Beneath the Summer Sky

Chapter 7

Chapter 7:

"Grabe, flex na flex. Naka post na nga sa Instagram, naka highlight pa sa story."

Napatingin ako kay Hugo nang dumaan na naman siya sa harap ko. Tila ba hindi siya napapagod magpapansin sa harap ko dahil pabalik balik niyang ginagawa yon!

Ganon din si Marco na halos isampal na sa mukha ko ang mga katagang binibigkas niya.

"Hindi lang yon. Pinost pa sa Facebook tapos nilagay sa Featured Story."

Napapikit ako ng mariin.

People say mahirap maging delusional or delulu, as the term is used in teenage slang. But what exactly does it mean to be delusional? Paano nga ba siya maiiwasan? May paraan ba para hindi maramdahan yon? Or is it simply a natural part of our emotional landscape designed to help us find balance?

Mula ng finollow ako ni Silas ay hindi na matahimik ang Instagram ko sa dami ng nag f-follow at nag me-message sakin. Some of these messages have come from people who seem to be caught up in their own fantasies about Silas. A few of them have even been spamming my posts, questioning why Silas chose to follow me instead of his sister or some Herrera's.

They’re asking what makes me so special in his life and why I’m receiving his attention.

Ano raw ba ko sa buhay ni Silas? Bakit daw ako paimportante?

The questions and comments from others made me doubt my understanding of the situation. I found myself overthinking and imagining reasons for why he might have followed me. Kahit alam ko naman na gusto nya lang maging updated sa mga ganap ko sa buhay pero bakit naman kasi ganon? Bakit niya ako naggawang i-follow pero yong mga kaibigan at malalapit sa kaniya ay hindi?

Mas lalo nya akong binibigyan ng maraming rason para maging delusional! Para mag isip ng kung ano ano!

Binuksan ko ang Instagram ko para tingnan kung totoo ba ang sinasabi ni Hugo, at totoo nga. Silas had made a post, and it was getting a lot of attention because it had four slides.

It was supposed to be a post featuring his own face or something related to him, given that it was his account at iyon ang kauna unahang post niya sa instagram niya. However, to my surprise, the pictures weren’t of him alone. Instead, they were of both of us together.

The first slide was a photo of us na normal na nakangite habang nakahawak siya sa bewang ko. The second one was the piggyback. The third slide was a candid photo of us; parehas kaming hindi nakatingin sa camera non dahil kakababa ko lang galing sa likod nya kaya nakaalalay siya sakin.

While the last slide featured a photo of me looking at the falls while adjusting my hat. It was another candid shot.

I couldn’t remember sending him that photo. Mga litrato niya lang kasi ang sinend ko at ang mga litrato naming dalawa na pilit niya pa talagang hininge.

Was it taken directly from his phone? Did he take it himself?
  
Pero ang lalong nagpasakit sa ulo ko ay ang naka highlight sa IG niya. Picture ko 'yon na may hawak na camera habang nagpipicture ng falls. I was smiling there. Genuinely.

May caption pa iyon sa gilid na 'palanggaon'. Tapos yong name ng highlight niya ay DEGREE. Hindi ko alam kung bakit ganon. Pero sana naman matino ang meaning non.

Sunod ko namang dinayo ay ang Facebook account niya. His Instagram post was connected to his Facebook, so the four pictures he posted on IG also appeared on his Facebook timeline.

To my surprise, he had pinned the post at the top of his profile.

The pinned post made me feel even more significant, as if he wanted to ensure everyone saw it.