The One For Me (For EDITING)

FIFTY FIVE

ESTELLE~

"Loko loko ka talaga Kuya Tanda." Natatawa kong sabi. Meron palang papel na nastuck sa heels ko kaya kinuha nya ito, "Akala mo magpopropose ako?" He winked at me. "Oo! Kinabahan tuloy ako!" At mahina ko syang hinampas, "If magpopropose talaga ako, will you say yes?" Seryoso nyang tanong. Hindi ako agad nakasagot.

He wearily smiled, "Joke lang! Bata, halika nga." Sabi nya at inakay ako paupo sa isang bench. I looked inside and everyone is having a good time, lalong lalo na si Ben at Julie.

"Two years right?" Napatingin ako ulit sa kanya, "Two years na ano po?" And I heard him laugh, "Two years had passed and yet nothing changed. Estelle, do I still have a chance?" Seryosong tanong nya sa akin.

"K-kuya Tan-" He cutted me off, "The moment I saw you cry that night at the airport, I knew then how much you love him. In the first place hindi naman talaga nawala ang pagmamahal mo sa kanya diba? It just filled with anger kaya akala mo wala na. I may not remember the past we had but I can recall how much you've been hurt when he left you at ganon din ang nangyari two years ago."

"Kuya Tanda, minahal naman kita eh. Sobrang minahal kita." Naiiyak kong sabi, "But not as much as you love him. Bata, I really felt the love you had for me, and I'm so thankful for that." He grabbed my hand, "Don't worry about me. Matagal ko nang natanggap na hinding hindi ko mahihigitan ang pagmamahal na meron ka kay Apollo. And I'm not mad either. Pero honestly, it's hard for me to forget my feelings for you. But I know God will give me the one I can be with for the rest of my life."

"Basta kahit anong mangyari, hinding hindi na tayo mawawalay sa isa't isa ha? Tanda and Bata until the end?" Sumasakit ang dibdib ko habang pinapakinggan syang sabihin ang mga salitang yun. Pilit nyang tinatago ang nararamdaman pero I know sobrang nasasaktan sya, bigla ko syang niyakap, "Ano ka ba, we will have no end. Malinaw ba yun Tanda?"

At tuluyan na syang naiyak, "Mahal na mahal kita Bata." Napaiyak na din ako, "Mahal din kita Tanda." Kumalas sya sa pagkakayakap at pinunasan ang kanyang luha at ngumiti, "Matatagpuan ko rin ang the one ko diba?" I nodded, "Oo naman! Baka nga andito lang sya sa tabi tabi pero hindi mo lang namamalayan." At sabay kaming napatawa.

"So you'll wait for him?" Bigla nyang tanong. Huminga ako malalim, "Sabi sa akin ni papa, good things comes to those who are willing to wait. And besides, I know he'll always come back."

DANNY~

At last, nailabas ko na rin ang matagal ko nang gustong sabihin sa kanya. That's the thing about love, no matter how much you want to hold on, there's no point when no one is willing to hold you tight. I'll just have to accept that in our life, there will be someone who will give you so much to remember and makes you become a better person but can't stay with you forever. I looked at her and my heart skips a beat again, alam kong mahihirapan ako pero I need to trust God that he has a reason for it.

"So you'll wait for him?" I asked her, I heard her sigh, "Sabi sa akin ni papa, good things comes to those who are willing to wait. And besides, I know he'll always come back." And here we have a girl who's willing to wait for her true love, Inakbayan ko sya, "I know he will." We talked and talked hanggang unti unti nang nagsiuwian ang mga bisita nina Ben.

"Kuya Danny, thank you for everything ha?" Sabi ni Ben. Uuwi na sila ni Julie sa bago nilang bahay. The newlyweds. "No problem kiddo. Say hi to your ate for me." Sabi ko. Umalis na sila and I saw Estelle walking towards me, "Tanda, kailangan na din naming umuwi. It's getting late na eh." Sabi nya.

"Sure." Inihatid ko na sila sa parking lot. Estelle is with her family at ihahatid nalang daw nila si bata sa bahay niya. Papasok na sana ako sa resto nang tawagin ako ni Estelle, lumingon ako, "Wag kang mag alala, magkaroon man tayo ng mga apo, I'll be your one and only bata." At napatawa ako sa sinabi nya and I waved at her goodbye.