Messenger
ERPS BALITA

Ryker:
ano gagawin nyo kapag may nag-abot ng lunch sa bebelabs nyo? 🤬🤬🤬

Eastre:
Yikes 🥶
Wala hahaha
Siguro? Lol
I don't even want to think about it

Iscaleon:
Kakainin ko! 😠

Ryker:
WHAT 🤯

Iscaleon:
KAKAININ KO 😡😡😡😡

Eastre:
Kakainin mo yung alin?

Ryker:
hala ganyan ka pala magselos, cal
so skeri 🥲

Iscaleon:
Kakainin ko yung lunch! 🤨
Sa harap nung lalaki! 🤨
Uubusin ko! 😑

Ryker:
anak ka talaga ng ama mo,
naku naman 😮‍💨

Eastre:
Bakit pala? Haha
Did someone give lunch to Aziah?

Ryker:
oo shshshshs tapos pinagmalaki nya pa na pinabili raw ni aziah yun sa kanya haha 🤥 sa ugali na nga lang babawi, pangit pa rin

dapat sa akin lang nagpapabili si aziah, i'll work 24/7 just to get her needs 🥺

Eastre:
Lol
Parang di naman materialistic si Aziah or I don't peg her to let someone buy things for her

Ryker:
ayoko nga maniwala eh 🥺 my princess won't do that to me

kaso nakita ko yung sky flakes ni aziah 🙂 haha saquette 👍

Eastre:
Lol, paano mo nasabi kay Aziah yun?

Ryker:
My princess always has biscuits on her bag 😞 madalas sky flakes! nasisilip ko yun eh

kakausapin ko nga si bebelabs about it hshshshshs kinakabahan ako

sana di kami mag-away ☹️ malapit na practicals namin! i need to focus.

i dont want to be possessive

pero i dont want kahati to aziah's attention, my princess is mine alone 😔😞

Eastre:
FUUUCK

@Iscaleon Altreano banggain mo na lang ako ng ranger mo kapag naging ganito ako sa babae pls 😭😭😭 I DON'T WANT TO BE LIKE RYKER

Iscaleon:
He scares me 🤓
Pero pakiramdam ko naman hindi ako magiging gan'yan sa babae.

Ryker:
nooo i just know kapag na-in love si cal ang una n'yang maiisip kapag nakita nya yung girl "bubuntisin ko to." 😝🥳🎊

Eastre:
HAHAHAHAHAHA
FUCKER KA TALAGA

Iscaleon:
You are not wrong. 🤓

Ryker:
??????

Eastre:
?

Iscaleon:
🤓

#####

Chapter 15

There was a deafening silence between us. Nanatiling nakatingin lang sa akin si Ryker. Each passing second, it squints like he was judging my silence. Hindi ko magawang sagutin ang tanong n'ya dahil. . .takot ako sa magiging sagot ko.

Nagtaas siya ng isang kilay sa akin. A tiny sarcastic grin blossomed in his lips. "Fuck it."

I scoffed in response. "Alam mo naman yung sagot sa tanong na 'yan. Why bother making it complicated, Ry?"

Tumango siya at napabuntonghininga. "Yeah, sorry."

There was hurt laced in his voice. My lips pulled apart. I had playboys under my fingertips before and I never felt guilty over hurting them. Para sa akin ay ginagawan ko ng pabor ang mundo kapag may napapaiyak ako na babaero. . .yet Ryker makes me want to take him in my arms and apologize for hurting him even if it was unintentionally.

I know I should have explained what happened and assured him that Kio was no one compared to him. Pero pinangunahan ako ng takot na makita ni Ryker na parte na siya ng mundo ko. That I care if he was hurt. . .and I felt bad when he sighed and walked away from me.

I promised myself that no one could hurt me. . .and by admitting that I'm letting Ryker inside the small world I've built also entails that I'm allowing him to hurt me.

Dalawang linggo ang lumipas pero wala akong narinig mula kay Ryker.  Akala ko ay dahil lang yun sa ayaw n'yang maging awkward dahil sa naging usapan naming dalawa. Yet. . .even a text would suffice.

Napanguso ako habang nakatitig sa aking phone. C'Mon, Ryker. . .kahit text, wala talaga? Hindi ka talaga magpaparamdam?

"Kanina mo pa hawak ang phone mo," puna ni Lotte at tumabi sa akin. Nasa mga stone tables kami ngayon dahil free cut. Sumakto naman na wala ring klase si Kelsey, kadalasan kasi ay siya ang bombarded sa mga gawain.

"Huh?"

"Hinihintay mo ba si Ryker?" Lotte concluded while trying to look at my phone. I covered my phone in shame.

Halata ba? Yung mukha ko ba ngayon puno ng pangungulila kay Ryker?

"Hindi ah," I gulped down. "I'm just waiting for the announcement for our practical partners. Ang tagal eh. . .no'ng isang linggo pa yata ako naghihintay."

It was the truth. Ang tagal kasi ilabas ng listahan ng magiging partners namin sa section A para sa laboratory activity namin sa venipuncture. They're prolonging our pain! Syempre kabado ako na baka hindi ko close yung kukuhanan ko ng dugo tapos mabadtrip sa akin kapag nagkamali ako. I don't care about my grade in it—mas nagaalala ako na baka ipakulam ako ng magiging kapartner ko sakaling pumalpak ako!

"Tanong pala nang tanong si Kio Marcova sa 'yo," sabi ni Lotte sa akin. "Akala ko ba kay Ryker ka na?"

Oh, pareho nga pala sila ng department. The mere mention of his name stirred acid inside my stomach. Siguro dahil katabi ng pangalan n'ya ang taong alam kong nasaktan ko.

"Anong kay Ryker?" Halakhak ko. "Walang kami 'no."

Tumango-tango si Lotte. "Kaya ba pinagkakalat ni Kio na may namamagitan sa inyong dalawa?"

"What?" My forehead knotted almost abruptly upon hearing those words from Lotte.

Lotte grimaced. "Honestly? Ryker's a better catch, ha. Kio's a bit weird. Cute siya pero para siyang. . .obsess na ewan?"

My pulse raced as I took my time to assess the situation. Kasalanan ko yata ito dahil hindi ko ni-re-reject openly si Kio dahil nababaitan ako sa kan'ya. I'm not entertaining him but by not saying no, hindi ko rin siya pinagtatabuyan.

"Kakausapin ko nga siya na tigilan na ako," sabi ko. "I don't like the free lunches and shit."

Kelsey was busy fidgeting on her phone. Kanina pa siya patanong-tanong sa aming dalawa. She was taking a quiz, finding our attachment styles. Hindi ko alam sa isang ito pero hinahayaan na lang namin kaysa naman i-text n'ya yung ex n'yang babaero. It was better for her to find quizzes to make herself busy.

"Ang attachment style mo pala, Ziah. . ." Kelsey trailed off. "Avoidant."

"Ano?" Nagtaas ako ng kilay sa kan'ya.

Umangat ang tingin n'ya sa akin. "Based lang sa mga naging sagot mo sa tanong ko kanina. . .ang lumabas dito ay avoidant ang attachment style mo."

"What the fuck?" I chuckled, sounding offended. Anong avoidant 'yan? Ako? Avoidant? Kailan pa ako umiwas? Mapagpatol nga ako eh!

Tumikhim si Kelsey at pinakita sa akin ang resulta sa IPad n'ya. "According to the quiz, your answers lead to having an avoidant attachment style, which means you are not comfortable with intimacy and closeness because you prefer independency than relying on someone else. It could be because you have a hard time trusting on others because in the early stages of your life, a loved one made you feel that they're not available or they're unresponsive which led you to depend solely on yourself by suppressing your emotions and avoiding on relying to others in terms of affection."

Nangunot ang noo ko. "Tangina, sino ang gumawa ng quiz na iyan? Maguusap lang kami!"

Ang kapal naman ng mukha ng quiz maker na iyan para masyado maging personal ang atake! How can that quiz determine that my attachment style is avoidant!? At bakit sobrang apektado yata ako?

Humalakhak si Lotte. "Huwag ka nga masyadong galit d'yan, Ziah. It's just a quiz!"

Kelsey chuckled. "Anxious naman ang attachment style mo, Lotte. Grabe, wala man lang nagkaroon ng secure attachment style sa ating tatlo. Baka nga, the same feathers fly together."

"Birds with the same feathers. . ."

Lotte scoffed then rolled her eyes. "Putangina kamo ng quiz na 'yan! Ang daming alam!"

I nodded in agreement. Pareho kasi na hindi namin nagustuhan ang lumabas na resulta.

In the end, we had to dismiss ourselves because I had to attend my practical. Kinuha ko na ang phlebotomy kit ko na pinalagay ko pa sa locker ni Mikay at hinanap siya upang makaupo na rin.

My eyes peered over her as soon as I reached the classroom that we will use for our practicals. Kasama namin ngayon ang Section A at kanina pa sila mukhang badtrip sa section namin. I shrugged my shoulders as I looked over them; it's not our fault that two of our professors were best friends and they wanted to merge our classes for this.

Tumabi na ako kay Mikay na taimtim na nagdarasal. Hindi ko alam kung ano ang laman ng dasal n'ya hanggang sa marinig ko ang mahina n'yang bulong.

"Sana si Adeva mapunta sa akin," Mikay sighed as she clasped her hands together in a prayer position.

Para akong nabulunan sa sarili kong laway. Totoo naman na gwapo ang isang iyon. A mere mortal would even consider him a lost demigod because of his looks, pero ano naman kinalaman ng venipuncture?

"Bakit?" Kunot-noong tanong ko sa kan'ya. "Anong kinalaman ni Ryker?"

"Magaan kasi ang kamay," Mikay said. "Saka madalas na pinupuri ng mga kaklase n'ya. He's literally the one who's always the perfect example used by our professors. Halata na hindi ka nakikinig ah?"

I scoffed in response. "Wala naman kasi akong pakialam d'yan. So, why should I know?"

Pero nakakatuwa. Nakaka-proud. Hindi ko mapigilan ang mapangiti dahil alam ko naman na deserving talaga kung isa siya sa madalas mapuri. He works really hard to gain those recognition. Masaya ako na nakikita rin iyon ng iba.

"Ryker, ikaw na lang partner ko, please," a feminine voice caught my attention.

Nilingon ko ito at kitang-kita ko ang mukha ni Ryker na hindi mapinta. His lips curled into an awkward smile. I noticed that the area underneath his eyes was tinting black. Hindi ko alam kung dahil ba sa puyat siya para sa practical na ito or may iniisip na iba.

It's the former. I just know that he beat himself up for ways to ace this practical laboratory activity. . .kahit pa sabihin na magaling naman na talaga siya.

"Wala sa akin yung list," Ryker chuckled. Fuck it, I miss his voice.

Napapikit ako. Hindi ko alam kung paano ko siya kakausapin pagkatapos namin magkaroon ng sagutan. I fidgeted my fingers. Mamaya ay susubukan ko siyang makausap dahil baka naman. . .magbati kaming dalawa. I will apologize for not turning Kio down immediately. I'll explain that. . .only his attention pleased me. Ayoko na sa atensyon ng ibang lalaki magmula nang binigay n'ya sa akin ang buong atensyon n'ya.

"Pero gusto mo rin ako maka-partner?" the girl nudged Ryker. She was pretty and her hair was in a neat bun. Petite siya at halos hanggang balikat lang ang height kumpara kay Ryker.

"Who would say no to you?" Ryker smoothly said. Ngumiti pa.

Ah. . .gano'n?

Tangina mo pala eh!

Nag-init ang ulo ko nang marinig iyon kay Ryker. Okay, fine. . .hindi panglalandi iyon. Okay, fine! Wala kaming label. Okay, fine! Hindi naman siya naka-commit sa akin. Naglaho ang binubuo kong sama ng loob dahil alam ko naman na ako ang may gusto nito. We were exclusive, that's right. Pero sa kama lang naman at sa pisikal lang naman.

I grimaced and waited for the list so I could get this done with. Tama na siguro ito. After this activity, kakausapin ko si Ryker na itigil na namin ang kung ano mang namamagitan sa amin. We should stop seeing each other because it's driving me nuts! Ayoko ng ganito.

Sinilip ko ang list na s-in-end sa group chat namin. My lips parted as soon as I saw my name linked with Ryker's.

Princess Aziah Adeva -
Ryker Miguel Adeva

"Ms. Florencio! I'm sorry, nagkaroon kasi ng typo! Minamadali kasi namin ang paggawa ng list," my professor rushed in and apologized. "Pero si Adeva ang makaka-partner mo. Na-doble lang ang apilyedo n'ya."

"Ah. . .okay lang po," I smiled despite the raging heartbeats that my chest was trying to record.  "Honest mistake naman po iyon at hinding-hindi naman po mangyayari."

"Yung alin?" Ryker exclaimed and went between the both of us. My heart almost leaped out of its ribcage. Fuck it! Oo! Na-miss ka na! Nakakainis!

"Princess Aziah Adeva kasi ang nalagay sa list," my professor explained. "Hindi yata na-check ng student assistant ko."

My cheeks bathe in red because of embarrassment. Hindi ko kaya lumingon kay Ryker ngayon dahil nahihiya ako. It's not like I was the one who linked his surname to my name!

"Okay lang naman po sa akin," Ryke smiled with a hint of provocation. "Ewan ko lang po kay Princess kung okay lang sa kan'ya."

Princess!?

Nagngitngit ang ngipin ko nang marinig sa kan'ya iyon. I know that he likes to affectionately call me by that name but now. . .he was seriously testing my patience.

"Ah, wala naman po akong problema kay Kuya Ryker," I smiled back.

Nalaglag ang ngiti ni Ryker nang tawagin ko siya ng kuya. Bakit? Iniisip mo ba magiging asawa mo ako? Asa ka pa.

Umupo na kami sa desk kung saan gagawin namin ang practical. I was not as prepared as everyone else because most of them had plastic smiles on their faces while they're discussing the process with their partners.

Napalunok naman ako saka lumingon kay Ryker na naka-crossed legs habang pinagmamasdan ako. "Alam mo naman na ito 'di ba?"

Nagtaas siya ng kilay sa akin. Lalong umangat ang kaba sa dibdib ko dahil mas gugustuhin ko pa ang pilyong ngiti n'ya kaysa yung titig n'yang mala-panelist ng isang thesis defense. Kahit yata anong sabihin ko ay may butas sa kan'ya!

"Would you tell that to a patient? Na alam naman na yung gagawin sa kan'ya?" mahinang sabi ni Ryker.

"H-hindi. . ." I gulped down. "Sorry."

Right. Hindi nga naman gano'n ang nangyayari sa totoong buhay. Some patients are afraid of needles or don't know the concept of venipuncture. Doon pa lang ay may mali na agad ako!

"Do you want me to go first?" mahinahon n'yang tanong. His eyes didn't make me feel that I was stupid for creating a mistake in the procedure.

"Okay lang ba?"

"Yes," tumango si Ryker. "Sabihan mo lang ako kapag start na tayo."

Tumango naman ako. "Sige. We can start."

Tinawag ni Ryker yung instructor namin para simulan na iyong pag-grade sa performance. My heart was beating fast because I was nervous for this practical.

He started to gather his equipment first, he was neat and organized on doing it. Ryker positioned himself as he smiled at me.

He made me state my name and age. Siguro dahil ilalagay n'ya ito sa mga tubes.

"Princess Aziah Florencio. . ." I said and followed up my age. My eyes were glued to his hands as he sanitized them before applying gloves on both.

"Thank you, Ms. Florencio," he smoothly said. "Are there any allergies to latex?"

"Wala. . ."

"Okay," he nodded his head as he prepared the tourniquet next. He smiled at me as he gestured that I should hand him my arm. Nawala sa isip ko dahil kakatitig sa kan'ya!

"There's no fear in needles? Ms. Florencio?" tanong n'ya sa akin.

"Wala. . .wala akong takot sa mga tinutusok sa akin," ngiti ko sa kan'ya. "Malaki man o maliit, kaya ko 'yan."

Ryker's lips broke into a wry smile. His eyes turned to slits in the process. "Right. That's good to hear."

He started to clean the area by using alcohol pads. Pansin ko rin na puro pababa ang pagpahid n'ya. I'll ask him about it later, kung bakit gano'n. He waited for the alcohol to dry up then he started to prepare the syringe and test tubes. I watched him put the cotton with the micropore near the area where I'm assuming he would put the tourniquet on.

Mabilis n'ya rin tiningnan yung syringe at inobserbahan. Minsan naman ay nakikinig ako kaya alam ko kung bakit n'ya ginagawa iyon, baka kasi palpak yung syringe at delikado kapag hindi pala gumagana o maayos tapos ginamit na sa tao.

After all the procedures, he finally applied the tourniquet on me. He made me create a fist on the arm that had a tourniquet on. I wanted to observe him more but. . .my eyes can't help but focus on his face. Seryoso kasi siya sa ginagawa n'ya at para bang hindi lang dahil gusto n'yang mataas ang grado n'ya.

Ang hirap pala hindi kiligin kapag pogi yung kumukuha ng dugo mula sa 'yo. Kaya pala may mga uto-utong tao na papakagat sa bampira eh.

I watched him do the procedure in awe because he clearly knew the small details that most students wouldn't care about. Para talagang nasa gusto n'ya iyong ginagawa n'ya.

"Thank you, Ms. Florencio," Ryker said as he gently finished the procedure. Inayos n'ya yung equipment nang matapos siya sa akin.

"T-tapos na?" I asked in daze. I checked my arm and the test tube; it really was done!

Tumango si Ryker. "Yes."

Hindi ko inakala na magaan talaga ang kamay ng isang ito! I checked my arm and it was real. Tapos na nga.

Nag-thumbs up yung instructor. "Balikan ko kayo mamaya-maya para naman kay Ms. Florencio. Good job, both of you."

Pinanood ko na lumayo sa amin yung instructor. I looked at Ryker and he was already preparing to leave. Nag-panic ako at hinawakan siya sa kan'yang braso. He peered at me, his right eyebrow lifting a bit.

"Hindi mo ba talaga ako papansinin?" I asked him in a small voice.

"I'm talking to you, aren't I?" mahina n'yang saad. "Pinapansin kita."

"Galit ka ba?" tanong ko sa mahinang boses. It was obvious. . .and I understood. But I wanted to hear it from him.

"Hindi? Bakit naman?"

"Kasi. . .tumanggap ako ng lunch sa ibang lalaki," I said in shame. I was about to apologize when he cleared his throat and spoke first.

"Honestly, it was a lapse of mine." Ngumiti siya. "Wala namang tayo eh. Whatever we have is clearly physical attraction only. Pay no heed, Ziah. Kung gusto mong sa kama lang talaga ang ugnayan natin, I'll give that to you."