Tell Her About Me ( Published Under IMMAC PPH La Gran Lista )

Chapter 26 ~ Goodbye, love

ZANERO GUZMAN

“No, I’m not the princess. The princess you’ve been mentioning is not me. Definitely, it’s not me. But I’m sure you are a hero,” Chelsea disagreed, sighing heavily.
“Tama na ’yan. Stop thinking about her. Nahihirapan akong makita kang nagkakaganiyan. Puwede ba’ng makinig ka muna sa mga sasabihin ko? I can explain everything.”

“You protected her at all cost. Hindi mo nga kaya na banggitin ako sa kaniya. You protected her to prevent her from getting hurt.” Puno ng hinanakit ang boses niya. Paano ba ako magsisimula? She’s about to cry.

“K-Kasama mo pala siya sa Cebu. So, all of my speculations were real! Nahulog ka na sa kaniya, ‘di ba? Kasi, siya ang palagi mong kasama. You sent me a message that night when you arrived in Cebu!” Sunod-sunod na sinabi niya at sabay tawa nang sarkastiko. Sino kayang nagsabi na kasama ko si Lily? Was it Myrtle? Wala ba siyang alam sa nangyayari?

“Mali ka nang iniisip, Chelsea. Si Lily ang nag-send ng message na iyon. Naiwan ko ang phone ko dahil nagmamadali akong puntahan ang daddy ko. Lily is young. Pinagalitan ko siya sa ginawa niya, but I need to protect her and I don’t want to hurt her. I felt guilty when she cried in front of me. Wala siyang ibang nalalapitan kun’di ako lang and—”

“It’s tearing me apart, Zanero! Please, just stop talking! You’re unquestionably breaking me,” she cut me off. Tears welled up in her eyes, and she started to sob.

“Please, makinig ka muna, Chel—”

“I said, Shut up!”

“I feel like I’m the real antagonist here. In every story I’ve read and watched, there’s always a need for a villain. So, you play the hero because you consistently protected her, saving her heart. Undoubtedly, she is a princess. Hence, I must be the villain because she defeated me,” she whimpered. Garagal na ang boses ni Chelsea. I didn’t know how to comfort her. Natataranta ako sa harapan niya, hindi ako sanay na nakikita siyang ganito.

“Stop saying that. Mahalaga ka sa akin. I need you. Hindi ko rin hahayaan na mawala ka. I love you, okay?” Lumuwag ang dibdib ko. At least, nailabas ko ang nararamdaman ko.

“I don't want to lose you too,” she whispered, exhaling. I saw her eyes filled with tears again. “I don’t want to lose you, Zane. But if I keep on loving you, I will lose myself in the process mas lalo lang akong maaawa sa sarili ko. Ayaw kong maranasan iyon nang paulit-ulit dahil nakakapagod na rin naman. So, let’s end our story here, last month pa pala natapos.”

She took a heavy breath, once again. I heard her giving up on our relationship without knowing my side. She can be so stubborn. It’s frustrating when she’s like this. Despite being older than me, she sometimes acts like a pampered child.

“I said, I don’t want to lose you! Kung hindi ka makikinig muna sa akin, talagang hindi tayo magkakaintindihan.” I gripped her hand.

“You already lost me, Zanero! Maybe in this story, I’m just a supporting role. I guess from the start, we could have been wrong. We began on the wrong foot. Maybe we were just excited back then, or perhaps we were both feeling lonely, so we quickly found solace in each other. Then, we comforted each other, which is why maybe you find it hard to accept that we’re over and that’s really it.” Every word she uttered seemed to deliver nothing but bitterness. It’s as if she had no intention of fixing our relationship.

“Hindi ka ba naging masaya sa akin?” tanong ko.

“Stupid! Naging masaya ako, siyempre. It was  an extraordinary feeling beside you. Masayang-masaya ako noon, pero habang tumatagal ay sumasakit na. Because, everything about you is a lie! You know what? From the very start, I was aware. You are a player. I let it grow even though it’s suffocating,” she expressed, and I couldn’t stop her.