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My mind was listing the pros and cons of hitting Matt in the face with my champagne glass when his best friend Aldrich walked toward us to say hello.

"Pare!" Aldrich greeted, giving Matt a quick handshake. "Kumusta na?"

"Good, pare," Matt answered as he tapped Aldrich's shoulder. "Good, good. Ikaw?"

"Still in sports journ," Aldrich replied and turned to me. "Hey V, it's been a while. Is Matt your plus one?"

"Actually, we both went minus one tonight," I said, referring to our conversation earlier.

Aldrich looked confused and said, "Ooookay...is that supposed to be a code or something?"

"What are you talking about?" I asked defensively.

"Wala, wala," Aldrich maneuvered and scratched his temple. "Hey, Matt, do you mind if I dance with your date here?"

"Sige lang, pare," Matt answered before walking away to get more iced tea.

Like old friends, Aldrich and I made our way to the dance floor, but unlike old friends, he took my hand and my waist as we tried to sway to the song's rhythm. It was awkward.

I know for a fact that Aldrich is a lot of things, but a dancer is definitely not one of them. The same goes for me. The last time I danced to slow music was the night of my 18th birthday celebration, where it took us three straight weeks of non-stop practice to perform the cotillion de honor properly.

There we were, Aldrich and I, probably the two worst dancers on the dance floor, trying to sway to the rhythm of a famous '80s love song.

"Kasal ba 'to o ano?" Aldrich blurted out.

"Oo nga e," I giggled whole-heartedly. "Ibang event yata napuntahan natin."

"So, how's the chic writer?" he asked.

"Single," I said. "And still writing. Wait, did you tell Matt about Bedroom Blog?"

"No," he answered.

"Do you think he knows?"

"Ewan ko," Aldrich shrugged. "But Stacy knows."

"Seryoso?" I asked in absolute surprise. "What did she say?"

"She said you're one brave girl," my dancing partner said with a grin.

"Is she mad at me?"

"Hell, no!" Aldrich replied. "Natawa nga siya e. Your blog made her realize that she dated a...um..."

"An a**hole?"

"Ikaw nagsabi niyan ah," he said, laughing.

We danced in silence for a while.

"Are you and Matt...?"

"No," I replied automatically, without even knowing what he was about to ask.

"So why didn't you bring a plus one tonight?" Aldrich pressed.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked, eyeing Aldrich curiously. "Matt didn't bring his girlfriend either."

"Matt is different," Aldrich sighed. "You should know better."

I was silent for a while as his words started to sink in. Matt is different, Aldrich's words echoed. You should know better.

"Veronica, do you remember that thing I told you before about Matt?" he asked.

"That he's a very private person?"

"Yeah," Aldrich said. "I've always respected his privacy, but that doesn't mean I agree with some of his bullsh*t. Look, Veronica, you're my friend, too, and I know it's not my business, but I..."

"You...what?" I asked when his voice trailed off.

"I don't know how to say this without sounding girly but Matt is..." he made a clicking sound with his tongue. "Matt is bad news."

"You make him sound like a plague," I said with a laugh.

"Well, isn't he?" Aldrich challenged.

Of course, Aldrich was right. Matt really was bad news. He is like a plague—he gets under your skin, rots you from the inside out, and consumes you whole. Like smoking, Matt is an addiction that's really hard to kick.

"Aldrich, can I ask you something?" I said after a few silent minutes.

"Sure."

"Have you ever met Gia?"

"Matt's girlfriend? No," Aldrich answered. "Why?"

"Have you ever seen her in person?"

"Um, hindi pa rin," he replied.

"Matt never mentions her to you and your friends?" I asked. "After all these years?"

"Just once, I think," Aldrich answered. "There was this movie screening we all went to. But we never saw her. Matt said she went home early. Why are you asking?"

"Nothing," I said.

And only then did Logan pop into my mind again. I remembered all his stories about the Lung Center Talks and how brutal they sometimes become; the direct questions his friends post on Facebook about his dating status and his clever retorts; the time when his friends shouted his surname in the middle of the road when they saw us crossing the street; my chat conversations with his best buddy Bim; and the time he introduced me to his officemates during their Friday Night Habit at Bugsy's in Ortigas.

"Wait, don't tell me you're still..." Aldrich asked.

"I'm not," I answered quickly. "I'm just asking."

"Sure you are," Aldrich made a clicking sound with his tongue again.

I hated that everyone seemed to know how I felt. I hated myself more for not being able to hide it. Am I still in love with Matt? I asked myself, as I danced with his best friend.

I hated that Matt resurfaced into my life just when I was really starting to forget about him. I hated that he was about to dance with me right then. I hated that he still made me shiver with whatever it was I felt whenever he was around.

I was so consumed by my own thoughts that Aldrich and I hardly moved. It was then that Matt cut in to ask me for a dance.

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