romancing the coconuts

8/9/2019 Romancing the Coconuts

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Romancing the CoconutsA Short Story by Ian Martinez

They spoke of maidens,whose voices sang sweet

enchantments

that would hover overthe unchanging sea.

It leads mariners

of folklore adrifttowards their eternal

dreaming.

And as the sea layher dark blanket

alas, the songscontinue on

adrift.

-ievm

She wore white, blinding in the settled heat of the FC Covered Walks. She sat alone flickingthrough some photocopies within the shade of a raised kiosk that her sorority sisters had claimed

for themselves. She looked cooly over the students filing through the walks to get to their next

class, then flicked her hair casually to one side and arched her back to bring her bored eyes overher photocopies.

Be still my heart! Oh why do nature play such cruel games on mans fate, a fraternity member

sighed as he sat on the other side of the walk, across the nameless and casual faces of studentsfiling past.

Are you ok, brod? his skinny companion chuckled beside him. Ah, I think I know what gotyour eyes. Youre not the only brod.

Its just that I just cant How does she move that way? He craned his neck over the

moving sea of black hair.

Hay naku, drink your coffee brod. Its getting cold.

No brod. I mean, look at her.

I can see her brod. Listen Sep, why dont you walk over there and keep our sis company?

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Sep shook his head, feigning shock. Na, just look at her. My God!

Go ahead, go over there.

Some other time na lang; unless youd come with me.

Youre the one whos in need brod, not me. He laughed.

He has seen her before, but only now, in the company of other men, did he really notice her. Herface was innocent beauty set upon a womans body. Nature has manifested her art upon her,

endowing her with curves that graced vertically towards her neck inviting a thousand kisses.

She was art, and his hands trembled to reach out.

Hey! Snap out of it Sep. If you really like her, give her a call. Text her.

Who has her number?

His skinny companion pointed secretly at their fraternity brother who sat nearby searching out

the crowd for a beautiful face the days inspiration. Theyre magkababayan, he whispered.

Lawrence! Sep called out.

Oh hey bro.

Can I borrow your phone?

Hey, no problem. Whats up? He reached out his cellphone.

Nothing brod, Im just gonna get a brods number.

Go ahead.

He grabbed the phone with sweaty paws. Benzt, how do you work this thing? It looks older

than my father.

Press that button with an N.

I see. But, what name will she be under?

Press five. Go on again. Let me see. He craned his neck over the one-liner screen of the

phone. Stop. Thats her, he pointed.

Liz? he whispered.

Yeah. Short for Lizette.

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Oh. He took out his phone and entered the number under Lizette! Such a cute name, he

thought. He reached out with the phone, Hey Lawrence, thanks brod.

No problem. Whos number was it that you needed?

Hah? Ah Doms. Yeah, Domsters. Thanks for that, brod. Ill text him right now.

Doms? Thats odd. I dont have his number.

Well, ah Thats odd. A gee, look at that, I need a cigarette. Come on Benzt, lets buy

some.

They stood and walked away, leaving their brother curiously tapping at his phones keypad.

Twenty minutes late, Sep discreetly slipped into class only to find his professor absent and

students milling around attendance sheets scattered in the large lecture hall. He signed his nameand took a seat at the front row, to rest and savor the coolness of the air-conditioned hall. With

the lights turned down, it was a perfect place to take a short nap.

Slightly drifting into sleep, he was jolted by a recollection. He drew out his phone from his

pocket and went through the directory. There it was:

LIZETTE!

09173776185

His memory conjured her shape natures bequeath that lingered in the back of his mind.Tiredness left him, and he stared intently at her name as a lover would a picture of the object of

his ardent affection.

He resolved to send her a text message a sweet one but anonymous. But the question of to

what end bothered him. Did he want to impress her to go on a date, be friends, tickle her fancy?

What will he send her? Hi? How r u =) ? Gday!? The proposition suddenly seemed ludicrous.

To further dampen his excitement, he realized that he might sound like a stalker. What if they

did become friends sometime in the future and she asks for his cellphone number? What if she

also kept stalkers numbers on her phone? She will enter his number and bang! Stalker #8will flash in her cellphone screen. Disastrous, he thought. Damn technology.

But the urgent need to speak out overcame him, for her lips - that was punctuated by a slightmole in one corner, invited poetry. He pressed NEW SMS in his phone and a blank screen with a

blinking cursor stared back at him.

May I be allowed

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to spill the

contents of my

heart, for thouart so

beautiful, and I

have not thestrength to hold

back these

words!

When he pressed SEND, he was shocked as would a person that accidentally touches the first

domino in a long file of precariously standing dominoes. For an uncomprehending instant, he

wanted to undo the action, but seeing the dominoes pilling one on top of the other with suchblinding speed, all he could do was watch, and wait.

And he waited.

Students were filing past him, chatting excitedly about what movies to watch that afternoon. He

was in a class where most of the students were freshmen young and havent quite shaken offtheir high school habit of forming large groups before going off to their unanimous direction. He

regretted not taking this class when he was a freshman; it annoyed him to be with such young

people. He was in his last year and he knew his face revealed that.

Suddenly, his phone gave off two high-pitched beeps and vibrated wildly in his hand.

His hands became sweaty as he stared at the envelope in his screen. He opened it.

Who r u?

It was from her. He pictured her in his mind, curious and wondering who sent her such arevealing message. He pressed REPLY:

I pray fair

lady, that thouallow me to keep

my anonymity for

only within thisveil will my

soul find its

utterance.

A dilemma suddenly occurred to him after he sent the reply. Brods usually milled around the

sisses tambayan. He cringed at the thought of her curiosity edging her to borrow a brods phone

who may just happen to have his number. If she checked the anonymous number, he would be

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discovered. What sweet disaster! he thought. He felt a curiously confused reaction at the

possibility.

Twenty minutes have passed and his phone kept silent. He looked around him and found a

handful of students sleeping on their palms scattered far apart from each other. Their brows were

worn, and their eyes deep-set. They were not freshmen their tired expression resembled his.

Finding it impossible to nap, he got up and left the air-conditioned comfort of the lecture hall.

As he walked towards the sisses tambayan, he craned to see through a line of bushes, to find her

face among the many that have crowded inside the small kiosk, but he did not see her.

He noticed something different about the tambayan. It was crowded more than usual, but therewas something peculiar about the brods demeanor. He noticed that they stood and sat apart from

each other more than usual, and most stood as if being photographed back straight and chin

up. They spoke louder too, in a manner that resembled that of a debater. As he scanned the

crowd, he caught the new faces of what he immediately knew were the sisses new recruits. Inthe instant that he saw the exceptionally pretty face of one of the applicants, everything fell into

place. The peculiarity of his brods manners he discerned as being an elaborate mating dance,aimed to impress the new recruit. Indeed, it pays to watch the nature channel on cable. It made

him smile inside as he walked into the tambayan.

O, brod! a tall fellow with glasses exclaimed and extended a warm hand. Sep shook theoffered hand while he squeezed between shoulders and outstretched hands. He did the traditional

rounds of shaking hands and exchanging greetings with all of the men inside the tambayan. With

the sisses, he nodded and smiled nervously as he wondered if they knew of his transgressions.

As the day wore on, the people in the tambayan dwindled as some went home, while others went

to class. Sep sat with arms flung back at the beams that served as backrest. He should be on hisway home, but he hoped to at least catch a glimpse of Lizette before having to endure the

congested Marcos Highway traffic at peak hours.

Two law-school brods were arguing light-heartedly about the law and exchanging stories of grief

and dismay towards the approaching bar exams. Their voices were pitched, but in high spirits

none-the-less.

Brod, I tell you, a Regional Trial Court Judge can suspend a counsel, the tall brod with glasses

empathically stated.

Tsk! Brod the other brod began to counter, that authority rest solely with the Supreme

Court. Im sure of it.

Then youve got it all wrong! the tall brod laughed. I tell you, I can show you the

provision

Then show me your reference! the other brod interrupted.

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Ill show you later.

The other brod laughed out load.

Well what? Do you expect me to lug my books around campus?

Brod, brod, brod. Lets not talk about the law today. The bar exams is a month away. I swear,

tomorrow, I wont be doing anything except studying for the bar. Id be eating, drinking,dreaming and shitting law, Alvin laughed.

You have to be graphic about it, huh? Well brother, dont you think you should have started that

a year ago?

Look whos talking, the Karaoke King!

Thats my only way to relax brother! Besides, I havent gone for almost three weeks now,Marlon parried the accusation.

Alvins eyes suddenly lit up. Say, how much do you still have in your credit card?

No! No, no, no. Marlon shook his head gravely.

Tsk! Come on. This will be our last night out before August. The next one will be after the

bar. Come on!

Wala akong pera, brod. I think I only have three thousand left. Thats not enough.

Thats enough for six brods!

Where are you planning to take them, a sari-sari store?

Alvin pointed at Sep. Youre doing anything tonight?

Count me in, bro, Sep answered, raising a finger.

How about you? Alvin pointed at another brod, then at another. There you have it! Give the

junior brods a break.

Brods, Id like to treat you all but I only have three thousand in my card. That wont even be

enough for the two of us, Alvin.

Ill shell out another three thousand. Will that do? Alvin offered.

Marlon cocked his head to one side. Are you sure? Putcha, dont leave me hanging in the air

once we get there. Im serious, I only have three thousand in my Master Card.

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Why would I do that? Tsk! Is that how you see me? Alvin feigned offense.

Hindi naman sa ganoon. Just assure me your four thousand and were off.

Uh, three thousand, Alvin corrected.

Make it four. Just in case.

Where are you taking us? Theres only seven of us; it cant be that expensive.

I assure you, youd like the place. Thats where we always go. Id rather spend money and

enjoy, rather than scrimp and risk being stabbed because some drunk doesnt like my singing.

Where exactly is this place?

Timog.

Oh, ok. Lets go, Alvin motioned to the brods.

They got up and left the tambayan. Wait, Alvin said suddenly. Lets go to the College of

Law first. I have to get my money from my drawer.

Sep walked easily along, chatting and laughing with his brods as they dared each other to sing

high-pitched songs of Martin Nievera or those by Regine Velasquez. He caught himself scanning

the people that they passed. He knew he was somehow hoping to catch a glimpse of Lizette,even as the sun had begun to set.

The seeming devotion was odd. In retrospect, he does not even know her last name, let alonewhat kind of person she is. He doubted if he could recognize her voice. Clearly, he was

wallowing in her beauty alone. It was so irrational but somehow felt right at the same time. The

paradox tickled his sensibilities. It seemed irrelevant to know that an orchid smells pungentwhen its beauty overwhelms.

Darkness was settling down on the campus as they walked up the road that led to the College of

Law. Sep felt an urgency to call her, to hear her voice for the first time through the clarity ofphone circuitries. But his hands felt cold and hesitation overwhelmed him. He has nothing to

say to her with his spoken words. He grasped his phone in his numb hands and pressed NEW

SMS:

I thanked God that

I dont knowyou, and in that

I wallow in the

purity of your

beauty. Fair

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lady, thou art

so beautiful!

The taxi pulled-over in front of a garishly lit building along Timog Avenue. They got out leaving

Marlon to pay for the fare. Two young women who were standing underneath the Music 21 neon

sign stared intently at them as they walked up the blazingly lit entrance. Guards and lady guestrelation officers were greeting them cheerfully. It felt alien to Sep to have so much smiles freely

and openly dispensed.

The group made their way into the lobby, acknowledging the lady guest relation officers with a

nod , while thoroughly ignoring the cheerful male security guards with shotguns slung over their

shoulders. Marlon walked up the reception and presented two cards, which the lady behind the

counter accepted with a wide lipsticked smile.

The lobby was blinding the walls covered with mirrors and glass shelves that carried luxurious

bottles filled with volatile beverages. The muffled singing that saturated the air, and the look of

drunken satisfaction of roaming guests made the place comfortable.

Sep caught himself scanning the lobby. He knew he was again looking for her likeness. Itseemed far-fetched for them to meet tonight. Such chance meetings only happen in B-movies, he

thought. He suddenly felt ridiculous. If the other brods knew, he knew he would seem pathetic.

They were led up a flight of stairs and through a maze of corridors lined with framed pictures offamous guests. The lady, carrying a pair of microphones and what seemed to be a large remote

control, pushed open a door with her hips and cheerfully invited them in. The room had low

couches lining the walls, except that beside the door where a large-screen-television sat in itsthrone of chrome and laminated wood. They were motioned to take their places in the couch.

The lady placed the microphones on the low wooden table and plugged the wires into a fancychrome box that sat under the television. She momentarily fiddled with a few knobs and

switches before she turned her attention to them again to take their orders of beer and finger-

foods.

Amiss, Marlon called out to the lady as she was about to leave. Is this ok now? he asked,

pointing at the remote control.

Yes sir. It would just take a moment while they program the system downstairs, she beamed.

Ohok, he said with a shrug.

After a while, the screen lit up and Marlon lunged for a microphone. Brods, this song is for

me, he declared.

Go ahead, brod, Alvin laughed. He passed three large books of songs and their corresponding

code numbers for the remote, to Sep who in turn passed the rest to the other brods on the

opposite couch.

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The screen flickered for a moment, then a view of a grassy field emerged and a song began.

After a while, the beer made Seps head light. The air-conditioner was permanently set on high

and the cold dry air made you thirstier the more you sang. Fortunately, there were three

untouched beers on the table that demanded more songs to be sung.

After singing Portrait of My Love, Sep excused himself to go to the bathroom. In front of the

bathroom mirror, he remembered he had a Saturday class at 8oclock tomorrow morning. Hewondered if he would make it, seeing that it was half-past-nine in his watch.

Rather than returning to the room, he sat on the low couch along the corridor, not far from where

his brods were. It was not as cold in the corridor as it was in the room. He stretched his neckback and slumped on the soft fabric of the couch. The air was permeated with different muffled

songs some cheerful, while others mellow in their feigned sadness. With his head light from

the beer, and with the confused mix of songs that filtered from the many rooms that lined the

corridor, he felt disoriented from where he sat. He was not sure if the ladies of the establishmentnoticed it as they passed by him with trays of beer, but they flashed him smiles nonetheless.

He lit a cigarette and tried to gather his thoughts, while the Spice Girls stared out at him from

their large portrait that hung in front of him. Again, he felt the urge to picture the woman that

had been bothering him all day in his mind. He closed his eyes for a moment and saw her, sitting

in the tambayan, brilliant in white and beautiful with her long black hair as it was whisked by thewarm afternoon breeze. The thought, like gravity, brought him back to where he sat. He

immediately reached for his phone in his pocket and pressed NEW SMS:

Fair lady, thou

hath sent a

spark into thechambers of my

heart, and

theret ignited.Nay, not to

consume but to

set mine spirit

free! Thou artso beautiful.

He tried to imagine her in her bed. He wondered intently how she looked lying on her belly,

while her hair cascaded over her shoulders as she clutched her phone. He took in a deep breathand sank deeper into the couch, while his phone remained silent.

Suddenly, his phone gave off two short beeps and vibrated in his hand. In his screen, a red

envelope stared back at him. He opened it.

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It wud please me

much mlord if uwud tel me wer u

got my #.

Mlord? He wondered if she was mocking him. He pressed NEW SMS:

Mlady, allow

me my anonymity!

It is not mineintention to

strike fear in

thy heart, that

thou shouldbegin to seek

the nature ofthis man who

have sent his

devotion.Never have I

meant harm! Not

to thee, oh suchbeauty.

He got up from the couch and walked back to the room where his brods were. When he opened

the door, he found his brods singing Frank Sinatras My Way, with the vigor of young men

with large hopes and even larger dreams. He took his place on the low couch and grabbed abeer. He too sang out loud and found it invigorating.

Amid the ruckus of singing and palms being slapped on knees in time with the songs beat, he

felt his phone vibrate in his pocket.

Ur dvoshun I

seek not. Fear sinevtabl, sir,

as I know u not.

He knew exactly what to text back, and this made him smile. Her replies enlivened him and

made him confident. Indeed, he must be doing something right, he thought.

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Alvin caught Seps smile. O, ano yan? Whats that brod? That smile can only be caused by a

woman.

The other brods in the room were distracted from their singing. They took up the cue and hooted

teasingly.

Sep dismissed their taunts by waving a palm down and shielded his phone from their eyes.

I knew it! Our brother here is in-love! Alvin announced and everyone laughed.

What the Leave me alone brods.

Sino yan? Come on, tell us, Alvin insisted.

Wala brod. Its nothing, Sep smiled coyly. He got up and started for the door. His brods

were roused and they cheered him on teasingly. Ay naku. Dyan na kayo! Im going to the

bathroom. He finished off his beer and went out.

Back in the couch fronting the Spice Girls portrait he pressed NEW SMS:

Sweet lady,

flowers seek not

devotion, butnevertheless,

such are

showered to themby the eyes of

passers-by.

A group of swaying, smiling men passed by him on their way to the bathroom. He liked this

place. Everyone seemed generous with their smiles. It must be the songs that they have sung,

and the alcohol that they have drunk alcohol to break the boundaries between people andloosen their inhibitions, and songs, the window from which the soul could call out to the world

and make known its pains, joys, hopeslove.

His phone suddenly beeped and vibrated.

N sir, as such,

they liveth alife f fear that

they b plucked

frm theirmothrs breast

to withr.

He desired so much to call her, to explain to her that she has nothing to fear. Suddenly, he

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wanted to lose his anonymity. All this time he has not mentioned her name, or made any

reference to where he saw her or what clothes she wore, so as not to make her think she was

being stalked. But of course, he was not stalking her. He was only an admirer. But, as he staredat his phone, hesitation overwhelmed him. What if indeed she was mocking him all this time?

The whole situation may become the most embarrassing thing that ever happened in his life.

He settled to become more patient; to build a friendship through the medium of text messages.

He knew he had to be subtle a gentleman and avoid becoming solicitous.

He tried desperately to find words that would ease the fear in her, to show his sincerity. But he

cannot as yet, reveal his name. That would turn the tables against him! He cringed at the

possibility that maybe she was not really the one sending those text messages, that it would be a

housemate or worst still, another sis!

He sank deep into the couch as he searched his mind for the right words to text back. He pressed

NEW SMS:

If it pleases

thee, sweetlady, though it

be painful and a

death to my

soul, I shallrelease thy

number into the

night sky. Ipray that it be

not, for my

heart doth

overflow, and my

soul desiresspeech.

He cheered the outgoing envelope in his mind. He knew that that message would ease her

fears. This is such a cool beginning, he thought to himself.

The last swig of beer has finally made it into his head. He felt overly tipsy and he promised

himself only one more beer for the night. His phone displayed 23:12. He wondered if hedmake it home to sleep even for an hour or two, before having to get up to ready himself for his

8oclock class. As he got up to rejoin his brods, his phone called his attention. He sped through

the controls.

I tnk u 4 ur

considrashun. B

tru 2 ur word

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gud sir. Rlease

my # in2 d nite

sky as I dsire.

What have I done! his mind screamed. He went through the phones controls and reviewed what

he had sent her.

He stared at her last message for a moment with such sorrowful disbelief. He pressed NEW

SMS:

Alas! Ive come

undone.

The reply came quick.

B tru 2 ur word,gud sir. It wud

b 4 d best.

Would it really be for the best? He hated himself for shutting himself out. He searched his minddesperately for a way to reverse the situation.

There was no way out of it other than becoming crass. But that was out of the question. Hecannot beg, that would do injustice to himself. There was no way out of it for a gentleman. He

pressed NEW SMS:

As you wish fair

lady. I shall

release thynumber into the

night sky

Pray I, that

thoull keep mynumber to kindle

a hope in my

expired soul asit liveth

through itseternal nights.

He may have closed the door, but sorrow made him wish that at least a blind would be left open

so that he may still see into the house. It afforded hope. Her reply would open that blind, and he

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waited inextricably on the couch for it.

His phone remained silent.

He sat heavily, rubbing his brow. He decided that he needed a drink more than the one beer

that he had promised himself.

He got up and followed a lady of the establishment who carried a tray full of beers. She headed

for the room where his brods were. She pushed open the door with her hips and the loud singinginside escaped into the corridor:

The co-co-nut nut is a giant nut

His brods were singing euphorically inside, and the song that they sang made him laugh at

himself.

Its the co-co-fruit of the co-co-tree of the co-co-palm family!

Final Draft2001

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romancing the coconuts

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