"oy!" pagkagulat ko. lumingon agad ako.
"hi Jake." si Annie, best friend ni Eunice nag kataon yung dorm na nirerent ko dun din nag rerent si Annie. cute si Annie. and i mean cute siya pati sa height hehe.
"aba, nakakahalata na ko ah. parang nalilibang ka na sa panunulak at pang hahampas mo sakin ah. pasalamat ka bff ka ni Eunice." biro ko sakanya. pikon naman toh eh.
"kaya nga malakas loob ko, kase wala ka naman magagawa." sabi niya
"cute mo." sarcastic kong sinabi sakanya.
"well, thanks. but you're not my type." bah! confident tong midg- este cute na toh.
"cute mong tirisin" sabay pak nahampas ako agad bago pa ko maka ilag. grabe ang liit niya pero yung hampas parang anlakeng tao. sakit! nakakaluha sht!
tapos bigla siyang natahimik habang nag rereklamo ko sa sakit ng hampas niya. so tiningnan ko siya. at nakita ko ang lalim ng iniisip niya, at parang malungkot pa. so tinanong ko na.
"A, what's wrong?" tapos bigla siyang nag bugtong hininga, tapos tinitigan niya ko ng mga ilang minuto. kinabahan ako, nag bubutil yung pawis ko sa titig niya.
"J, we need to talk. seryoso. i need to confess something." naluluha na siya nung binibigkas niya yung mga katagang yun.
"okay. I'm listening." is what I said. but to think that I wasn't even ready enough to hear what she was about to say. it shooked me to the core. nanginginig ako sa mga sinabi niya. parang gumuho yung mundo ko. ang hirap huminga. I'm confused.
"Jake, I'm sorry. I'm sorry kase hindi ko sila napigilan. I'm sorry kase ngayon lang ako nagkalakas ng loob. I'm sorry for being scared. sana wag ka magalit sakin." she cried, whilst telling me na nung party ni Eric something happened. something i knew Eunice won't ever do to me.
"no, Annie. hindi niya magagawa sakin yan." pagtatanggol ko.
but i was wrong she showed me the photos. habang magkayakap si Eric at Eunice sa kama magkapatong at nag hahalikan. i was crushed. that's hard evidence.
"the truth is, nung sabi niya sayo na nakauwi na kami sakanila. katabi ko siya. and nakiusap niya na wag ko nalng daw sabihin sayo na dun kami kila Eric natulog. hindi ko sila napigilan Jake. natakot ako nung tinitigan ako ng masama ni Eric. I'm sorry."
my knees were going weaker by the minute, parang umiikot ikot ung lugar na kinatatayuan ko. and i can hear my heart break into pieces. I didn't say a word, and i walked into my room closed the door and sit there staring at the floor blankly but my tears are falling like waterfalls. i left Annie outside.
minutes passed, may kumatok. pag bukas ko, si Annie. nag usap kami, sabi ko wag niya nalang ipaalam kay Eunice na alam ko na. tumango siga at nag paalam. i cried like a little boy begging for his favorite toy on Christmas. i cried my heart out.
2months passed, Eunice has been getting colder and colder but i just let it be. mahal ko siya, at ayokong mawala siya kahit ang sakit sakit na. i did everything i could to make her happy. pero bat ganun? bat parang nag baback fire? parang lahat ng efforts ko, balewala lang sakanya? i waited for her to tell me, but i heard nothing.