Chapter 2: Jenny's Anguish

Meanwhile…

Manley and Tony were on their way to the hospital. But Tony; Manley's best friend, insisted to eat by passing a carinderia first.

They are supposed to eat lunch at the hospital but the distance is still quite far and it is likely that when they arrive they will not be able to properly eat the delicious home cooked food.

It is past noon, and the queue of people might left nothing but junk food.

"Alright, Manley! Why junk food again?" Tony complained to his friend who was busy driving. He insisted that a good food, good mind.

"Hey, why did you go with me? You have your own car!" Manley complain back.

"You see, It was in the car repair shop. I thought I'll wait for it, but it was taking too long!" Tony explained, and give his friend a pity expression.

Manley can't help but sighed in disbelief. "You pay."

"No problem!" Tony cheered.

Manley stopped the car in front of the first carinderia he saw. To add that, because there was plenty of space for him to park. There is a space beside the establishment. His friend got out first, famish obviously.

Tony approached the shopkeeper. It was an old lady. He smiles as greetings. "Two rice, and adobo… and sinigang too." Tony said to the old lady.

"Okay, wait a minute." The old lady answered with a smile and obeyed immediately. Tony look for his friend who sat facing his parked car, while holding their food.

"What did you order?"

"Just rice and stuff." Tony sat in the chair opposite of Manley.

"Isn't there another dish?" Manley shoot a deadly glare to Tony. He forgets that Tony is such a shame to earth.

Nanay Lin called Honey and asked her to bring the remaining dish and shyly pointed the two men who were near the parked car.

"No problem!" Honey answered with a smile and took the tray with food. But before she could get away, the tricycle of mineral water that the old lady was buying arrived.

"Nay, I think I'll take care of the water. I think it's best for me to face that." Honey handed the tray to Nanay Lin give her the payment, and hurriedly approached the tricycle. Even though the old lady hesitated, Nanay Lin still brought the orders to the two men.

I feel sorry doing that. But seeing the face of the boy from the tricycle, he seems quite an arrogant boy.

"Here it is, sirs." Nanay Lin served food to them with a smile.

"Thank you. Haaay, the smell makes you hungry!" Tony opened his mouth to inhale the very sour smell of sinigang that still hot.

"Just order another dish." Since they are already here at the cafeteria, why not he bought the dish he wanted. But Manley ignored him and started eating.

"Come on, you're going to eat it too!" Tony sneered.

Honey was nervous because she didn't ask Nanay Lin how much she owed! She peeked into her wallet with just over two hundred.

I should've withdraw beforehand. That's it, next time! She convinced herself.

Honey didn't want the old lady to worry and it's her first day. To create problem is such a shame. When she finally got close, she immediately hand the 300 pesos that Nanay Lin gave her.

"Here. " The boy frowned and that made her chest thump even more! Why he's looking at me? Is it not enough?

"Sister, you have 70 too much." He handed the change. She excused herself because she didn't really know the exact amount.

"It's fine, I misunderstood." The young man laughed at her comment that irritated her. Are we close, bro?

"Ah. Alright, thank you." Honey excuse herself without looking back.

"CAN I ASK FOR YOUR NUMBER, SISTER?" The young man shouted after her. Honey didn't know him. And have the guts to shout! Fortunately, he didn't come down on the motor of the tricycle.

"Don't make any effort! I already have a boyfriend!" She shouted back.

"If you just want to avoid me, it won't have any effect!"

She laughed at this answer as if the excuser knew it.

"That's true! Search more on favebook! Manley Jonas Asuncion! We're not in a public relationship because we're low key, okay? Low key!" Shee toreplied that it looks like he finally believed it because the boy shrugged his shoulders and returned to the tricycle after unloading the water containers.

While on the corner side of the store, someone heard his name. His friend in front of him burst into laugh

"Hoo! You already have a girlfriend, Jonas. And you're low key, huh?" Tony mocks Manley.

Manley wiped his lips before saying, "The fudge! I don't even know who she is!"

His friend burst out laughing before replying, "You should look at your back. Maybe you knew her, doc."

He really had no intention of looking back, but because of his friend's teasing smile, he was tempted. And he was very surprised to meet the woman. One of his patients, Miss Gonzales!

"I told you, she likes you. There are lot of people she can use as an excuse, but still, mention you? Your charms reached greater heights, hmm?"

"You're just too malicious!"

"What? Was I the malicious here?"

"Yes, you just give meaning to everything."

"Pssh! Come on! Isn't your name Manley Jonas Asuncion? It wasn't me? Tony is far from Jonas!"

"Just eat!"

"Oh, someone's annoyed? Isn't she beautiful? Though, she's only 5 feet something?"

"Then, why are you pushing it to me?"

"Because it's like you're going to become a priest! Your ex left you for Thailand, you don't want any girl anymore!" He sipped the soup of sinigang that was still hot.

"I should've left my Mom?" Tony didn't answer back because the conversation was going to be literal. Apparently, just avoid it.

Honey thought that the boy will bother her once more but fortunately,  nothing happens. She had just finished washing the plates and dish plates at the cafeteria. She bid her goodbye and go home and plan to take a nap.

Nanay Lin also sent her a dish and soup for Jenny. Just in time, she found her friend who had just woken up in their apartment.

"Is that sinigang and menudo?" This is Jenny asking with her hair that has stood up and the clothes that are wrinkled.

"Yes. Nanay sent it for you."

"Yiee, mom never forgets me, huh?"

"Wait, why didn't you even change clothes?" Because what Jenny is still wearing is the work uniform.

"Finally, my schedule has been moved to the morning!" It was an exaggerated answer as if she had breathed a sigh of relief.

"Nice. But exagg?" Honey noticed her reaction.

"Mark and I are at war." Jenny's face suddenly became sad.

"Oh, eat first before you tell that story! You might even lose your appetite!" Honey serve her friend and sat across from her on their small table. She didn't bother and let her eat properly because Jenny might get choke. Honey did washed the dishes after. Her plan for a siesta turn out to be confession galore with her friend.

"Oh, game!" She sit at bottom of their double deck. Jennt put down her cellphone and took a deep breath.

"We argued because of his son." Honey can't help to feel upset because she knew that Jenny accepted the boyfriend's son with his ex-girlfriend.

"Did you beat him?"

"Damn it, we haven't even met for a while!"

"Edi, what happened?"

"He said because the last time we talked, he would drop me off, which was yesterday. I was almost late for work, just waiting for him! He stood me up!"

"Then?"

"He texted a while ago, saying that his son is sick! F*ck him! It's been a month since he's using the reason that his son is sick! I said, I hope it's not bad. But, f*ck? I saw him across from the hotel restaurant! I want to call him my superior is just next to me. So I texted him when I got the chance, he said he was taking care of his son!

…What was that, Honey?!"

"Ahmm, taking care of a child at a hotel?" Honey answered playfully.

"Honey!" Jenny whined because instead of saying possible reasons, she even made it worse.

"Chill! Maybe because he met someone? Minus the child."

"But who?"

"Wait, does he know which hotel you work at?"

"No. Wait– you mean.. Did he really meet someone there?"

"Right! And that's not you! But, maybe it was someone from his relative."

Jenny was silent because if it was true that the boyfriend had met another woman, he had been cheating on her for a month. But there was a part of her brain that was fighting because she knew him. Mark broke up with his ex-girlfriend because it has someone else.

So, Mark can't do what he hates.

It's midnight but Jenny still can't sleep.

Meanwhile, at the bottom of the double deck, her friend had already snoozed, looking like he was dreaming of the doctor he admired.

Are you really fooling me, Mark?

--

Honey woke up early than her cellphone alarm. She peeked at her friend and was surprised that she was awake.

"You slept late?" Her greet before returning to her bed and folding the blanket.

Jenny lay down and answered with a sigh, "You mean, didn't sleep."

"As in?"

"Of course not. I slept at least for almost three hours."

"Hey! That's a bad routine! All right, on your day off…" Honey cut off what she was going to say.

"On my day off?"

"Yes. If you want it, let's go!" Her voice shows that she wants to punch on someone's who f*cked up her friend.

"Pssh! Nevermind!" Jenny laughed and refused.

"Oh, that's it! Alright, get up and you still have work to do. You can't sleep anymore."

"I know."

Honey went out first and made coffee for the two of them. She has the 3 in 1 coffee and her friend has the coffee black.

Jenny showed up and washed first approaching her. "This is mine?"

Honey just gave a thumbs up because she just took a sip of hot coffee slowly.

Jenny blew on the coffee first and then slowly sipped it when she suddenly choke.

"Why is it so bitter!?" She sneered at Honey who's laughing at her appearance.

"I know you're lack of sleep so I did you a favor so you wouldn't feel sleepy!" She answered while taking a strong sip of her coffee. Just to annoy.

"We don't have any sugar?"

"There's a lot. I put a teaspoon in it." Jenny looked at the coffee and picked up the teaspoon on the table and scoop it. She almost fainted to the color of the coffee.

Pitch black!

"What does a teaspoon of sugar can do with the blackness of my coffee?"

"That's fine! I'm going to take a bath!" Honey left her and went to their room to get some clothes to wear before going to the bathroom.

In the small cabinet where they still had some bread left, she get it and ate it.

After a while, her cell phone vibrated. Her boyfriend Mark texted.

[Message: Mark

Are you free this coming Sunday?]

Out of annoyance, even though she had nothing to do, she said she has work.

Her blood is still boiling everytime she thought how he stood her up. They will probably just argue.

She didn't realize that Honey was in front of her. "Hey, your turn!"

"Mark is asking me if we can meet on Sunday."

"And?"

"I said I have work." Honey burst out laughing because her friend rejected the boyfriend.

It's not about fueling the fire, but she really doesn't trust the contours of that Mark's face.

After all, everyone is kind at first, especially if they have bad intentions.

Too good to be true, right?

"So, the plan is this.. Are we going to corner your boyfriend? For now, take a shower and you still have work!" She pushed her friend into their room and took some clothes. She said goodbye that she was going to carinderia. She'll help Nanay Lin to buy some ingredients.

She also reminded Jenny not to forget to close the door and lock it.

--

Doc Manley had just finished making rounds and was on his way back to OPD when his friend saw him. Because Tony's last night's shift was a graveyard. He knew that he would only tease him so he went down the stairs. But he didn't really survive as patients passed by one after the other, where Tony caught up with him.

"You're hiding, Jonas!" Tony's words still panting.

"Am I hiding from you? It doesn't seem like it." He made excuses for it but didn't even bother with it.

"Gosh!"

"Why are you still here? Shouldn't you have gone home earlier?"

"Doc Kulas for some favor. But I'm on my way going home. I would like to invite you to lunch.." He looked at the wristwatch on his left wrist.

"Nah. Last time you invited me, it was a mess." He was referring to Honey mentioning that he was her boyfriend.

"Are you affected?" He asked laughingly.

"I don't know what you're talking about! Just leave and eat! I have many patients in OPD!" He shoo him away and succeeded. He also knew that Tony's was famished. He turned left and he went straight to the OPD.

Why should I be affected? Tsk. You're just overthinking too much, Tony.

It was afternoon and Jenny was on her way home when her cellphone rang again. The caller is her boyfriend Mark.

She sighed loudly and looked up at the sky.

"Really, Mark! What's your deal? Am I being tortured?" Even though she really wanted to answer, she had to hold back and stop herself because she knew there was something wrong between them that she let passed by for the past few months and that's enough. She needs to collect herself anda face everything.

If there really is something else.