I reach forward, giving his hand a small squeeze, communicating a thank you through the small gesture. Then I head down the hallway toward the stairs, and try to pretend I don’t see Mum and Dad huddling behind the wall.
“Actually, Tito, may I talk to you and Tita?” Marlon says after a few seconds, once I’d reached the first landing of the stairs.
It feels like quite a while before I hear Marlon say his farewell to my parents. The car engine starts up and I listen to him drive away. I’m in the middle of pulling off my top in the bathroom when I hear my Mum knock on the door.
“Just changing, Mum,” I call out.
She opens up the door and through the mirror, I observe as she leans against the doorframe.
“So, Marlon asked you to be his girlfriend tonight?”
Ah. So that’s the story he went with.
“He did,” I tell her, hoping that I have a convincing enough expression of bashfulness.
“Why didn’t you tell us that you both had feelings for each other? Or, tell me at least,” she says and I lift my gaze, to meet hers in the mirror.
While there’s that hint of happiness floating on her expression, there’s also the slightest crumb of disappointment. Throughout my life, Mum has always expressed how she wants Ria and I to always feel comfortably open with her. She prided herself on being the type of parent to not judge, to not disregard or belittle her children’s feelings.
It’s a norm within Asian households I’ve found, at least from the stories that Cheyenne and even my cousins have told me, that there’s a sense of emotional divide.
The thing is, I’ve always been open with my Mum. But this is the one thing I feel I can’t be entirely open with. It’s the one truth she doesn’t see.
“It just happened suddenly,” I confess, “I didn’t expect it myself, but maybe something has always been there, something I didn’t realise until more recently. And when he began to slowly court me, it all clicked at once.”
Mum steps forward, a smile crawling onto her lips.
“That’s nearly exactly what he said,” she laughs, “I’ve always known he’s a good guy and I want nothing less than a good person for my beautiful daughter.”
Mum steps forward to plant a kiss on my head.
“Remember to put that in the laundry, okay? And use the new facial oil cleanser I bought. I’ll make some tea before you go to bed.”
She steps out, leaving the bathroom. I let her words linger in the air. These are the words I’ve always dreamt of hearing from my Mum.
For her to approve of my first love, to believe we fit together, just like how her and Dad do.
I want her to say that about Rafayel, one day. It’s surreal that the first time I hear her saying this about a guy I’m linked with, it’s about Marlon.
The thought clouds my brain when Ria enters the bathroom suddenly.
“How was the date, Ate?” she asks.
“It was fun,” I say. Then quietly, “As fun as it was for a fake date, of course. But fun overall.”
“And how was Marlon? How did you survive him for 3 hours?”
“He was actually not too bad. For once he didn’t make me want to strangle him. It was…nice. We just talked and watched some Sailor Moon and I don’t know. It was fun.”
That’s when I notice Ria’s smile. A smile that suggests she knows something that I don’t. A smile implying more than meets the eye.
“What?” I ask, even though I know what she’s about to say.
“You know, I heard some of the stuff he was telling Mum and Dad. To convince them to let him date you.”
I roll my eyes, “Ria it’s all pret-”
“He was talking about how amazing you are. How much you make him laugh. How loves it when he’s the reason why, and how he wants to continue to find ways to make you smile. How you’re absolutely gorgeous to him -”
