“I booked a hotel where we can spend the night,” Gray told me while we were picking some fresh fruits at the market. He carried the paperbag that the seller handed to us as I paid for it.
“You really plan this well, huh?” I said, amused.
“This is our first time out of town as a couple. I want it to be perfect!” He said, following me.
“What do you want for dinner?” I asked. “I’ll cook.”
“Wait, what do you mean cook?” He raised his brow. “I already book a hotel and --”
“To which, I didn’t agree.” I glanced at his way for a while before picking some tangerines.
“Oh, oh…” He stopped me. “Where are we gonna stay if we are -- “ He paused and finally caught it after a while. He clicked his tongue. “You lived here. This is your hometown, so yeah - where’s your house?”
“You’ll know. For now, pick anything you want and I’ll cook for you.”
“You know how to cook deliciously?”
“More delicious than you,” I teased him.
“Wait, what?” He flicked his finger and laughed. “Are you making fantasies of me in your mind? We can make it a reality --”
“Shut up!” I reacted. “C’mon, let’s pick some ingredients and cancel the hotel. Okay?”
“I will do that right away, Ma’am,” He excitedly said and followed me to pick ingredients.
After buying what we needed, we drove to our house. It’s an hour away from the city and it’s a quiet place where I spend my childhood years.
“You lived in an ancient old mansion on top of a mountain?” Gray gasped as we parked inside the vicinity of our house. “Tell me you are a princess without telling me you are a princess…” He made a curtsy bow as he circled around the fountain glowing with blue and green lights.
“You’re like Rapunzel, Aurora? Uhm, who’s your favorite Disney princess? Belle?” He asked and followed me to the main door while I searched for the keys.
“Woah! It’s so nice to watch the stars from up here! Cool!” He kept on commenting as his eyes roamed around the place.
“Mulan,” I answered.
“Suits you well,” he said, still not removing his gaze from the whole place. “Should I be concerned about some lady offering me money to stay away from you?”
I laughed.
“Don’t exaggerate things. This is an ancient old mansion built by my great great ancestors. What’s inside are a lot of spirits and souls. Do you still want to go inside?”
“You are kidding, right?” He inched his brows.
“Maybe,” I grinned and went inside. I was welcomed by the mint smell of our humidifier. Gosh! I missed the smell of sandalwood inside our house.
I looked around. Nothing has changed. It’s still the same place where I used to run around when I was a kid.
“Oh, a vintage chandelier,” Gray said, looking at the big chandelier at the center of our house where we welcomed visitors. “You also have a fireplace. Cool! How big is this mansion?”
“See for yourself. I’ll place this in the kitchen and cook!”
“You told me you haven’t been home for years. How come this place is still maintained and clean?” He wiped the sides of the shelves and found no dust.
“There’s someone who takes good care of this house,” I replied.
“It’s a mansion,” he corrected me. “What do your parents do? You never told me that.”
“You never told me yours, either!”
“They’re in construction,” he simply replied, taking glances at every structure of our house. “What’s yours?”
“Guess it.” I told him. “I’ll be in the kitchen. Go walk around. Lights are automa
tic, so you don’t have to worry about the switch.”
“Cool,” he reacted.
He started touring the house while I proceeded to the kitchen and check the supplies I need for cooking Gray’s request, which is Chicken Curry. I already started cooking when Uncle Charlie, the caretaker of our house came in.
“I already arranged your room and the guestroom,” he said as he placed the fruits inside the fridge.
“Thank you, Uncle. How are you and the mansion? Is there anything that needs to be done?”
“I’m taking good care of it, don’t worry. Just enjoy your stay.”
“Thank you, Uncle. Are you still growing tulips in our garden?” I asked.
“Yes, of course. It’s your favorite. I will go pick some tulips for you.”
“Thank you, Uncle.” I smiled.
After a while, Gray came back with a wide smile on his face like he won a lottery. It seems to me that he enjoyed roaming around the house.
“You have a degree in Architecture?” He confirmed. “I saw your diploma upstairs. Wow! And, your parents lived in Spain?”
I nodded.
“Yeah. I took the courses during summer while I studied teaching here in the Philippines,” I explained. “My parents wanted me to take architecture.”
“Why didn’t you pursue it? You came from a family of architects,” He mentioned upon seeing the degrees and certificates in our wall upstairs.
“Every wall of your mansion speaks of it. That’s amazing. Are you a licensed architect, too?”
“I am,” I replied.
“Woah. Let me see your designs,” He excitedly said. “I mean, why not use it? Why teach?” He followed me as I prepared the table for us. He smelled the Chicken Curry and chuckled. “Damn! I felt like eating a lot today.”
“I want to experience teaching before I venture into architecture,” I told him. Eventually, I’ll join my parents in our company, so they let me do what I want as of the moment for me to experience life. I also don’t want to have regrets that I didn’t try what I really want, so I pursued it.
“Your parents are cool with it?”
“They are,” I said.
“Cool. We’re meant to be.”
“How come?”
He winked and said, “You are an architect and I am an engineer. You gotta design our house and I’ll build it.”
“Sure, I’d like that,” I smiled and my heart raced as the thought excited me.
“Okay, give it to me. Let’s do it tonight.”
“What? Like, I am gonna draw it now?”
He nodded.
“Are you kidding?”
“I’m sorry. I’m not kidding, babe!” He held my hand. “Please. I’ll build your dream house and make it our home.”
I blushed.
“Okay, let’s have dinner first.”
“Sure. I’m excited to taste your dish. Should I call your grandma? Is she alone here? How does she takes good care of this huge house when---”
“What?” I raised my voice. “My grandma?”
“Yes,” he surely nodded. “I saw an old woman sitting on a rocking chair, reading a book. I was supposed to--”
“You saw an old woman?” I cut her off. “Like, face to face?”
“No. I saw her back and didn't want to disturb her because she was reading on the balcony.”
I blinked and my jaw dropped.
“Why? Is there something wrong?”
“There is…” I shook my head.
“What?” He said, confused.
“There is no old woman here,” I stated.
He lifted his brow and he clicked his tongue. “You are kidding, right?”
“I am afraid, I am not kidding,” I said seriously.
“So, it means?”
I smiled a bit, though the thought of it suddenly sent shivers to my body.
“My great great grandmother is welcoming you to her humble mansion.”
He turned pale when he realized he just saw the spirit of my grandmother.