Gatekeep.
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"UHM... Ate Keira...""Bakit?" Mula sa pagkakatagilid, unti-unting akong humarap kay Shay.
She greeted me with a sincere smile despite her sleepy eyes habang nakatagilid ang mukha sa'kin. Magkatabi na kaming nakahiga sa kama ngayon-siya sa tabi ng wall, ako naman sa gilid katabi ng bedside table. The warm glow of the lampshade cast gentle light across the room, just enough for me to see her face clearly in the dimness.
Nakita kong magaang kinagat ni Shay ang kanyang labi bago siya nagsalita. "H-How's your leg? Is it fully healed?"
I smiled reassuringly. "Yes. It is fully healed."
"R-Really? You're not feeling any more pain?"
"Wala na."
"That's good to hear," Shay whispered until silence settled between us, pero hindi nagtagal 'yon nang muling nagsalita si Shay.
"Thanks for everything you've done for me. I'm really sorry for how I treated you before. You're surprisingly nice to me kahit hindi maganda ang unang pagkikita natin. I regret judging you without really getting to know you, Ate."
I was speechless, so I just shut my mouth. It's crazy how things turned out with Shay. I never thought we'd actually get along, especially sharing a bed. After Irinne and Anja, ngayon lang ulit ako nagkaroon ng katabi sa kama. Thinking about it, mahina akong tumikhim. I was gonna say something to Shay, but stopped when I saw her eyes flutter shut and heard her soft snores seconds later. A quiet chuckle escaped me. She looked so tired. Inayos ko ang bumabang kumot sa katawan ni Shay saka ako umayos sa pwesto ko.
With Shay sleeping beside me, my thoughts drifted-this time, to Annika. If things had been different, maybe we could've had this moment too.
Sabay kaming nagising ni Shay ng umagang 'yon. Sabay rin kaming bumaba para mag-prepare ng breakfast. It's 6:00 am, kaya medyo madilim pa pagbaba namin.
"Is pancake okay with you-" I stopped mid-sentence when I felt Shay halt behind me as we walked towards the kitchen.
Nilingon ko siya at nakitang nakatutok ang mga mata niya sa mababang wooden cabinet, particularly on the framed-photo I recently displayed there.
I was about to ask Shay, pero lumapit na siya sa cabinet at kuryosong dinampot doon ang naka-frame na picture.
"Who's them?" Shay's curious eyes went to me.
"They're my friends... Irinne and Anja," I replied, a tinge of sadness in my voice.
"Really?" Shay gave me an amused look before returning her gaze to the photo of Irinne, Anja, and me. Kuha iyon nung araw na lumabas ang result ng ALE.
Pinakatitigan ni Shay ang picture namin bago siya muling tumingin sa'kin, giggling.
"What?" I raised an eyebrow.
Shay shook her head, still giggling. "Nothing. My first impression of you before was sobrang taray mo, kaya inisip kong wala kang kaibigan..." aniya.
I raised a brow higher. "You know that's rude," I said, feigning offense.
Shay's giggle grew louder. "Yah, I'm sorry..." aniya at lumapit na sa'kin, but she stopped just a few inches away from me nang tumagos ang tingin niya sa likuran ko. She was staring at the painting hanging on the wall behind me. Just like the framed-photo, I recently hung it there. Her mouth opened but was cut short immediately by a loud rumble from her stomach.

BINABASA MO ANG
One Last Time
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