MY ARMS CAUGHT Shanta's belly the minute the waves threw her offshore. She was coughing constantly, weakly gasping for air due to long submission to water.    "Shanta…" I muttered painfully.   Pareho kaming napaupo sa dalampasigan. Yakap-yakap ko siya habang kinakalaban kami ng mga alon. She was sitting in front of me, weak and depressed, while my arms locked her waist, chaining her so she could never go anywhere… so she can never do harm to herself.   "Shanta…" I swallowed hard while I sniffed her damp hair. "W-Why do you have to do that? Hmm? Please don't do that again. Okay? Hindi ko kaya."   "Ahhh!" She screamed grievously. "Ang Papa ko! Ibalik niyo ang Papa ko! Ibalik n-ninyo!" Her voice cracked.

FOR THE PAST SIX MONTHS, I never got tired of assisting in Shanta's treatment. Sa anim na buwang iyon, ilan din ang sessions na pinasukan namin. Some days are bad, but most are successful.    Sa bawat araw ay unti-unting nakikipag-usap sa amin si Shanta. At araw-araw din akong dumadalaw sa kanilang mansion. Ngunit may mga araw na doon ako natutulog. It's because she had meds that need to be taken at past midnight.   Hindi rin naman nakatira doon si Tita Shantanel. Kuya Dallas also boarded a few weeks after his father's funeral. Kumbaga, ako ang nag-aasikaso sa pagpapagamot ni Shanta because everyone of them is busy.    They find time, yes, pero mahirap silang makabisita sa kanya. We both understand dahil may sari-sarili na kaming buhay. Pati ng mga kaibigan namin.

AND THERE THEY ARE! Let us all welcome Mr. Kagan Vos Lombardi, together with his bride-to-be, Ms. Kachina Alexis Coolidge!"Napatingin ako sa taas, litong-lito. The hall slowly dimmed and I squinted at the strong light that pointed at me. Napasulyap din ako sa isang malakas na ilaw na tumutok sa isang babae. What the heck? What the fuck is happening?! Hindi ako ikakasal sa sino man! Lalong-lalo na kay Kachina!Behind Shanta, there was Kachina grinning triumphantly while walking towards my direction. Sinusundan siya ng ilaw habang nakatitig sa mga mata ko. Unti-unti akong tumuwid ng tayo, kumukulo ang dugo sa bawat segundong nasa amin ang atensyon ng mga tao, umuusok ang ilong dahil sa walang pakonswelong engagement party, na hindi ko naman sinang-ayunan!Lumingon ako sa emcee. He was behind a podium upstage. Malawak ang ngiti niya at kung anu-ano pa ang sinasabing matatamis, na walang katuturan. I glared at him. Iyong nanlilis

LUMABAS AKO NG kwarto pagkatapos kong maligo. I wiped my damp hair with a clean towel as I closed the door to the master's bedroom. Since I have nothing much to do this weekend, white shorts at gray sleeveless shirt ang sinuot ko. Plus, marami akong inaasikaso para sa kasal. To start with that, I left the house I once lived for six months, then finally transferred to my own condo.Simple lang ito pero malawak. Wala masyadong muwebles ngunit sapat ang mga kagamitan sa bahay. As I hung the towel on my right shoulder, yumuko ako para abutin ang remote control mula sa pa-U na sopa.Since that memorable night, ny habits changed. Now, it became my routine to switch on the television after a quick hot shower. Umikot ako sa sopa saka binagsak ang pwet ko roon. I raised my feet on the center table saka tinutok ang remote sa t.v.Sa isang pindot ko, sumilay ang liwanag ng telebisyon. It's 8 o'clock in the evening at balita kaagad ang bumungad roon. It's boring to watch news t

AND THANKS TO OUR engineers and architects…" Ngumiti ako at nilingon ang mga negosyante. "Kung hindi dahil sa kanila, hindi makukumpleto ang proyektong ito. It'll be… world class. And we guarantee you that this cruise ship will be the best among the other ships made by our company. At salamat din sa ating project management team. Natutuwa ako dahil sa galing nila sa pagkilatis."Sa pagtatapos ng presentasyon ko, lahat ay isa-isang nagpalakpakan. Abot-tainga ang mga ngiti nila. They were… satisfying, which gave me a good sign that they'll approve of this.I also smiled after I put down my papers. Bahagyang hinihingal ako dahil sa matagal na pagsasalita, but I didn't mind it. All our hard work paid off at malinaw ang pagkaka-eksplika ko.This project is really technical and extravagant in designs. Ngunit para sa maganda naman ang kalalabasan nito. The building team will be utilizing resilient materials that can withstand big waves and heavy storms.Sa gitna ng palakpakan, hindi ko maiwa