This is an excerpt of a ficlet set in the universe of Waiting in the Wings. Full version available on Wattpad.
June 12, 10:35 am
“Love? Hi. Sorry, I was—”
It took a few seconds before Erin’s tightly knit brows relaxed, her expression melting into what Ramon thought was mild disappointment. Only five minutes ago did he realize his girlfriend had been calling him for the past hour.
“Is…everything okay, Erin? Did something happen?”
He sensed reluctance when she shook her head.
“Sorry na, love. You know I keep my phone on silent when I’m busy. I told you last night I’ll be busy prepping food today.”
Curiosity flickered in her eyes. “What did you make?”
“Sandwiches.” Ramon untied the apron around his waist and hung it over one of the nearby chairs. A tap on the screen switched the camera view, allowing Erin a peek at the fruits of his labor. “Ham and cheese. Peanut butter. Egg salad,” he said and moved the phone over the carefully labelled, paper-wrapped sandwiches.
“That’s a lot of sandwiches.”
“Alam mo na…we’re expecting a much bigger turnout this time.” There was confidence and pride in his voice as he spoke, switching the camera view back to his face. He smiled. “H is bringing some sort of kakanin, I think. And Mark and Jer are in charge of drinks.”
“I heard Chinee made your placards.”
“Yup. And Yell.”
Ramon went on to tell Erin about how Mots was able to borrow someone’s HiAce so he can drive the Makati contingency to Diliman, and how Pio insisted on wiring some money last night for fuel and last-minute essential purchases.
“It’s funny,” he said, laughing softly as he walked back to his bedroom. “I think Pio is having a serious case of FOMO.”
As soon as he propped his phone up on his desk, he noticed Erin hadn’t laughed. Or smiled, for that matter.
“Love? Are you s—?”
“Love, what if—?”
They spoke and paused at the same time. Nothing out of the ordinary, except Erin looked like she was about to cry.
“Erin, what if what?”
Her pursed lips made it seem as if she suddenly felt embarrassed of what she wanted to say. She avoided his gaze too, which was…not a good sign.
“Er. What’s wrong?”
