“Take care of Azora,” Japen said. “I’m entrusting her to you.”
Azora looked at Japen. “It’s your words again. I can’t help but perceive your words as a farewell!” she complained.
Japen put an arm around Azora and looked down at her with a smile. “Man talk. Do you want to listen?” he teased.
Before she could respond, her stomach growled. There was a moment of silence between the three of them before Japen burst into laughter. Lamech grinned while Azora’s cheeks turned red with embarrassment. She playfully hit both of them.
“Jerks!” she said, marching back to the large house.
Once Azora was out of sight, Japen became serious and looked at Lamech intently. Lamech raised an eyebrow at his gaze, sensing there was something Japen wanted to say but couldn’t quite figure out what it was.
“You said you’re going to marry her.”
Lamech nodded. “I will marry Azora.”
“Good.” Japen nodded and looked down the path Azora had taken. “Azora doesn’t trust easily, and seeing that she trusts you, I know you’re a good person. Just please, don’t hurt her. She’s been through a lot of pain since she was young, so never deceive her, like what others did to her in the past years.”
Lamech’s frown deepened. “You knew it?”
Japen laughed. “I was there when they pretended to be Azora’s allies. I saw firsthand the hardships she went through. I don’t want to see her hurt.”
Lamech was silent. He thought Japen had finished talking, but his next words made him pause.
“Between Azora and her father, Don Alibata should be here, not his daughter.”
Japen then walked down the path Azora had taken. Lamech watched Japen’s retreating figure. It seemed Azora’s childhood friend knew a lot.
—
During dinner, they all ate together at the large dining table. Lamech saw Sena but not Clara. He also noticed other patients, and two empty chairs. Hana explained that those chairs were for two patients with anger issues. They would eat later to avoid causing trouble at the table.
Hana introduced Azora to the patients. She didn’t want to stand, but Hana also introduced Lamech because he would be staying there for a few months. He smiled. It seemed Alibata had arranged everything. He couldn’t help but wonder what had happened in the city. It was good that he had filed for leave from work.
“Aren’t you the guy who got kissed by Sena?” a female patient sitting next to Sena suddenly asked.
Lamech’s ears perked up at the comment, and he looked up at the female patient. She was smiling teasingly at him, especially since he was serving Azora at the table. He was peeling shrimp for her.
He cleared his throat. “You might be mistaken.”
“No. I’m not mistaken. I saw you on the balcony with Sena; she kissed you.”
He noticed out of the corner of his eye that Azora paused in peeling her shrimp. He quickly took the shrimp from her hands and peeled it himself.
He decided to admit it because he was sure the woman wouldn’t leave him alone otherwise. He cleared his throat again. “Yes, she did kiss me. But it was an accident.”
“Oh,” said the woman, playfully hitting Sena on the shoulder.
Lamech noticed that most of the male patients were now looking at him, and he knew what they were thinking. He glared at Eman, who quickly looked away. When he looked at Hana, he saw that she was staring at Azora.
He frowned and looked at Azora. “Azora,” he whispered softly to her.
But she didn’t respond or react to his whisper. His frown deepened. He called her again, but she still didn’t respond. It seemed she was in a daze. He quickly finished peeling the shrimp on Azora’s plate.
“Cool,” said the woman from earlier. “She’s like a human statue. She really doesn’t move!” she added excitedly.
Lamech’s eyebrows knitted together even more. No wonder the two patients with anger issues didn’t join the meals; it was because of the teasing. It was a good thing he didn’t have anger issues, or he would have flipped the table out of frustration.
After peeling all the shrimp, he wiped his hands. Then he held Azora’s cheeks and looked into her eyes. It wasn’t long before Azora snapped back to reality.
“Where am I?” she asked, looking around.
“At the dining table, eating with the other patients,” he whispered.
Azora looked back at him, and he smiled at her. Azora smiled gently and resumed eating slowly. When he glanced at Hana, she was still watching Azora, following her every movement.
After dinner, everyone agreed to watch a movie in the theater room. The majority chose a romantic comedy. Those who didn’t want to watch had already gone to their respective rooms. Most of those who entered the theater room were women. Hana was also there, while Eman said he didn’t want to watch and went to his office. Lamech knew he would work on his suggestion from earlier.
He and Azora sat at the back, where it wasn’t too crowded. Azora’s head rested on his shoulder while he held a box of popcorn in his hand.
He felt Azora yawn. “Are you sleepy?” he asked.
She shook her head. “I want to watch the movie like this. It’s my first time.”
“First time?” He frowned. “You’ve never been in a theater room before?”
“No.” Azora laughed softly. “I was like a busy bee in previous years. My life was just home and school. It was only at the University that I got the luxury to travel to tourist spots around Naga with Japen. But to summarize my life, it was a boring student life.”
He held Azora’s hand. “I will take you to places you haven’t been before.”
A gentle smile appeared on Azora’s lips.