Always the Bestfriend, Never the Girlfriend

Chapter Twelve

Ralph's POV

"Oyy bro! Who was that guy? He could've killed you if looks could kill" biglang sabi ni Ken. Napansin niya pala. Ang sama nga ng tingin nung lalaking yun sa akin.

"Siya si Clarrence" I said while still looking at the guy who broke Crystal's heart.

"What! Siya yun? Siya yung best friend ni prinsesa? Fudge! Panget naman yun eh" Ken said and laughed. I rolled my eyes.

So bakit nga ba alam namin ang nangyari kay Crystal?

*F L A S H B A C K*

"Son. Your tita Amber and her daughter will be going here in London. Dito daw mag-aaral ang anak ng tita mo. And dahil wala pa siyang friends dito, I want you to watch over her" mom said habang kumakain kami. Tita Amber is mom's best friend.

"Yeah? Sure."I know tita Amber's daughter. My mom always talks about her. How famous she is, how pretty she is and how intelligent she is. Mom is proud of her.

"Good. Its settled then. She'll be studying at your school too" Mom said and smiled.

"Okay" do I have a choice?

The next day

"You just go and pick her up at their house. Ok? She's expecting you there" Mom said. I kissed her cheeks and waved her goodbye.

While driving, I listened to Jessie J's song Flashlight. I love music. Sumasabay kasi ito sa mood ko. Unlike other boys, I'm different. .

While driving, I listened to Jessie J's song Flashlight. I love music. Sumasabay kasi ito sa mood ko. Unlike other boys, I'm different. I'm weird on my own way. I do things my own way. And I hate people who are rude. I grew up in a religous family kasi.

When I arrived at tita Amber's place, I pressed the door bell and an old lady opened the door.

"Hi. Uhm.. Is tita Amber here?" I asked politely. The lady smiled and gave way for me. I went inside the house-no! It's a mansion. The house is really big. There's a mini fountain at the right side of their front lawn and the landscape is pretty perfect. They must be really rich.

"Oh! Ralph! Your here" Tita Amber said which made me smile. She's already 40+ but she still look young.

"Yes tita. It's been a long time" I said and kissed her cheeks. Nagkita na kami ni tita noon, she visited her son kasi. Yung youngest nila. Nandito kasi sa London

"It definetly is. Upo ka muna. Wait- did you eat already? Come! Join us for breakfast" tita said. I just smiled and said I'm full.

"Oh, okay. Sandali lang Ralph ah, tatawagin ko lang si Crystal" she said and umakyat na. Hmmm, ano kaya course ng Crystal na yun? Well, bahala nanga.

"Hey, call me if anything's wrong. Okay honey?" I heard tita said. I gazed my attention to them and saw tita with an angel. I-is that her? Is that Crystal? I blinked twice while still looking at her. She smiled at me. But a sad one.

"Mag pulbo ka nga Crystal. Ang pale mo tignan. And your eyebags are so big. Are you still crying?" I looked at Crystal and yes, she looked very pale. Her eyebags are really big and color black na ito.

"Mom. I'm okay" Crystal said. Lumapit siya sa akin and smiled again. Even her voice sounds angelic.

"Hi! I'm Crystal. You must be Ralph. Am I right?" She asked while offering her hands for a shake. I accepted it and smiled at her.

"It's nice meeting you Crystal. Let's go?" She nodded and waved at her mom. Lumabas na kami sa bahay nila and sumakay na sa sasakyan ko. She was very quiet. The silence was killing me.

Then Jason Mraz' song, Lucky played and she stiffened.

"C-can I turn it off?" She said and was about to cry. Nagulat ako kaya tinignan ko siya. No- more like titig. Nung nahalata niya iyon ay humarap na siya sa akin.

"What?" She asked and showed me her perfect set of white teeth. Her smile was fake. I knew it. She has a problem.

"You are not okay. Why are you sad?" I asked her. She just shrugged and stared out the window.

"I'm not sad. I'm hurt" she whispered.

"My best friend thinks I'm fake. He even slapped me. Hah! H-he believed his girlfriend. S-sino nga naman pala a-ako? I'm just his stupid best fr-friend" her voice cracked and I saw her crying. That jerk! Anong karapatan niyang paiyakin tong anghel nato? I parked the car kasi nandito narin naman kami sa school.

Without any hesitation, I hugged her really tight. Naawa ako sa kanya. I know how painful it is to be hurt by your friend. Lalo na't best friend niya pa ang dahilan kung bakit siya nasasaktan ngayon. She stiffened but hugged me anyway.

"Ssshhh. From now on, I won't let anyone hurt you. I promise" I said. I don't even know why I said that. I just want to protect her. I don't want to see her crying.

"Thank you" she said and kumalas na sa yakap ko. I stared at her while she was wiping her tears. Oh god! That guy is really crazy for hurting this angel in front of me.

Lumabas na kami sa sasakyan and hinatid ko siya sa Principal's office. Ibibigag pa kasi sa kanya yung schedule niya and turns out parehas pala kami ng course.

While waiting outside, I heard a group of people laughing. I looked at them and I knew it. Tch. These rascals.

"Yo Ralph! Nandito ka lang pala" Ken said and we did our hand shake. That accent when he speaks tagalog annoys me.

"I'm waiting for someone" I answered him. Kurt wiggled his eyebrow and winked at me.

"Girlfriend mo?" He asked. Before I could even answer, I heard the door closed and I knew nasa labas na si Crystal. I looked at her and also my friends.

"Uhm.. This is Crystal. My friend. Crystal, these are Ken, Kurt and Jasmine. Barkada ko" pag iintroduce ko. She smiled at them and bowed her head.

"Yo Crystal! Welcome to the club" Ken said. He earned a punch at the shoulder by Jasmine.

"Club ka diyan. Hi Crystal. Bago ka dito no? Welcome to Westbridge Academy" Jasmine said and hugged her. Nagulat si Cryatal but hugged her back. I'll make you forget about him Crys.

Naging okay din ang takbo ng buhay ni Crystal dito sa London with my friends. She was having fun. Her first month here was very difficult. She was always crying. Of course she still can't move on. But unti-unti niya nang nakakalimutan ang sakit na nararamdaman niya. She told my friends about what happened to her, and they were furious. They treated Crystal like a princess. We saw how happy she was.

"Ralph. You have to go to Philippines and help your dad there" mom said. Nagka problema kasi kami sa aming kumpanya

"But mom--" even before I could finish what I wanted to say. She cut me off .

"No buts. Your going. Kasama mo naman si Ken eh" mommy said. I had nothing left to do but sigh. I have no other choice. And Ken is my cousin by the way.

the next day

"Aalis ako. Im going to the Philippines" I told Crystal. She was pouting and looked very sad. She hugged me and sobbed. Ugh I hate seeing her cry.

"I'll miss you Ralph" she said and kissed my cheeks. I'll miss her too. So damn much!

**
That's all for now