During her toughest times, Seraphina Ramiro found herself falling harder for Kasper Lacsamana, as every time they were together filled her with hope and a renewed sense of purpose, pulling her back to life.
Kasper, however, was afraid of getting too...
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Mas lalong sumikip ang dibdib ni Nana sa narinig, bawat luhang umaagos patungo sa pisngi na dapat para sa sarili niya ay nagiging para kay Kasper na rin.
Pinilit niyang tahanin ang sarili, ang i-compose ang sarili kasi ayaw niyang maging sobrang vulnerable, pero mahirap ang maging okay sa sitwasyon kung nasaan siya. Once titingnan niya si Kasper, maaalala niya na naman ang sinabi nito at kung paano ito ka-enthusiastic noong una niya siyang nakita.
Nana found herself wondering if he had an illness that led him to say such a thing, but she didn't have it in her to ask directly.
"I didn't mean to make things worse for you. I'm sorry." Kasper gave her a brief glance, his eyes meeting hers for just half a second before he looked away again.
"I just realized now how people do exactly the same thing for different reasons. Just like us, we both ended up at Tesoro for polar opposite reasons, yet we understood each other and formed an unexpected bond."
Nagbuhol ang mga dila ni Nana, napaisip siya kung ganito rin ba ang naramdaman ni Kasper after niyang mag-vent out kani-kanina lang.
Hindi maikumpara ang takot na naramdaman niya, ang pagsikip ng dibdib niya nang makita ang pagkakaiba ng Kasper nitong mga nakaraang araw at ang Kasper ngayon. What went wrong? How could he come to such a conclusion about himself?
"Take as much time as you need, Nana. We have all the time in the world," Kasper said again, his tone casual as if wala siyang sinabi na nagpawindang sa buong pagkatao nito.
"Pasensya na kung hindi ako magaling magsalita. I'm not very good at handling conversations myself, I'm just trying to get used to how people interact here. However, if you ever need advice or want to talk about anything, I'll do my best to be there for you."
Nana's eyes turned glossy yet again, despite her efforts to fight it back. She felt helpless, nahirapan siyang i-process ang lahat. All the while, she felt pain and confusion, her stomach was doing backflips, too. Parang ilang segundo mula ngayon ay masusuka siya.
Nana thought she was in a state of delirium, but she was simply worn out. This was the first time she had cried and let all her emotions out in a long while.
Nang pwersahang isara ang mga mata at nasapo ang sariling noo, narinig ni Nana ang mahinang kaluskos sa mat kung saan sila nakaupo. Matapos ang ilang segundo na puno lang ng katahimikan ang paligid, naramdaman niya ang braso ni Kasper sa likod patungo sa braso niya.
Aside from the sun, it was the second thing that filled her body with warmth.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," she heard Kasper whisper the same words again, unang hinagod nito ang likod niya na mayamaya ay naglandas rin sa ulo niya para hayaan siyang sumandal sa balikat.
Iyon na ang nag-trigger kay Nana para ilabas kung ang hikbi na pilit niyang pinipigilan kanina pa, she couldn't even bring herself to talk to him para naman hindi siya gumawa nalang ng assumptions at mag-iiiyak.
