There was nothing I could do but to adhere to mama's unreasonable wishes, just to say that I have honored my father and mother, one of the things she and papa did not forget to remind us every day. The idea actually made me want to throw up. What am I, a drag queen? And would the god we were taught to worship want me to be the person mama was grooming me to become? Maybe she needed to review the Bible. Going against God’s handiwork will surely earn her negative points in heaven.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQEJBYzt3rV
After checking on my sister-in-law, I joined the women in preparing food for my brothers, who were building Ben’s house. Mama was out because she had to go to school.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5nOhfvHx2j
There were still a few months to go before they complete the house. But my "delusion" of working with the "real" boys in the family must immediately come to an end. Mama made it clear that the next time she learned about me doing manly things, she would, you know, hit me with the infamous slipper.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsJe4gnMrAp
The women were already gathered in a makeshift hut to cook. At that time, some of Naya's relatives also joined in the making of that extensive project, most of them preparing food for the laborers.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn6ced7TG8s
And there I saw a familiar face—the bridesmaid at the wedding Joe was telling me about. Her dark hair gathered in a pigtail, her face flashed the sweetest smile to every person she met, and her bright, smooth fingers worked masterfully on the leafy greens.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN7aSzEzy1n
My heart pounded wildly at the knowledge of her presence. Who would have thought I would see her at an event like this? Maybe mama's warnings were a blessing after all.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOmM5cvNHku
From time to time, my eyes would move toward the makeshift hut just to watch her, careful not to let mama's "eyes" see what I was doing. I wish this time the sun wouldn't set without me knowing her name, but timidity crept into my system faster than the speed of light, so I just gave in to the contentment of watching her from a distance.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXCIV04MCNu
A sudden warmth on my left side snapped me back to reality. Was it Joe again?331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD9MOMfpSDW
When I turned my head in that direction, it was not Joe who sat beside me but Ben, his crossed arms resting on his knees. He was looking at me with a knowing smile on his face.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxgTwKVM0s0
"Hey kuya," I greeted. "Tired of working already? You need a reliever?"331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRlCss7XIBq
So there was a part of me that still refused to quit my dream.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCzbvN6EvDA
"Me, tired? Nah, I'm strong as a bull," he said, flexing his lean bicep. "I just had a water break, but I'll be back in a few minutes."331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX6NAbhy263
I nodded. "Nice."331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJSOzqrFNri
And in my head, I was wishing that happened to everyone.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdduxWlQLK5
"What about you, Jude? Your eyes are beaming today. Saw a dude you like?" He joked, making me shoot him a wide-eyed glare. "Just kidding. You just look a bit different today, like your eyes are going somewhere."331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNI9aAkIpPh
Oh. Was I that obvious?331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjSTmyEO6Sa
"Really?" I asked.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3wfmGzxvZE
"Yeah. You've been eyeing that girl from the first time she’s been here," his mouth pointed exactly to the girl I was looking at, and because I tensed at the truth of his words, one of my hands immediately covered his mouth.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLPGfjvBUWY
"Can’t you be discreet about that, kuya?" I hissed while my cheeks grew warm. "It's embarrassing."331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNITqlVvcOr
"Aha!” he exclaimed, clapping his fingers, “So that's why you’re blushing!"331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdrez0c4cae
I suddenly felt the need to get a mirror. Then I turned my head to see if mama's minions of 'marites' were lurking around. Good thing the area was clear.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNnMkOoAm4s
"No, I am not," I denied, but my treacherous lips could not stop themselves from smiling.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZL92YtmUcb
"Your mouth is a walking contradiction, tol. You like the girl?"331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP0hHBsdjP8
I quickly put my forefinger over my lips. "Ssshhh! Keep it down!"331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSwvtLYORYG
"She's pretty," he said casually. I wondered how his wife might react if she heard him compliment another woman like that. “But you seem to be prettier than her. People might mistake you as BFFs, you know?"331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiPFbW01lLv
"Do you ever shut up?" I hissed again.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRWHkOi5Adi
He threw his hands in the air, "Alright, alright, I'll stop."331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkkiKrz8VpV
But he moved closer to my ear and whispered, "But you like her right? Admit it..."331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxiPiM5nG56
He gave me a pair of teasing eyes. This man would literally not stop at anything just to get the answer he wanted.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOi07oNnMaT
I sighed. "Alright, alright, I do. So?"331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFJIp8WMul1
"So? What are you sitting here for, man? Go ahead, get her!"331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjPdqfKxVwl
My brow arched. "That quick? I don't even know her name."331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp1gWIRmTbF
"That's why God gave us the gift of curiosity. Now go, talk to her!" He gave my back a gentle push, but I stumbled on the ground like a sack of potatoes.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2VrvkQbx4y
I pushed myself up and faced him.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ52d6QJ7mlo
"Don't do this to me, man, I can't talk to her on my own. Not when I look like this," my fingers went from the butterfly clip above my ear down to the oversized tee and short shorts that I was wearing.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDDwNGFtUHa
He cackled.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYxh6rCDNYd
"You know you can always change out of that thing, right?" he said, smiling from ear to ear.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlI6iYgOYD7
To my surprise, he grabbed the shining pin from my hair, making me wince in pain. 331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7Lg0RHxvEd
"Go get her, man, or you'll regret it," he continued.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4Ci38rylad
My brows furrowed while I scratched the back of my neck.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdoGcx2qmq5
"Really? You won't come and help me out?" I whined.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFn5qB1AEkF
Something hard hit my head so I cried aloud in pain. I looked down and saw a coconut shell cut in half. Then I turned my head in the direction where it came from and saw Lev, holding the other half while smirking at me. Beside him were the other brothers: Dan, Simon, and Asher. What in the world is this, Davao Death Squad?331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSZxaS5O4Lk
"Come on, Judy, man up!” said Lev, smirking. "We're watching you."331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDczcrqGtId
Even them?! Now things are getting more complicated. But the good thing about it was, I got the support of my brothers in this.
Thinking mama might get back from work and see me trying to court a girl, I pretended to half-run with my hands fluttering in the air and hips swaying toward the makeshift hut, pushing in the back of my mind how Lev and the gang would react upon seeing me.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdQB9EqlfvW
I was panting heavily when I reached the hut. The young lady glanced at me curiously, and the sight of it added more strength to the pounding in my chest. She stopped paring the raw papayas.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpvxge1nSpw
"Hi, ate, are you okay? What happened to you?" she asked, concern evident in her pretty face.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3fTbg8OCae
Much as I wanted to be offended at the way she addressed me, her soft, sweet voice melted away all the irritations that threatened to bubble up inside.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtTUoJ3TkYf
"Those boys," I answered and pointed to my brothers who were talking on the other side. "They're picking on me."331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeL9fK9Diw0
Then I remembered that strong hit at the back of my head.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLnNbxbhUpa
"Ouch!" I cried, my hand rose to the part hit by the coconut shell. It was half-pretend. My head literally hurt. Damn Lev.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡItVY43GkPR
The girl approached me and her soft hand landed on my shoulder. If I shuddered under her touch, it's good she never paid attention.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7BS3xmDCu9
"What happened to you?" she asked.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡda3u4NCxfE
"One of them hit me on the head. It really hurts..." my face contorted in pain.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl1WwHtZUil
The frown on her face reflected genuine concern. Seeing her like that filled my stomach with fluttering butterflies.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8uGVopJ1Mo
"Come, sit down, I'll take care of it," she said and guided me on the wooden bench under the shade of the tree while her warm fingers tried to locate the painful part on my head.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDYtjBePHo3
Taking advantage of the fact that the girl was not seeing my face, I looked at the spot where I left my brothers to see their reaction. True to their words, they really were watching, and they seemed to approve of it because I saw them cheering from where they were before going back to work.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeFDEoLtuyf
"Oh look," the girl said, "You're bleeding!"331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn4DMnnrUbt
Lev must have hit me so hard. But with the girl’s warm body close to mine, I could tell it was all worth it.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuozHhUzyed
She took out a clean handkerchief from her pocket and used it to stop the bleeding on my head.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrBxqOn3Yev
When she finished attending to my wound, I turned to look at her and flashed a smile of gratitude.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ037XTIeV9S
"Thank you so much..." I said as if waiting for her to give her name.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaoUgCJrwBe
She gave me a smile that said she knew exactly what I was thinking.331Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTg9SuNW9Wr
"Ester."
