Niji Academy [Completed]

CHAPTER 47

[FIROAH]

Naalimpungatan ako sa lamig ng hanging dumadampi sa aking balat. Nangunot ang aking noo at naidilat ang  mga mata. Bumungad sa akin ang dalawang pares ng matang nakatitig sa akin. Sa kulay pa lang ng mga mata nito’y kilala ko na kung sino ang nagmamay-ari nito.

Sairi...

Ibinaling ko ang tingin sa paligid upang maiwasan ang kaniyang titig. Doon ko lang napagtantong nakahiga ako sa damuhan ngunit may sapin na nakalapag doon. Hindi ko alam kung saan niya nakuha iyon at hindi ko rin naman matanong. He was sitting beside me and I could still see his gaze at the corner of my eyes. Nanghihina pa ako ngunit pinilit kong bumangon. Nakaalalay sa akin si Sairi hanggang sa tuluyan na akong makaupo. “Nasaan tayo?”

“This is still a part of Zyntine,” seryosong saad niya nang muli ko siyang tingnan.

“K-Kailangan ko nang umalis.” I tried to make my tone cold yet I stuttered—probably because of the cold breeze that’s making my throat dry.

Tumayo pa rin ako kahit na nanghihina ngunit hinila niya ako dahilan para mapasubsob ako sa kaniyang dibdib. Nanlalaki ang mga mata ko at agad na lumayo sa kaniya nang may naiinis na mukha. “What do you want?”

“Nothing,” sagot niya at napatingin sa madilim na kalangitan. Tahimik lang siya habang nakatitig doon nang lumingon siyang muli sa akin. “I just want to talk to you for a while.”

My heart skipped a beat as he looked at me intently  but I still managed to stare back at him. “Ano’ng pag-uusapan natin?”

I didn’t know how many hours I had been sleeping. All I knew was that the sky was dark so it was probably evening now and I didn’t know what happened during the hours I was asleep. Did he know who I am now? Did he... remove my mask?

“Just let me talk. You don’t need to talk back.” His voice was hoarse but I could clearly hear it. Then he looked at the night sky again. “The first time I saw you, you did get my attention. I had admired you right at that moment. You were so young back then and so was I.”

I bit my lower lip as I stared at him while his eyes were still fixed at the night sky. I couldn’t help but think of that scene he confessed his feelings to me when I was that ‘Firoah’, his classmate. He was like this too. Will he confess to me too right now? But I thought he loves Firoah and not the girl with a rainbow hair? Did his feelings change when he saw me again as that girl? Was he just confused back then?

“I thought that was just a simple admiration but... as I got older, I couldn’t help but like you. I really like you.”

I didn’t know what should I feel. Magiging masaya ba ako dahil gusto niya ako? O malukungkot dahil parang linoloko niya si Firoah na ako rin naman? I’m confused.

“Funny, isn’t it? I like you even if I don’t know about you that much. I wasn’t even able to see your face and I don’t know your name.”

Funny too because I felt a pain struck in my heart when I shouldn’t. Firoah and I were just one! I shouldn’t feel this way!

“But... there’s this girl.” His eyes were glittering as he spoke and he was beaming. “She’s noisy and annoying... and I really hate that kind of nijius. But you know what?” Bumilis ang tibok ng puso ko nang ibaling niya ang tingin sa akin at tinitigan ako sa mga mata. “That girl... she changed me.” Umawang ang bibig ko at tulalang napatitig sa kaniya. His smile was as bright as the moon above us and his eyes, they were genuinely happy as he was narrating about that girl he was talking about. “I was a cold one before. I didn’t know how to  laugh nor smile. I didn’t care what others might think of me. Wala akong pake sa mga nijius sa paligid ko. I am too cold even with my friends and family. But when she came, I learned to smile, I learned to laugh and to care.”