.
"RJ, this is your uncle Enrico. You know about him," mom says in her calm voice. RJ looks at her then back to the speechless man.
"Hello," RJ greets, uncertain, then he twitches his lips.
Uncle Enrico's brows lift even higher. "Impossible. Today, I did go back in time," he shakes his head in disbelief, then he kneels down to RJ's level. "Hi. RJ... You look exactly like your father."
"So I've been told," RJ responds a little snotty. I snap at him under my breath as a sign that he should be polite. "Thank you," he adds.
"Can I hug you?" uncle Enrico asks.
Mom and I look at each other, we're both astonished seeing this moment.
RJ obliges and they hug a little too long, then our uncle stares at him a little longer. When he has enough, he bids his temporary goodbye. He's the honorary father to the First Groom since Lolo J couldn't come because he's recovering from an operation. Emily is not expected to come since she's not that fond of uncle Juando; auntie Amanda, dad's older sister must be here somewhere, as well as auntie Rebecca, dad's youngest sibling. Uncle Forth is not coming either, it's complicated.
We are now on the balcony of our room in this massive ranch house, over-looking the grassy backyard where the ceremony will take place. It does feel like we are back in time. Aside from the people gathering all over the place with glasses of champagnes and red wines in their hands, dressed in vintage and country outfits, the venue is also set up like we are in a historical fiction movie, even the sky matches the mood.
It's a huge backyard with trees everywhere covering most of the area. There's a quaint looking barn on the background corner of the ceremony stage, it's open with all the props typically seen in a barn, including a pyramid of haystacks. It reminds me of our old barn in one of the pastures in our ranch land, it was Ogre's home, the old tractor I fixed when I was nine.
There are other vintage props all over the place too; gas lanterns, wooden and iron wheels, tired looking crates in different sizes and of course, what's a wedding without flowers and laces and stuff.
As the three of us, half-blooded Herhers, silently watch the timeless mood in the backyard, I have a glimpse of a man who has come back in time for real. The young Albert comes out of the victorian era back porch of this victorian ranch house of the pure-blooded Herhers.
Albert walks towards Mr. Severus and sir Yap who are chatting with some other guests I don't recognise. Mom and RJ decides to come back inside the room, mom is a little anxious because she has to make a speech later at the reception, while RJ is not too ecstatic about today, he says he doesn't know anyone except the two grooms and my teachers. He will be the ring bearer later and I am the maid of honor, which makes me feel stuffy thinking about it now. But I stay in the balcony, because I can't keep my eyes off of Albert.
This magnetic, strange, sexy country-looking guy from the pub is confusing every cell in my body. He is standing sideways from my vantage point, his frame shows how fit he is, especially with that deliriously hot masculine curve of his backside - his feckin' ass!
He's not talking or in the conversation but he's listening to the people in the circle he's at right now. There's that relaxed sense in him again. Then something catches his attention from the wedding set up, it's the barn, I reckon; he excuse himself from the group then walks few steps further to get a better glimpse of the barn.
In a swift breathtaking surprise, he turns his head in my direction, it's like he knew where I am exactly at; he couldn't have known, mom mentioned earlier that Albert doesn't know which room we are at and we haven't seen him since we arrived at the ranch. But his turn was accurate, like he's sure where I'm at. And now, our eyes are bored into each other's like we are the only the people in the world.
He looks majestic, tranquil, familiar, with the vintage background of the wedding set up behind him, he looks timeless. He's wearing a dull brown plaid shirt topped with a vintage green tweed vest, I also see green suspenders inside, then a matching brown vintage herringbone tweed trouser, two-tone shoes, and the one that makes him young is his green newsboy cap.
What is he doing to me?
Then like I am looking at the sun distinctly rising from the horizon, an all-out smile appears on Albert's face. My heart flutters, I'm feeling some kind of indigestion. I don't know. I can't help but smile too, like our smiles understand each other but I don't, does he?
In like a slow motion scene, he lowers his head, draw his lips under his tongue followed by his upper lip, reminiscent of a recent past. I know exactly what he's remembering.
He glance up at me and I suddenly want to kiss him again. He jerks his head a little, like he's signaling that we should meet behind the tree. Of course, today, I'm a lady in the 1920s, standing in a balcony keeping a safe distance from the danger of a Romeo in suspenders.
He jerks his head again, a little commanding this time, but I remain lady-like, smiling and shaking my head like the virgin I used to be. Then he walks, slow and uncertain, towards me. I'm considering he would Romeo himself up my balcony so I Juliet myself and I ignore him and fake my attention to a group laughing loudly down below. I think sir Yap is flirting with one of the guests.
I glance back at Albert's position but he is nowhere now. For the life of me, I check below my balcony to see if someone is climbing and I roll my eyes at myself. Then someone knocks on our door.
"Hello, RJ. You look.. ageless, not a day over a hundred. Very dapper."
"You too sir Albert. You look really good for a hundred and one."
We all laugh at the exchange. Then Albert's eyes meet with mine. For several seconds I freeze, if it isn't for my mom interjection, I would have turned into a stone. I didn't realise Albert's eyes also have the Medusa effect.
Mom and Albert exchanges a little chat that is inaudible to me, then they both look at me.
"Mecky, Albert asks if you can give him a short tour of the house. You should," mom insists. Albert also asked her last night not to call him sir anymore.
It isn't our first time here at the Herher Brahman's Ranch, we've been coming here at least twice a year, uncle Juando would bring us. Lolo J was born and raised here, after his studies in America he decided to emigrate there. When luck has come in his way and his wealth multiplied, he transformed their family land here in Masbete into a ranch. They used to breed horses here, but now it is mainly a Brahman cattles operation. It has also become a top tourist destination in the province because of the picturesque view of the pastures and of course, the ranch and the cowboy experience for the tourist. Now the family relatives take care of the whole operation here since Lolo J owns a hundred times bigger ranch in Nashville.
I breathe. "Sure. I'm not much of tourist guide, but there are some cool spots I know," I admit to Albert.
I walk out of the room and lead Albert downstairs. I decide I will bring him behind the big red barn where the reception will be at later, from there we can see a picturesque view of one of the pastures.
Even though we've exchanged little chats since the coffee shop at the airport, but I still feel very uneasy being with him. I don't truly regret about kissing him last night, I just don't understand why I did that. It was too forward of me, I don't think it was out-of-character, I think I can be forward at times, but it was still crazy that I would kiss my teacher. And even tho I see him in a different viewpoint now, especially when we're at the pub, but not so much at school, still, it's -- we are just not happening. We can't.
We step out of the porch that Albert came out of earlier. The backside of the house facing the backyard is in a symmetrical U-shape with full porch on all three sides of the house. Some of the guests are loiterring along the porch. I feel the time-travel sense even more now that I am among the guests down here.
"Mercy!" a sophisticated tone from a woman calls out few steps from me. I absentmindedly turn my head to the source of the call.
"Oh. Sorry," a vintage-elite looking woman put his gloved hands lightly on the side of her jaw. "I thought you are -- "
She jerks her head a little and narrows her eyes at me, like she is finally recognising me. " Are you?" she asks.
I start to recognise her too, she's auntie Rebecca. "Not Mercy. She's my mom," I press a smile.
"Mecky! Oh my lord! It is you!" she says ecstatic.
I force my expression to match her sophisticated enthusiasm. She steps closer, leans in and gives me a hug. I return with an awkward smile and hug her too.
She turns her head to the center porch, "Amanda!" she calls, her tone is as vintage and as elite as she looks.
Another vintage-elite looking woman steps out of the porch, holding a champagne in her hand. I bet it is to show her massive emerald stone vintage ring. She looks like she's bestfriend with Rose Dewitt-Bukater's mother.
Am I on the Titanic today?
"Amanda, surprise, surprise. It's Mecky!" Rebecca exclaims. I can't keep up with her sophistication, I smile sour.
Amanda raises her expressions, looks at me with her chin up, and then she elegantly swayed her wrist and rest the tip of her fingers in the middle of her collar bone. "Are you?" she asks, or states, I can't tell, her voice has a nasal sophistication in it.
"Yes! Amanda, this is little Mecky."
I press a smile, unsure what to do because auntie Amanda just stands. It looks ridiculous to me, these two woman, I'm not sure if they are just acting to match the vintage theme of the day, or they are ridiculously too elite to exists in today's world.
"Hello po," I force myself to be polite.
"You look like your mother," auntie Amanda remarks. I'm not sure if it was a compliment or a snide remark.
I force myself to remain polite and press a smile. "Thank you."
Auntie Rebecca looks at the man behind me, "Hi, I'm Rebecca Herher."
Albert extends his hand too, "Albert Henyo. Juando's colleague and Mecky's teacher."
I almost roll my eyes at Albert's introduction, he's an Alberto.
I start to uncomfortable, so timidly, I try to make my escape. "I uh, I'm going to give sir Albert a short tour around the house. And uh -- "
"Oh, please! Of course. This is a top tourist spot after all. We'll see you later, Mecky," auntie Rebecca gracefully agree, and still no words from the other first class passenger of the Titanic. Then we bid our temporary goodbyes with forced smiles.
Albert and I walk out of the crowded backyard, pass several trees, turn around a wooden fence then we reach the reception area. People in white kitchen uniforms filled the place as they go around double checking their reception set-up.
"That was awkward," Albert finally speaks. I look at him and smile.
"I haven't seen them in.. forever. Haven't talked to them either. I don't how to act," I reply honestly.
We walk towards the back of the big red barn. "They're your father's sisters?" he asks, I nod. "You were not close with them? Like your family in Tagaytay?"
We reach the backside fence with the impressive view of the pasture and the mountains in the horizon. The grass is very lush this time, we see a herd of Brahman cattles being moved in the far side of the pasture.
I breathe as I lean in and rest my forearms on the wooden fence. "I hardly see them when I was a kid. So, no, we don't have the same kind of relationship I have with my mom's side of the family. They've always been a stranger to me. We're family by name but that's about it, maybe now we just have same names but not a family at all. They.. they're not.. they don't like my mom very much, or at all, for dad. I didn't realise it when I was a kid, but now I think, their marriage was not fully accepted, especially by Emily, my dad's mother."
"Sounds like a plot in a TV drama," Albert jests. I laugh.
"Look who's talking. Who are your parents again?" I jest back. He laughs with handsome distinct notes.
"How could they not like your mother? She's a lovely woman. I saw your family photos and Mercy never ages, she was as beautiful back then as she is now. And your father's video, they both looked so inlove. It couldn't have been that your mom is poor, like in the TV dramas. The Jocsons, I realised are legends."
That's very kind of him to say, I smile. "I don't know either. Mom never spoke badly of them. I don't think I ever liked them anyway even when I was a kid. They are always so.. stuffy. I don't think dad liked them either. I remember Emily thinks that dad can be so.. improper, she'd say. And you saw those two elite looking woman, how sophisticated they are."
He smiles archly and nods. "Improper, huh. True enough, you are your father's daughter," he quips.
I instantly get what he means. I grin in disbelief. I want to say something but I change my mind. I push him lightly instead, then I rest my hand back on the fence.
Silence, again, filled the air. Then, in a not so unexpected move, he took my hand and entwines it with his. I've been feeling an energy from him since our walk, that he wanted to do something, but he couldn't get himself to.
Now, he's done it, I feel the warmth of his hand. I would've expected it to be cold, but no. He has a sturdy hand; it's wide, soft but not smooth since he's probably done or written a million homeworks or so, must be why some nerves are visible too. But he has a firm hold, like he is sure at what he is doing, holding my hand. I didn't twitch or fidget, I let him hold me and I want more.
Oh god! What am I thinking?
Then another move, one that I did not expect, he lifts my hand towards him, he takes a sweet whiff and kiss the back of it. I look at him, then he glance at me with his lips pressed on the back my hand. I smile, he smiles, then we look into the horizon again. This isn't weird anymore, I don't think. Something is obvious, but still, I don't know what to make of it. I just know, I feel good.
"It isn't exactly a tour if I only show you one place. But.. I think we should go back, the ceremony is about to start soon," I say.
"Just one more minute with you," he whispers.
Our gazes are getting mushy-mushy now, I feel indigestion again. We stay for several more minutes before we head back.
The wedding is quite a production. I know that the entourage will be first displayed in the three connecting balconies of the house's second floor, then they would walk down the exterior stairs, pass through the porch below and come out from the center porch towards the wedding aisle, and then settle on their assigned spot near the stage, the barn will be their background.
RJ is there now carrying very expensive diamond rings, and I'm here with uncle Juando in a barn at the far side of the pasture that Albert and I was looking at earlier. The Groom's Groom, uncle Brian, has five grooms men with him, they are somewhere else. As the the only maid of honor for the First Groom, uncle Juando, I will be doing my entrance with him.
It's time. Uncle Juando and I saddle up our horses. A camera is right in front of us, videoing our every move. Then the barn's door opens dramatically, there's a flying camera drone waiting for us from outside. We each give our horses a kick and we rode through the lush green pasture towards the house's backyard, I am running only a feet behind uncle Juando.
Silently, I thank my hairstylist for showering me with hair setting spray, my hair would have been everywhere from this horseback ride. From our direction, even under the covers of the trees, the guests who are already sitting can see us as we can see them.
We must be picturesque by now, running with our horses with the beautiful pasture as our background. Then we jump expertly through the fence, passing by the big red barn, then a few trees and we stop in front of the set-up venue. Everyone, I can see very well, are in big wide awe; there are hush murmurs around. We weren't hearing it from our horseback ride, but there was a background music playing from here as we rode the horse, there is also a big screen that streamed our entrance live.
Uncle Juando steps down of his black morgan horse, he comes towards me to help me get down as part of the act. Then, with the music's signal, I walk across the front aisle towards the driveway on the other side. A vintage Rolls Royce Coupe de Ville custom-stretched limousine arrives and parks at the entryway.
Then, the five vintage-looking grooms men in suspenders step out of the car one by one. As they do, they each give me a single yellow daffodil. In another signal of the music, uncle Juando also walks across the front aisle towards us. The five grooms men are lined on one side, and I'm alone opposite them.
Uncle Juando arrives, gives out his hand that uncle Brian accepts as he steps out of the car. Then, as the final entourage, the five grooms men walks towards the front aisle and turn left to the centre aisle and proceeds towards the back. I follow and do the same walk, our final spots will be at the back to sit on the special high stacks of crates. The two Grooms takes on a different walking path, they circle to the back and enters the centre aisle towards the stage.
As they do their walk-down-the-aisle, their pre-vows are being aired in the background. They were simultaneosly saying about love being simple, and they will continue to choose this simple kind of love they have for each other because it's all they'll ever want, most especially for the simplest reason of making each other smile.
I find it simply romantic. I know, as much as everybody else here, that these two simply found each other on Instagram seven years ago. Both single and both have laid-back personalities, then one asked a simple question and they went on a simple date. While everybody else look for the extraordinary, world-altering, breathtaking kind of love stories, these two got it simple. I hardly heard any problems they had together. They were always a happy couple. Simple.
The reception is a hoot, just like any country wedding reception, I suppose. The music, the dances, the venue, the energy, and it feel so good to be around the people who show their genuine love and acceptance to the newlyweds. Love wins. While this is only ceremonial here in the Philippines, these two already got legally married in Amsterdam, where uncle Brian's filipino family lives.
Since mom is not a very social creature, she decides to go back to our room early with RJ. As expected, the pure-blooded Herhers rarely made contact with us, except for the occasional bumps that will be followed with forced and awkward smiles, and almost wordless chats.
RJ has been complaining that he feels anxious when our three relatives from the United States looks at him like they are seeing a ghost. RJ has a thing about people he doesn't like, like a dog when they don't feel you, they will bark and growl at you. So RJ wasn't particularly pleasant with the three of them. I worry a bit that they might think we raised RJ terribly. But then, what do I care about what they think?
Albert and I, since the ceremony, is in a dance of stares, gazes, and glances like last night. But this time, I'm dancing along with him. As always, my eyes would follow RJ wherever he goes, you can't really put him in a seat for long. He's the total opposite of mom, he's an extremely social kid and he likes it better when he's the only child around, it means for him that he can act adult.
But Albert comes in second for my eye's attention. He laughs around, he's social to strangers; earlier he joined the trip around the world dance. Tonight, he exudes a young energy, totally out-of-character compared to the teacher I've known for years. We don't talk much, he's been dragged from groups to groups, I don't know, it's like he says something funny and everybody likes him instantly.
But we share looks that instantly makes both of us smile, smiles that has different meanings; sometimes because of something funny, or interesting, or surprising, or just nothing, we stare at each other and then we smile like idiots. I know this, I get it -- I like him, I more than like him. I don't know why yet, but it's crazy insane, he's my teacher after all.
It's almost 10:00pm, I start to get bored now. I'm better entertained when RJ is around, he's fun to watch when he mingles with the adults, oftentimes he can be entertainingly preposterous.
My newlywed uncles are both dignified professionals, so of course the people important for them to be at the wedding are as just professional looking. And I am half adult, half kid/girl. No one's interested in me, and it's nothing new, so I decide to head back to my room. I search for Albert, I want him to know I'm taking off but I don't see him anywhere. I hope he isn't drunk yet.
I return to mom's and RJ's room with the television on, dad's crying face is on the screen. I've never seen him cry, so I've never seen this video before.
I see RJ cuddled up with mom in the bed, both are already snoring, it was a very long day after all. I pull the sheets up to warm them then I sit on the edge of the bed to watch dad in tears.
I recognise some pieces of the video, he has another video like this that I've watched before, it was when I was born. In the video I've seen before, dad was recording the whole moment that mom was in labor, dad was beside her holding her hands. While mom's face is scrimmaging in pain, dad was overly excited, it was kind of funny.
But in this new video, it's like an edited montage of dad in the hospital with me. I look so tiny. In one clip, I was on dad's lap, he was sitting on a hospital bed, he was playing with my tiny, tiny hands. He was talking to me, not in woooshie-woooshie baby talk, but more of a serious talk, he had his serious face too; he was talking about boys and how we should handle them when they start courting me.
He's funny, dad has always been funny, that's what I miss about him the most. Now, tears starts to fall down on my face.
In another clip, dad was hysterical because I burped a lot of nasty indigested milk on his naked shoulder and it's flowing on his chest. He was comically complaining to mom, he keeps shouting 'Honey! Honey! Eeww it's disgusting! Honey! Honey!'. Mom thought it was funny so she recorded him. She put the camera on a leveled surface to get a towel for dad, the camera was still on; she was shaking her head and intently cautious because I was still in dad's arms while he was being hysterical, he could have dropped me.
Another clip was dad changing my diapers, he was singing a song I've never heard before, but it has hilarious lyrics about a grandma getting hit by a deer. Then the montage goes into fast clips of all the times that dad has change my diapers. I remember, mom told me once that I was two when she started changing my diapers because dad wanted to do it all by himself in the beginning.
Then the montage goes back to that earlier clip of dad's crying face. He was holding me in his arms, he was sitting on mom's bed and mom was standing beside him, it's like they changed roles. Dad wasn't talking, he was just gaping at me, with endless tears falling from the side of his eyes. I start to sob now. Then I feel mom's hand on my back.
"Mecky," she whispers. I turn myself towards her and I cry on the side of her neck.
"You're uncle Juando gave me a USB with these new montage. He said it came from your uncle Forth. I haven't seen these in a long time, I thought they were lost. These are some of your dad's first montage of you, I remember he was planning to use this to embarass you on your 18th birthday," mom says, we both laugh on her funny recollection.
"RJ and I watched the first half of it. We can watch it again tomorrow."
I nod and I stop sobbing. "You can go back to sleep ma, I'll stay up for awhile."
She steps out of the bed. "Ok. I'll just wash up quickly, I still have make-up on. Let's leave RJ in his clothes, no need to wake him, he's very tired."
I nod and she walks to the bathroom. I turn off the tv to ensure a comfortable darkness for RJ to stay in his deep sleep.
I take the Theology book and head out to the balcony. I easily figured out the Morse code, it's a number problem:
✂︎ ✂︎ ✂︎
The fifth number plus the third number equals fourteen.
The fourth number is one more than the second number.
The first number is one less than twice the second number.
The second number plus the third number equals ten.
The sum of all five numbers is 30.
What were the five numbers and in what order?
The answer is 7, 4, 6, 5, 8. It was a pretty easy math problem. Now, I have to figure out what these numbers mean. I'm thinking of calling Cece, maybe she can figure out the significance of these five numbers. But, of course, I'll try solving it first, or Cece will scold me again for not trusting myself enough.
✂︎ ✂︎ ✂︎
"Mecky."
Someone whispers. I look at mom, her back is facing me, she's definitely asleep now and snoring.
"Mecky."
Another whisper. I look around, then down the balcony. I see Albert.
"What?" I whisper back. I close the book.
Albert jerks his head signaling me to come down, he's still energetic even in this wee hour of the night.
I pretend I don't understand. "What?" I ask again.
"Come down here."
"Why?"
"Come down here."
"Why?"
We're both whispering.
I know I'm being intentionally impossible now. Of course I know why, he've been wanting to hold me or maybe even kiss me since the reception. I'm assuming, I know, but he's been wetting his lips some earlier when we were doing our private dance of stares.
"Come down here or I'll come and get you!" he pressed hard, still whispering.
I'm enjoying my rejections of him. "It's late! I can come down tomorrow."
Then in the craziest of things I'd ever seen, Albert steps on the wooden railings of the porch below, finds his way up in one of the pillars and get himself up my balcony. I am stupefied. This doesn't happen in real life, we're not Romeo and Juliet, are we? No, we're not. This is insane.
Insane!
I am in disbelief. "What are -- wha -- what are you -- are you crazy??"
"You are being difficult!" he blurts out whispery.
He's now stepping on something, I don't know how, but he's right in front of me, his one hand clasping on the metal railings of my balcony and his other hand is holding on an embossed pillar from the wall of the house.
"You're crazy -- you can fall and die!!"
"Then I'll come back and haunt you to blame you for my untimely death."
I slap him on his chest and - dear lord! - he almost lost his balance. We are both horrified. "Will you get down now! You're crazy!" I snap between my teeth.
He smirks sardonically. "Not until you kiss me again."
PERTIMBANGAN PENCIPTA 
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