Nicole

Nandito si Jenny kanina

Babylene

Sinong Jenny?

Nicole

Yung may crush kay Andy nung high school

Babylene

Ahhhh

Yung hater mo nung highschool?

Jewel

OMG may gusto pa rin sya kay Andy hanggang ngayon?

Nicole

Mukha HAHA

Sabi ko nga kay Andy i-entertain nya

Tapos binuksan yung TV saka iniwan si Jenny sa sala hahaha

Angel

😭

Babylene

She used to hate you so much

Naalala mo nung election ng school council? Sa classroom nila halos zero yung boto mo dati hahaha

Nicole

Hindi ko rin gets bakit sa akin sya nagagalit

E kung kinaibigan nya ako di ba

Sana inilakad ko pa sya kay Andy

Yung iba binibigyan ako ng gifts pang-bribe tapos sya hini-hate ako?

Jewel

Buti nga hindi sya pinatulan ni Andy e

Can you imagine kung sila pa hanggang ngayon? Baka hindi na kayo friends ni Andy

Angel

She seems like someone who will forbid her boyfriend to talk to other women because she gets so jealous so easily

Nicole

She was trying to woo Tita Andrea earlier

Angel

Pano yan e ikaw lang ang gustong manugangin ni Tita Andrea?

Napatawa si Niki sa chat ni Angel. Truth be told, she didn't understand why Jenny hated her so much back then. Sikat ito sa year nito. Muse kasi. Panlaban sa Intrams. Maraming manliligaw. Palagi itong dumadaan sa tapat ng classroom nila tuwing recess, hoping to catch a glimpse of Andy.

Jenny would always roll her eyes kapag nakita nitong magkatabi o magkasama sila ni Andy.

Niki never understood why she became the subject of the woman's hate, considering na may ibang nililigawan si Andy noon. She has always denied the rumors about her and Andy. She even went as far as keep her distance tuwing magkakaroon ng girlfriend si Andy. She wanted to keep the peace. Never used her friendship with Andy to threaten his romantic relationships, and still... those girls ended up hating her all the same.

Jenny left just before she finished her breakfast earlier. She could still feel the hate coming out of those eyes. So all these years, gusto pa rin nito si Andy. She probably tried to get close with his parents so they would approve of her. Kapag nga naman nagustuhan ito ng mga magulang ni Andy, they could influence how Andy thought of her. But Andy didn't seem interested in Jenny. And she wanted to feel awful about it, but she couldn't. She was happy he was not interested.

Niki kicked the blanket off of her and got up. Pasado alas dose na pero wala pa ring nagtatawag para mananghalian. She was already starting to get hungry. Thinking that they were not having an official lunch since the food had been readily available since yesterday, she decided to just go downstairs to eat.

Kakabukas pa lamang niya ng pinto nang marinig niya ang pamilyar na boses sa baba.

"...nandito raw si Nicole. Gusto lang sana namin siyang makausap."

Niki felt a shiver run down her spine when she recognized the voice. She has not heard that voice in many years. She could barely remember it. Hearing it again, for the first time in a long time, made her frozen on the spot.

She couldn't even close the door because she was shaking so badly. Unti-unti siyang napupupusan ng hininga. She wanted to crawl out of her skin and hide under the bed, but her fucking legs wouldn't move.

How long can she just stand there without being seen?

"Hey."

She looked up at Andy who just appeared in front of her. He peeled her hand off of the doorknob and gently pushed her back inside Tonet's room. Ang isa nitong kamay ay nakaalalay sa kanya habang ang isa pa ay dahan-dahang isinasara ang pinto.

Niki put her hand over her mouth to muffle the sound of her tears. She had a feeling that her family would find out that she went home, but she never imagined that they would go to Andy's house to seek her out.

She couldn't imagine talking to them face to face again, after all this time. Hindi na rin niya maintindihan ang sariling pakiramdam. Napupuno siya ng galit at inis at lungkot at takot. All the emotions a child shouldn't feel when they come face to face with their parents.

Niki let Andy pull her down on the ground. Sumandal ito sa may pintuan at niyakap siya mula sa likod. He was gently patting her head with one hand while the other was tightly wrapped around her waist.

She buried her face on the crook of his shoulder and silently cried.

–

They have been sitting on the floor for a while now. Niki already stopped crying, but she was still holding on to Andy. Kanina, katulong siya ng mama niya sa pagluluto ng tanghalian. They were just reheating food to eat when they heard a knock on the door.

When Andy opened it, he was shocked to see Niki's mother and younger sister outside. Niki's mom smiled warmly at him and asked if they could come in. He hesitated because he knew Niki didn't want to see them unprepared, but he had to let them in out of respect for them.

They immediately asked about Niki the moment they entered the house and Andy would have lied to their faces had his mother not appeared from the kitchen.

He excused himself and quickly headed upstairs to check on Niki. Naabutan niya itong papalabas ng kwarto ni Tonet. She must have heard the voice of her mother. Why else would she look so upset?

"Nakatulog ka na ba?" tanong niya rito maya-maya.

He felt her shake her head.

"Do you want to eat?"

"No," she croaked. Tumikhim ito at itinagillid ang ulo para makapagsalita nang mas maayos. "Sinabi nyong nandito ako?"

"I think they already know," he admitted. Someone must have told them. Or maybe it was his fault for posting that family picture. He didn't even think that Niki's family would see her there. He just wanted to take a picture of her with his family. Hindi siya nag-iisip nang maayos. "Don't worry. Kausap na sila ni mama. Hindi ka naman namin pipiliting makipag-usap sa kanila kung ayaw mo."

"Thank you..."

Mas hinigpitan pa niya ang pagkakayakap dito. Thankfully, Niki has already stopped shaking. Akala niya ay magpa-panic attack na naman ito.

"I'll check downstairs kung wala na sila," sabi niya. Niluwagan niya ang pagkakayakap dito para makalayo ito sa kanya. The right side of his shirt's collar was already wet with tears. Dadaan muna siya sa sariling kwarto para magpalit ng damit. "Wag ka munang bumaba. Dadalhan na lang kita ng pagkain dito."

Tumango si Niki at dahan-dahang tumayo. She slowly walked towards the makeshift bed on the floor and crawled under the blanket.

Sighing, Andy got up as well to get a change of clothes.

–

Niki stayed inside the room all afternoon. Dinalhan lang siya ni Andy ng tanghalian doon. She stayed there even though he had assured her multiple times that her mother and sister were already gone.

To: Andy

Anong merienda?

From: Andy

Secret

Lumabas ka na ng kwarto

To: Andy

😾

Darating mamaya ang mga kaibigan niya. What time did they say they were arriving again? Ah, right. Seven in the evening. Alas kwatro pa lang. Gutom na naman siya. Bakit ba kasi masyado siyang upset kanina. Hindi tuloy siya nakakakain ng tanghalian nang maayos.

Tatlong oras na lang naman... Niki put her phone down and closed the curtains. Matutulog na lang siya nang tatlong oras. Sa Maynila naman, kaya niyang hindi kumain nang madalas sa maghapon. Pero iba sa probinsya. Parang palagi kang gutom.

She turned to her side and closed her eyes. But the grumbling of her stomach wouldn't let her sleep in peace.

Maya-maya ay nakarinig siya ng mahinang katok. Smiling because she finally got Andy to bring her some food, Niki quickly got up. Sakto naman na bumukas ang pintuan.

"Tita!"

Ngumiti ito at isinarado ang pinto. May dala itong isang malaking plato ng pagkain. She was also carrying a water flask. Dali-dali niya itong tinulungang maibaba nang maayos ang pagkain sa lamesa malapit sa kama.

"Sabi ni Andy gutom ka na raw."

"Sorry, Tita. Naabala ka pa tuloy."

Tita Andrea clicked her tongue. "Ano ka ba. Wala yun. Kain ka na."

Mukhang bagong luto ang pansit bihon. Iyon yata iyong ginigisang kanina pa niya naaamoy. Her mouth was practically watering already. She squeezed the lime onto the food and took a bite. Napapikit siya when the first mouthful of food got to her stomach.

"Sorry, Tita. Kain po tayo."

Ngumiti ito sa kanya. "Safe naman na sa baba, Niki. Whenever you want to go down. I already talked to your mother."

"Ah... ano raw pong gusto nila?"

"Hm... they just want to talk to you, that's all." Itinuon nito ang mga kamay sa kama. "I told them that you're not ready, and you won't be able to receive their good intentions, if they force you to face them now."

Niki chewed her food as she listened.

"I'm not going to tell you how they are doing, since Andy told me that you didn't want to hear it. As a parent, I feel your mother's pain, Niki. But I was once a child too. And even though I didn't go through what you are going through right now, I understand that you need to heal at your own pace.

"Let me just tell you this one thing: your family is trying to reach out to you. Someday, you might regret not giving them another chance." Hinagod nito ang likod niya. "I just hope that while you're nursing your own wound, you won't forget that they have wounds that need tending too. That maybe... healing will truly start once you acknowledge what was causing your pain.

"But it is still up to you when you would want to let them in again. I just want you to know that they are reaching out to you, and you can reach back when you're ready. Okay?"

She smiled at her. Tita Andrea raised her hand to wipe that tear from her cheek.

"Thank you, Tita."

Inilagay nito ang braso sa balikat niya at inihilig ang ulo niya sa balikat nito.

"You're always welcome, Anak."