"Ano'ng lunch gusto ng bubby?" tanong ni Diesel habang tinutuyo ang buhok ni Nadia gamit ang tuwalya. He's bringing her with him to work today, like usual. Saktong pupunta rin ang tatay niya kaya may mapag-iiwanan siya.

Nadia looks up at him, little hands gripping his shirt to keep her balance as he detangles her hair with his fingers. Shaking her head, she says, "Sama kay Mama."

Diesel's eyebrows furrow. He tries to recall kung napag-usapan ba nila kahapon ni Nadia, o nila ni Addie, na magbabago ang plano ngayong araw. He already told his father yesterday that he was bringing Nadia with him, at sigurado siyang excited ang matandang makita ang apo niya.

"Lolo's coming," he reminds Nadia.

Nadia nods, raising her arms as Diesel wraps her yellow bath towel around her body. "Next time . . ." she replies.

Ang ibig nitong sabihin doon, next time na lang sila magkikita ng lolo niya. Which is odd, because Nadia rarely declines any chance to see any of her grandparents. May isang beses na hindi sila natuloy bumiyahe papuntang Casa para kitain ang Wowa niya dahil masyado nang gabi nakauwi si Addie, and Nadia cried herself to bed because she was expecting to see her Wowa that evening.

"Sure?" tanong ni Diesel. Nadia nods as she waits for him to finish unbuttoning the orange dress she'll wear today.

"Okay," Diesel says, nodding. "Alam na ni Mama?"

Diesel removes Nadia's towel and dresses her up. After that, he continues drying and combing her hair as they both wait for Addie to finish taking a bath.

"Yes," Nadia answers, which makes Diesel pause what he is doing. Kung alam ni Addie, alam din dapat niya. Baka nakalimutan lang banggitin sa kaniya ni Addie kagabi dahil sa kapaguran? Hindi rin nito nabanggit sa kaniya kanina pagkagising. Baka nakalimutan?

"Bakit kay Mama ka sasama? May pupuntahan kayo?" he asks. Addie doesn't bring Nadia to work with her kung may filming. Ngayon siguro, wala. So either Addie would be holed up in her cubicle the whole day today, or they would be doing set designs.

Nadia likes to stay at Diesel's office more because she has more freedom there. She can ask for any food she likes, and walk around the complex with Diesel or his secretary. Kina Addie, bawal mag-ingay at bawal maglikot. Although, Addie says that doesn't stop Nadia from talking to her workmates. And Nadia likes to take pictures when their filming sets are almost finished.

Nadia turns her head to look at Diesel. She grins. "S'a secret."

* * *

It's February. Halos dalawang linggo na mula noong secret ang isinagot ni Nadia sa tanong ni Diesel kung bakit kay Addie ito sasama.

Diesel tried asking Addie about it, but she just laughed. Sa pangalawang beses niyang inungkat kay Addie iyon, wala pa rin siyang napalang matinong sagot. Hindi naman talaga siya bothered noong una, pero nang magtagal, hindi siya mapakali sa pagka-curious.

He wonders why Addie won't give him an answer. At first, he thought it had something to do with his birthday. Baka may pinaplano lang ang mag-ina niya para sa kaniya. But yesterday, Nadia chose to go with Addie, too, e lumipas na ang birthday niya.

Tinanong niya ulit si Nadia kung bakit, habang nagpapanggap na hindi naman talaga interesado, but Nadia pulled the secret card again on him.

Hindi niya maintindihan kung bakit laging secret ang sinasabi sa kaniya. At hindi rin niya makuha ang pattern kung kailan gustong sumama ni Nadia kay Addie. Last week, Lunes iyon. Kahapon, Biyernes. During the weekdays in between, Nadia went with him to work. He's trying to figure out what makes Nadia choose to go with Addie on certain days.

Today's a Saturday, and they're all going to Butterbites to help with the Valentine decorations. Habang tinutuyo ni Diesel si Nadia na kalalabas lang ng banyo, panay pa rin ang isip niya kung bakit kay Addie ito sumama noong isang Lunes at kahapon.

Dati, naiisip lang niyang baka naisipan lang ng bata—wala talagang particular reason. Pero kasi, laging secret ang sinasabi sa kaniya. Ibig sabihin, may dahilan talaga, pero ayaw lang sabihin sa kaniya. Ano ba'ng dahilan iyon at bakit bawal niyang malaman?

Nadia shakes her head, her hands holding up the towel wrapped around her hair to keep it in place, as Diesel unbuttons the denim shorts she is supposed to wear today. Diesel's eyebrows furrow questioningly. "Masikip na ba 'to sa 'yo?" tanong niya, tukoy sa shorts na hawak niya. Hindi na siya magtataka kung oo ang sagot. Sa lakas ba namang kumain ng anak niya.

"No," Nadia answers. "I want dress."

Diesel nods, folding her shorts and shirt neatly and placing them back in her drawer. Nadia walks up to him and peeks at the closet to see her available dresses.

Diesel moves aside and lets her pick what she wants to wear. She ends up choosing a collared pink dress with heart patterns. Namili rin ang bata ng doll shoes na isusuot at tinanggihan ang sneakers na inilabas ni Diesel kanina.

"S'pretty?" Nadia asks as Diesel ties a bow belt around her waist. Diesel nods before kissing Nadia's forehead. He now makes sure to have his facial hair trimmed so he won't have to deal with Nadia's rejections anymore.

"Shoes na," Diesel says after smoothing his hand over Nadia's dress. He slides her shoes to her feet, while Nadia holds onto his arm for balance. After that, he takes off the towel wrapped around her head and dries her hair properly.

* * *

Diesel hears Nadia calling out to him while he's picking clothes for himself. Her hands reach for his fingers and tug at them, prompting him to bend down a bit. "Papa, I want ano . . ." Nadia trails, making a swiping motion with her fingers that Diesel didn't quite understand. She presses her lower lip with her pointing finger. "Lips. Like Mama."

Diesel's eyebrows furrow. Lipstick? His almost-three-year-old is asking for lipstick?

Ayos lang naman iyon, pero hindi niya maintindihan kung bakit bigla-biglang gusto ni Nadia ng ganoon. Addie wears makeup to work, but that happens rarely.

He's confused, but he heeds her harmless request. He searches for Addie's lipstick in their cabinet and sits on the bed with Nadia. Napanonood lang niya kung paano maglagay niyon pero ngayong hawak na niya, hindi niya sigurado kung paano lalagyan si Nadia. He tries his best but always ends up messing it up. Parehas na lang nilang hinintay si Addie na matapos maligo para ito na lang ang maglagay ng lipstick kay Nadia.

"Mama." Nadia walks up to Addie, lipstick in hand, the moment her mother steps out of the bathroom.

Diesel's forehead creases when he catches Addie smiling and Nadia making a shush gesture. He narrows his eyes when Addie looks in his direction for a moment, then quickly lowers her gaze to Nadia when she sees him staring.

Diesel frowns, and he makes sure Addie sees it before he heads inside the bathroom. Addie merely laughs, ignoring his dramatics. They're obviously hiding something from him!

What did he do again this time?

* * *

Diesel keeps his frown on during the whole ride to Butterbites. The only way to make Addie tell him her secret with Nadia is by being sulky.

Pierre picks up Nadia from the backseat when they arrived, leaving him with Addie inside the car.

Hindi agad siya lumabas ng sasakyan on purpose. Naghihintay siyang may ikuwento sa kaniya si Addie tungkol kay Nadia, but Addie stayed silent as well. She's smiling, though, obviously aware of what he wants to hear and trying to wear his patience thin.

Diesel clicks his tongue when Addie reaches for the car handle to unlock the door and get off the car by herself. He beats Addie to it and leans over to open the car door by her side. Why the fuck would she open the door by herself? He's here and he has two functioning hands, and he can do it for her, god damn it.

"Thank you," Addie says with a laugh before planting a kiss on his cheek. He rolls his eyes, feigning annoyance. Addie ruffles his hair, still laughing, before heading out of the car.

Diesel sighs as he gets off the driver's seat and follows his wife inside the pastry shop.

There are some customers when they arrive. Diesel takes a seat in front of Pierre, who is busy cutting heart-shaped pink, red, and white papers. Nadia, who is sitting beside him, is busy folding the papers in half, which Pierre probably asked her to do. Diesel takes a scissor and decides to help. Ito naman talaga ang pinunta nila rito, ang mag-ayos ng decor para sa Valentine's.

He and Pierre talk about work while finishing the decor they have to put up later after the shop closes. Nadia was glued to her seat, the paper hearts and flowers keeping her occupied. Umaalis lang ito sa puwesto niya, binubuhat ni Pierre para makababa, kapag tinatawag ni Addie mula sa counters.

"Can I play?" Nadia asks, feet swinging back and forth, when some kids from the nearby daycare center arrive with their mothers. Diesel nods, and Pierre carries Nadia off the chair so she can walk over to where the other kids are.

Diesel keeps an eye on Nadia while he and Pierre continue what they're doing. He's checking on Nadia every minute to make sure her ponytail is in tack and that she doesn't eat the customers' orders.

He takes his eyes off of Nadia when Addie calls him over. Nagpaalam siya saglit kay Pierre at binilin ang anak bago dumeretso sa counter.

"Yes, ma'am?" he asks.

Addie leads him towards the back of the shop, then asks him to help rearrange things in the kitchenette. Addie and he cleaned up the area after moving the fridge, freezer, and tables. When they're done, he double checks if the door is locked, then steals a few kisses from Addie before they both head out.

A familiar face is in front of the counter. Addie says hi to Kean, while Diesel merely nods in greeting. Kinantiyawan niya ito dahil ang ipina-reserve na cake ay para sa girlfriend. Addie told him about Kean getting a girlfriend a few weeks ago.

"Kasama mo si Jacob?" Addie asks Kean. Diesel is about to return to his seat and get back to making decors but stops when he hears that. Jacob? Sino iyon? Ngayon lang niya iyon narinig. Hindi pa iyon nababanggit ni Addie sa kaniya kahit kailan.

Diesel notices how Kean shoots him a cautious glance. Diesel's jaw ticks in uneasiness, and instead of heading back to the tables, he decides to stay behind the counters to hear more.

"Oo, nando'n sa table kasama si . . ." Kean glances at him again. Diesel narrows his eyes, and the grim look on his face makes Kean laugh nervously. Addie doesn't notice; she's busy packing Kean's orders. ". . . kasama si Nadia."

Diesel shifts on his feet in discomfort. Who the fuck is that and why is Pierre letting this Jacob be with his bubby?

Nagpaalam lang saglit si Diesel kay Addie bago umalis. He walks past the display shelves of baked goods and searches for his daughter among the small crowd of Butterbites customers.

He spots Nadia sitting beside Pierre, then his eyes immediately scan for anyone who looks like a Jacob near them. Diesel only notices the boy around Nadia's age seated across from her when he marches towards their table.

Nadia's eyes light up upon seeing Diesel. She tugs on the hem of his shirt before holding his fingers with her little hand. "Look, Papa," Nadia says, holding up a piece of a heart-shaped chocolate lollipop with her free hand. It's obviously from somewhere else because Butterbites doesn't sell that. "S'from Jakey!"

"Who?" Jakey? Jacob? Diesel shifts his gaze to the young boy sitting in front of Nadia—his overprotectiveness kicking in and unintentionally glaring at the poor child.

Jakey's shoulders immediately tense up, unsurprisingly scared of the old man towering over him. He gets off the chair quickly, causing him to almost trip. Diesel's paternal instincts kick in, snapping him out of his bubble and reminding him that Jacob is a harmless child—as he rushes over to help. But Jacob only ends up bursting into tears because Diesel's tall, is a stranger, and to him, he looks like the kidnappers his uncle Kean warned him about.

Pierre laughs as Jacob frees himself from Diesel's hold and runs over to the counters. Saglit na natulala si Diesel, hindi makapaniwalang nagpaiyak siya ng bata. Bumalik lang siya sa ulirat nang makaramdam siya ng hampas sa kamay niya.

He turns his head to look at Nadia who's glaring at him. His mind quickly comes up with an apology, but Nadia speaks first, "Meanie!"

Diesel's jaw drops, and for a moment he forgets what he plans to say to make up for being a meanie to Nadia's playmate . . . or crush . . . ? Goodness, did his almost-three-year-old want to look pretty for that kid? Alam ba ni Nadia kung kailan iyon kasama ni Kean kaya siya sumasama kay Addie minsan?

Fuck, he doesn't even know how that kid is related to Kean. At hindi naman niya sinasadyang paiyakin ang bata! It's not his fault that his physique, arm tattoo, and long hair scare most of the kids.

Nadia puffs out her cheeks, a habit of hers whenever she's annoyed. Diesel whispers an apology for making Jakey cry (He swears he didn't mean to. He was trying to help!) but Nadia only shakes her head and folds her arms. "Sumbong kay Mama," she says.

Diesel sighs then step aside and watch as Nadia tries to get off the chair. It doesn't look like it but he's on guard if ever she makes a wrong step and falls over. Alam niyang hindi kaya ni Bubby bumaba nang siya lang.

Diesel hides his grin when Nadia looks up at him, still annoyed, but obviously wanting his help. He sighs and carries her off the chair, in hopes of being forgiven in exchange for that kind deed. But Nadia quickly peels away his hold on her when he lets her down. She stamps her feet towards the counters.

Diesel grunts in frustration as he takes the seat Nadia had just left. Laughing, Pierre claps his shoulders. "'Wag kang ano diyan. Baka nga sa 'yo nakamana 'yang anak mo. Ilang taon ka ba unang nagka-crush?"

Diesel frowns, getting Pierre's hand away from him. Is there no way to keep his bubby from growing up?

A few moments later, Diesel apologizes to Kean for (unintentionally!) making his nephew cry. Nadia returns to their table but doesn't speak to him for the rest of the day—says it's his punishment for being a meanie.

That evening, Addie becomes the big spoon again because he's sulking. He and Nadia make up the next day after he buys her a box of bigger heart-shaped chocolate lollipops.