He smiled as he gazed at her, taking in the beauty of everything she does...the way she carefully stirs her cup of cappuccino with a spoon, the way she'd use the biscotti to scoop its foam and play with it before bringing it to her mouth, the way that she smiles with satisfaction and approval afterwards...He loved looking at her eyes as they focus at something with interest...the way her brows furrow...the way she'd lean her head to one side. He loved looking at her lips as they curve, twitch, pout and purse during conversations. He loved how her mouth stays slightly open as she hangs on to every word that's being said to her. He could hear her giggles, her amused laugh...and the faint sound of her voice during animated talks. He let out a soft sigh without taking his eyes off her.
God, you're beautiful, Julie.
Nakangiti sya habang inaayos ang pagkaupo sa loob ng kotse nya. He had been watching her for days from a comfortable distance...following her every move...savoring her every smile, every laughter...puzzled and saddened with her empty gaze. It was a point of view of someone from the outside looking in...something that could pass as impersonal and detached...but to him, it felt different. He might not be the person she's smiling at, sitting across her...his stories might not be the one she's listening to...his jokes might not be the one she's laughing at...but everytime she smiles, he smiles with her...whenever he hears the faint sound of her giggles, he giggles along with her...whenever she has this distant, sad look in her eyes, he stares into them as though he were near her, telling her that he understands and feels her pain, too...He was faraway from her...and yet he felt close enough to feel her. He was not with her and yet he was with her....as though an unbreakable, invisible chord connects him to her...defying the distance between them. Sometimes he'd wish that some magical force will make her look outside and see him and feel him... and wondered if there will ever come a day when their eyes would meet once again just as they had during the lovely old times.
Look here. I'm here. Please.
He had been aching for her...missing her...but is somehow relieved that she carried on despite her undeniable sorrow.
You're very brave.
He watched her one more time as she stood up and gathered her stuff.
Napangiti sya ulit nang makita ang malaking orange backpack nito. He blew her a kiss from behind the car window.
It was good to see you again, Julie. Take care.
.....
She feels strange at di nya maiintindihan kung bakit sya nakaramdam ng ganun. She had been feeling this way for days now. She would
suddenly look over her shoulder because she felt like she was being
watched, followed. The natural instinct would be to feel scared but quite
strangely, hindi nya ito nararamdaman and instead, she felt like someone is watching over her to protect her. It was a strange yet beautiful feeling of being shrouded by an unexplainable yet tangible comfort.
She had shared these thoughts to Maqui.
Ang adik lang ng ESP mo, Jules. Sabagay ikaw yan eh. Adik.
They were enjoying a chat over a cup of coffee at Kuya Ben's coffee shop. It had been an exhausting day. It was her first week sa bago nyang trabaho and she had yet to catch up on a lot of things na kailangan pa nyang pag-aralan.
Basta, Maq. At first, parang ang weird but I think I'm getting used to it now. Wala namang masamang nangyari sa akin.
Nagkibit-balikat lang ang kaibigan na halatang mas interesado sa kinakain nitong pastry. Napakunot-noo naman sya nang bigla itong huminto sa pagkain at mukhang gulat na gulat habang nakatingin sa may pintuan.
