May and June have occupied a vacant room in Mrs. Crisanto. Her son was not there because he was assigned elsewhere as a seaman. That was the only thing with the lady so when they arrived the sadness that was also brought by the loneliness at home was partially erased.
"The broken chair needs to be replaced. I also noticed that it is too much hassle for teachers to make a report because their process is still manual. Then, there are not enough teachers. The classroom is crowded, it's very hot. Maybe I need to be able to donate—"
"Have some coffee first." May momentarily stopped June from flirting when she laid a cup of coffee on its table. "As much as you can think of, I hope I'm with you there."
"You've got to really pull out." June laughed and sipped hot coffee.
"You're funny. You have so many dreams for other people. You look like a hero," May replied with a smile. Earlier, while they were at school, June was even more impressed with her. Her dream is lofty in Pinagpala and she wants to help June to make it happen.
"Being a teacher is a lifelong duty. I also thought of giving up this profession altogether but it wasn't that easy." June sighed when he glanced at May who still had a light on her gentle face.
"It's like you're a doctor, a lawyer, a soldier or a policeman. Supposedly, people like you are a big help for people to gain knowledge. Without a teacher, there will be no other professionals in our country. Am I right?"
"Yeah. You're funny too because you thought of that." June smiled and held her husband's hands. "Will you help me fulfill my dream for the school?"
"Of course. That's why I came here with you," May said and leaned her head on June's shoulder. She loves to do that because every time she leans on him, she feels calm and peace of mind.
"I thought you could come because you can't live without seeing me. Or maybe you just want to watch over me because you think I’m going to see another woman?" There is a melody of motivation in June's question.
May blushed. "Both, I don't think I can live without you. And as for women, I didn't think of you like that. I can trust you so much and I know that you will never cheat on me."
"Why do you trust me so much? You don't even remember your past." The voice became bitter and the delicate smile faded from June's lips.
It was as if a needle was piercing his heart again as he looked into May's talking eyes. And the more he lies to May, the more he feels guilty. Add to that the fact that she is already tied to another man.
Even if it is said that May's marriage to her real husband is not good, it is still wrong to lie. But that mistake brings a strange joy. And with every joy he did not want to miss the moment he was still with May. She made his heartbeat sound like a bass drum. She made him smile. She made him feel the calmness he's been longing for. She made everything possible— even just a short time period. Maybe, he is already an opportunist. But he couldn't control his feelings for May. And maybe so, this is real love.
"I just felt like I should trust you. There are things the mind can't remember but the heart still remembers. All I can remember right now is, I love you so much June," May uttered sincerely. She cupped her husband's face with a lovable grin.
"I'll go back to work first, then go to sleep." June distanced herself from May. If he had taken too long to stare into her eyes, he might have kissed her completely.
Quite frankly, the gap between their faces was just a thread and June was even more confused because of the things that would play in May's brain.
"Sorry, I was just wondering what it feels like when we kiss before. Maybe it's thrilling," May whispered back. She turned her back on June and sat on the pallet.
"Give me ten minutes, I'll just finish my notes."
May giggled when she heard that. Finally, her wish will come true. She was silent and for a moment he took the diary to write again.
"My husband will kiss me tonight. Isn't he sweet?" she wrote in a blank page of her diary.
She hopes that this reverie will come true and it looks like she won’t fail.
"I’m here, you should move a little because I'm going to stay."
May quickly complied with her husband's wishes. She was restless and if she could just precede it with a kiss, she might have done it sooner than she thought.
"May..."
May secretly smiled and shyly looked at June. He approached her carefully and was about to give her a kiss. He then closed his eyes and immediately felt the movement of his wife's lips.
She let herself enjoy every kiss. His first feeling of a fast heartbeat due to nervousness was still fast as it lasted but for another reason. Maybe his heart was singing at those times so the beating still didn’t go away.
June propped her on the soft pillow as it broke the kiss they were enjoying. "That’s it for tonight."
"All right, let’s do this tomorrow again," May giggled and wrapped her arms around June.
"It's nice to feel loved by the person you love," May whispered and then closed her eyes while staying in June's arms.
June just laughed and didn't say another word.
‘I really hope you are really the May that I imagined instead of someone who already belongs to someone else, because I am ready to love again because of you.’
***
May will miss the simple community of Pinagpala so she has already started taking pictures in the said place. The smiles of the teachers and students who said goodbye to them did not go away.
"We'll be back!" May shouted before June could finally get away. In the three days they were there, she could say that they had experienced more than the care of a considered family member.
May sighed as she stopped looking at the people left there. "June, they're so kind. They really deserve to stand up. We need to help them."
June just smiled and held May's hands. "We will. When we return we will immediately take care of what needs to be done to extend assistance."
"I already wrote the name of the school in my notebook. I just wrote everything about Pinagpala," May said proudly.
"May, may I ask you something?" June stopped walking for a moment as her smile faded.
"Why?" smile back-question of the wife.
"Will you be angry when you find out I lied to you?"
May's eyebrows just met. "June ..."
"We'll talk later when we get home." June took another deep breath.
Within three hours, they were back home. Mother Isay was not there because she was busy taking care of the farm. The orders from their suppliers are already plentiful.
May was the first to break the silence. "June, can I find out why you asked that thing? What if I get angry when you lie to me?"
June immediately turned to him. If May hadn't spoken, she must have been staring out the open window all day.
"There, come." There was no smile on May's face when June confronted her. He just followed where it was going until they were stranded in a room. That was also the room May couldn't go to because the door was locked.
When June opened the room’s door, the wedding dress, which was still on the mannequin, was immediately exposed. Its color turned dirty white due to the dust.
"June, did you bring me here because you want to show me this beautiful gown? Is this the one I wore when we got married?" May asked excitedly but slightly pinched her heart because there was still no trace of enthusiasm on June's face.
There must be a burden that he can't tell.
"June, why do you seem sad?" May repeated to ask him.
June looked at her with a straight face. "I'm not your husband. We won't know each other. Everything I said were pure lies."
"June." Tears welled up in May's eyes. Why is that when June speaks? That there seems to be no more affection from him?
"To convince you, here. I'll show you something else." June picked up the box containing old photos of him and the late bride Sasha.
He picked the photo which includes Sasha with him. "Can you see the one with me in the picture? She's my wife, not you. And she's the only one I love until now. It's time to take you back to where you came from. There's no one whose name is Vanessa."
"That's why you're so cold in your dealings with me. Because you're lying!" May's vision blurred due to the overflow of tears from her eyes. She turned her back on June and hurried away from her house.
Even at night, she doesn't care as long as she thinks she can get away from the man who hurt her heart. She's totally devastated. She immediately lost herself due to extreme frustration. She was about to cross the street when a car intentionally bumped into her.
May managed to stand up even though she felt dizzy at this moment. Her visions were blurry and somebody approached her.
"Vanessa, this is your real husband. Vanessa, do you still know me?" Those were the last words she heard from a stranger before she lost her consciousness.