Torrecampo Series #1:
Elery Torrecampo, a cheerleader and aspiring fashion designer, embodies every trait a woman desires. Yet, the man she admires, Amiel, only has eyes for her brother.
How can she capture his attention and make him focus solely o...
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I was livid as I gently pulled Mine outside, away from the commotion. We settled in front of the famous statue on our campus. The cool afternoon air hit us, contrasting sharply with the heat of our argument a while ago. She remained silent, while I struggled to find the words, feeling as though I was fumbling in the dark.
"You should go back there," she said, but I didn’t move, only when he called my name. I thought she might need her time alone, so I decided to buy something to eat first to clear our heads before we talked. But she quickly withdrew her words.
"Hey! Iiwan mo talaga ako?!"
What?
She's more difficult and unpredictable than baseball.
But I can't even lie to myself: I love her the way she is—despite the fear, the doubt about our feelings, and how we’re lost in these emotions—I’d still choose to like her.
I didn’t make an effort to win her over, even when I realized I already liked her. I was scared to feel real pain for the first time. Admittedly, I doubted her intentions at first. She liked to fool around, and I was afraid to take the risk. Even though she was always chasing me, I couldn’t distinguish what was true.
However, time always runs out, and in the end, I couldn’t waste any more of it. Let’s disregard the mind games and all. I wanted to put my trust in her this time.
"You really like me?" I asked.
I used to not care and be content with what I had. I got tired of expecting and asking for attention from anyone. I learned this the hard way when our parents transferred their obligations for us to our grandparents. I didn’t ask for more ever since, and I didn’t think about my future much—even when I started having an interest in baseball.
I didn’t have any goals I wanted to pursue.
I never craved anything this badly—for someone. I was always under control, like what my parents wanted.
But her existence made me want to dream more. She made me want to be ambitious. She made it easy for me to take a risk—something I never did because I was always protecting myself from potential pain.
Not until her noise became music to my ears did I keep looking for her crazy antics and jokes. And it felt like there was a hole unfilled when she started distancing herself from me.
"Do you like her?" The tears on her face were still visible. Ada had been crying since we talked. "Maybe you're just confused, Ami..."
"Not anymore—even if I am, you can’t do anything about it." Her eyes twinkled with accumulating tears.
I was really stupid.
Why didn’t I notice it?
I thought I was careful, insensitive enough. I didn’t even realize she was seeing me differently already. If I had been attentive, maybe I could have done something to prevent all this from happening.
I made her sit on her bed. I decided to talk to her to clear things out.
"Ada, believe me or not, you're an important person to me but I never saw you as more than a sister." She cried harder. "I’m sorry..."
She shook her head. She looked very upset. It hurt me to see her like this too, but I would never tolerate her. "No. I can’t accept this. I was the one who was always here for you. How could you choose her?"
"I'm not choosing anyone... We can call it a truce if all of us want to. But I know it’s impossible in our case. We can’t stay friends if you have feelings for me." I put my hands in my pockets. "Ada, you’re also important to me; you have always been a sister to me."
She scowled. "And it doesn’t work the same for me." She stood up. "I won’t be able to accept all of this or get rid of these feelings for you—not for a day. Thank you for at least thinking of me as your friend, but it will not stay the same for us because I never liked Elery." She left my room, still devastated.
I don’t think I can do anything for her at this point. She needs to process this and move on on her own. I wish I could help her, but she herself has to do it to find peace.
In the back of my mind, I thought I could handle it even if I didn’t acknowledge my feelings. I thought I’d be fine. I must be infatuated only, but she could pull me around without even trying. No matter how I stopped and restrained myself to protect myself because I was selfish.
Yet I still badly want to chase her. As if she's a dream I didn’t have, which makes me want to pursue her now, without backing down or thinking of anything—but her.
"Can’t you find someone else? What about your twin?" I asked, frowning.
"Sabihin mo lang kung ayaw mo, maghahanap ako ng iba. Si Juno na lang kaya!" I sighed and let her do something on my face.
She started vlogging recently, and since she’s famous, her viewers naturally skyrocketed. And now I’m here for new content. She wants to do my makeup on camera.
I don’t mind now being known in public and on any social media platform. But seriously, why did I even agree to this?
"Next blush on, pop your lips like this." I had no choice but to copy her. We ended up laughing after she saw my face.
But her smile was the reason I laughed. It was contagious enough.
I couldn’t resist pulling her and making her sit on my lap. She immediately wrapped her arms around my neck.
"Magkakaroon na naman kayo ng junior this year. Pinili ba kayo ni Lyron?"
Honestly, I don’t know what that guy’s decision will be. I didn’t expect any better. I’ve been close with him for years now, and his mind has always been hard to read. Even being close to him doesn’t guarantee that he’ll join our team.
"Your brother is a pain in the ass. I wouldn’t even care by now whether he likes our team or not."
"I can relate. He’s my brother, but he never fails to surprise me!" She looked at me. "But... sayang naman ‘yung paglapit mo sa’kin kung hindi mo na-convince si Lyron, ‘di ba?"
I rolled my eyes, like she always does.
Here we go again, teasing me about that. I’ve explained multiple times, and the time has passed; she’s using it against me. That’s why I don’t want to engage in a fight with her.
She always has an ace up her sleeve to make me surrender.
"You’ve chased me enough; this time, I’ll pursue you every single day." I closed the distance between us, making her gasp a bit. Our lips interlocked, letting our feelings be known to each other without doubt, but full of trust.
