CHAPTER 37 "BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION"

JASON's mother's birthday came. And as Jenny had promised, she was the one who arranged everything that needed to be arranged for a special dinner that, in fact, only four of them would share.

"Aren't you going to work? Why do you seem to have been here in Baguio for a few days?" she asked Jason.

They were at the supermarket to buy the necessities for the dishes she would cook. While Malou was the only one ordered by Mama Loida to go to the wet market for other better things to buy there.

"I told my friend, maybe you remember Paul?" Jason asked as he pushed the cart.

Jenny was silent for a moment then remembered the name mentioned by Jason. After that, she just stared at him then shook her consecutively. "Aside from Daniel, have you been friends with anyone else?" she asked.

Jenny saw that Jason seemed hesitant to answer her question so she immediately followed what she had said earlier.

"It's okay, you don't have to answer if ---,"

"No, actually there is," the young man cut off the rest of what she wanted to say.

"Yeah?" she asked with a tone of disbelief.

Jason nodded. "When Daniel and Ara told us about the real status of their relationship, do you remember, I avoided them both? That's when Paul and I became close, we were classmates too."

Jenny for a moment felt herself at what Jason had said. Was she offended by his admission? She finally smiled. No, and there was no reason to feel that way because everything was clear to her and they also had proper closure.

"Okay, is that also your reason why you chose to have lunch with me, always, back then?" she asked.

"To be honest, yes," the young man replied again.

Jenny smiled and opened her mouth to speak but Jason stopped her a second time.

"That's when I started to realize what my true feelings are for you. Remember?"

Jenny smiled at the young man's question as she recalled a scene in the library so that eventually her simple smile turned into a weak and restrained giggle.

"Hey," Jason complained amusedly at her reaction.

Jenny shook her head consecutively. "I just remember you and the thick dictionary in the library," she said as she hovered over her list and then went to the counter to make sure that everything written there is on the cart.

*****

"JEN? Jenny, Jennifer Alvarez?" they were at the cashier counter when Jenny heard the voice of a man lined up opposite her.

She turned to the man and stared at him. As she was doing that, she saw him smile which is why his handsome face became brighter.

Gradually, his appearance took shape in her memory until she was fully convinced. "Leo, right? Leonardo Vargas?"

"Hey!" the man approached her and then left his line and then extended his hand to her then shook her hand. "I thought you wouldn't recognize me anymore. How are you?" he asked her

Jenny was about to open her mouth but was stopped when she heard Jason coughing who was standing behind her. She turned then looked up at the young man who looked seriously pointing at the cashier.

"It's your turn," he told her.

It was then that Jenny felt inexplicable amusement so the next thing she did she has to admit that she meant it.

"You do it since you're the one to who's going to pay for everything, aren't you?" she said leaving the young man in the queue and then continued talking to Leo.

When she turned to Jason again, she saw the intense knitting of his eyebrows as he paid at the cashier. The young man was about to finish when she said goodbye to Leo who had returned to the queue he had left earlier.

Leo is said to be in Baguio today for a business-related trip.

"Jenny," she heard Jason's serious voice as they were inside the car and cut off everything she was thinking.

"Huh?" she asked.

"I told you to put on your seatbelt," he said as his eyebrows met.

Jenny was momentarily stunned to see Jason's reaction. Then she just shrugged the disgust registered on his face and then did what he told her to do.

They were on their way back when she heard her cellphone ring. Jenny seemed to have guessed who it was and she hadn't made a mistake. Leo asked for her number earlier and since he is a good friend she sees no reason not to give what he asked for.

Jen, please save my number. Let's meet sometime, we have a lot to talk about. :)

He said in the message he sent.

Sure, no problem. :)

That was her reply.

At the next sound of her cellphone's message alert, Jenny couldn't help but laugh out loud when Leo sent her a funny sticker. And at the same time as she laughed, Jason suddenly braked, which surprised her so much that she even screamed.

"Jason! What the heck!" she complained looking at the man with a wrinkled face as he sat in front of the steering wheel.

"A cat crossed the road, didn't you see? What do you want me to do? Run over?" his impulsive answer to her.

"What cat are you talking about? I didn't see anything! I was looking at the road!" she insisted because that was really the truth.

"How can you see when you're busy texting?" Jason asked running the car again.

Jason's words made Jenny think. Then she decided not to give another meaning to what her ex-boyfriend had said.

It's hard to assume because if she does that she knows her heart will be in trouble again. So it's safer if she doesn't give meaning to everything Jason does.

*****

"SORRY Mama we took so long," was her first apology to Loida when they got home. "I saw a classmate of mine in college at the supermarket where Jason and I shopped so we got along a bit," she explained as she took a plastic bag of groceries from the young man's hand but he did not give it to her.

"Is that so? Why didn't you invite him to come over so we can have someone else to have dinner with later?"

Jenny opened her mouth to speak but she failed to voice the other things that she wanted to say because Jason preceded her.

"Ma, I thought it would be private? We're okay. If you wanted another guest, you would have told me to invite all the employees at the office to come over," Jason replied rudely to Loida and then hit her with a sharp look that shocked her.

"Why are you in a bad mood? You look like a menstruating woman?" Loida followed her son who was then entering the household.

Jenny just sighed because of what happened. After that, she decided to go to the kitchen to start preparing the ingredients needed for the dishes she will cook.

She thinks Jason is mad at her for talking to Leo earlier. But she doesn't think it's right for him to take control of her life like before. She will not allow everything that should not have happened back then to happen again, to the best of her ability.