Niki and Andy

Chapter 10: Feelings That Come Back are Feelings That Never Left

The year was 2003. It was the first day of school. Bagong salta ang pamilya ni Andy sa bayan. He missed the summer classes but his parents insisted on enrolling him in the local high school. He thought that he would still go back to Manila to continue his studies, pero lahat silang magkakapatid, doon na sa probinsya pinag-aral.

He had a chip on his shoulder back then, so sure that he would be one of the most brilliant students in that high school. He graduated first in his class back in 6th grade. Hakot ang special awards. Athlete. Panalo sa debate. Paborito ng mga guro. First section since grade one. He really thought he was going to dominate all classes just because he assumed the teachings in the city were more advanced than in the province.

He did get half of it right. Some of the lessons that were taught, especially at the start of his freshman year, napag-aralan na niya. Kaya suki siya ng recitation. Pero nang tumagal, nakasabay din ang mga kaklase niya. Mabilis maka-pick up ang mga ito. Lalo na iyong kulot niyang kaklase sa bandang unahan. Palaging nakataas ang kamay nito kapag nagtatas siya ng kamay.

The silent competition between them was instant. Kapag wala nang makasagot, sila na lamang dalawa ang pagpipilian ng teachers. And even when he already got the correct answer, she would sometimes chime in to add to what he said. One of the teachers liked their dynamic, that it became a recurring thing.

"Correct, Ms. Palomino. Mr. San Gabriel, may idadagdag ka?"

Iyong plano niyang maging bida-bida sa klase, nauwi sa seryosohang aral dahil sa kaklase niyang ayaw magpatalo.

He knew what having a crush meant. At his age, he was pretty aware of feelings that budding hearts were attuned to. He just didn't think it was that.

Ang crush kasi niya noon ay si Jewel. More accurately, ang akala niyang crush niya noon ay si Jewel. Maganda si Jewel. Saka magaling sumayaw. Matalino rin, pero hindi nakikipagkumpitensya sa kanila. Tuwing may program sila sa school, ito ang pambato. Jewel was also voted as the muse of the class. Siya naman ang escort.

And then, Niki came out of nowhere. Challenged him everyday. Annoyed him with her brilliance. She looked okay, nothing special about her looks. Except for that head of curly hair that looked unkempt... but on purpose.

Maybe because they were pitted against each other often that he became hyper-aware of her. Kasi palagi siyang nakaabang kung magtataas ito ng kamay. Kasi nasanay siya sa boses nitong palaging sinasalungat ang mga sagot niya.

He made sure to always get her paper to check during quizzes. He would often leave annoying notes whenever he was sure he would get a higher grade. Makaungos lang siya ng isang puntos, akala mo award na ang nakuha niya.

In his head, he was just being competitive. Iba na pala iyon pero hindi niya alam. He was not aware of that feeling until later.

Nang maging first honor si Jewel, naging magkaibigan naman sila ni Niki. Studying brought them together against a common enemy (who was not even aware that they viewed her as a threat). They realized then that outside their studies, they have so much other stuff to talk about (and argue about).

Maalaga si Niki. Mahilig naman siyang manlibre. They naturally clicked as friends.

–

It was Andy's first time having a girl (space) friend, who also happened to be his rival and his crush (na hindi pa rin niya alam na crush niya). Naturally, he was not sure how to treat her. Sometimes, he would treat her like a guy and he would be gross and annoying. Sometimes, he would treat her like a girl and he would help her carry her stuff and walk her home from school.

Niki didn't mind how she was treated, as long as she was treated with respect, like a friend.

But to the people around them, iba na pala ang dating ng actions nila sa isa't isa. Their classmates assumed that he was courting Niki. An assumption that they both denied incessantly, from the moment the rumors started until today.