She's Inlove With The Campus Writer

Chapter 9

Don’t apologize for who you are; for being mistaken sometimes because through mistakes, people learn.

He really was uncertain with the girl enjoying the bulkness of his arms and giving a puppy eyes while staring at him. The temperature was high and became higher with Riva’s fuckin’ attitude.

“It’s hot in the Philippines Riva di va?” he said, pushing her hand away from his arms. “Why didn't you choose to stay in America? It’s cold there. Very, very cold,” he added.

It was awkward walking inside the campus with someone, not your girlfriend. She’s clingy, very clingy and Lee was so irritated.

“I chose to stay here because Philippines is my happiness. Here, I found my love,” she chuckled.

His nose was about to bleed. He can’t ever imagine spending his life with this lady. If talking to this kind of person is fatal, then he’s dead. Kapag lumayo, lumalapit. Kapag humiwalay, mas dumidikit.

“Ah. Good luck to your lovelife, okay? Good luck,” said Lee, taking their steps in the garden where he’d been with Rem last three weeks ago.

Hindi sila nagpunta roon para magpahinga at magrelax. Nagpunta siya para humiwalay si Riva, at the same time, gumawa ng questions para sa interview.

Instead of talking to Riva too much, he got his paper and began writing some questions. Ano pa bang dapat ilagay?

—How did you prepare for that contest?

—Where did the contest happen?

—Who are the students who made it to the District/ Division/National?

Usual questions for the interview. Wala bang mga tanong na unique? Like—

♥Paano kayo nagdumi sa contest?

♥Sinu-sino ba yung mga nakilala niyo sa contest with follow up question, —sa mga nakilala niyo ba, may nakapagpakilig sa inyo?

♥Paano niyo na-handle ang kilig habang nakikita ang crush mo sa contest? Makalaglag panty ba? for girls/ Makatindig junior ba? for boys.

Nag-angat siya ng tingin kay Riva. She was staring at him steadily. Hindi siya sanay sa ganito. “May tae ba ako sa mukha?” he asked as he stood up and arranged the materials.

But he found something on her face. She’s captivating like a sunset and his heart was beating, not normal. Para siyang tinatakot. Strange feeling lang siguro.

He turned his back but Riva was a cheater. She held his hand, enjoying the smoothness and gentleness of it as Lee stared into her questionably.

“Why are you holding—”

“Why are you so handsome and appealing?” she asked in a serious manner but Lee treated her question as a joke.

“Because my parents are a good maker. They moved perfectly. They..”

But as he told that joke, his face was crumpled and suddenly, his feeling became blue. Was it Riva’s fault to ask him of his parents away? Or was it his weakness to be reminded by the things that make him heavyhearted?

She questioned Lee because she really appreciates him. She didn’t expect that a joke could really hurt sometimes.

“I’m so sorry for making you emotional,” said Riva, tiptoeing because of height problems. “Sooner or later, everything will get better.”

Embracing the one you love is the best feeling in the world like how a Mother lull a baby in her arms. But sometimes, loving a taken is a crime.

Riva noticed someone standing a few meters away from them. With the flower crown on her head and with her wavy hair, she was like a fairy— with a heart pounded inside and tears fell from her eyes caused by the pain.

She was about to follow her but she ran away as she wiped her tears. Confusion kills her conscience. Who was she and why did she act like that?

“Sorry for making you emotional,” she said, offering a handkerchief.

“No. Don’t apologize. I’m a person who always makes a drama. Deal with it,” he said heaving a sigh as he wiped his tears using Riva’s handkerchief.

Naglakad sila papunta sa Conference Hall kung saan nagkukuhanan ng litrato para sa tarpaulin.

“Do you want to record or interview?”

“I want to hold the cam. I don’t know how to communicate with different persons,” answered Riva, laughing softly.

We made ourselves familiar with our Research Study. All of us made it to the Division Level, and we’re proceeding to Regional level next month.

For the first time, humanga siya sa isang lalaki. With his politeness asking those questions to the student, Riva was really impressed. She just stared on Lee’s lips as it utter every word and with every smile, her cheeks were burning. He’s the man in her dreams saving her from falling.

Done Riva. Riva, done. Riva! Dammit she’s frozen. Tinapik siya ni Lee sa balikat at nagulat ito.

“I’m so sorry. Sorry, Lee. You mad at me? I’m so sorry. Is sorry not enough? Is it too late?”

Ghad. She overreacted with a simple mistake. Natatawa lang si Lee sa kanya. Pwede naman na i-cut yung huling part. But what drove her to apologize like that? She was like Justin Bieber singing Is it too late now to say sorry?

“Hindi ako galit okay?”

“What?”

Uh— she’s an American citizen that cannot speak and understand Filipino terms and words.

“Don’t apologize ’coz I’m not mad,” Lee clarified.

But she’s Riva— the OA girl. So she hugged Lee and unexpectedly, she reached for Lee’s lips tiptoeing. She’s a criminal to be recognized. She always cheats and expresses her feelings in a liberated way.

Lee closed his eyes. He was out of his mind,  and his heart was beating too fast again with butterflies on his stomach. Riva was absurd to do such kind of things. But he didn’t refuse from that warm hug and delectable stolen kiss because it was very familiar. Those candy lips... Wonderland!

He saved his Princess from drowning but as he opened his eyes, it was an illusion. Crap! A crime.

It was like waking up and experiencing the pain of death, because of a sudden illusion. He should have controlled himself from saving a stranger— a criminal stranger.

“I’m sorry,” said Lee, removing Riva’s arms around him. He didn’t taste the remaining juice in his lips but instead, he let the wind bring it to the place where something could be converted into a nothing.