#ILoveYou #YouLoveHer

#ItsALoveStoryBabyJustSayYes

Michelle

I remember this game, "The Boat is Sinking, group yourselves into..." that our teachers used to make us play to break the ice on the first day of class. The teacher would say, "The Boat is Sinking, group yourselves into... 5″, and then us kids will rush around the room grabbing the first four people within arms length and huddle together.

And then the teacher would continue to group us together in 3s, 10s, sometimes 20s, and those were fun, especially when we still weren't very good at counting.

The most awkward however, is when the teacher says "The Boat is Sinking, group yourselves into... 2″.

And whoever is left without a partner, gets eliminated from the game. And that kind of sucks.

It kind of sucks in real life too.

When all your friends start coupling up and planning their future together and stuff.

And you're just there, all by yourself.

And then you'd tell yourself that it's okay.

That you don't need a boyfriend (of course, you don't need a boyfriend), but that doesn't mean you don't want one.

I mean, it will be nice to have someone who will always be there for you, right?

Like if you're home alone on your first weekend back, because your mom's busy at work (yes, even on a Sunday) and she forgot to make you breakfast, and most probably lunch too, and you don't really want to go out to get breakfast or lunch alone.

It was okay to go out and eat alone when you were living on your own abroad, but it's sort of different now that you're back home. And you'd probably run into someone you know, and they'd think, "Aww... Mich is eating breakfast all by herself, and that's so... sad."

I mean, sure you can always call up a friend or two, and have breakfast and spend the rest of the day with them. But it'll still be a little different, wouldn't it?

Because they'd bring up that guy that's been ignoring you since forever because they find that amusing.

Well it's not amusing.

-

"He didn't message me or anything," I said. "But he knows that I'm back. He did like my 'I'm back' status."

"Then why are you here having breakfast with me? Shouldn't you be stalking him at his house?" Nate asked.

"Because... I actually don't know where he lives."

He laughed, a little too loudly.

I glared at him, and Nate just grinned in response. "I'm not a stalker." I shrugged, and added, "Anyway, I'm not doing that. I'm giving up on him."

"Really now?" Nate raised an eyebrow.

"Totally." Of course not.

Nate smirked.

"Just drink your coffee and eat your sad bagel," I said.

He nodded, while trying to hide his grin.

Yes, this is why you'd want a boyfriend. Because your boyfriend would probably put his best foot forward and not smirk at you as much.

Nathaniel

"I can accept facts," she said determinedly. "He obviously doesn't think of me as anything else other than a friend. If you accept being friendzoned-"

"By you-" I inserted.

"I can too," she finished. "Although I can hardly consider us as friends anymore. I mean we don't even talk or see each other anymore-"

"Because he's avoiding you-" I inserted again to get on her nerves.

She ignored me and continued. "I mean, if he doesn't like me, he can just say so. He doesn't have to avoid me-"

"Oh, like how you said so-"

"Stop trying to make this conversation about us, Nate," she said, pointing to me and herself.

"Right. It's about you and him. And how you and him will never end up together," I tried to say dramatically. "Ever," I added as she suppressed a laugh.

"That's okay. I don't need to star in my own romcom."

I nodded as I drank my coffee.

"I can just be an extra in yours," she finished.

I choked on my coffee.

She laughed.

"I can help you," she insisted with a grin that is close to devilish.

"I don't need your help."

"Yes, you do."

Tia

I caught myself glancing at the church entrance again. He's not here yet, and Sunday's service is almost over.

Where is he? He said that he would come. Maybe something came up.

Or he forgot. Ugh... Something probably came up.
"So where's Nate?" my father, who happened to be the pastor, asked me after the service.

"Something came up," I lied through my teeth.

Ugh... I hate lying to my father. He can't find out that Nate forgot about church. Something probably did come up. I mean, why else wouldn't he be here?

I check my iPhone- no messages from Nate.

"That's too bad," my father replied. "Your mother wanted to invite him over for lunch."

Really? "Maybe next time," I replied instead.

"So is he ready for the Bible quiz yet?" my father asked.

"He only thinks of me as a friend."

"Don't be silly. Of course, he likes you more than that."

I wish you're right, dad. I laughed, instead.

"Why wouldn't he like you? You're smart, as gorgeous as your mother..." my dad continued.

Thank you for the vote of confidence.

But, Mich is smart and pretty too.

And Mich is back.

Michelle

I can accept the fact that I'm not starring in my own rom com, chick lit, Asian drama or even Harlequin novel right now, and probably anytime soon.

That's okay, really. I'm pretty sure most people aren't either.

If only life was really that simple.

Boy meets girl, they fall in love and live happily ever after.

But no, in real life: boys meets girl, girl likes some other guy, and some other guy likes some other girl, and so on and so forth.

I though of a twist to "The Boat is Sinking" for a group of single people. So, instead of physically grabbing partners, everyone writes the name of who they want as their partners. Then there's a big reveal, and only if the person you wrote also wrote your name can you be considered as partners and win, if not, then you lose.

Chances are a lot of people are going to end up losing.

Because in real life, just because you like someone, doesn't mean that they will like you back.

Just because you think that he's the hero and you're the heroine, and it's a love story, doesn't mean that he'll say yes.