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.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXRywRY49rB
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.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzzX52wwxjO
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.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWS4wsvAq6C
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.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKZGdw4HiFO
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.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8Z5xKoup50
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.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm40InPJm1a
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.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm272YUTqy4
A sudden warmth on my left side snapped me back to reality. Was it Joe again?274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRfpxwhgyup
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.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDkA9U4SACD
"Hey kuya," I greeted. "Tired of working already? You need a reliever?"274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHiwBimVwvz
So there was a part of me that still refused to quit my dream.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhkM410f5Af
"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."274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCJ7q2QytKQ
I nodded. "Nice."274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8Qm0bCqdHr
And in my head, I was wishing that happened to everyone.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyOYvMPdXhU
"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."274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKn3PWbuW4t
Oh. Was I that obvious?274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN9bv5zD2XA
"Really?" I asked.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzjcU5KCG6x
"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.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyxVoWyL9y3
"Can’t you be discreet about that, kuya?" I hissed while my cheeks grew warm. "It's embarrassing."274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAnpBKKHkZZ
"Aha!” he exclaimed, clapping his fingers, “So that's why you’re blushing!"274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn0V8GtVpLv
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.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF14v69evCf
"No, I am not," I denied, but my treacherous lips could not stop themselves from smiling.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzQtGcC0z2D
"Your mouth is a walking contradiction, tol. You like the girl?"274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOKvzZNulaV
I quickly put my forefinger over my lips. "Ssshhh! Keep it down!"274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ00u3xJ9PDg
"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?"274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBWQtQYgLKb
"Do you ever shut up?" I hissed again.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbWsykVDw5U
He threw his hands in the air, "Alright, alright, I'll stop."274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEP6WQIl8BJ
But he moved closer to my ear and whispered, "But you like her right? Admit it..."274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ456OwjTO50
He gave me a pair of teasing eyes. This man would literally not stop at anything just to get the answer he wanted.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL7D2BBE28c
I sighed. "Alright, alright, I do. So?"274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwBkDEIvipx
"So? What are you sitting here for, man? Go ahead, get her!"274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw3JGiWENTN
My brow arched. "That quick? I don't even know her name."274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxNy4CPzZ85
"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.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYFtSGgI5qm
I pushed myself up and faced him.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsnPA5niQKY
"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.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCpPnkYjOnN
He cackled.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsFCzIy5kav
"You know you can always change out of that thing, right?" he said, smiling from ear to ear.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrv06n8HZth
To my surprise, he grabbed the shining pin from my hair, making me wince in pain. 274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKhKz0ZtdG4
"Go get her, man, or you'll regret it," he continued.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5nzswv1IsL
My brows furrowed while I scratched the back of my neck.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCCtXjW2eYM
"Really? You won't come and help me out?" I whined.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5azHVjZa7k
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?274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLxG82uFwLj
"Come on, Judy, man up!” said Lev, smirking. "We're watching you."274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQn0atA3H8w
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.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡczzF2BI0WO
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.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1Z1APyV9ps
"Hi, ate, are you okay? What happened to you?" she asked, concern evident in her pretty face.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMZYj4Tg22s
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.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSGNFyHHiaq
"Those boys," I answered and pointed to my brothers who were talking on the other side. "They're picking on me."274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcfNzDZvlpL
Then I remembered that strong hit at the back of my head.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVqT0UnOoRw
"Ouch!" I cried, my hand rose to the part hit by the coconut shell. It was half-pretend. My head literally hurt. Damn Lev.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp4jEYX7Pwk
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.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwMm7i9hBq4
"What happened to you?" she asked.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFoZb9HENYs
"One of them hit me on the head. It really hurts..." my face contorted in pain.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7C7HNxTeCa
The frown on her face reflected genuine concern. Seeing her like that filled my stomach with fluttering butterflies.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxlCf1xxAct
"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.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjDVT8NEt6A
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.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwbrzSUd9Tu
"Oh look," the girl said, "You're bleeding!"274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPP6n7WJ2lt
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.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYyhldiPNDL
She took out a clean handkerchief from her pocket and used it to stop the bleeding on my head.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTzNQ91cf9G
When she finished attending to my wound, I turned to look at her and flashed a smile of gratitude.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvuoshiWZLn
"Thank you so much..." I said as if waiting for her to give her name.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3AUXvc33kR
She gave me a smile that said she knew exactly what I was thinking.274Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2hX6CjrBnH
"Ester."
