II
“When happiness fades and love fails, the future still remains.”
The city’s convoluting traffic will definitely make anyone frustrated if not furious. It’s a Monday and everybody seems to be on the road. Annoying car horns coupled with the noise of speeding vehicles is a sure ball for one’s headache. Adding insult to injury is the humid weather which does not only cause a pungent feeling but also makes temperatures heat up. However all these add up, Alex seems not to care. The taxi’s struggling air conditioner doesn’t matter to him. He’s busy reminiscing everything that happened a couple of Saturdays ago. And a bittersweet smile appeared on his perspiring face.
Like every after-event party, Alex with her closest colleagues, would stay until the brink of dawn. That’s their way of celebrating a successful project. Planning an event for big-time clients day after night is not as easy as it looks like. Aside from the fact that you have to be socially in-the-know of today’s hippest places, coolest happenings and trendiest people, you also need to consider a series of sleepless nights and some personal life sacrifices. In return, Alex and her colleagues get free B’s- boys, bong and booze. They get to enjoy the moment.
This particular night, they decided to go bar-hopping instead of staying on the same place they organized the Octoberfest event. As always, they danced, drank and drowned themselves from fleeting momentarily ecstasy. Alex seemed to be the only one in the group sober. He headed to the bar to get a drunken friend’s request. Upon returning with a bottle of iced water on his hand, he realized his friend nowhere to be found. He started to worry thinking what might happen to his friend who’s not only drunk and miserable but alone and unsafe. He began to get cold chills inside a steamy crowded bar.
“You better stop worrying. You’re starting to look like Aling Dionesia.”, a moreno stranger slightly taller than him approached.
“Who?”, he said back, frowning.
“Aling Dionesia?! Mommy Pacquiao!” the stranger shouted, thinking he wasn’t heard due to the uber-noisy background.
“No, I know. I meant who are you?” Alex shouted back.
“Oh I’m sorry. I’m Vince. And you’re Alex, right?”
“Yeah. How did you know?”, he answered confused.
“I was talking to your friends a while ago. You were too busy thinking of something else. Or someone else.”, Vince answered beaming.
Alex remembered Vince now. He was in the center of a big group on the other side of the bar. He caught glimpses of some of them flirting with Vince. He is quite the party-goer. All seemed interested with him including one of Alex’s friends who made an effort to get Vince into their group and have a quick chat.
“I’m so worried with my friend. He’s so drunk and I’m sure he can’t go home by himself.” Alex confessed to Vince.
“No problem. You stay here, I’ll be back and you’ll fall in love with me!”
Alex wanted to leave already after hearing those words but the idea of a daring hope promised by a stranger made him stay. While waiting, he caught Vince’s clique staring at him looking annoyed. He knew they felt Vince is wasting the party mood to an unworthy plea.
“Here, I got hold of him”, Vince returned, handing him a phone with his friend on the other line. Alex talked to his friend for a few seconds and found out that he went out with one of Vince’s friends. “See, I told you, you shouldn’t have worried.”, Alex said smiling.
“Thanks. For the effort.”, Alex can’t think of any other words to say.
Vince just stared at him for a moment and then said “Let’s get outta here!”
Upon leaving the bar’s curtains that served as doors, they both walked side by side on the nearby street. Vince lit a cigarette and start puffing.
“I still can’t believe you would do that for me. I mean, you were with your friends partying. And you ditched that to help a stranger? Wow, there’s still good people left on earth pala!”, Alex said ecstatically.
“So is this the part that you’ll fall in love with me?”, Vince asked with a naughty grin on his face.
Alex remained silent. He can’t keep on doing anything but to smile back to Vince who’s so braggingly cute.
“Oi, you’re totally falling in love with me!” Vince added, now laughing.
Alex answered, “Of course not! Not today.” He’s still smiling.
After a few laughs, Vince stopped talking and just stared at Alex who is busy surveying the street occupied with gimmick people. Alex caught him glancing at him and said with a serious face, “Why, are you falling in love with me?”
Vince just made a soft laugh first before whispering, “God you’re cute.”
“Oh my, you’re totally falling in love with me!”, Alex continued jokingly.
They roared with laughter. They seemed to be two kids happily watching a clown show. They didn’t care whether or not the passersby’s would think of them as crazy party-people who are high on illegal drugs. They didn’t care if their laughs are even louder with the trans-music airing on the background. They didn’t care on anything, anyone. All that matters is this moment. The single picture they’re hoping would last a memory’s lifetime nevertheless knowing it just can never work.
After the laughs came the kiss. Then they said goodbye.
“Sir, this is your stop.”, the taxi driver told Alex. Alex woke from what seems a day dream only that it’s real. How can one sane person let go of this opportunity? Vince may be tangible but how come he seems so far from real? Thoughts twirl on Alex’s head. All he knows is that he’s tired of his work and needs some sense of fulfilment. Neither a tiring unsatisfying event-organizing job nor a boytoy Vince, who doesn’t care about the future, could ever fulfill, unfortunately.
Upon getting out of the cab, he took his first glance at the building of his new job. Even though he knows that happiness fades and love may fail, his future still remains.
To be cont’d
