Play The Game (COMPLETED)

Chapter 20

#PTG20 Chapter 20

My entire body felt like it was on fire. I could feel my breathing getting heavier as each seconds ticked. Ramdam na ramdam ko ang munting panginginig ng bawat daliri ko.

"Where are you, Jax?" I whispered as I desperately tried to keep my system still. It has been exactly two hours since I last saw him. I knew that his exam today was hard... but I was sure that what I said to him motivated him to answer faster.

God. Nine months. Hanggang ngayon ay hindi pa rin ako makapaniwala... Before, I would already be over the moon kahit tumingin lang siya sa direksyon ko. Kapag kinausap niya ako? Damn. I'd repeat that scenario inside my head like a broken record. Kabisado ko lahat ng sinabi niya sa akin dati. Bawat salita, bawat paghinto—lahat 'yun permanenteng naka-marka sa isip ko. Ganoon ko siya ka-gusto.

Tapos ngayon... Nine months.

Dreams do come true. I was glad I never thought about giving up on my dreams. Because now? Now, he's my reality.

Nang hindi na ako mapakali, naisipan kong tumayo. Pilit kong inaayos iyong mga gamit na naka-patong kahit na maayos naman lahat ng iyon. I just needed to do something. I needed to calm my nerves dahil anumang segundo ay parang tuluyan na akong mapuputulan ng hininga.

I was in the middle of rearranging the plates when the sound of the door swinging open made my heart jolt. Agad akong napa-tingin sa pinanggalingan ng tunog na iyon.

And there he was.

I tried to call his name, but no word came out of my mouth. My lips parted at the sight of him. He was merely standing, but even from a safe distance, I sensed danger.

"Katherine," tawag niya sa pangalan ko. His eyes breathed fire when he saw me wearing his jacket. I was only wearing his jacket and my hair was in a bun.

"H-Hi," I said, barely able to pronounce the word. Ramdam ko ang pagtaas ng balihibo sa bawat sulok ng katawan ko. Biglang nanuyo ang lalamunan ko. Pakiramdam ko ay malalagutan na ako ng hininga kung subukan niyang humakbang palapit sa akin.

"Nasaan iyong mga tao sa labas?" mababa ang boses na tanong niya.

"N-Nanood ng concert... M-Mamayang madaling-araw pa iyong balik nila..." mahina kong sagot. Sa paraan ng pagtingin niya sa akin? Parang gusto ko na lang mapaupo sa sahig.

"You planned all these," he said, looking around and saw a picnic set on the floor. I could still remember when he told me before that he never experienced going to picnics. Both his parents were busy. Ako rin. Parehong busy ang mga magulang ko. So, I decided to do this for us. We could do things we wanted together. Because now, we're not alone anymore. We have each other now.

I nodded. "I told you... I have two gifts."

Jax's jaw clenched. And when he took a step closer, halos mapaupo ako sa sobrang panginginig ng tuhod ko.

"I think for the first time, I failed an exam," he said, taking another step, making me shiver.

"H-Ha?"

Hindi na siya muling nagsalita pa. Patuloy ang paghakbang niya hanggang huminto siya sa harapan ko. My entire body was shaking, but my eyes wouldn't leave his face. I wanted to reach to touch him, but I knew that the little shivers in my body would betray me.

This was his effect on me.

Sobra.

Nakaka-hilo.

Nakaka-tuliro.