A Lover of Rain

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

CHAPTER FIFTEEN:

It's true what people say about how love is blind; I thought it was just some bullshit quotes older people use to describe love. But after having that talk in our balcony about how painful it was for Markie realizing Hiro never talked about her to anyone and the only person he did that for was Bea, I finally understood the meaning behind that quote. I watched from behind as Markie drowned herself for days in beers and cigars, only to act like she had a heart made of stone as she got back to being Hiro's beck and call when he needed her. There were moments where I'd remind her of the conversation we had when she ended up crying in my arms about her feelings for Hiro, but she'd always blame being tipsy for it and how it wasn't true. Eventually, I got tired of telling her she can open her heart to the idea of being in love with someone else. There's a part of me that knows the day will come when she'll realize it herself.

My eyes followed Markie dragging Maya in front of Shay who's behind the counter, quietly doing her job in The Hub. I leaned on my chair as I sipped on my iced caramel macchiato, watching Markie be the mediator to our friends. Some people inside the cafe started looking at them weirdly, especially after hearing Markie complain about their conflict that shouldn't even be there in the first place.

"You!" She pointed at Maya who's avoiding Shay's gaze. "Why are you so upset about Jae being punched in the first place knowing that Jacob could've had a serious injury because of what he did by accident or not? If it was the other way around, you'll be mad at the person who hurted Jae just like what Shay felt. And you..."

Markie then shifts her attention to Shay who's quietly wiping a glass while watching her complain. "Didn't Maya tell you yesterday that she was sorry? I understand getting mad at Jae and hating him, he was a dick! But this is your friend, someone who lives with you, okay?! I am tired of watching you both have this pointless fight, so please talk about it after your shift! For fuck's sake!"

Markie flipped her long wavy hair as she walked towards my table, leaving the two of them behind. I tilted my head as I sipped my coffee, speechless from what just happened. It's in the middle of the day on Thursday, the sun is shining brightly outside, and you're enjoying a cup of delicious coffee in The Hub when all of a sudden, a young woman started shouting inside the cafe to force her friends fix their problems.

"I didn't know you'd take my suggestion seriously. Nagrereklamo lang naman ako kanina." I told Markie before typing the two-thousand words essay I'm gonna pass tomorrow. Fine, she probably got the idea from me to just force the two of them to sit in front of each other and talk about their issue. I only said that because my head was aching from forming a plan to help my friends resolve their conflict. How would I even know Markie would take me seriously?

"So what? They needed to talk about it, anyway. You weren't there earlier, but Maya left mid-breakfast to eat on the balcony instead when Shay joined us for breakfast." Markie continued before rolling her eyes at them.

Shay's shift ended after ten minutes, joining Maya in one of the empty tables across ours. It looked serious at first and a thought in my head that maybe they'll end up scratching each other's eyeballs was possible for a second when their conversation looked heated. Maya dropped her head for a moment, making Shay sit on the chair next to hers so she could wrap her in a hug.

"Huh." I exclaimed as I nodded my head towards their direction, "It did work."

As I looked at Shay, I was reminded of my observations that Jae probably has feelings for her. I haven't told anyone about it because I would hate for Maya to find out and hurt her in the process if I ended up right. Either way, whether it's true or not, some people would end up hurting if I open my mouth about this. It took my friends half an hour before moving to our table, the tension between them dissipated. They started teasing Markie making a scene earlier as we laughed about the issue knowing we've moved on past that.