Academic Rivals: A Collision of Hearts

chapter XIV

"Sheila POV

I was furrowing my brows as I looked at Ate Maya now, because not only did she stop eating, she was also staring blankly. So instead of finishing my own meal, I decided to pause and thought it would be better to ask her what the real problem was.

I'm stressed with what she's doing.

"Okay, stop digging through the rice, you won't find any treasure under there," I started, the reason for her to stop what she was doing. "Tell me, Ate Maya. Do you have a problem?" I asked her.

She didn't answer my question, she just put down the spoon she was holding before giving me a smile. The most fake smile she could muster.

"You've been staring blankly there for a while now. Digging through the rice," I added. But I didn't get any response from her.

Naku nakakaloka naman, dagdag pa sa problema ko to. Pero ano pa bang magagawa ko, hindi ko naman pwedeng hayaan syang magmukmok dyan. Nagm-mukha lang syang ewan.

"Did something happen last night? Is that why you didn't come here?" I held her hand, catching her gaze so I gave her a sweet smile.

"You know I'm here for you, right? I'm ready to listen. So if you have a problem, don't hesitate to tell me. We're sisters, right? Why do you still keep secrets from me? What really happened last night, Ate Maya?"

Like before, she didn't answer immediately, but this time she managed to speak. "She's back, she's back, Bunso," she whispered, sparking curiosity inside me.

"Who's back?" I asked, but instead of answering my question, she suddenly burst into tears.

Nataranta ako syempre, sinong hindi? Bigla ba namang umiyak yung ate mo sa harapan mo kahit hindi mo pa naman sya kinukurot. Tumayo ako galing sa pagkakaupo at agad na lumipat sa tabi nya. Binigyan ko sya ng mahigpit na yakap, hinagod ang likod para gumaan naman kahit papano ang loob nya.

"Shh, tahan na ate, nagtatanong ako dito ng maayos eh tapos iiyakan mo ko. Ang daya mo rin ano" pagpatahan ko sa kanya at sinabayan pa ng pagreklamo, syempre para balance.

Nagpatuloy lang sya sa pag-iyak sa balikat ko, hinayaan ko lang syang gawin yun kahit na basang-basa na yung damit ko dahil sa mga luha nya. Idagdag mo pa yung sipon nyang sabi kanina pa siguro tumutulo.

After a few minutes, she finally stopped crying. We're in the living room now, I just asked Manang to clean up our food, I didn't have any intention of finishing it anyway.

"Oh," I said before handing her a box of tissues. "Wipe your tears and snot, you're gross," I added before sitting beside her.

It's strange because she didn't even complain when I said that. No disapproving looks or subtle pinches. She was just focused on wiping her runny nose.

"Thank you, Bunso," she finally said after everything, after I wiped away her tears and snot. "It's okay, Ate Maya, but what's not okay is you keeping secrets from me. Can you tell me who came back? I've been consumed by curiosity since earlier."

I didn't expect her to explain because I knew she had no intention. "It's Mitch, she's back in the Philippines, Bunso, she's back," she answered my question.

Mitch? Who is that, oh, she's referring to Ate Mochi, wait, Ate Mochi.

"S-So Ate Mochi is back? Wow, Ate Maya, you've been wishing for this for so long," I said with a smile before turning to her, but my smile quickly disappeared when I saw the sadness in her eyes.

"Oh, I forgot, sorry," I apologized before looking down. Damn it, Sheila, you didn't even think about that, it didn't even cross your mind what she went through.