That was my first glimpse of her. It was rather awkward as it had to be there between two parked vehicles makeshifted as a dressing station with me fixing my hair using the car window as a poor mirror. The wedding went rather awkwardly but that's another story. Bibe offered, or should I say was forced to offer her services as official photocoverer(?), well not really her but her photography class buddies. But she too brought her DSLR along and it was kinda sexy to see a lady in formal wear, a dress, taking pictures using this huge black boxy photo contraption. I didn't really pay much attention to the proceedings. My role as groomsman required practically nothing of me. I just stood there, walked the aisle, created a trail for the bride, photo-op, the usual stuffs. I was just part of the headcount so all the while, during the wedding, I was just scanning the area looking for Bibe since she wouldn't stay put in one location she being one of the photographers.
I wouldn't say the wedding had the makings of a fairybook ending, I definitely wouldn't :>. The unexpected abberation cut short the proceedings along with it the much-awaited photo-ops. Arrgghhhh..........why the photo-ops? After the abbreviated ceremony all the guests went straight to the reception ahead of the couple. There we satiated our grumbling stomachs, exchanged some pleasantries, and gradually thinned out the throng at the fabulously ornated pavilion. One by one the guests went home not having the chance to see the bride and the groom post wedding. Everyone and everything cooperated. The weather taunted but that's the most she dared. There was utmost cooperation save for my cousin. No church photo-ops, no reception photo-ops. My supposed introduction to Bibe did not materialize. I just had to content myself with whatever I could: at least I got to see Bibe.
A few days later, when all was well my cousin called and asked if I could go in between her and Bibe regarding the wedding photos. You see my cousin stays in the province so she had me become her Mr. Liaison. Of course the real catch there is that I get the chance to meet Bibe again this time minus the distractions, minus the abberations, minus her, yeah, minus my cousin. Well...now...that would be different! I wasn't really as anxious this time since I've already seen Bibe and perhaps the unexpected wedding incident justified once more how my cousin should stay out of matchmaking. While it was definitely a big blow to my cousin really, not to trivialize her pain, I mean for that incident to happen at a time when Bibe and I were supposed to be introduced, that was just utterly eerie.(Don't mind me making these associations. It is unfair on my cousin cause she was the one who was hit the most but still....still it makes you think...:>).
Well what was I to do? My cousin was still fresh from her wedding incident and no one dared touch her fragile emotions with a two feet pole. It was not asking too much of me to simply get the CDs right? I mean how heavy can 4 CDs be?! I texted Bibe once again to schedule our meeting. I was just trying to fix our arrangement but what was supposed to be a WHO WHAT WHEN WHERE HOW discussion turned into a pleasant talk as though we've known each other for sometime already. Quite hackneyed right but honestly, it turned out to be like that. Count on Bibe to quash the uneasiness, we clicked right from the start. I was at the office when I called and I could clearly remember I was performing thermal measurements then and I got so engrossed that before I realised it, we had been talking for more than half an hour thru our mobile phones. That was when she insisted that we talk via landline. I thought of that too but I also thought that it would be too presumptuous of me asking for her home number. She offered and I happily obliged.
We met a good two weeks later. We were supposed to meet earlier but seeing her right away in too short notice will not be enough to at least take away even a quarter of my fine lines, the heavy eyebags from all the recent overtimes. I begged off and rescheduled. I wanted to make a good impression yes I did! Despite me convincing myself not to raise my hopes up... still! It was a weekend and I went to the gym a good 5 hours prior to the 6 o' clock meeting and I mostly did cardio exercises. Weights would come later. I know it should be lift first cardio later allowing the muscles to rest but hey, I'm no sly or arnold or mark wahlberg. It's not like I've already the buff and I just needed toning. My body appears more buffed(or so I think/feel) a good one hour after heavy lifting. I was trying to milk this transient physiological effect, make the most of it :>.
Again, as will be the hallmark of succeeding dates, I was late albeit only a few mins. Coming from Greenhills she was there at Powerbooks Megamall first. I saw her personally just once, I've got a good mental-picture of her though from her friendster pictures and that was all I was clinging to insofar as not mistaking her for anybody. I had it that I would be the one to come to her so she shouldnt bother telling me where she was exactly. Like how a lion hunts his prey so shall I be on the prowl :>. I told her I'd be looking for the tallest lady around wearing a blue shirt(that was all the clue I chose to have) but what if she was sitting? :>!
Found her standing along the shelves reading something and man was she tall up close! Didn't know she was 5'10". I thought she was just 5'8". The jeans only served to flatter her long legs even more. I rarely am with any person close to my height much more a woman so it was kinda new and weird to be talking with somebody without having to look down. The awkwardness surely didn't help when out of nowhere I began to stutter. It wasn't totally a stutter but it had me blurting out a few and short sentences only lest I totally ruin it. Morse code best described my initial speech pattern.
It was kinda uneasy on my part. I remember me leading her to the ground floor coaxing her to eat at the foodcourt in pao-tsin(a cheap standing only dimsum place). I wasn't really serious. I was supposed to deliver it as a joke but the uneasiness got the best of me and perhaps not having any idea of how I really was, she took it seriously. I quickly recovered telling her again, rather awkwardly, " NO, we eat at Dad's". A few hours before our meeting, she was joking&texting me that I should treat her at Dad's. Making our way from the lower ground up to the fourth I couldn't recall the nonsense that came out off my mouth. As we approached Dad's she said she was just joking but I wouldn't here any of it. I wanted to get right away with eating. Walking around looking for a place to eat would just flame my agitation. I just wanted to set camp right away.
I was hungry but I'm not one to overeat on a first date. Date....funny how I refer to it as that when the purpose of us meeting was simply for me to get the CDs. In local parlance, a DATE conjures images of two people, lovers, celebrating their intimacy. It wasn't a two sweethearts' date,no it was far from that. It was a date date, a formal date, the business variety. It wasn't intended to light up any fire even if I could picture my cousin, at that instant, somewhere in Batangas, grinning up to her ears patting herself at the back-mission accomplished. It was just the "get the CD date and storm out" kind. This kind is right up there in the list right?
For a slim lady, Bibe I have to say, at that time(take note of the disclaimers), had the appetite of an average man :>. This is not flattering but I'm just keeping it real and read the fine print: an average man. I guess that waters it down a little. Most women will eat only a few but not this one. She admitted, days later, that she was really hungry and hey, we were eating buffet style so why hold your horses. And consumption is directly proportional to mass right? The bigger you are the more your caloric requirement. Why pick on this lady? Shame on me :>.
I quicky settled soon after. After setting camp I went back to my old self. It was kinda fun going out with someone you were already favoring beforehand. I was biased towards her so anything that happened thereafter was just purely elementary. There was nothing she could have done to ruin that night for me and anything she did out of the ordinary simply adorned the icing already there on the cake.
After eating we went to browse a few shops. An antique shop, a novelty item shop, a shop for miscellaneous room decors. To me that was a big deal considering all we were supposed to do was meet and I, get the CDs. That little gesture adorned the icings. Icing, icing all over.
I got from her the wedding CDs and in exchange I gave her one of my own: Scarlett Johannson's lost in translation. Bibe was bound for Japan on a study grant. The setting of the movie was also in Japan and the littlest of connection sealed the deal for me :>. I don't know what I was thinking. Did I want her to see how like Scarlett, in Japan, she could be that girl?! I liked the movie and I wanted her to see it and it was in Japan? Actually I just wanted to give her anything. I thought sharing something will send a message across. To her I was, minus my cousin's stories, a total stranger and yet there I was giving her a token/gift and holding on to the tiniest bit of excuse to explain why I was doing so.
I felt good that night. I saw her through as she boarded the MRT. I can still see her riding the coach. I do. She was to the north, I south. I was so happy that night I wore a smile on my face. The girl in front of me on the train probably thought I was crazy grinning by myself. My mind was so saturated with the events that just transpired that I lost track of where I was supposed to get off. I only realised halfway past my designated station. No matter, I was happy. I can miss the station several times over so long as I've memories of Bibe I will never be lost.
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