When it Rains, it Hurts

10

"EJ, manloloko pala si Alvin..." umiiyak na bungad sa 'kin ni Sage nang pumasok siya sa condo ko.

Nabitawan ko ang hawak kong libro at kaagad siyang hinila palabas. I have only one thought. And that is to at least give that bastard a punch. Hindi na 'to ang unang beses na naloko ang kaibigan ko. It's either she gets cheated on or she gets a toxic boyfriend. Either way, parehas naman toxic.

Nang makarating kami sa bahay ng ex niya, inis kong pinindot ang doorbell. When I heard the doorknob being unlocked, I prepared myself. When Alvin showed himself, I didn't waste any second. I punched him. It was so hard that he had blood on him.

"What the fuck?! Ikaw na boy best friend ka, ikaw ang problema ko!" Alvin stood up and tried to punch me but Sage hugged him. "Sige, ipagtanggol mo ulit 'yang kaibigan mo, Clara. Ano? Nagsumbong ka? Magsusumbong ka nalang, kulang pa yata. Kaya lang naman ako nagloko sa 'yo dahil diyan sa boy best friend mo. Sinong tanga ang papayag na makita ang girlfriend niyang kayakap ang kaibigang lalaki? Malala pa iyong makikita kitang humahalik sa pisngi niya. Kayo nalang sana nagligawan."

"It's not a valid reason, you idiot! Wala kaming ginagawang masama ni Sage. Huwag mong gawing rason ang pagkakaibigan namin sa panloloko mong gago ka."

Careless. That's one word to describe Clara Sage Laurel. I got shocked when she sat on my lap. She hugged me.

"Sage, you don't just sit on some guy's lap, especially now that you have a boyfriend. I know you but your 'Rick' doesn't know that much... He doesn't know that we're this comfortable with each other. He might get the wrong idea."

We were really comfortable with each other that we didn't realize some things were beyond the line. But Sage... She looked clueless. Parang wala lang sa kaniya 'tong lahat. Parang hindi siya apektado sa tuwing ginagawa namin ang mga bagay na hindi dapat ginagawa ng magkaibigan lang. I believe in platonic relationships but I don't think that's what we have. Masyadong magulo iyong amin.

While I was having a good time with my fuck buddy, Sage came into my mind. Kumusta kaya siya? Tinatrato ba siya ni Jerrick nang tama? From then, I knew I was only fooling myself that I didn't have something for her. Ayaw ko lang sumugal. Because no one knows what could happen if we take a different path. And Sage was busy enjoining her life with another man. Ilang beses ko nang nasaksihan ang pag-iyak niya. Ilang beses na akong nakipagsuntukan dahil ginago siya ng boyfriend niya.

"Sage..." I am going to tell her now.  "I have a fubu."

"H-Huh? May fubu ka?" I nodded. She smiled at me. She's happy about it... "Congrats..."

"Sage, alam ba ni Jerrick na kasama mo 'ko ngayon? If he's hurting you, please tell me."

"Alam niya. Masaya nga siya para sa 'tin kasi magkasama ulit tayo." She smiled at me again. "Paano pala tayo sa pagtulog mamaya? Ipagdidikit ba natin 'yung mga kama?"

"Sage, may boyfriend ka-"

"Aba, hindi naman tayo talo! Kadiri ka." Napailing nalang ako.

I felt nervous when Sage came. I knew I had to stay away from her. If it wasn't because of my parents, I wouldn't be here.

"Hi, I'm Sage."

"Sage's a good name. I'm Ace." But I didn't want to ignore her...

"You wanna drink?" I raised a glass of beer. "Ohh, you've been drinking... I see. You're not drunk, are you?"