Wednesday was wet and muggy. It had rained on and off the whole day. There
was the ever anticipated flash flood on Capitol Drive near the mall, and
trash was clogging the overwhelmed manholes, preventing the turbid water
from being drained away from the highway. Every time the area got flooded,
people would curse and blame the City Mayor, the very same people who sell
their votes to the highest bidder, the very same ones who don't pay taxes,
the very same ones who discard their plastic market bags, kitchen refuse,
and whatever garbage wherever, and the very same ones who pretend to hide
their private parts behind electric posts at the side of the roads while
urinating, an explicit public display of Filipino modesty and Butuanon
delicadeza.
Everyone was in a foul mood that day. At lunch time, a fistfight erupted
between the driver of a vehicle with a large Red Cross sign painted on the
side and somebody in some kind of military uniform. The altercation was the
natural consequence of a dispute as to who had greater political clout and
therefore had the inalienable right to park in the NO PARKING ZONE at the
intersection in front of Chowking, which used to be the Dona Luisa del
Rosario Building. The bewildered traffic policeman was obviously a
tenderfoot. His uniform was still clean, lightly starched and meticulously
pressed. He did not have relatives ensconced in the upper echelon of city or
provincial governments so he prudently stayed away from the fray, across the
street, covered from the rain, under the canopy of the Muslim souvenir shop,
where Manny's house used to be a long time ago, it seemed, during another
lifetime.
Manny offered Wenwen and Jennifer a ride home after the Sonadam dance
practice. The two were only too glad not to have to run to the side of the
highway from the registration desk of the Inland Resort Hotel and to wait
there for public transportation. The rain had gotten worse since nightfall.
Neri June did not attend the dance rehearsal that evening and Jennifer had
not seen her the day before either. Wenwen was making eye signals to Manny.
"Now's your chance!" Manny discretely nodded back at Wenwen and dropped the
young man off in front of the his house first then turned around and drove
back to T. Calo Street to park at a dark patch near the entrance to the
Limquiaco warehouse, not far from the path to the Varona residence.
Jennifer felt uncomfortable being alone in the vehicle with Manny. She found
his stare unsettling. "What's the matter? Are you scared of me? I don't
bite. Well, I do, but it's by invitation only." Manny kidded, trying to
lighten up the mood but Jennifer was perspiring and the glass windows were
starting to fog up. She had already changed her T-shirt once, after the
dance practice, but the one she had on now was getting soggy and the outline
of the straps of her bra was beginning to show. It seemed to her that Manny
could see through the single-ply cotton shirt.
"It's not you. It's just the humidity. It's suffocating." She tried to fan
herself with her hands. "Can you turn the air-conditioner fan up, please?
"Of course." Manny tried to smile. "Listen,
I'll go direct to the point. I have a proposition to make. I'm running this
by you first before I formally present myself to your parents."
"Can we do this another time? It's late and I'm soaking and tired from the
practice."
"Oh, it will only take a minute and I think it will be worth your while."
"Okay," although she was obviously not too happy about it.
"I am sixty five years old and I'm very lonely."
"Lonely? Did I hear you say lonely? That's hard to believe. I have heard
that you are a jetsetter and a man-about-town. Are you not married? I
thought you were. And how about your children? And grandchildren?" Sarcasm
was a defense mechanism she rarely ever resorted to.
"I was married but my wife died about twenty years ago. No, we tried but she
could not have any children." He sounded hurt.
They could hear the patter and splatter of the raindrops on the roof and
windows of the vehicle in the awkward silence that followed. Jennifer was
starting to feel awful and sorry for the old man. Her heart softened with
this new and sad information. She knew she sounded mean to the old man a
minute ago and she felt guilty and wanted to make amends. "Oh, I'm so sorry.
I didn't know that. I'm truly sorry for even mentioning it." She gently and
briefly touched his arm and he felt the electrical impulse of her touch
travel directly to his heart.
"Thank you, it's okay. No offense taken. Forget about it. That was a long
time ago and I have already gotten over it. The thing is, I'm still young
enough to have certain, needs."
Jennifer pretended not to understand what the old man was alluding to and
preferred not to say anything.
"Jennifer, I can't move mountains but I can move your entire family to the
United States. Your parents will never have to work as hard anymore and your
brother and sisters can go to the better private schools there. And you may
or may not go to school and you may or may not work at all, whatever you
desire. You can live a life of luxury that you have never known before."
"What, may I ask, do I have to do in return? Will I have to be a kept woman,
your kabit?" she almost bit her lower lip in her delayed attempt to keep
from saying it and she regretted it as soon as she had said it.
"What? No, no, no! It's not going to be like that." Manny was not offended
and instead was impressed by this unguarded display of naivete. "I would
want for us to get married. In a church here or anywhere you wish, privately
or with a thousand witnesses and guests."
What will people think? Lolita, Butuan style? People might even be convinced
that the old man is the victim. Jennifer was confused. This was so
unexpected. "Give me time to think. Sir, I'm not usually unpleasant like
this. It must be the weather." There was a slight pause, then, "When do you
plan to talk to my parents?"
"Any day you want me to."
"What about children?"
Manny's heart jumped with joy! It was not a yes but he thought that she was,
at least, considering it. But then he didn't know how the girl would react
to his next statement.
"Jennifer, I'm a very practical man. As I told you, I'm sixty five years
old. No one on either
side of my family ever lived beyond the age of seventy four. It's only nine
years before I reach that age. So, for me, children would be out of the
question. It would be more than just an inconvenience. It would be unfair.
To you and to the children. But then you are still young. I know you shall
be a widow by the time you are thirty. Even now, I am offering you the
freedom to get married again after I die and a chance to start a new family.
If you wish, we can have a legally binding prenuptial agreement that
everything I own would be transferred to you upon my demise. We are talking
about more than ten million pesos a year for every year that we might spend
together as husband and wife. Just be with me during the remaining years of
my life. I am sure you will learn to love me. I will settle for your
affection but I shall not beg nor will I be content with nothing but your
gratitude."
An interminable minute passed.
"Doctor, where is the Filipino in you? Have you been gone too long? Your
words are honest but they're so civilized, so western and so cold. To tell
you frankly, this sounds more like a business transaction than a marriage
proposal. Do you see a For Sale or a For Rent sign on me?" She chided him
again.
"Please Jennifer, forgive me. I did not mean it
that way but I don't know of any other way. I can not afford to be a
romantic. I never knew how and even if I did, it is way past recollection.
Please believe me when I tell you that this emotion is a novelty to me. Do
you want me to tell you that I dream of you? That would be easy because I
do. Every night. Since first I saw you. But then, you won't believe me. Do
you want me to tell you that I love you? That would be easy, too, because I
do. I have been in love with you even before I saw you in the mall the other
Friday and that was twelve days ago. But does it matter how long I have
loved you? Must we measure love in terms of time?"
"Horseshit!" Only Manny could hear the sudden unwelcome thunderous explosion
from somewhere deep in his brain. "Just treat her like the rest of them.
This bitch is just like the rest them!" Manny's pulse speeded up to ninety
five and his pupils were alternately dilating and constricting rhythmically
and moving sideways like the eyes of someone with syphilis of the nervous
system. His lips began to turn pale.
In the dark interior of the SUV, Jennifer could barely sense the change.
"Sir, what's the matter? Are you not feeling well?"
Manny was in a cold sweat as he pressed the pulp of both thumbs firmly on
his temples. He tried to breathe evenly. The voice inside him persisted. "No
you're not ill. You're just an idiot, a stupid, lovestruck, dumb jackass.
Damn it, just do her like I did Neri June! Ooh, that girl loved it rough!
She could not get enough. Could not wait for the next time! Go ahead. Just
take her to Wendel's." That was the motel at the southern edge of town with
a discreet entrance and indiscreet video movies.
"No." Manny groaned, trying hard not to give in. Now he knew how he got the
burning scratch marks on his back.
"What? Sir, Sir, you don't look good. Let me take you to the hospital. Sus,
I don't know how to drive!" She was on the verge of panic.
Finally, his pulse slowed down and the headache started to subside. At least
for now, he knew. "It must have been the "kinilaw." He told Jennifer lamely,
rubbing his abdomen in a circular motion and pretending that the problem
originated in that area.
"God, you scared me half to death. I thought you were having a stroke."
"I really must apologize. I'm okay now, really."
"You should see a doctor tomorrow. Goodness, what am I saying? You are a
doctor." She
laughed nervously. Manny forced himself to laugh with her.
"Are you sure you're okay now?"
"Yeah, thanks."
"Well, all right. So, may I go now?"
"If you must."
"Yeah, I better go. The rain has slowed down."
"Don't you want me to walk you home?"
"No, don't bother. I'll be fine," still worried about him and but also
concerned that the house would be a mess. She had not told her parents about
the old man yet.
"Well, alright, but take the penlight with you." Manny had one in his black
doctor's bag, together with his stethoscope, forceps and scalpels.
"Thanks. Drive carefully."
"Yeah, wait! When will I see you again? Will I see you again?"
"Of course. How about next Wednesday?"
"That's still a week from today."
"Yeah."
"I don't know if I can wait that long." Manny tried his charming smile
routine. "Jen, that would already be May 4. I don't know if I can last that
long, not seeing you."
"Well, now, that's much better. You're beginning to learn. That was the
sweetest thing you've ever said to me."
This time, Manny's smile was authentic. "I told you, I'm a fast learner. I
wasn't a valedictorian for nothing." A sudden gust of wind and rain hit them
and it started raining hard again.
"Ha, ha, that's what I get for bragging. Here, take this umbrella with you.
I don't want you to catch pneumonia." They were out of the Fortuner,
standing by the side of the road.
"Ooh, I'm getting wet." With a burst of the warm tropical rain, she had no
choice but to move closer to Manny, her hand over his, holding up the
umbrella against the wind and the rain. Their bodies would have touched had
it not been for his fat belly. But they were huddled together and he could
smell the sweet natural fragrance of her hair and he could feel the firm
softness of her hand on his. He felt rejuvenated as if the essence of her
youth was being infused into him by osmosis.
"Grrr grrr." The other Manny was menacingly back in his head, sounding very
much like a rabid pitbull.
"Go now." Manny hurriedly but gently prodded her.
" Good night. Let's talk some more next time." Manny could hardly hear her.
The pounding sound was back and was getting louder and louder, now like the
roar of an oncoming train. He rushed back into his car and drove towards the
highway. He was forced to stop at the shoulder of the road before he could
get there. His right rear wheel had fallen into the drainage canal. He could
no longer stand the noise. His perception of reality was getting distorted.
His head was ready to explode and then nothingness. He had totally lost
control of conscious thought. The other Manny got out of the car and smashed
a fist against the rear window on the driver side, pulverizing the glass.
"You fool! You stupid motherf-- shithead. She was right there, yours for the
taking. No witnesses. She was begging for it. Love? Love is something you
can't afford. That's only for stupid dreamers. You don't have the time. Get
real, you dimwit! Like I did with Neri June. Seven thousand pesos, that was
all that it took, seven thousand pesos and she was mine. A wild screaming
squirming puta in bed. Of course she pretended to resist at first. The
hypocrite! "Stop. No, no, don't!... stop ! No, don't stop, don't stop.
Don't stop! Yeees!" The other Manny was gleefully mimicking the girl. It was
an old line. "Har har har!!! And to think that she was on top of me half of
the time. And she liked it even more when I slapped her around. The harder I
hit her, the longer her orgasms! Har har har!!!" Manny's devilish laughter
was reverberating in Manny's head which had, by now, felt like an empty
metal drum being repeatedly pummeled with a twenty pound sledgehammer.
The following day, Manny's hand was still swollen and he could not remember
how he got back to the hotel. He went to have an x-ray at Nick's hospital.
Nothing was broken but he still could not play mahjong with it.
"Auntie Bets, can you get someone else to play in my place for me today?"
"Why? Are you sick? Did you lose all your playing money the last time? I can
lend you some."
"Uh, thanks, it's alright. I still have some pocket money left for the
month."
"Tell me the truth, are you sick?" Betty looked him and his hand over with
obvious concern. Manny had never missed a session before.
"Not really."
"Hoy, Manolito de la Verdad, either you are sick or you are not. So which is
it? Don't you hide anything from me."
"Actually, I think I overdid it again." Manny sheepishly tried to deflect
the inquisition since he really did not completely know what happened the
night before.
"Ha! I told you to be careful with that Viagra thing. I warned you. Or did
you take Levitra?
"Si Alice."
Betty started giggling. Her nephew could not be sick if he was kidding
around like that. "Oh, I know what's wrong with you!"
"No, I don't have PMS." Manny pre-empted her.
"Hi hi hi. Not that."
"Okay, so tell me what's wrong with me."
"You have gout of your...your kuwan."
"My, my, Mrs. Elizabeth M. Santos, you surprise me. I did not realize my
favorite aunt entertains dirty thoughts! Mmm, okay, I'll tell you what my
problem is but first, it is for your ears only. Promise me you won't tell
anybody else."
"Cross my heart, hope to die."
He told her.
She told everybody.
That afternoon, before they started playing, the first thing Betty did was
to whisper loudly to Michael, Connie, and Ferdie, and within earshot of all
the housemaids, "Abi niyo, you know what? Manny is suffering from a serious
medical condition. It's called priapism."
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Next - Chapter 14
