Timeless Calling: Steel Beams & Sweet Dreams

Chapter 6

As I knocked on Stan's door, it took him a few moments before he opened it, his face groggy and his eyes barely open.

"Did you even sleep?" he mumbled, clearly wanting to go back to bed. "Go home, Nat. I still want to sleep," he added before shuffling back to his bed.

But I couldn't leave. My mind was too crowded, my heart too heavy.

I wandered toward the balcony and sank into one of the chairs, staring out at the quiet, early morning. The faint sound of traffic below mingled with my thoughts, but my mind kept circling back to the same questions, the same memories.

I used to think I knew exactly who I was. I was the reliable daughter, the top student who thrived in any class, any subject—someone who had everything figured out. But that all changed the day Miguel entered my life.

It wasn't love at first sight. It wasn't even something I could put into words. It was quieter, deeper, something that pulled at me in ways I didn't understand. What was it about him that made my heart race, that scattered my thoughts, that made me act in ways I couldn't explain? And why couldn't I shake the feeling that my presence, my very existence, only made him uncomfortable?

I wasn't supposed to be that girl—the one who follows someone's every move, who reads too deeply into glances, who turns a quiet crush into something darker, something closer to obsession. But love, whether gentle or wild, has a way of pulling you in, no matter how hard you try to resist. I'd thought I could stop before it went too far. I thought I could walk away. But I was wrong. Somewhere along the line, I lost the line between what was normal and what wasn't.

And now... I have to ask myself,

Am I ready to face the consequences of everything I've done for love—or is it too late to turn back?

I made up my mind to quit engineering, to walk away from all of it.

But as much as I wanted to let go, part of me resisted.

Somewhere along the way, I'd actually grown to love this course.

The challenge, the struggle—it was fascinating.

In a strange way, engineering had found me.

This course was more than a stepping stone, it was a test. It humbled me, broke me down, made me question myself in ways I'd never experienced.

It wasn't easy—it was grueling, unforgiving. But maybe that's why I stayed. I used to take my intelligence for granted, breezing through school, getting bored quickly.

But this... this was different. It humbled me, made me cry, made me doubt everything I thought I knew.

Now, I'm on the verge of losing both the things that have been pushing me to grow.

Engineering... and Miguel.

Two parts of my life that have changed me, and now I'm about to walk away from both.

My chest tightened, and before I knew it, the tears I'd been holding back began to spill over.

Suddenly, I felt Stan's arms wrap around me, pulling me into a comforting embrace as I let it all out, sobbing into his shoulder.

"Akala ko ba ako ang broken-hearted," he whispered, a gentle smile tugging at his lips. "Bakit ikaw ang umiiyak?"

"Ako...ako na ang umiyak para sa'yo," I managed to say between tears.

He wiped the tears from my face, his touch warm and reassuring. "Let's get some breakfast downstairs. Just let me brush my teeth first."

I looked at him, eyes still red and puffy, and shook my head. "Huwag na. Matulog ka na... road trip tayo later."